Best Local Restaurants

The culinary scene of Greater Miami and Miami Beach continues to grab global attention, and thriving Black-owned restaurants are part of that culinary magic. More than just places to dine, these restaurants invite you to explore Black heritage and communities through flavorful meals, drinks and cultural customs.

Whether you’re craving Caribbean cuisine, Southern soul food, Ethiopian delights or a comforting vegan meal, you can taste the rich diversity of the African diaspora right here in Miami. These are the best Black-owned restaurants across the destination.

House of Wings

With more than 60 chicken wing flavors to choose from, House of Wings is a must-try in Historic Overtown. Founded by Musaddiq “King of Poultry” Muhammad, the wings are cooked to crispy perfection, with sauces like the Hennessy glaze, honey lemon pepper and many more.

Pair your order with the house Cajun seasoning fries or beer-battered onion rings. House of Wings even has Bahamian-style seafood, including steamed conch and fried jumbo shrimp. End your meal with a slice of homemade pound cake or red velvet cake.

Lil GreenHouse Grill

Lil GreenHouse Grill started as a food truck and is now a treasured restaurant in Historic Overtown. Dig into smoked BBQ ribs, lobster and seafood cakes paired with a long list of sides, including cornbread, collard greens and baked mac and cheese.

Chef and co-owner Karim Bryant started the neo-soul restaurant to provide upscale soul food that stays true to its family roots. Treat yourself to black-eyed peas and some of the best lemon pepper wings you’ve ever had.

Red Rooster Overtown

James Beard Award-winning chef Marcus Samuelsson's tribute to Historic Overtown’s rich African American history and cultural impact on Miami, Red Rooster Overtown serves food and cocktails that fuel the soul. Indulge in mouthwatering dishes such as deviled eggs, tea-brined fried chicken drizzled in hot honey, cornbread-crusted snapper, and stewed oxtail in a creamy macaroni pasta.

An upstairs lounge called The Pool Hall pays homage to the venue’s legacy as a hangout for luminaries like Aretha Franklin, Roberta Flack and Sam Cooke. The main restaurant also hosts a popular Super Soul Saturday brunch with a DJ spinning vinyl, as well as an ice cream pop-up called The Creamery. This restaurant is quite popular, so it’s a good idea to make a reservation.

Jackson Soul Food

The rich aroma of home cooking and the staff’s Southern hospitality will welcome you to Jackson Soul Food in Historic Overtown. Owner Shirlene Ingraham aims to create the feeling that you’re eating food made with love in your family’s kitchen.

Fill your tummy with hearty choices such as the smothered pork chops, salmon French toast and chicken and waffles. Complement your meal with an order of freshly squeezed ice lemonade with a hint of lime. There are additional Jackson Soul Food outposts in Opa-locka and Miami International Airport.

Conch It Up Soul Food Restaurant 

Calling all seafood lovers: Conch It Up Soul Food Restaurant isn’t your average soul food joint. Established in 2015 by Noreese Kelly-Howard and husband Lavelle Howard, the restaurant was inspired by generations of family recipes.

If you’re seeking a taste of the South, try the conch burger, shrimp dinner or stewed conch at this family-run spot in Liberty City. You’ll love the house-made conch sauce that packs a punch with every meal.

Dukunoo Jamaican Kitchen

Escape to an upscale slice of the Caribbean in the heart of Wynwood at Dukunoo Jamaican Kitchen. Owned by husband-and-wife duo Rodrick Leighton and Dr. Shrusan Gray, Dukunoo elevates Jamaican gastronomy to new heights, honoring their heritage with every dish.

From jerk lamb chops to fall-off-the-bone oxtail and yard-style fried chicken, treat yourself to island food as the soundtrack of reggae and soca fills the air. Plus, catch discounted cocktails and food during Irie Hour, every Monday through Friday from 4 to 8 p.m.

Kitchen & Cocktails

With multiple locations across the country, it’s all about upscale soul food and theatrical cocktails at Kitchen & Kocktails by hospitality maven Kevin Kelley. The Wynwood location feels like a party, where an evening begins with drinks at the glowing blue onyx bar and people line up to take a photo at the signature Rose Wall.

Menu specialties range from the Caribbean jerk lamb chops to fried catfish on a bed of spaghetti, hot honey chicken bites and the crispy Trinity Egg Rolls with mac and cheese, yams and collard greens. Dramatic table-side cocktails with a show presentations are another part of the restaurant’s fame.

Noveau Miami

Noveau Miami is the fourth outpost of entrepreneur and restaurant mogul Ebony Austin’s original Atlanta location, which has a big following. The Wynwood restaurant, bathed in neon lights, focuses on American Southern fusion cuisine and features a menu with some of Atlanta’s biggest hits. 

