The Best Restaurant Openings in Miami – August 2026

Miami Slice opened its fourth location this month inside Coconut Grove’s historic Engle Building, taking over the former Harry’s Pizzeria space. The new flagship retains the signature slice counter and favorites including the Pepperoni Proper, Mushroom Truffle, and Leeks on Bacon, but expands beyond pizza for the first time. Culinary director Jose “Chema” Cardenas has added Grove-exclusive dishes such as beef carpaccio, wood-fired cabbage, a watercress Caesar, and desserts. With booths, table service, and beer and wine, the location has more of a full-service restaurant feel than its predecessors. The expansion follows another milestone for Miami Slice, which recently ranked No. 3 on 50 Top Pizza’s list of the best pizza slices in the United States.

Burgers & Shakes has made its way to North Miami. Founded in 2011, the casual restaurant has built a loyal following around a no-frills menu of burgers, fries, and thick, hand-spun milkshakes. The new location offers an outdoor patio and a few counter seats inside. Another outpost is planned for Miami’s MiMo District, where the restaurant will add a full bar.

Taquiza’s departure from Miami Beach was less of a goodbye and more of a change of scenery. After closing its longtime North Beach location at the Broadmore Hotel on July 31 ahead of the Ocean Terrace redevelopment, chef and partner Steve Santana reopened the Michelin Guide-recommended taqueria at its commissary and tortilla factory in Little River. The move puts Taquiza’s tortilla-making operation front and center. Santana was an early champion of in-house nixtamalization in Miami, and the restaurant continues to make its own masa and tortillas. The Little River shop now emphasizes counter service and takeout, with advance ordering available for pickup and delivery. Regulars will notice one significant change: the tacos are now made with yellow corn, while Taquiza’s signature totopos remain blue.

The family behind one of Miami’s most recognizable insurance companies is moving into the restaurant business. The Estrellas, founders of Estrella Insurance, have opened Star Burger, a ranch-to-table smashburger concept built around beef raised on the family’s ranch in Mount Pleasant, Texas. The project traces its roots to company founder Nicolas Estrella Sr., who grew up on a tobacco farm in Cuba before the family began acquiring ranchland in Texas in the early 2000s. Star Burger uses 100 percent grass-fed, grass-finished beef shipped directly from the ranch to Miami. The focused menu includes the Rancho, Cattleman, and Lone Star burgers, along with Texas chili, fried pickles, and fries cooked in beef tallow. This is the family’s first restaurant venture, but the Estrellas are already considering additional locations and eventually franchising the concept.

After building a following through a Sunday pastry pop-up outside Downtown Miami favorite Over Under, Flagler St. Bakery finally has a permanent home. Baker Julian Gheiler makes an array of breads and pastries entirely from scratch on site, with many taking up to three days to complete. The medianoche croissant is a must-order, folding ham, Swiss cheese, roast pork, pickles, and mustard into cross-laminated croissant dough. Other pastries include chocolate babka, a miso caramel bar, a labneh-za’atar Danish, tahini babka with white chocolate, cardamom, and rose, and a lox bagel croissant. The coffee program features Panther Coffee beans and house-made syrups in drinks such as the Flagler Fog, made with espresso, Earl Grey syrup, and Earl Grey cold foam, and the Mamey Matcha, topped with mamey cold foam.

After years of popping up around Miami and supplying cookies to restaurants and cafes including Miami Slice, Caracas Bakery, Pari Pari, and Pluma, Liger’s finally has a home of its own. Founder and photographer Julian Cousins has opened a takeout ventanita on Northeast 24th Street. The window serves Liger’s signature crisp-edged, soft-centered chocolate chip cookies alongside flavors including iced lemon and white chocolate-tahini sesame. Cookies are available individually or by the dozen, along with frozen dough and ice cream sandwiches. For now, the ventanita is keeping dessert hours, opening from 6 to 10 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.

Bar veteran James MacInnes opened Stormy Monday as a temporary pop-up in March, with plans to wrap things up over the summer. Instead, the intimate South Beach cocktail bar briefly closed for a refresh in late July before returning on August 6 as a permanent fixture. The reopening brings a refreshed menu and lower cocktail prices while retaining favorites such as the Mucho Mango, a jasmine and bergamot gimlet topped with mango chutney foam; the mezcal-based Dahlia; and the Sierra Madre, a sparkling grapefruit paloma inspired by aguachile. Stormy Monday has also introduced a particularly Miami weather policy: whenever it rains, Dark & Stormys drop to $5 until the skies clear. During Sunset Hour, from 5 to 7 p.m., the bar offers $10 cocktails, $12 bites, $8 glasses of wine, and $5 beers.