Nothing lasts forever, and nowhere is that more apparent than in Miami. Over the last few years, we’ve been on a spree of In with the new! And while we welcome change (I mean, have you seen all these buzzy new concepts?!), it often comes at a cost. Rents rise, concepts go stale and the Miami gaze wanders to whatever’s shiniest, leaving the old restaurants, nightlife venues and trends many of us grew up loving to fall like proverbial dominos.
But wait, what’s this? Could it be Miami has developed a sense of nostalgia, and the gumption to actually do something about it? Judging by the number of reopenings this year (and more to come in 2025), it would seem so! More than nostalgia, perhaps it’s even a newfound reverence for the places and ideas that shaped Miami’s identity, a recognition that some things deserve to be more than fleeting. Don’t call it a comeback, or do. Here are the Miami restaurants, bars, people and trends that made triumphant returns in 2024.
1. Sunny’s Steakhouse
By far this year’s most anticipated opening, pandemic darling Sunny’s “Sometimes” Steakhouse made its return in October, dropping the “Sometimes” for a permanent address in their original Little River pop-up space. This is the Floridian steakhouse we didn’t know we needed—but co-owners Will Thompson and Carey Hynes did. They kept the outside almost intact in both aesthetic and spirit, with casual seating and bar service surrounding a decades-old Banyan tree, but created an indoor space that’s giving tropical brasserie with a generous drizzle of Floridian Art Deco grandeur. Sacrifices were made, as Downtown staple Jaguar Sun shuttered to divert focus to this sprawling new venue, but its decadent pasta dishes, buzzy bar, tableside martini service and down-to-earth personnel live on through Sunnys, alongside succulent cuts of meat and delicious sauces to top.
2. MAI-KAI
For being the most tropical region in the continental United States, we really have a lack of tiki culture. Then again, Mai-Kai makes up for that tenfold. After a three-year hiatus, South Florida’s iconic Polynesian supper club has gloriously returned, reclaiming its place as a cornerstone of tiki culture—not just here, but throughout the country. Established in 1956, the Mai-Kai has been meticulously restored, introducing modern upgrades while preserving its lush gardens, thatched hut architecture and world-famous rum cocktails created by Cory Starr, previously of Chicago’s iconic Three Dots and a Dash. While not a tiki bar per se, the venue’s Molokai Bar touts a multi-page menu of 57 different drinks, including reinterpretations of classics by Mariano Licudine, Mai-Kai’s original bartender and a protégé of tiki legend Donn the Beachcomber. Fans can again enjoy its legendary Polynesian dinner show, which blends fire dancing, hula and an unquenchable thirst to book a flight to Hawaii.
3. KYU
Before Pastis and Uchi and Doya, when you wanted upscale bites and buzzy drinks in Wynwood, you went to KYU. Opened in 2016 by two Zuma alums, KYU helped to introduce Miami to wood-fired pan Asian cuisine before expanding to New York, Las Vegas and Mexico City. It closed in 2022 due to storm damage and after a two-year renovation, reopened in March with a menu that fused new shareable dishes with former favorites like pan-seared snapper with brown butter-white miso, crunchy kale with nam prik and togarashi, Korean fried chicken with chili butter and the She-So Spicy cocktail (a Japanese take on a sour). Overall, the venue KYUs Japandi brutalist interior feels refreshed vs. redone with a healthy dose of minimalist grandeur and earthy elements like oolite and Honeywood warming the industrial space. It almost feels like it never left.
4. Sra. Martinez
Miami could not be the dining destination it is today without restaurants like Sra. Martinez, which opened in 2009 and helped Michelle Bernstein become the first woman to win the James Beard Award for Best Chef: South. The OG classic operated in the Miami Design District between 2008 and 2013, a time when the area was still considered seedy despite having a range of luxury home showrooms and a single Christian Louboutin store. Chef Bernstein and David Martinez will be bringing Sra. Martinez back to life, this time in Coral Gables, with a fresh spin on their award-winning concept. Opening this December, the reimagined restaurant offers a menu inspired by Spain and Mediterranean flavors, complemented by live music, a vibrant cocktail program, and the welcoming neighborhood vibe it was always known for.