Noveau fans favor the Ultimate Cajun Seafood & Grits and the Island Stir Fry that comes in a huge, cored pineapple. Brunch is another hit for its drinks and dishes like the hot honey deviled eggs topped with crispy chicken skin and the chicken and sweet potato waffle.

Victory Restaurant & Lounge

At Victory Restaurant & Lounge, your favorite comfort food dishes are served in a high-energy atmosphere where hookah and happy hour are available daily. Founded by entrepreneur Ricardo Young, this tastefully designed restaurant and nightlife spot in Midtown Miami, where Wynwood meets the Miami Design District, offers both indoor and outdoor seating. 

At dinner, sample favorites like the Creole Crab Salmon, jerk chicken egg rolls and steak fried rice. During weekend brunch, go for the Creole shrimp and grits or the steak omelet. Note that those age 13+ are allowed during dinner service if accompanied by an adult until 9pm. Anyone under 21 must be finished with their dining experience by 9pm, and brunch is strictly 21+.

World Famous House of Mac

Make your cheesiest dreams come true at Derrick “Chef Teach” Turton's World Famous House of Mac in Allapattah and enjoy takeout or delivery. Revel in an ooey-gooey experience and savor jerk chicken mac, chicken cordon bleu mac, smoked BBQ beef mac and its World Famous Five Cheese Mac and Cheese. There’s even a vegan mac and cheese option.

Awash Ethiopian Restaurant

Founded by husband-and-wife team Fouad and Ekka Wassel in 2017, Awash Ethiopian Restaurant transports diners to the heart of Ethiopia through its traditional cuisine and cultural immersion. Head to Miami Gardens and enter Awash’s welcoming “Gojo bait,” a rustic country-style home.

Get a taste of Ethiopia with stews like lamb tibs and Gored Gored with tender beef, all traditionally served atop spongy flatbread injera, made from the ancient grain teff. Enjoy a cultural tradition with a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony and savor freshly brewed coffee.

Dub N Grub

Craving flavorful soul food without meat? Look no further than Dub N Grub, a plant-based soul food restaurant in Miami Gardens. Owner and chef Kriss Kofi traveled worldwide to cook as a food service specialist while in the military. Using his worldly culinary knowledge, he founded Dub N Grub to serve meat-free meals without using vegan meat substitutes.

Expect deliciously seasoned vegan takes on classics you know and love, like mac and cheese or the Rasta Pasta Al'vegdo in a coconut-based Alfredo sauce. The chef has mastered mushrooms, and The Crispy Ik’n Sandwich showcases crispy oyster mushrooms in a pretzel bun.

We Shuckin Southern Eatery

Have a groovy night out in Miami Gardens at We Shuckin Southern Eatery, known for its 1960s and '70s vibe and wide-ranging Southern soul food dishes. Owner Ernisha Randolph created this restaurant to honor to Black culinary icons – evident in its rich seven-cheese mac ‘n’ cheese that nods to the creator of American mac ‘n’ cheese, James Hemings.

With dishes like cracked conch and fried ribs and candied yams, We Shuckin’s menu pays homage to the farm-to-fork regional styles of Southern soul food, from South Carolina’s Gullah Geechee food traditions and Georgia’s country cooking to Louisiana’s Cajun-style dishes.

Lorna’s Caribbean & American Grille

Step into Lorna’s Caribbean & American Grille and be instantly enveloped by the warmth of the family kitchen. Award-winning chef Lorna Westmoreland, or Ms. Lorna, as she’s lovingly known to regulars, transforms traditional recipes into soul-satisfying dishes.

Her journey began at a flea market, where she was fueled by a passion for sharing her heritage through food. Today, at her brick-and-mortar restaurant in Miami Gardens, fuel up with Lorna’s home-cooked meals, like Bahamian conch tacos, slow-cooked curry goat and her legendary jerk chicken.

Yardie Spice

For a taste of the Caribbean in Homestead, dine at Yardie Spice for Jamaican and Haitian cuisine. Owned by husband-and-wife team Jean-Paul and Rochelle Cadotte, the restaurant features fresh ingredients that take center stage, with specialties including conch fritters, jerk salmon, griot fried pork and Jamaican curry goat slow-cooked to tender perfection.

Enjoy an array of stews, curries and vegetarian options paired with rice, beans, salad and plantains for a well-rounded dining experience. Save room for dessert and indulge in the house-made coconut rum cake.

