Get us in your inbox

Search
PEZ | Mariscos Chingones
Photograph: Courtesy PEZ | Mariscos Chingones

The best Mexican restaurants in Miami to try right now

Get your fill of fresh corn tortillas, spicy salsas, baja-style seafood and more at the best Mexican restaurants in Miami.

Virginia Gil
Eric Barton
Written by
Virginia Gil
&
Eric Barton
Advertising

Few cities have a stronger Latin food reputation than the self-proclaimed Capital of the Americas. Every single person on the planet by now should know Miami as a mecca for Cuban food. And it should surprise nobody to learn you can also find damn good representations of the national dishes of Venezuela, Colombia, Puerto Rico and many more Caribbean and South American countries.

But Mexican? Admittedly, it’s not part of this city's culinary reputation. That doesn’t mean we don’t throw down amazing Miami tacos, tostadas and aguachiles like the best of them. Legit street food tacos and Michelin-awarded versions of deeply authentic Mexican dishes? We got that, plus enough specials on margs to last all week. Read on for the best Mexican restaurants in Miami right now.

Best Mexican restaurants in Miami

  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Brickell
  • price 3 of 4

Cantina is the city’s answer to the spate of high-end restaurants you might find in Mexican City. The margaritas are stellar and the live mariachi band makes for a good time. But the real reason you trekked to Cantina is the food of Chef David Munoz. Catch him in the open kitchen toiling away on all kinds of regional dishes, many swathed in handmade tortillas and several smothered in house-made sauces made in a molcajete.

  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • South Beach
  • price 2 of 4

Taquiza is known for its legendary and organic blue masa tortillas, which are ground daily and supplied to a good deal of Miami restaurants. Get them as a standard soft taco or as crispy totopos with a side of guac. As for tacos, Taquiza serves theirs simply: topped with a protein or veggie and with optional cilantro and raw onions you add yourself. You can’t go wrong at Taquiza, now with locations on both ends of Miami Beach. Everything is good—yes, even the grasshopper tacos.

Advertising
  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Coconut Grove
  • price 2 of 4

Los Félix takes its tortillas, and everything they do, very seriously. Consider: a carpaccio of beets looking like a springtime flower, a blue corn quesadilla with multi-colored squash blossoms fanning out from the opening, and pork cheeks stewed into the most tender of carnitas.

All this care they’ve put into the food earned Los Felix a Michelin star, which also means you’ll pay a hefty sum for tacos, crudos and more (expect $100-plus per person). But the servers are knowledgeable and attentive, and the vibe is reminiscent of a Mexico City’s Polanco neighborhood tranpsorted into Coconut Grove.

  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Wynwood
  • price 3 of 4

Wynwood’s answer to Tulum’s eco-chic restaurants is a stunner, featuring an expansive outdoor bar and dimly lit by strewn rustic lanterns. More is more at Bakan, where more than 200 types of mezcal line the walls. Once you land on one, follow the menu’s color-coded pairing guide to find its delicious taco match.

Advertising
  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Brickell
  • price 2 of 4

This mercado-style spot inside Brickell City Centre goes beyond tacos with an exhaustive menu of shareable plates—from ceviches and an array of tostadas to quesadillas and veggie sides. There are a dozen different tacos to choose from, so order a bunch because you’ll want to sample as many as possible, especially the asado steak served rolled up in a shot glass and the blackened fish tacos on blue corn tortillas.

  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Wynwood

What makes the food at Coyo Taco so delicious? The attention to authentic, fresh Mexican flavors and ingredients—including the hand-pressed corn tortillas. It also helps that Coyo Taco is just plain cool, with an aesthetic as hip as the Wynwood neighborhood where it began.

That’s probably why Coyo has grown so quickly, now with spots as far-flung as Paris and Portugal. At many Coyo locations, a pretty dope speakeasy hides in the back. But even with its trendy nightlife scene, Coyo sticks to its roots: made-from-scratch tacos stuffed with expertly seasoned ingredients. New in 2023, Coyo’s margaritas are now $5.

Advertising
  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • East Little Havana
  • price 1 of 4

The bare-bones Little Havana dining room stays busy thanks to Rinconcito’s cheap, tasty eats. The heaping portions of delicious Mexican food served here are not just a bargain (you can easily feed a family of four for $20) but they’re also really, really good. The chorizo queso fundido is a bubbling, cheesy, meat-filled dream of a starter, while salad packs enough romaine to fill a garden.

  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Downtown
  • price 2 of 4

There are so many misconceptions about Mexican food. People think it should be cheap or that it’s heavy and pork-centric. These are likely the same people who have never been to PEZ, featuring a menu conceived by Tijuana-based chef Javier Plascencia. As one of the pioneers of the region’s Baja-Med cuisine, he’s crafted a seafood-heavy selection that peppers in unusual—but tasty—surf and turf options.

Take the tacos de cochipulpo, which combines pork and octopus carnitas with refried beans. And we’re big fans of the tostadas, especially the tostada de atún made with yellowfin and topped with dried shredded beef. Like any good Mexican restaurant worth its worm salt, PEZ keeps its bar stocked with high-end tequilas and mescals, plus an assortment of lesser-known wines from Baja.

Advertising
  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • South of Fifth
  • price 2 of 4

This adorable, beachside cafe sits in the basement of the Stanton Hotel. Every inch of the space has chef/owner Richard Ampudia’s mark, from the kitschy wall art and traditional cantina decor to the menu’s (mostly) healthy spin on CDMX street food. Healthy options range from of-the-moment proteins like cauliflower—stuffed in tacos or served over nachos—to fresh seafood, from shrimp to octopus to poké.