5. Taquerias El Mexicano and Los Altos
If you count Taquerias El Mexicano’s crispy chips and queso fundido or pastor-filled quesadillas as favorite dishes, then you were probably watching Mad Hospitality Group’s lawsuit against Commissioner Joe Carollo very closely, as the restaurant’s reopening kind of hinged on whether or not he would be held responsible for unlawfully targeting the venue to avenge the group’s support for an adversary candidate. This led to the 40-year-old establishment being shut down by the City of Miami in 2022 for a “building code violation,” only to ceremoniously return in February with a refreshed menu and sense of purpose. Months later, the restaurant’s upstairs tequila speakeasy Los Altos also reopened, giving us back a much-missed spot in Little Havana’s nightlife scene. Thankfully, the candy shop entrance remains unchanged.
6. Hoy Como Ayer
Hoy Como Ayer, the iconic Little Havana Latin music venue where legends like Celia Cruz, Albita, and Jon Secada once performed, closed in June 2019 after 20 years when its original owner couldn’t reach a lease agreement with the landlord, leaving a genuine void in the neighborhood’s live music scene, almost like a cultural five-year drought. Thankfully, it reopened in July and today’s Hoy Como Ayer is anything but a relic. With a modernized 4,000-square-foot layout, it now features a 65-seat bar, a 25-seat patio, and La Sala—a stylish wine bar that feels like an intimate living room. Weekly live music, produced in partnership with Conecta Miami Arts, fills the main room, now equipped with cutting-edge sound and lighting, where you’ll also find the city’s best salsa bands performing as well as the kinds of DJs that frequent more experimental music venues like Zey Zey and 1-800-Lucky.
7. CATCH
When Meat Packing staple CATCH opened at the James Hotel in 2013, the high-end but homey seafood-centric eatery was a bit ahead of its time. Though frequented by celebrities, it was replaced by Byblos just three years later. Today’s New York-centric climate in Miami is more favorable to the chain, which returned to South Beach in May with a sprawling location that feels like a greenhouse that’s as industrial as it is art deco modern, as well as a sunny rooftop that just opened for brunch and alfresco dining.
8. Burger Bob’s (as Birdie Bistro)
A lot has changed in Coral Gables over the past 50 years and until it closed in 2022, Burger Bob’s was not one of them. The beloved Granada Golf Course diner known for its $5 breakfasts and burgers reopened in November with a new name, look and menu led by longtime manager Rita Tennyson. Don’t worry though; while the revamped venue is more of a delightful breakfast nook than a diner and the offerings now include lighter fare like acai bowls and avocado toast, you can still find Burger Bob’s classic patty, homemade chili and hot dogs—albeit at a slight-but-not-at-all-offensive markup.
9. Miami Roller Rink
Miami Roller Rink, the last of its kind in the 305, has been saved from vanishing into Condo-Land by a Kendall family who refused to let Miami’s skating legacy fade. With decades of birthday parties and skate nights etched into its floor, the rink—formerly Super Wheels—didn’t get a flashy makeover, just a respectful revival. There’s the same neon carpet, noisy arcade and cute concession stand you grew up with, but now there are additional themed nights, adults-only events, classes for roller rookies and even day camps for when school’s out, including holiday weeks and teacher planning days. It’s a slice of old Miami, reinterpreted by a fresh new family.
10. VXN Workout
There was a time when you could find a VXN Workout class in every neighborhood in Miami and on every list of “hot workouts” in America. Blame it on the embrace of “soft girl workouts,” more competition, or the pandemic (hello at home workouts), as quickly as a background dancer could bend that back, the dance workout kind of dissipated in Miami. Then again, dancing could never here, especially when it makes you feel like a coordinated extra in a Beyonce video, and so the Miami-born VXN workout is back, this time in a studio space near the Bird Road Arts District. In addition to dropping calories while dropping low, VXN is all about building confidence and helping you shine (or refind) that fabulous light of yours.
