Best Casual Restaurants in South Beach Where I Regularly Go

It is not always easy to go out and eat at fancy restaurants in Miami. Unless you stay in an Airbnb, you will sometimes need to find some places where you can casually eat lunch or dinner. So today, I will introduce you to my best casual restaurants in South beach that I go regularly.

Table of Contents

Chalan on the Beach

Chalan on the Beach is a Peruvian restaurant, and it is where I almost went every week.

And solely for two dishes only.

It is called Sautéed Spaghetti with Seafood (Tallarin Saltado de Mariscos) and Deep Fried Fish Chunks.

Other menus are absolutely gorgeous as well.

My friends always order different seafood dishes, but they always say the Sauteed Spaghetti was the best.

I know what you are thinking. Why order Spaghetti at a Peruvian restaurant. But let’s not make this post any longer and move on.

If you want to know more about it obviously, check out my related blog post. I wrote about Chalan on the Beach in detail.

Monty’s Sunset Beach

Monty’s Sunset Beach is a little gem that I didn’t know, but I should have.

I found out this place after I went scuba diving, and I don’t know if it were the weather or just the whole vibe, I had such a lovely lunch.

The food is not extra-ordinary, but it is not bad at all.

I think you come here for the view and to relax and just have a quick bite.

If you are looking for good food and good view with yatch, I would highly recommend Whiskey Joe’s.

I wrote a separate blog post on Whiskey Joe’s, and you can read about it there.

La Sandwicherie Miami Beach

I don’t even know how many times I have been to La Sandwicherie after I got so wasted.

I am actually amazed that I have a picture of the sandwich.

This little gem has been around since 1988 and still going strong with a few other franchises.

You cannot really compare to subway and if you end up staying in South Beach near Collins Avenue you should definitely try the sandwich here.

The reason I love it is that there they are not cheap on their ingredients and the sauce makes the whole sandwich something very unique.

Of course with their baguette it is so tasty and so lovely. They also open till 12:00, so it is a perfect spot if you are feeling hungry late at night.

Havana 57

Having lived in Miami for few years, I would never would thought Havana 57 would be good especially being on the most touristy area, Lincoln Road and Ocean Drive.

For some reason, whenever my friends visited Havana 57 was a place to go. I think it was just a good place to introduce Cuban influence Miami overall.

I am hundred percent sure the Cubans will not agree that Havannah 57 is authentic.

But after coming back from Cuba, I realised there is actually no authentic Cuban sandwich, because the Cuban sandwich in Cuba is very different than the ones in Miami.

But in terms of Miami Cuban sandwich Havana 57 is as good as Puerto Sagua Restaurant or Las Olas Cafe.

And I think it is a great way to show how Cuba influenced Miami in a great way.

They also have few franchises (Ocean Drive and Lincoln Road) so if you are staying on south beach this is a very easy place to go and enjoy your casual meal.

CJ Crab Shack

I am not sure if I could say this is the best casual restaurant in South Beach because it is not actually cheap. BUT the whole restaurant has a casual vibe.

It is not Joe’s Crab but more like a comfort food restaurant.

The food in general at CJ Crab Shack is more on the heavy side from seafood cream pasta to fried shrimps.

It was established in 1921 and still standing, so you know that it is good.

If you’re looking for seafood or Japanese style restaurant you can check out my related post below.

Yard Bird

Now since we talked about the restaurants on the South beach side, let’s talk about some of the casual restaurant on the bay side area.

Yard Bird is probably the most casual restaurants in South Beach.

It is a very American restaurant. Everything is delicious but their fried chicken is the best.

It has a very Brooklyn style interior design and a full bar with great cocktails. The light is dim and the people are mostly millennial.

I would say that it has a very millennial vibe to the whole restaurant.

You know the millennials who can spend about 50 – 60 dollars a meal (one app, one main dish and a cocktail).

Bodega

Bodega is known for their tacos but also their secret club behind the toilet door.

Did you see the secret toilet door? lol Was it too fast? but it is one of the famous place to go at night

It is a simple fast casual restaurant, so it is not the most authentic nor the most fanciest restaurant.

But if you are looking for a casual simple meal, Bodega is a good place to go.

I like to say it is like the Mcdonalds of the burger. Just easy, quick and simple.

I want to warn you though if you are trying to go to Bodega around 12 AM, try to avoid it as the people from the club will take over the whole street, and you might wonder what is going on lol.

According to Eater 38, the Lolo’s Surf Cantina is one of the best Mexican restaurant on South Beach.

I didn’t get a chance to try it, but please let me know below comments if you have.

Gogo Fresh

Gogo Fresh focuses on homemade empanadas and their fresh salad.

Gogo Fresh is also on the bayside, so if you are staying at the Mondrian hotel or any Airbnb near Gogo Fresh, I would recommend it.

It is so funny cause Gogo Fresh is like the only good casual restaurant on the South of bay side, so many people get their salad and empanadas to Mondrian hotel, and the servers definitely don’t like it if you bring it into the pool.