You’ve been to Carbone. You’ve been to Maty’s. You’ve been to all the hot, new places everyone in Greater Miami & Miami Beach was talking about last year. But a lot of great new restaurants have opened in Miami recently, and if you haven’t been to them, you’re missing out. Here are the new restaurants we’re excited about:

Bar Bella

Jorgie Ramos’ restaurants, such as Cebada Rooftop in Coral Gables, are famous for referencing and fusing Miami culture. Now he’s back with Bar Bella, a new restaurant with a new twist: Spanish tapas and barbecue. In this downtown South Miami spot, Ramos combines two trendy cuisines with ease. You’ll find patatas bravas in spicy sofrito sharing space with smoked duck drummets; garlic croquetas and gambas (shrimp) al ajillo on one end of the menu, smoked pork butt and Wagyu picanha steak on the other. In between, there are caviar “bumps,” east and west coast oysters, and creative cocktails that make for a special night out.

Better Days Robotics Kitchens

The founders of Better Days set out to solve a problem: how to make healthy meals quickly and affordably for people in a hurry. Their solution: robots. Better Days Robotics Kitchens hands the bulk of the cooking and serving in a traditional restaurant to a robot chef. The aim of this robot-aided kitchen is to use costs toward better ingredients that can be prepared quickly and healthfully. Dishes include a choice of mains and two sides, like lemon dill salmon with sides of greens and rice. Or spicy rigatoni, basque cheesecake and sea salt-roasted sweet potatoes. Ordering is done on delivery apps, and meals can be delivered, picked up or eaten in the dining room. Better Days has locations in South Miami, Coral Gables and Brickell.

Mother Wolf

Miami has many restaurants offering a big night out, and Mother Wolf in the Miami Design District is right at home here. The Los Angeles import’s specialty is Roman cuisine, presented in an atmosphere of rich reds, golds and greens and warm lighting. But the real show is on the plate. Squash blossoms stuffed with ricotta, short rib meatballs and tiny fried calzones will get you ready for hearty pizzas and pastas, which are hand-rolled in an open kitchen. Creative pies include the Vongole, with clams and pepperoncini, and the Diavola, with fior di latte cheese and spicy salami. Featured pastas include rigatoni with guanciale and ricotta gnocchi. A bone-in veal chop and Mediterranean sea bass highlight the meat and fish offerings.

Pasta

Peruvian chefs Juan Manuel Umbert and Janice Buraschi had a hit on their hands when they opened their restaurant Pasta in Lima, Peru, combining the food of their childhoods with traditional Italian. Miami seemed like the next logical spot for their fusion, and at the second location of Pasta, in Wynwood, you can find this Peruvian-Italian mashup that enticed diners in Peru. Razor clams with nduja sausage are heightened with salsa verde. Oyster tempura is dipped into Peruvian aji amarillo, and that’s just for starters. You’ll find traditional Italian too, with many ingredients made in house, from the pulled stracciatella to the sourdough starter made in Wynwood. Highlights include pici pasta with marjoram paired with crispy garlic and fettuccine made with homemade nduja sausage.

Cotoletta

Do one thing and do it well. That’s a lesson learned over time and, more recently, at Cotoletta in Coconut Grove, where there’s only one entrée on the menu. We hope you like veal Milanese. The menu is simple so the food and service can shine. Two diners can share a massive veal chop, pounded thin and cooked on the bone with rosemary and lemon zest. Each diner chooses a side dish. There’s spaghetti al pomodoro, French fries, arugula salad, Heritage tomato and Parmigiano Reggiano. With those decisions made, you can enjoy the cozy restaurant with a glass of wine and dessert, like a vanilla affogato.

STK

What’s cooking at the newest STK location in Aventura? It’s right there in the abbreviation. This steakhouse group focuses on quality beef steaks for every taste. The menu is broken up by how much of a good thing you want. Only slightly hungry? Try a six-ounce filet or an eight-ounce rib eye. The “Medium” section features a New York Strip and a massive 14-ounce dry-aged Delmonico. A dry-aged 34-ounce tomahawk on the “Large” section is perfect for sharing. STK wouldn’t be a premier steakhouse if it didn’t also offer options like maple-rubbed salmon, Maine lobster linguine and roasted rack of lamb for those in a different dining mood.

Craft

With nine locations in Miami and a new one in Coconut Grove, Craft has something for anyone in the mood for casual meals for breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner. There are goat cheese croquettes, fried Brussels sprouts and bacon-wrapped dates for small bites. Salads are brightened with roasted pumpkin or garlic shrimp. And main dishes include steak and fries, a beef Milanesa Napolitana, and gnocchi. Bacon cheeseburgers and short rib sandwiches are perfect for lunch. And a dozen different pizzas, from simple Margherita to the Argentina with braised short rib, are sure to please.

Ciao Bella

Calle Ocho: It’s not just for Cuban food anymore. Ciao Bella, in the heart of Little Havana, is a cute, homey and instagrammable Italian dining nook that draws in diners with a wide selection of Italian cuisine, from pizzas and calzones to more-traditional Italian dining. You can start with a salumi board, highlighted by prosciutto San Daniele and spicy salami. From there, order one of 16 different pizzas, from spicy Calabrese salami to mortadella and pistachio white pizza. Or start with a primi, like penne in vodka sauce, spaghetti carbonara or fettucine Bolognese, then dive into a secondi, such as chicken Milanese or Parmigiana.

Habibi

Celebrities swarmed to Kiki on the River for exclusive Greek dining on the Miami River, and now it has a neighbor, Habibi. This ornate hideaway is the new favorite for locals looking for a swanky night out or celebrities looking to duck into a private back room, this time for Moorish cuisine. Not surprisingly, the restaurants are owned by the same group and complement each other in style and service. At Habibi, North African cuisine is the star. Big groups out for a night can take advantage of plates meant for sharing, like the Mezze Prince, with hummus, smoked baba ganoush, spicy muhammara and fresh-baked pita, or the Mezze Royal, which adds pistachio crème and beetroot yogurt borani. Habibi couscous with ginger and shiitake mushroom, tiger prawns with saffron couscous, and Moroccan spiced grilled lamb chops are splendid additions for a big night out.

Otto & Pepe

Belly up to the bar … the pasta bar, that is. Otto & Pepe in Wynwood celebrates everything pasta and, with few exceptions, pasta only. There’s a section of the menu that’s simply white pastas, like a creamy pasta and potatoes with scamorza cheese and pistachio cream. And there’s a red pasta section, with tagliatelle with Bolognese and orrechiette with fried eggplant. Are they serious about pasta? Just see the “More Pasta” section, with another four different kinds of pasta, many with truffles and mushroom as options. Dining with someone who wants something other than pasta? They’re in luck. A “Not Pasta” section offers dishes like tomato and pepper gazpacho and fried eggs with potato and truffle cream.

Looking for more great places to dine? Check out the best new restaurants in Miami Beach.

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