The coolest bars and restaurants in town

It's time for a new edition (easy there, Bobby Brown) of the Thrillist 47, giving you the best new and new-ish places to eat and drink. Some had to go (it's not OUR fault someone turned Bloom into a bar named after a cat), while other hot spots could not be denied (Hello, Michael Schwartz!). Have a look at the list (organized by hood, this isn't a ranking) and make the most of your next night out.
 

CORAL GABLES

bulla gastrobar

1) Bulla Gastrobar
2500 Ponce de Leon Blvd; 305.441.0107
To avoid any dangerous Spanish gastrobar deficiencies in Coral Gables, Por Fin has been reopened as Bulla, which is pronounced like Stuart Scott's catchphrase "as cool as the other side of the pillow" "boo-yah", translates to "noise", and is serving an array of Spanish cuisine inspired by the owner's trip to Barcelona last summer.
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rok burger

2) ROK:BRGR
5800 SW 73rd St; 305.663.6099
Opened in the 305 after fattening up Broward-dwellers who now look just terrible in their Sig Ep Golf Pros and Tennis Hoes Party '11 shirts, ROK's a spacious gastroburgery that delivers the meaty goods necessary to have you weighing 305.
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latin house burger

3) Latin House Burger & Taco Bar
9565 Sunset Dr; 786.564-5683
LH finally went brick 'n mortar, meaning you can now get stuffed full of super-authentic Mexican fare (and super-not-authentic Mexican burgers) without hunting down their trucks.
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eating house

4) Eating House
804 Ponce De Leon Blvd; 305.448.6524
After a too-brief incarnation as a casual nightly pop-up in Cafe Ponce's former digs, Giorgio Rapicavoli's Eating House went blessedly permanent with its liquid-nitrogen-using digs.
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pincho factory

5) Pincho Factory Coral Gables
32 Giralda Ave; 305.631.2038
Wayyy easier to get to than getting to the original location on the corner of Bird Road and... uh, somewhere-in-the-Everglades(?), the second PF location is still serving some badass burgers, brunch, and their signature skewered meats.
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MIAMI BEACH/NORTH MIAMI BEACH/SURFSIDE

teqzitan

6) Tequiztlan Mexican Restaurant and Tequila Bar
1884 Bay Rd; 305.397.8442
Beach mainstay El Rancho Grande has been reborn in the guise of this Sunset Harbor joint, where they've got their usual spicy deliciousness and tequila. Lots of tequila.
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tongue and cheek

7) Tongue & Cheek
431 Washington Ave; 305.704.2900
This place is almost a pun (maybe?), and is definitely a homestyle American spot putting a chef’s spin on traditional favorites (poutine-pastrami-spiced fries!), and offering a chemistry lab's worth of slightly insane specialty cocktails.
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lucali

8) Lucali
1930 Bay Rd; 305.695.4441
This revered Brooklyn pizza temple's doing its thing in former candy shop, where chef Mark Iacono's brick oven'd open kitchen is turning out wood-fired pies and calzones that're... err, sweet?
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michael swartz

9) Restaurant Michael Schwartz
1775 Collins Ave; 305.534.6300
The main power of The Schwartz is either to slightly emasculate Rick Moranis' Dark Helmet, or bring people to The Raleigh Hotel, where chef Michael is serving up his signature James-Beard-winning eats.
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de rodriguez
De Rodriguez Cuba

10) De Rodriguez Cuba on Ocean
101 Ocean Dr; 305.672.6624
With poolside seating and a revamped interior with lots of aged wood, Ocean plates Doug Rodriguez's Nuevo Latino take on the sea, this time with some Asian influence: ceviches including Thai lobster coconut w/ ginger, or tuna watermelon w/ kumquat, yuzu, and Thai basil, plus crazy takes on Cuban entrees like the Cuban sandwich on a stick and a similarly-skewered pan con bistic.
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pb steak