Chef Creole Seasoned Kitchen

Known as the Emeril of Haitian food, owner and chef Wilkinson "Ken" Sejour opened Chef Creole Seasoned Kitchen with his late brother, Jude Pierre, in 1992. The restaurant has multiple locations, including a flagship in Little Haiti, where you can taste vibrant Creole flavors and see why it draws A-list celebrities.

Sample exceptional Bahamian and Creole dishes such as fried red snapper, stew conch, creole wings, griot (fried pork) and oxtail. While you’re there, pick up a bottle of Haitian favorite pikliz (a traditional pickled vegetable relish) to add an extra zing to any meal.

Pack Super Market & Cafeteria

Pack Super Market & Cafeteria is a beloved part of Little Haiti and many dedicated fans have been dining there since childhood. The Haitian restaurant’s deep-fried chicken served with slaw-like pikliz and island gravy is considered some of Miami’s best (and most affordable).

Transport yourself to the streets of Haiti with authentic dishes cooked cafeteria-style right in front of you, including stewed vegetables, rice and beans, and fried plantains.

Clive’s Cafe

Serving Jamaican food since the 1970s, Clive’s Cafe in Little Haiti is one of the longest-running Jamaican restaurants in Miami. Pearline Murray and her late husband, Clifford, opened Clive’s (named after their son) more than 50 years ago, when local factory workers were their primary customers.

Dine on generous portions of Jamaican staples like brown stew chicken and jerk pork with plantains, or get adventurous with specials like cow foot, conch and tender oxtail while sipping on their homemade sorrel and ginger beer, a classic Jamaican drink.

Chick 'N Jones

Chick 'N Jones is a woman-owned eatery in Doral helmed by the talented chef Amaris Jones, who brings her deep-rooted passion for comfort food to the table. The restaurant is best known for Jones’ perfectly crispy fried chicken, which is brined for 24 hours, to savory sides, like the sweet potato biscuits and loaded fries.

Other fan favorites include chicken and waffles, chopped kale salad, the hot honey chicken sandwich and baked chicken wings. Beyond chicken, there’s a Cajun catfish sandwich and fried fish and shrimp bucket combo, too.

Manjay

Celebrate Caribbean cuisine with Manjay's restaurant in Doral, which serves flavorful meals created by founder Christian Dominique. His love for cooking, and his career as a restaurateur, was sparked when he was just 19 and his grandmother taught him how to cook classic Haitian dishes.

Top orders include the honey jerk chicken, Creole-style slow-braised pork, Caribbean bowls and sautéed shrimp in a coconut curry sauce. You can also find an outpost of Manjay at The Citadel food hall near Little Haiti.

Grown

Nurture your body with food that makes you feel good at Grown in South Miami. Created by Shannon Allen, wife of NBA champion Ray Allen, Grown offers nutrient-dense, farm-to-fork organic meals made with locally sourced ingredients.

What started as a part of Shannon’s television show, The Pre-Game Meal, has grown into a restaurant offering tasty, unique and affordable meals that are fast but healthy. Discover popular menu items such as the mushroom “chorizo” tacos, paleo Ohm-Let and Havana salad.

The Licking

DJ Khaled’s The Licking seafood and soul food restaurant will have you saying, “More, please!” The Grammy Award-winning artist was motivated to start The Licking so local Black communities could enjoy a remarkable soul food restaurant.

With seven locations, including North Miami and South Beach, The Licking’s family-friendly and laid-back atmosphere is the perfect backdrop for diving into lobster mac, seafood rice, lemon pepper wings and the fried chicken and red velvet waffles. Order the Famous Mystery Drink as the perfect accompaniment to your meal.

The Katz Restaurant & Lounge

Escape to the Caribbean without leaving Miami at The Katz Restaurant & Lounge in North Miami. Inspired by generations of family recipes, the menu celebrates the diverse culinary heritage of the Caribbean with bold spices and fresh ingredients.

Owner Edwine Mathurin’s passion shines through in flavorful dishes like conch stew and coconut curry salmon. Savor the flavors of the islands one bite at a time with dishes like the fan-favorite stuffed plantains, griot (crispy pork) and turkey tasso.

Jrk!

For Jamaican flavors with a healthy twist, head to Jrk! at Aventura Mall or in Downtown Miami. Founded by the passionate trio of Wayne Sharpe, Kavan Burke and Harrison Bernstein, Jrk! is a love letter to their Jamaican heritage and offers a modern take on classic island flavors.

The restaurant elevates fast-casual cuisine with build-your-own bowls filled with jerk chicken, oxtail and curry chicken, and sides such as crispy cassava yuca sticks and a jerk chicken mac and cheese. Indulge in the 305 Rum Cake for a sweet ending. For more of a sit-down experience, head back to Mangrove, the team’s Caribbean speakeasy with a full bar and a cool retro vibe.