This January, rejuvenate and revitalize your dining experiences at local restaurants and bars in SoFlo, where healthy options await. Embrace the new year, new you ethos.
Café Bastille Miami Beach
Cafe Bastille, an exciting all-day French café, serves scratch-made dishes with fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Known for its indulgent brunch classics, the menu also offers delicious healthy options that do not skimp on taste. For example, the flavor-packed Spicy Salmon Bowl is made with rice, Asian spinach salad, avocado, cherry tomato, cucumbers and pineapple drizzled with eel sauce and spicy mayo. Don’t miss the nutrient-dense smoothies, such as Green Perfection, a blend of apple, spinach, cucumber, mint and pineapple, or the cold-pressed juices like the Kicker, a concoction of kale, celery, pineapple, apple and ginger.
MaryGold’s by Brad Kilgore
MaryGold’s by Brad Kilgore, located on the ground floor of the stylish boutique Arlo Wynwood hotel, is taking its new menu into the new year. The lush, modern restaurant from renowned Chef Brad Kilgore (named “Best Chef 2023” by Miami New Times) revamps its menu every season, and for early 2024, guests searching for healthier fare can delight in his French-inspired brasserie dishes. The visually stunning Heirloom Tomatoes ($20) with stracciatella, pistachio, leche de tigre, jalapeño and basil are great to snack on or share. For the main course, the Grilled Swordfish ($34), with coconut dashi, sunchoke, caramelized onions and thyme, is a must-try.
JOEY Aventura
This 2024, JOEY Aventura is the place to be for a modern dining oasis serving a globally inspired menu that caters to diverse palates. The premium menu offers healthy fare like the Cajun Blackened Chicken ($37), a full breast of chicken served with creamy coleslaw and warm potato bacon salad. The Yellowfin Tuna Salad ($29) is an elevated take on the typical ahi tuna, seared rare and mixed with mango, peanuts, avocado, crispy wontons and cilantro ginger dressing. With JOEY’s unwavering commitment to locally sourced ingredients and globally inspired flavors, guests can always expect exceptional food, a lively ambiance and outstanding hospitality.
Pinstripes Aventura
Pinstripes, the newly opened experiential dining and entertainment destination at Esplanade at Aventura, seamlessly blends chef-driven Italian-American cuisine with the excitement of bowling and bocce. Committed to serving locally sourced ingredients in every dish, Pinstripes takes salads to a whole new level, ensuring they’re the freshest and most flavorful on the block. Options include the savory and sweet Super Salad ($20), kale and spinach topped with caramelized pecans, marinated figs, veggie chips, fresh avocado, ancient grains, raspberries served with a honey red-wine vinaigrette, and the Burrata & Acorn Squash ($19), with roasted acorn squash, grains, arugula, herb-infused oil and balsamic glaze. Add protein like grilled chicken ($6), shrimp ($7), salmon ($8) or steak ($8) to any of the salads for additional nutritional value. Sticking to a healthy New Year’s resolution has never been so enticing.
Uchi Miami
Say hello to portion control at Uchi Miami, known for its elevated food menu arranged by temperature and texture. Each dish at the Wynwood restaurant is served in a tasting size so guests can enjoy a variety of flavors to their heart’s desire. For a cool tasting, the Hama Chili ($23.50) is a delicate plate of yellowtail, ponzu, Thai chili and orange supreme. Healthy hot plates include the Walu Walu ($21), oak-grilled escolar, yuzupon, candied citrus and myoga, and Halibut ($33.50), with romanesco, shiitake, hazelnut and coconut beurre blanc.
Italica Midtown
Who said Italian cuisine can’t be healthy? This year, fulfill your New Year’s resolutions at Italica Midtown for a modern and colorful twist on traditional Italian cuisine. The vibrant restaurant offers far more than pizza and pasta, such as the Carpaccio di Salmone ($20) starter, thinly sliced raw salmon with fried capers, arugula, cherry tomatoes and Dijon vinaigrette. Move onto well-balanced mains such as the Gamberi ($18) salad, with grilled shrimp, arugula, radicchio rosso, beets, fennel, onions and avocado with lemony vinaigrette. Come for weekend brunch from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. to try the Healthy Mediterranean Bowl ($11), with Greek yogurt, homemade granola, fresh berries and honey.