11) PB Steak
1787 Purdy Ave; 305.695.9550
Because opening just four restaurants in two years is for total slackers, the Pubbelly boys birthed a fifth: PB Steak, a barn-style meatery in the old Georgia's Union digs (and right down the street from the rest of their empire) serving an extensive lineup of crazy beef cuts with even crazier toppings.
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yardbird

12) The Broken Shaker
1661 Meridian Ave; 786.360.2553
After birthing a beachy pop-up with deliciously inventive cocktails, The Broken Shaker overhauled their backyard space into a beautiful oasis of booze, games, poolside lounging. And games. And booze.
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yardbird

13) Yardbird Southern Table & Bar
1600 Lenox Ave; 305.538.5220
After taking over from Top Chef-er Jeff McInnis (gigi, Norman’s), new head-kitchen-honcho Clay Miller is leading this comfort food-plating noshery oozes down-homeness, like fried green tomato BLTs w/ Snake River Farms pork belly & Tabasco glaze, or a Brunswick Stew packed w/ gator sausage & smoked rabbit.
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burger and beer

14) Burger & Beer Joint
1766 Bay Rd; 305.672.3287
B&B flexes its muscles with three distinct spaces for three distinct yous: hedonistic burger house, homey sports bar, and shadowy lounge that's date-friendly even if yours isn't.
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serafina

15) Serafina
1111 Collins Ave; 305.534.8455
This NYC Boot-food stalwart came South to fill the former Tudor House digs with street art-esque murals and excellent ravioli samplers.
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la locanda

16) La Locanda
413 Washington Ave; 305.538.6277
Though often hidden in the shadows of its better-known next-door neighbor Fratelli La Bufala, La Locanda is baking up the same brand of thin-crust, straight-from-Italy pies but with stuff you haven’t seen on pizza anywhere else, like hot dogs and sunny-side-up eggs.
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florida cookery

17) Florida Cookery
1545 Collins Ave; 305.604.5700
A bright, airy, contemporary vibe backdrops Kirk Wessel's inventive plates, which're loaded with ingredients he personally gathers from hyper-local farms and fisheries.
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dolce italian

18) Dolce Italian
1690 Collins Ave; 786.975.2550
After $35 million made The Gale & Regent into a 1940s-style hotel (worth noting: staycationing was also HUGE during the war), Dolce took over their two-level lobby to serve nicely affordable Italian classics. Also, there's a mozzarella bar!
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josh's deli

19) Josh's Deli
9517 Harding Ave; 305.397.8494
After years of plating Asian eats, owner/chef Josh Marcus did everyone a mitzvah by converting his Surfside Chow Down Grill location into a no-clowning, "homey", kosher-style eatery.
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BRICKELL

toasted bagel

20) Toasted Bagelry and Deli
83 SW 8th St; 305.400.6996
Brickell’s Toasted Bagelry and Deli is proving to New Yorkers that no, it’s not in the stupid water, by baking up bagels as good as anything you’ll find up there, plus a a gigantic menu of sandwiches named after every 'hood in Miami -- from Fisher Island to Overtown.
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naoe

21) NAOE
661 Brickell Key Dr; 305.947.6263
In some ways, Chef Kevin Cory's place is about as simple as things get -- two seatings per night, eight people per seating, starkly minimal decor, an omakase menu you don't have to choose a single thing from. They'll get in touch to prep for any food allergies (peanuts = no problem; sushi = might be a problem), then prepare a whatever-Cory-feels-like meal consisting completely of "natural Japanese cuisine" employing both local and Tokyo-imported swimmers.
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sake bar

22) Bonding
638 S Miami Ave; 786.409.4794
Hatched by Thailand native and Mr. Yum owner Bond (just Bond -- that's it. What were you waiting for?), this sultry Asian fusion spot between Tobacco Road and River Oyster Bar comes with an illuminated sake bar.
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momi ramen

23) Momi Ramen
5 SW 11th St; 786.391.2392
If you went to college/were poor for far sadder reasons, at some point, you likely fancied yourself a ramen expert. Now meet a real one: the Hong Kong-born mastermind of Momi, who traveled Japan for a half-dozen years to learn about the real-deal stuff.
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otc

