Where to Eat in Miami’s Financial District

If you’re craving international flavors in southern Florida, there’s finally a worthy competitor to the Epcot Center in Orlando: Brickell, which is also known as Miami’s financial district. The neighborhood boasts a modern skyline, upscale residences, design-focused hotels, and an ever-growing food scene. In fact, the area has transformed into a landing pad for global restaurateurs and scene-makers, riddled with some of the hottest restaurants from cities around the globe.

Where to Eat in Downtown Miami

Just off Brickell Avenue, on the north side of the Miami River crossing, you’ll spot two of London’s hotspots offering pan-Asian izakaya indulgences on Biscayne Boulevard.

Zuma is a scene in any country — its Dubai location was ranked one of the world’s best bars last year. And if the sushi bar and grill hadn’t opened here back in 2010, it’s unlikely so many scene restaurants it influenced would have followed suit, including Novikov, just across the street.

The original Novikov Restaurant & Bar in London divides its menu between Italian and Asian cooking but at Novikov Miami, Chinese and Japanese fare takes center stage. And there’s no better way to experience it than at Sunday brunch, which pairs unlimited pours of Laurent-Perrier champagne and Whispering Angel rosé with chutoro and caviar nigiri and duck and foie gras shui mai.

Where to Eat in Brickell

In the heart of Brickell, eight of the city’s most fashionable outposts are all within one square mile along Brickell Avenue.

At LPM Restaurant & Bar, you may spy Gstaad Guy, the influencer who pokes fun at the rich and famous with playful satire through his multiple alter egos. If you don’t spot one of his signature characters at the bar of this branch of the St. Tropez bistro, you will find a signature cocktail inspired by them, including the bubbly Colton Paloma, which shakes Don Julio 1942 with rhubarb and tonka bean.

Mediterranean vibes extend next door to Zeru Miami, a new arrival from Mexico City offering Spanish coastal cooking that channel both Barcelona and the Basque country — with a Miami flair. Think classic bikini sandwiches padded with smoked salmon and osetra caviar and a manchego cheese fondant with vanilla ice cream.

Osaka may be half a world away but don’t let the name fool you. Chef Eddie Castro’s acclaimed restaurant first opened in Buenos Aires, where he perfected his take on Peruvian-Japanese Nikkei cuisine. It has spawned outposts across South America — from Bogota, Colombia to Punta del Este, Uruguay. Every location transports diners with contrasting flavor combinations, like charred avocado and wasabi. 

If you’re craving charred beef, you may already be familiar with Nusr-et Steakhouse Miami. The chophouse chain is helmed by the viral Turkish grill pro better known as Salt Bae, who makes it snow sodium chloride over 24-karat gold leaf tomahawks with a signature pinch of his fingers.

And if you’re after more old-school overtures, there’s Dirty French Steakhouse by Major Food Group — the team behind Carbone Beach and Contessa. While the name is a nod to their restaurant at the Ludlow Hotel in New York City, the menu here draws from The Grill, right down to its rolling prime rib cart. Up the spectacle by starting with a shellfish tower of oysters and lobster — it is delivered on an 80-pound silver tureen packed with ice that is sure to turn heads.

Japanese steakhouse Gekko, which opened last summer, is a collaboration between the rapper Bad Bunny and local restaurateur David Grutman. Here, proper Wagyu steaks — including an olive-fed filet mignon from Kagawa, Japan — steal the show … at least until showtime. Gekko is the Japanese word for moonlight, and the party here goes on all night as dinner guests filter into the lounge, which offers bottle service until 4 a.m.

Depending on the bottles you’re after, you may want to pay a visit to Sexy Fish Miami, another new addition to the late-night scene transported from London. While the London outpost is known for having the most extensive (and expensive) Japanese whisky list outside of Japan, in Miami it’s all about bubbly. A full page of its wine list is devoted to rare and limited edition Dom Perignon offerings, including a Lenny Kravitz edition and a lineup of glow-in-the-dark label vintages.

Hong Kong’s Hutong Miami has also gotten in on the after-hours game, as it welcomed an over-the-top “Dark Brunch” buffet last month. Starting at $70, the menu includes unlimited drinks paired with dishes like bao, fried rice, and spring rolls.

Where to Eat in Brickell Key

Brickell Key is a triangle of happiness. Follow Brickell Key Drive east from Gekko, to the small island home of the Mandarin Oriental, Miami, and its signature restaurant, La Mar by Gaston Acurio. Here, you can enjoy waterfront views with pisco-based tiki drinks and a dozen takes on ceviche, including Peruvian snapper and Japanese hamachi. They’re all conceived by Peru’s most famous chef, who opened his only stateside outpost after receiving the lifetime achievement award from World’s 50 Best for his eponymous Astrid & Gastón in Lima, Peru.

If made-to-order isn’t fresh enough, head to Naoe, an intimate eight-seat sushi bar hidden within the Courvoisier Centre. Here, chef Kevin Cory’s motto is: “It isn’t fresh … it’s alive.” The motto also reflects the energy omakase diners experience from their first bite of barbecued eel to their final spoonful of soy sauce ice cream. Despite the office building’s name, don’t expect to cap your meal with cognac — dinner is paired with sake imported from Cory’s family brewery in the mountains of Ishikawa, Japan. It’s a small world, after all.