Negroni Bistro & Sushi Bar Midtown
Known as a favorite local hot spot, Negroni Bistro & Sushi Bar in Midtown is one of two South Florida locations of the urban-chic Latin American brand serving fusion dishes from Peru to Tokyo. Its global menu offers a diversity of healthy dishes to choose from. For example, the Shrimp Quinoa Bowl ($18 lunch; $21 dinner) blends grilled shrimp, smashed avocado, quinoa, red onions, sliced almonds, cherry tomatoes, sweet corn and mixed herbs with lemon vinaigrette. Fan of Nikkei cuisine? The Ceviche Carretillero ($24) comes with shrimp, mahi-mahi, red onions, cilantro, peppers, torched avocado, crispy quinoa, sweet potato purée, aji amarillo, leche de tigre, cancha and fried calamari.
The Balfour Hotel
The Balfour Hotel’s food and beverage offerings feature light and refreshing plates with a new robust menu curated by Executive Chef Antony Awak that includes dishes ranging from fresh seafood and vegan options to farm-fresh meats and produce. Locals and travelers looking for new places to dine while making health-conscious choices can select the gluten-free/vegan Mushroom Tacos ($14), featuring grilled portobello, shitake and jicama topped with red cabbage slaw and a housemade cilantro-lime dressing, or The Harvest Bowl ($19), another gluten-free/vegan option with tricolor quinoa, turmeric-roasted cauliflower, beets, cucumbers roasted carrots, garbanzo beans, roasted corn, pickled onion and avocado mixed in a citrus tahini dressing. Serving as the hotel’s social hub, this space celebrates Miami’s diverse cultural scene with its plush rattan furniture, pops of tropical prints and warm hues, and art from local artist Gustavo Oviedo.
G Bar at The Gabriel Miami Downtown
Located on the first floor of The Gabriel Miami Downtown, G Bar is an expansive restaurant splashed with green and navy tones for an earthy ambiance, featuring telescopic sliding doors that open up to a covered terrace, allowing for open-air dining. Hotel guests and diners can start the new year refreshed and ready to achieve their goals with G Bar’s selection of shareable plates, flatbreads, sandwiches and more. Healthy options include the Baja Tacos ($20), three local fish tacos topped with shredded cabbage slaw, chipotle crema and pickled jalapeño; Cauliflower Crust Pizza ($15), with vegan cheese topped with oregano and garlic powder; and Bella’s Vegan Burger ($19), topped with vegan cheese, fresh lettuce, vine-ripened tomatoes and onions.
Negroni Bistro & Sushi Bar Negroni Weston
Nestled within Weston Town Center, Negroni Weston marks the Broward County debut of the acclaimed Latin American restaurant brand already a hit among locals in Midtown Miami. Weston locals and visitors searching for a well-balanced menu this year can enjoy selections such as the Chef’s Choice Crudo Salad ($20), with tuna sashimi, mixed greens, arugula, wakame, mango, onions, cucumber and Nikkei vinaigrette, or Miso Salmon ($29), a seared salmon fillet glazed with miso and panka sauce served with sautéed Asian vegetables and quinoa. Ever had a tiradito? The Hamachi Truffled ($21) makes a perfect tasting dish with thinly sliced hamachi served with truffle ponzu sauce, togarashi, shoestring potatoes and scallions.
Casa Sensei
Searching for sushi in good health this year? Casa Sensei offers two delicious riceless rolls. The cucumber-wrapped Skinny Jimmy ($19) is the quintessential healthy roll, made with salmon, tuna, wahoo, avocado and ponzu sauce. For something a little more luxurious, the Million Dollar Roll ($50) is garnished with sparkly gold flakes and comes with lobster, scallops, foie gras caviar and truffle oil. For Latin American fare, trade taco shells for lettuce wraps – just ask your server! Those in search of mocktails this Dry January can sip from the Tropical Fusion ($12), with orange and pineapple juice, almond syrup, lime juice and grenadine, or Casa Sunrise ($12), with fresh watermelon juice and orange slice topped with orange juice.
Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant @ Galleria Mall
Redefine what it means to have a modern, healthy dish this year at Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurants. Located on the second level of The Galleria in Fort Lauderdale, the Broward outpost combines a restaurant, a Napa-style tasting room and an artisanal retail market in a warm, inviting space. Healthy fare is given its own section on the Life Balance menu, featuring a variety of low-calorie dishes such as the Seared Atlantic Salmon ($24.99), with sautéed spinach, oven-roasted Yukon gold potatoes and sweet San Marzano tomato sauce, and Roasted Chicken Giardiniera ($21.99), with spinach, mushroom, tomato, housemade pickled vegetables and capellini pasta. If you’re participating in Dry January, Cooper’s Hawk serves mocktails like The Spa ($5.99) and Passion & Spice ($5.99).
