The best steakhouses in Miami to totally splurge—or keep it lowkey

Klaw landed atop the once-abandoned Miami Women’s Club building in Edgewater from a restaurant group behind some of London’s best steakhouses, so it’s no surprise the well-sourced cuts here are top quality. Servers arrive tableside with a tray of raw steaks that they show off like a newborn babe, headlined by the A5 striploin from Hyogo prefecture Japan for $33 an ounce.

We’d suggest going with the age-old T-bone, sliced in advance, well salted and buttery, a near-perfect steak. The sides are all worthy of the steaks: parmesan-truffle fries, asparagus topped with avocado cream and meaty mixed mushrooms in butter. It’s not cheap, and no matter how you arrive you might feel underdressed, but this is a steakhouse to celebrate all the things.

Maybe you’ve done the Korean barbecue thing before, where meats are cooked at a charcoal grill in the center of a table in a suburban strip mall restaurant. Cote is a trendier, more elegant version of that—and a whole lot better. Here, servers conduct a well-choreographed dance to and from your table to drop, turn and plate each beautifully marbled piece of meat. The cuts are prime, the sides are incredible and the whole thing feels like you’ve just been to a Broadway show.

Chef Fernando Salazar took an impressive pivot from a ceviche food truck into a killer concept new to Miami: a Peruvian steakhouse. The idea is gold: Peruvian-spiced prime steaks, Peruvian sides and mains like chaufa and lomo saltado, and lots of dramatic tableside presentations—like a blowtorch that’s used to char a rosemary sprig and melt a pat of butter over your steaks. Those who'd rather skip the red meat will rejoice in the gargantuan Galapagos stuffed lobster and a fondue-like side of mashed potatoes spiked with caviar.

This is the place for somebody who prefers their steakhouse presented like a 1970s disco-fueled supper club. A windowless basement below a Brickell highrise, Dirty French feels like a party at all hours of the day, like the clock is always set to 2am and you’re about to start a week-long bender. But this spot isn’t just about the scene. The Major Food Group folks (Carbone, Contessa, et al), have put together a steakhouse best-of menu, headlined by a beautiful hunk of house-special prime rib. It’s all delivered by a pro team of servers wearing the most baller pink tuxes with frilly shirts this side of '79.

Technically the Four Seasons swapped out the steakhouse theme at Edge recently and converted it into a brasserie. But considering the deep list of well-sourced steaks here, it’s still better than most steakhouses and doing the steakhouse thing. Expect wagyu, cuts from the foreign lands of Australia and sides that are more creative than your average creamed spinach, like Gratitude Gardens-sourced mushrooms with a caramelized onion puree.

Here’s a worthy entry from Michelin-starred chef Michael Mina, whose local team cooked up a bold and glossy atmosphere that feels a bit like you’re an extra on Mad Men. Ease into the meal with something raw, like the majestic seafood tower or tuna tartare. Then move on to the main event: all-natural steaks poached in herb-infused butter and finished on a wood-burning oven. And the trio of french fries cooked in duck fat—which are served in lieu of a bread basket and available in unlimited quantities.

Strip away all the pretension of your average Miami steakhouse and you're left with Wagyu Bar, a place where you can come however you are and eat a damn good steak. Those steaks in question come from the butcher shop next door, Meat N' Bone, which owns the place and puts out everything from a humble $28 skirt steak to a 32-ounce wagyu tomahawk for $250. These are cuts as good as anywhere, in a place that feels as casual as an early Tuesday dinner.

Michael Mina’s second steakhouse to land on this list is one of the cornerstones of the Fontainebleau Hotel’s superb dining scene. StripSteak is as elegant as the classic hotel it calls home. The wine options abound and the seafood and pasta are both very fresh, but the meat is where it’s at. Try anything coming out of that wood-burning grill: the Australian wagyu, American rib eye and Japanese A5 Miyazaki are all smart choices. Order a side of truffle mac and cheese. If you don’t eat it, we will.

Once in a while, a chain restaurant comes along that makes you forget there’s more than one. How else could a place this good be replicated elsewhere? Our Smith & Wollensky has water views and an outdoor bar where you can sip your perfect dirty martini while watching the boats and cruise ships sail by. Plus, all of the prime cuts of beef, seafood towers and everything else you know about this well-oiled machine are available in South Beach too.

This is a steakhouse your grandparents will love. That’s not an insult. While the crowd does skew older, Christy’s is just that wonderful breed of traditional steakhouse we don’t see much of these days. A loyal battalion of servers and cooks tend to your every whim with enthusiasm, and you can always count on the food to be as good—or better—than the last time you dined. In fact, the famous Caesar salad hasn’t changed in 20 years and is still made exactly the same way by the same person. Celebrating a birthday? 50th anniversary? Christy’s will make all of the above feel just as special as it is, just be sure to end things with the baked Alaska for two.