The Miami Spice Menus We Actually Think Are Worth It

It's that time of year when dozens of Miami restaurants try to lure locals out of the comfort of their air conditioning, and into the comfort of their air conditioning. Miami Spice is here. If you do not know what those words mean, it’s essentially where participating restaurants offer three-course prix fixe lunch and dinner (and sometimes brunch ) deals for $30 to $60 from August through September.

The issue is, not all Miami Spice menus are impressive. Some really do the absolute least, with low-value menu items that feel like an afterthought. But we've combed through this year’s menus and settled on some choices we’re pretty confident will be worth it. We’ll continue to update this guide as we find more ones we like.

THE DEALS

Cote Miami

The Deal: $35 lunch Mon-Fri

There is actually a martini that costs $55 at this Korean steakhouse , so having a full meal here for less than $40 feels like the steal of the summer. Plus, Cote has some exclusive menu items on their Miami Spice menu, like “limited edition fried chicken.” That feels worth prioritizing, considering Cote’s fried chicken sister restaurant is currently one of New York’s toughest reservations . You can do the butcher’s feast prix fixe as your main course for an extra $25, but that’s normally only $74 for dinner, so stick to the other options and spend that extra money on a proper dinner here eventually.

Mr. OmaKase

The Deal: $60 10-course omakase Tue-Sat

Mr. Omakase is one of our favorite sushi omakase meals in Miami thanks to its fair price point (even outside of Miami Spice) and consistent quality. For Miami Spice, they’ll be offering their 10-course omakase for $60 (it's normally $89). In Miami’s current omakase market, that’s about as good as it gets. Mr. Omakase’s menu changes based on seasonality and availability, but we’ve never been disappointed here. The quality of the fish is stellar, the nigiri is gorgeous, and if you’ve always wanted to do a sushi omakase, start here.

Blue Collar

The Deals: $35 lunch Mon-Fri; $35 brunch Sat-Sun; $45 dinner daily

Too many Miami Spice menus are like, “For an appetizer you can choose between three ice cubes or a single bean and for your entree we’re just going to give you a firm handshake.” But Blue Collar does Miami Spice the way we wish more places would. There is no puny separate menu: you get your pick of any appetizer, entree, and dessert from the regular menu. Which means the excellent latkes, cheeseburger, and crispy snapper are all up for grabs.

Mignonette

The Deal: $60 dinner daily

Just about everything we said about Blue Collar applies to its sister restaurant, Mignonette. Except it’s not open for lunch, some of the more expensive raw bar items are off-limits, and the dinner menu is $60. Other than that, you get to pick from the whole menu. But this still feels like a great deal. At Mignonette, it’s all about seafood (we like the lobster roll, popcorn conch, and redfish) but there are steak options too, so you can make this a surf and turf thing.

Chug’s Diner

The Deal: $30 lunch Mon-Fri

This deal is almost worth it for the dessert section alone—we’ve never had a slice of pie or scoop of ice cream at Chug’s that didn't make us forget we're adults for about seven seconds. But it’s also one of our favorite Cuban restaurants in Miami , and if you want a Miami Spice meal that'll leave you well past full, this is it. Bring a friend or two so you can try everything: the buffalo chicken croquetas, plantain-crusted snapper, pollo empenizado, or the lechon-filled abuela's plate. Yes, you have room for dessert, because Chug’s rotating ice cream flavors (one of the Spice options) are always pretty stunning.

Klaw

The Deal: $60 dinner Sun-Thu

We love Klaw, but its mere mention also makes our wallet flinch. So getting to experience this very luxurious steakhouse and seafood spot for under $100 is something you should do this summer. We would not put Klaw on this guide if they weren't serving steak on the Miami Spice menu. Luckily, they're offering a 12-ounce ribeye. Come here on a date, have your partner order the grilled scallops, and you can have a nice surf and turf weekday dinner at a place where we've accidentally spent $600 on multiple occasions.

LPM Restaurant & Bar

The Deal: $60 dinner Sun-Thu

We can’t think of a better time to check out LPM—for a few reasons. Brickell is a lot more tolerable this time of year. You don’t have to arrive an hour early to find parking, the restaurant is less crowded with snowbirds whose homes have service entrances, and (thanks to Miami Spice) dinner here won’t cost you $300. For appetizers, get the sweet corn salad (it's one of the best things on the menu). For entrees, go with your heart—we've enjoyed pretty much everything we've had here. And for dessert, finish with a light vanilla cheesecake.

Fiola

The Deal: $35 lunch Sun-Thu

Miami Spice was made for places like Fiola. This Italian restaurant in the Gables is usually going to cost you a lot. But the $35 lunch menu is filled with refreshing appetizers like peach gazpacho, zucchini carpaccio, cobia ceviche, and watermelon salad. Plus, six different entree choices like branzino, lumachine cacio e pepe, and chicken parmigiana. The dinner menu is more robust than we expected too, but lunch feels like the better deal.