Coconut Grove Spotlight called 2025 "a bloodbath" for Grove restaurants. Higher rents, rising costs and a slow summer pushed 10 of them to close by early fall 2025, from a humble taco stand to an elegant newcomer. Twelve months later, the same streets have a Greek restaurant on Main Highway, a wood-fired pizza flagship on McFarlane Road, an Argentine steakhouse at Mayfair and a waterfront Italian dining room on Grove Isle.
The new places share a design. Many of the 2026 openings are small, made for regulars, and built around something you can only get here. Read that way, this year's openings look like a plan for staying open in a neighborhood that has been hard on restaurants.
The year that set the terms
The Spotlight's June 2026 report sets the scene for everything that opened afterward. Even then, owners faced what the paper described as soaring fuel prices and cautious consumer spending on top of the problems that hit in 2025.
The operators the Spotlight interviewed spoke about loyalty first. Stefano Cremasco opened 1986 Steakhouse at Mayfair in May, just before the Grove's slow season. He saw this summer's World Cup matches as the perfect opportunity to forge long-lasting relationships with local customers. At Grand Public Kitchen, co-founder Matthew Tsoumaris called building local relationships "the paramount goal" for the summer.
That goal shows up in how the newest rooms are built.
McFarlane Road, built small on purpose
The clearest example sits next to the Mr. C Hotel in the historic Engle Building. Miami Slice opened its Coconut Grove flagship at 2996 McFarlane Rd. on Wednesday, August 12, 2026. It is the group's fourth location, after the original slice bar in Downtown Miami, a takeout spot in Key Biscayne and a counter inside the Fontainebleau Las Vegas.
The Grove room is the only one with a wood-fired oven. Culinary director Jose "Chema" Cardenas uses it for a short Grove-only menu.
- Beef carpaccio to start
- Wood-fired cabbage, charred and smoky
- Watercress Caesar, peppery and bright
- Caprese with heirloom tomatoes and stracciatella
The signature slices are here too, including the Pepperoni Proper, Mushroom Truffle and Leeks on Bacon. 50 Top Pizza recently ranked Miami Slice the third-best slice in the United States and the top-ranked slice spot in Florida. Coconut Grove Magazine describes the room as "intentionally small and personal," a neighborhood hangout "rather than a large dining room built for volume," with chef's-table seating at the slice bar, booths for small groups and families, and wine and beer. At opening, the listed summer hours were Wednesday through Sunday, 5 to 11 p.m., so check the current schedule before you go.
McFarlane Road has two more openings coming. Levain Bakery, the 30-year-old New York bakery known for its huge chocolate chip walnut cookies, is expected to open its first permanent Florida shop at 2979 McFarlane Rd., near CocoWalk. As of Miami New Times' September 23 preview, the timing was still "this fall," with no confirmed date. Miami's only previous taste of Levain was a delivery-only pop-up in 2021. Besides cookies, expect breads, brioche, pastries and seasonal treats. Seiya, a Nikkei restaurant planned for 2889 McFarlane Rd., was listed by Edible South Florida in September for Fall 2026, also without a date.
Once both open, a short stretch of McFarlane will have pizza, a bakery and Nikkei within a few doors of each other.
Main Highway, where one address runs day and night
Down in the village center, 3540 Main Highway now serves two schedules. Manoli opened there on July 22. Greek chef Emmanouil "Manoli" Aslanoglou runs a menu of shared plates.
| Start with | Go bigger with |
|---|---|
| Dolmades | Athenian lobster |
| Saganaki | Whole branzino |
| Crispy feta | Gyro tacos |
| Keftedes |
Manoli serves dinner only. It is open 5 to 10 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, stays open until midnight on Friday and Saturday, and closes Monday and Tuesday. In September, Edible South Florida wrote that Manoli "is earning accolades."
Daytime at the same address belongs to Magie Wine Bar + Imperial Moto, which Edible South Florida listed as open in September with coffee, matcha, pastries and other sweets during the day. The address covers a morning coffee and a late Saturday dinner.
A short walk away, the Café at Books & Books at 3409 Main Hwy. now houses BANH. Chef Phuoc Vo and partner Aidan Friedson serve bánh mì, bubble tea and boozy boba inside the bookstore. Sapore di Mare chose to stay on the same street after moving. It reopened at a new location, 3433 Main Highway, with Italian seafood and house-made pasta for dine-in, takeout and delivery.
Grand Avenue and the regulars strategy
Grand Avenue has two of the newcomers that leaned hardest into local loyalty this summer.
1986 Steakhouse, 2911 Grand Ave., Suite 111, is a live-fire Argentine asado concept. It serves Argentine beef, American Prime and Japanese A5 Wagyu, along with caviar and seafood. Cremasco named it for the year Argentina won the World Cup in Mexico. The Spotlight describes a classic 6,000-square-foot room with a playlist quiet enough for conversation, a contrast to the showy interiors at many new restaurants.
Grand Public Kitchen + Bar took over the former Planta Queen space at CocoWalk, 3015 Grand Ave., Suite 201. Chef Leo Pablo cooks modern American food with Mediterranean flavors. The menu includes mezze, tuna tataki, rib-eye, meatball rigatoni and branzino. Its schedule fits a neighborhood week. There's weekend brunch, happy hour from 3 to 6 p.m., and a reverse happy hour after 10 p.m. with select $10 bites and drinks.
Also at CocoWalk, Rice Kitchen opened in February as a fast-casual Mediterranean spot. The Spotlight reported that its owner was counting on catering orders to get through the season.
Grove Isle, the dressiest addition
The newest opening is also the most special-occasion of the group. La Sponda opened on Friday, September 18, at 4 Grove Isle Dr., an Italian restaurant on the water from the team behind Daniel's. The Infatuation pointed to caviar carbonara, cotoletta and tiramisu, and expected the Daniel's team to bring excellent steaks and service with them. It's the one to book when out-of-town guests want dinner with a view of the bay.
The tables the Grove lost
The new openings stand out against a few familiar names that are gone. Lokal served its last customers on Sunday, June 28, after nearly 15 years on Commodore Plaza. Miami New Times remembered it as a place where neighbors ran into each other and dogs relaxed under the patio tables. No replacement for the space had been announced in the coverage we reviewed. Earlier in the year, The Last Carrot closed its 3133 Grand Ave. location after February 7. At the time, its owner was looking at other locations but had not signed a new lease. Ossobuco's Coconut Grove location was still closed as of September, though the restaurant has opened a new spot at Aventura Mall.
Where the new places meet the fall calendar
Several Grove events this season work well before or after a meal at one of the newcomers.
- Fall Mercadito at Regatta Grove, Saturday, October 10, noon to 6 p.m., at 3415 Pan American Dr., with local vendors, food and live music by the water.
- The 43rd Annual King Mango Strut Poster Unveiling & Live Music Celebration, the same evening, 6 to 9 p.m. on Fuller Street. The parade itself is set for January 3, 2027.
- Coconut Grove Organic Farmers Market, Saturdays from October 10 through January 30, 2027, 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., at Grand Avenue and Margaret Street.
- Sumo + Sushi Miami, October 16 to 18, at The Hangar at Regatta Harbour, 3385 Pan American Dr.
A Saturday in mid-October could start at the farmers market, include coffee at Magie, and end with a reservation at Manoli or a seat at the Miami Slice bar.
I keep an updated list of new Grove spots because clients ask me where to eat almost as often as they ask about homes. If you're hosting family this season, or you're new to the neighborhood and want a few dinner ideas from someone who lives nearby, Ana Leighton is happy to share hers. Let's Connect.