24) OTC
1250 S Miami Ave; 305.374.4612
This isn't a circa-1991 episode of Yo! MTV Raps, but everyone's still down wit' OTC, Brickell's farmhouse industrial counter-servicer kicking out bar food, burgers, and more.
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brother jimmy's bbq

25) Brother Jimmy's BBQ
901 S Miami Ave; 786.360.3650
After two decades-plus of filling New Yorkers with delicious smoked meats and enough fishbowls to start one of those ping pong toss games on the midway, they decided to bring BBQ sauce'd deliciousness all the way down Highway 1 to Miami.
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SOUTH OF FIFTH

local house

26) The Local House
400 Ocean Dr; 305.538.5529
Outfitted to look like, well, a beach house, LH's rustic communal tables get piled high with huge balls of burrata, lamb sliders on soft yeast rolls, and octopus carpaccio w/ crumbled chorizo.
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my ceviche

27) My Ceviche
235 Washington Ave; 305.397.8710
My Ceviche can also be yours, thanks to chef Sam Gorenstein (BLT, The Raleigh) and Roger Duarte (George's Stone Crab), who serve crustaceans and ceviche-ized local fish at actually affordable prices.
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MIDTOWN

soi chinese

28) Soi Chinese Kitchen
645 NW 20 St; 305.482.0238
If there are two complaints pretty much everyone in Miami has, they’re 1) the general unfamiliarity with the concept of a turn signal, and 2) the complete lack of good Chinese food delivery -- Soi Chinese Kitchen's solved the latter by sending its modern Chinese with high-quality meats and home-cooked sauces to a delivery area so big, you can totally avoid those signal-less drivers while sitting on your couch and enjoying it.
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kozina

29) Kouzina Greek Bistro
3535 NE 2nd Ave; 305.392.1825
Promising the feeling of Mykonos without the significantly weirder feeling that happens every time the fat dude in the Speedo walks by, Greek nightclub dons Makis Paliouras and Yiannis Sotiropoulos opened Kouzina, where you can enjoy their spin on Greek food in an airy outdoor space lined with tall hedges and walls of white shutters.
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bar louie

30) Bar Louie
3201 N Miami Ave; 786.879.8260
If Peter Gibbons were real, he'd definitely say to hell with Flingers and Chotchkie's, and have Jennifer Aniston meet him at Bar Louie: a lounge-like tavern in Midtown in which everything seems just overdone enough.
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lagianappe

31) Lagniappe
3425 NE 2nd Ave; 305.576.0108
Pretty much the best house party since Kid 'n Play got braids, Lagniappe is a NOLA-style music-venue-meets-bar-meets-market hatched by David Tunnel, where vintage couches and a grand piano dot the inside, while the massive backyard has patio furniture for folk, jazz, blues, and Bluegrass acts.
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sweet cakes

32) Sweetcakes
3301 NE 1 Ave; 786.228.7944
This bakery/sandwich shop/late-night craving-ender delivers all of its creative eats -- including a line of blessedly boozy cupcakes -- deep into the night.
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DESIGN DISTRICT

mc kitchen

33) MC Kitchen
4141 NE 2nd Ave; 305.456.9948
MC Kitchen really should've been one of the Fat Boys, but instead is the brainchild of star chef Dena Marino (Iron Chef America), who brought a little ski-town feel (plus tons of pasta!) back with her from a stay in Aspen.
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design oak

34) Oak Tavern
35 NE 40th St; 786.391.1818
Smokey the Bear would just have a PSA field day with Oak Tavern, David Bracha's (River Seafood & Oyster Bar) gigantic, woodsy eat & drinkery, where massive bark lamps sit astride a giant palm oak tree they transplanted to their patio.
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WYNWOOD

butcher shop

35) Butcher Shop
165 NW 23rd St; 305.846.9120
The father-son team behind this meat-cutting emporium want you to pick your own meat out of a case, let them season and grill it for you, then enjoy it in a spacious beer garden with custom-made craft beers.
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pancho taco

