The 7 Best Mediterranean Restaurants in Miami, From José Andrés’ Newest Opening to GAIA

Miami has always understood the Mediterranean table. The warm climate, the seafood, the culture of lingering over a meal long after the plates have been cleared, all of it maps naturally onto the city’s own rhythms. What has changed in recent years is the quality and range of the restaurants doing it. From a José Andrés-led coastal concept on Mid-Beach to a Greek-Mediterranean destination in Coconut Grove that has become one of the city’s most consistently sought-after reservations, Miami’s Mediterranean dining scene is operating at a level worth paying attention to. Here is where to book.

AVA MediterrAegean

Photo Credit: Omar Vega

Riviera Dining Group’s Coconut Grove flagship has quickly become one of Miami’s most immersive and consistently excellent Mediterranean dining experiences. Built around the Greek concept of PAREA, the notion of friends gathering to share ideas, food, and conversation, AVA delivers a menu of fresh seafood, charred proteins, seasonal produce, and clean Mediterranean ingredients executed with a modern Cycladic sensibility. Standout dishes include sea bass carpaccio, black truffle spaghetti, and grilled branzino. The weekend brunch, available Saturday and Sunday from 11:30 AM with a $45 prix fixe option, is one of the most popular in the neighborhood. The room itself, designed with Cycladic-inspired architectural details, is one of the most considered dining environments in Coconut Grove.

GAIA

Photo Credit: GAIA

Chef Izu Ani’s Greek-Mediterranean restaurant at 801 South Pointe Drive in South of Fifth is the most globally credentialed Mediterranean restaurant in Miami, having expanded to Miami after earning devoted followings in Dubai, Monaco, London, and Marbella. The philosophy is deceptively simple: the highest quality ingredients, prepared with the discipline of classical training, presented with the generosity and warmth that define Greek hospitality at its best. The Ice Market, a daily display of pristine fish and seafood from which guests select their catch and how they want it prepared, is one of the city’s most distinctive dining rituals. Raw selections include Bluefin Tuna Caviar and Sea Bream Carpaccio. From the sea, the kitchen prepares whole fish to order using traditional techniques. The room’s Cycladic-inspired design, with whitewashed tones, limestone textures, and natural materials, is built for the kind of dinner that starts at eight and ends when it ends.

Aguasal Miami Beach

Photo Credit: Andaz Miami Beach

The most anticipated Mediterranean opening in Miami in recent years, and the one that best captures what happens when a chef of José Andrés’ stature decides to take coastal flavors seriously. Aguasal, located inside the Andaz Miami Beach at 4041 Collins Avenue on Mid-Beach, takes its name from the Spanish word for saltwater, which tells you everything about its orientation. The menu draws inspiration from Miami, Mallorca, and Mykonos, celebrating Florida’s seafood bounty through time-honored Mediterranean preparations, fragrant herbs, and the layered spice-driven flavors of the Spanish, Greek, and Moroccan coastal traditions. Standout dishes include the Cobia “Pastrami” Crudo, Mussels Saganaki, a chilled seafood platter, and a Half Rack of Lamb, one of the menu’s most talked-about dishes. The room is warm and intimate, lit in glowing amber with earthy oak and teak furnishings, lush tropical greenery, and an outdoor terrace that rewards early arrivals. The beverage program spans coastal Mediterranean wines, Greek spirits, and inventive cocktails designed to complement the food. Dinner runs Sunday through Thursday from 5 to 10 PM and Friday through Saturday from 5 to 11 PM.

Mandolin Aegean Bistro

The most beloved Mediterranean restaurant in Miami and the one most likely to have a three-week wait for a dinner reservation when the weather is beautiful. Mandolin Aegean Bistro in the Design District at 4312 NE 2nd Avenue occupies the courtyard of a converted 1940s bungalow and creates a setting so specific, so genuinely Aegean in its blue and white palette and lush outdoor tables, that it is easy to forget you are steps from the Design District’s luxury boutiques. The food is equally convincing. The baba ghanoush, the whole Mediterranean sea bass, the beef souvlaki, and the Aegean olives are all the standards around which loyal regulars have organized their dining calendars for years. Lunch is easier to secure than dinner. Go for both and decide which you prefer.

Amal

The most scenically positioned Mediterranean restaurant in Miami, and the one that makes the strongest case for Coconut Grove as a dining destination in its own right. Amal, from INK Entertainment Group at 3 Aviation Avenue in the Grove, occupies a 5,000-square-foot rooftop with panoramic views of Biscayne Bay and Studio Munge interiors that set a high bar for the room before the food arrives. The menu is modern Lebanese, built around raw bar selections, mezze, and shared plates that pair with the bar program’s cocktails. A daily happy hour runs from 4 to 7 PM. For a Mediterranean evening that prioritizes setting as much as substance, Amal provides both.

Atlantikós

The most authentically Greek dining room in South Florida, and the one that best captures what the Mediterranean table looks like when it is treated as a philosophy rather than a cuisine category. Atlantikós in Bal Harbour draws on dishes from Greece’s mainland and islands in a room designed around the bright blue-and-white palette of its culinary inspiration. The menu is built for sharing, with dishes that move from simple and market-driven to more composed presentations. The grilled fish, the mezze selections, and the overall warmth of the room have all earned it a devoted following among Bal Harbour’s most discerning diners.

DOYA

DOYA in Wynwood pairs Greek and Turkish cultures and sticks to the pure tradition of preparing food over wood fires and coals, producing a menu of modern Aegean meze with Turkish accents that feels genuinely distinct from everything else in its price range. The room is vibrant and social, and the wood-fired cooking gives every dish a depth and specificity that is difficult to replicate with conventional kitchen equipment. For a Mediterranean meal that offers something genuinely different from the Greek-and-seafood format that dominates the category in Miami, DOYA is the most interesting answer.