Like everyone else in the middle of the pandemic, El Primo went nuts for birria tacos—so much so that the quick Downtown spot built a whole menu around them. Dress them up with cheese and guac, or opt for the birria-style tostadas, nachos, burritos and even a smash burger. What got them a lot of Instagram love early on, though, was the "birriamen," a heaping bowl of ramen noodles and fixings served in fatty, beefy birria drippings.

Advertising
  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Homestead
  • price 2 of 4

If you happen to find yourself down in Homestead, Casita Tejas is where you go for dishes that are incredible, inexpensive and authentic Mexican. One bite of the signature items and you’ll forget you burned a tank of gas to eat here. Try the sauce-smothered enchiladas, chimichangas with various types of fillings and chile relleno—a stuffed bell pepper with intense flavors and a spicy kick. No order here would be complete without a side of refried beans—the standout of all meals eaten at Casita—or a helping of their fresh salsa made with Homestead tomatoes.

  • Restaurants
  • Latin American
  • Little Haiti / Lemon City
  • price 2 of 4

CHICA by Lorena Garcia is the second outpost of the critically acclaimed Las Vegas eatery by the same name, which brings with it all its Sin City glitz to Miami’s historic MiMo district. Garcia appeared on Spanish-language cooking shows such as Top Chef Masters and America’s Next Great Restaurant before opening this Little Haiti spot. While Garcia is from Venezuela, a new menu launched in 2023 skews CHICA more toward Mexican-inspired dishes, like hibiscus and strawberry king salmon aguachile and the lamb and mole chichilo.

Advertising
  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • South Beach
  • price 1 of 4

If you want the authentic taste of Mexican street food without having to eat it standing by the side of the road, Bodega’s got you covered. You’ll still place your order from a truck—except this one is permanently parked inside and afterward, you can select a seat at a high-top or picnic table, inside or curbside. Dishes include tacos, tortas, street corn and guacamole, to name a few. And because Miamians love a little club-door drama, Bodega disguises the entrance to its secret back lounge as a porta-potty.

The best part about visiting Mexico is finding those taco spots on every corner, serving up what might be the best thing you've ever eaten in a tortilla. Tacos El Porky, a tiny fast-food-quick spot in Downtown, is going for that vibe, as evidenced by its trompo, a towering triangle of al pastor pork that gets shaved onto tacos with pineapple, onions and a cilantro mayo (add cheese to make it a “gringa”). As the name suggests, there's more pork than just pastor, with crispy fried chicharron served up simply by their glorious selves or in one very porky taco.

Advertising
  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • South Beach
  • price 2 of 4

From the Ortiz family, which pioneered authentic Mexican cuisine in South Beach with neighborhood favorite El Rancho Grande, comes Sunset Harbour’s Tequiztlan Tequileria and Cocina Mexicana. Much like its predecessor (Tequiztlan is an evolved, more refined version of El Rancho) the restaurant serves true Mexican cooking, only this time paired with a variety of top-shelf tequilas and mescals.

Chef Javier Plascencia, who specializes in Baja cuisine, created the menu for this sit-down spot that’s just outside the party scene of Wynwood, explaining the mostly seafood menu that covers Mexico’s west coast, with Sinoloan-style tuna crudo, seared scallops with corn esquite and a octopus ragout spiked with mezcal and served over radiatore pasta. 

Advertising
  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Design District
  • price 1 of 4

Tacombi arrived in the Miami Design District in December 2021 after spreading out around New York City like a hipster with a trust fund. But this is no Chipotle—Tacombi’s vibe feels somewhere between bustling Bronx bodega and a Little Havana house party. They’re going for legit Mexican street food, which is obvious by the rotating spit of al pastor pork spinning in the kitchen, topped by a pineapple that gets sliced atop the tacos. But the real headliner here is the Cali-style fish taco, a Twinkie-sized hunk of beer-battered cod with roasted poblano mayo and fat-cutting slaw.

  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Flagami
  • price 1 of 4

Don’t judge this place based on looks: Both locations, in Little Havana and Coral Gables, are small, seemingly suspicious and have zero ambiance. But those who’ve been have nothing but praise for its authentic food, friendly service and cheap drinks. Margaritas and Coronas won’t set you back here like in other places, and neither will the giant quesadillas and burritos you’re better off sharing. Jacalito’s chilaquiles, available with red or green sauce and topped with steak, are some of the best in the city.

Advertising
  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Sunset Harbour
  • price 2 of 4

Big portions and a bustling environment sum up the experience at TacoCraft in South Miami, an indoor/outdoor restaurant with sidewalk seating and a hidden bar in the back (and also several Broward locations). Tacos and oversize portions of shareable plates make this a safe bet for a cheap night out. If you're really hungry, order the short-rib nachos. This heaping pile of tortilla chips, meat, cheese and guacamole will keep you from getting too drunk on margaritas or craft beers, of which the restaurant has an extensive assortment.

  • Restaurants
  • Mexican
  • Coral Gables
  • price 3 of 4

Talavera Cocina Mexicana, named after Puebla’s artisanal pottery, serves regional specialties from all over Mexico, including Sonora and Oaxaca, well known for its varieties of mole sauce, four of which diners will find on the menu. Talavera’s daily specials are the way to go if you’re interested in trying something different, as each day brings a new dish inspired by a different Mexican state.

Find more global eats in Miami

Recommended
    You may also like
    You may also like
    Advertising