The Best Brunch in Miami Right Now

Miami brunch has three tiers: the spectacle, the party, and the neighborhood anchor. Knowing which one you're going to before you book changes the entire experience.

The spectacle tier is anchored by Jaya at The Setai on South Beach. One hundred and twenty-six bookings on a given day — the most of any brunch restaurant in the city. A Peking Duck bar. Endless champagne. And on Saturdays, a Caviar & Champagne Brunch that is the most ambitious brunch offering in Miami. The Setai's Japanese restaurant has a cherry blossom banquette; Jaya has a caviar bar. The hotel has decided that excess is the point, and it is right.

Amara at Paraiso in Edgewater is the second spectacle option — 36 bookings on a given day, a Sunday brunch buffet, and a bottomless champagne option. The Edgewater waterfront location gives it a view that most South Beach restaurants can't match, and the buffet format means you can stay as long as the champagne holds out.

The party tier is led by Limonada Bar + Brunch on South Beach, which runs the LUSH Weekend Brunch Party — a bottomless mimosas format with a creative brunch menu and an energy that is closer to a club than a restaurant. Three bookings on a given day is a misleading number; the walk-in crowd is the real story. Elia on the River in Allapattah runs a Saturday and Sunday Brunch with bottomless drinks and a Lobster Benedict that has become one of the most-discussed brunch dishes in the city.

American Social Brickell makes Fruity Pebbles Chicken & Waffles. That dish — the most specific and memorable brunch item name in the entire dataset — is the reason to go. Twenty-one bookings on a given day, bottomless mimosas, a sports bar format that doesn't take itself too seriously. It is the right choice when the group wants bottomless drinks and a dish that makes everyone at the table stop talking.

The neighborhood anchor tier is where the most interesting brunch in Miami actually lives. Bayshore Club in Coconut Grove serves a Lobster & queso omelet and Medianoche French toast — two dishes that are specific enough to be a reason to go on their own. Eight bookings on a given day, a Contemporary American menu, a Coconut Grove waterfront location. It is the choice when you want the quality of the spectacle tier without the production.

Orange Blossom on South Beach has 3,074 reviews, bottomless brunch cocktails, and a Nutella French Toast that appears in more Instagram posts than any other brunch dish in the city. Eleven bookings on a given day, a Blossom Brunch every weekend, a South Beach location that means the crowd is always interesting. It is the most reliable brunch in Miami — not the most exciting, but the most consistent.

Bachour in Coral Gables runs brunch until 4pm — a detail that matters more than it sounds. The Spanish scramble eggs are the anchor dish, and the extended hours mean you can arrive at 2pm and still get the full experience. Nine bookings on a given day, a $$ price point, a pastry program that is among the best in South Florida.

ASTRA Miami Rooftop in Wynwood offers baklava pancakes and bottomless mimosas from a rooftop with a view. Thirteen bookings on a given day, a Mediterranean menu, a +750 points OpenTable promotion that suggests the restaurant is working to build its brunch audience. The baklava pancakes are the reason to go before the crowd finds it.

The Henry in Brickell makes a Cinnamon Sugar French Toast and Eggs Benedict with a house muffin — two dishes that are specific enough to be a reason to go. Eight bookings on a given day, a $$ price point, a Brickell location that makes it the right choice for the post-workout brunch crowd. Level 6 Rooftop in Coconut Grove has a bottomless brunch option, a live DJ during brunch, and a Spanish menu that makes it the most interesting rooftop brunch in the city.

Miami brunch is a spectrum. At one end: Jaya's caviar bar, the Setai's endless champagne, a room that is designed to make you feel like the occasion is worth it. At the other: Bayshore's Medianoche French toast, Orange Blossom's Nutella French Toast, a neighborhood room where the food is the point. The best choice depends on what kind of Sunday you're trying to have.