36) Pancho Taco
2531 NW 2nd Ave; 305.748.2828
And now, a poem: There once was a man who returned from Spain/ to ensure Miami drinkers didn't abstain/ he opened a bar that looked like grandma's attic/ where all the locals have long since wreaked havoc/ now he's gone and upped things once more/ creating a wrestling ring that serves tacos galore. It's called Pancho Taco.
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DOWNTOWN

toro

37) Toro Toro
100 Chopin Plaza; 305.372.4710
We're bullish bullish on Toro Toro, a sexy pan-Latin meatery in the InterContinental's lobby that basically serves the NeverEnding Story of dinner, except that the barrage of nonstop steak and lamb chops is the very much the opposite of the Nothing.
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38) db Bistro Moderne
345 Ave of the Americas; 305.421.8800
The newest baby of three-time James Beard Award-winner Daniel Boulud, db blends traditional French technique with seasonal American flavors in a space with 18ft ceilings, a slick front lounge with a sunken bar, and an eight-top chef's table.
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avenue d piano

39) Avenue D8 S Miami Ave; 305.371.4823
Paying homage to Prohibition Miami, Avenue D loaded the old Macy's with secluded tables, guitars, saxophones, and a baby grand whose ivories are frequently tickled by soul, funk, and jazz bands.
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FT LAUDERDALE

riverside market

40) The Riverside Market
608 SW 12th Ave; 954.358.8333
Tucked away in SailboatBend, this homey, family-owned convenience store-turned-craft-beer-emporium pours more than 550 craft brews, so you can expand your suds palate while taking down all kinds of delicious eats. They also host home-brewing contests and hold schools for craft beer all year round.
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gilberts burger

41) Gilbert’s 17th Street Grill
1821 Cordova Rd; 954.768.8990
Try Gilbert’s flame-broiled 8oz of Certified Angus Beef in all its unadulterated glory with just lettuce and tomato, and you’ll understand why it’s a Broward legend. Try the bleu cheese-stuffed burger, or the goat cheese burger with caramelized onions, and you’ll start your own blog about it.
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public house
sara shake

42) Himmarshee Public House
201 SW 2nd St; 954.616.5275
The dudes behind Rok:Brgr and its ridiculous food creations are doing the same things at this mega bar, except with 50 craft beers on draft and food other than burgers, like lobster nachos that're so good, you won't even realize the 10ft LED screen, 30 large plasma TVs are showing the Dolphins.
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KEY BISCAYNE

whiskey joe's

43) Whiskey Joe's
3301 Rickenbacker Cswy; 305.423.6590
Some of the best things in life migrate South, like geese, or LeBron James -- though actually, geese don't qualify, as they're completely boring when you think about it. One that definitely holds up: this Tampa-born, island-themed party bar on Key Biscayne.
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MIMO

the federal

44) The Federal
5132 Biscayne Blvd; 786.383.2408
This overwhelmingly homey spot's basically a cross between a country attic and a backyard, if only the backyard had potato sack-lined booths, picnic tables, a gazebo-style bar, and meaty goodness from pig wings to porterhouses.
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blue collar

45) Blue Collar
6730 Biscayne Blvd; 305.756.0366
What’s "an upper-middle-class Jewish kid from Miami" to do when all his friends become doctors and lawyers? Become a lawyer for doctors, naturally! “just a blue-collar cook” and open a retro-dinerish spot serving all his childhood faves.
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NORTH MIAMI

bourbon steak

46) Bourbon Steak
19999 W Country Club Dr; 7 86.279.6600
A certain grocery store based in Jacksonville likes to call themselves “The Beef People”, but we all know the real Beef People in Florida are Bourbon Steak, as evidenced by their badass steaks and the fact they've got one of Miami's best burgers.
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riverside market

47) Bulldog Barbecue
15400 Biscayne Blvd; 305.940.9655
This NM standby is taking a unique approach to repping its 'hood -- crafting some insane food combinations, putting them on a bun, and then naming almost everything on their new-ish Miami-centric menu after something specific to the 305.
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