Wondering where Miami's in-the-know crowd is eating and drinking? It's easy to spot lines out the door, but some underlying trends are harder to see.
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to analyze which local businesses have been on the tips of diners' tongues this month.
To find out who made the list, we looked at Miami businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increase their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.
Read on to see which spots are riding a trend this winter.
Fleming's Prime Steakhouse
Open since February, this steakhouse and wine bar, which offers seafood and more, is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Seafood" on Yelp.
Citywide, seafood spots saw review counts increase by a median of 2.3 percent over the past month, but Fleming's Prime Steakhouse saw a 24.6 percent increase, maintaining a strong 4.5-star rating throughout. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis review counts increased by more than 180 percent.
It's not the only trending outlier in the seafood category: CVI.CHE 105 has seen a 14.6 percent increase in reviews, and Crazy Poke and Ella's Oyster Bar have seen 18.7 and 10.9 percent increases, respectively.
Located at 600 Brickell Ave., Suite 150, in Brickell, Fleming's Prime Steakhouse offers hand-crafted cocktails, ranging from the Old Cuban to the Blueberry Lemon Drop. For lunch, try the Salmon Mediterranean Salad or California Burger. Dinner options include starters like a chilled seafood tower and lobster bisque soup, eight cuts of steak, as well as popular desserts such as the key lime pie and triple layer chocolate and caramel cake. (See the full menu here.)
El Cielo
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Brickell's El Cielo, the Colombian and New American spot, which offers a tasting menu inspired by molecular gastronomy, is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "American (New)" on Yelp increased their review count by a median of 2.7 percent over the past month, El Cielo bagged a 12 percent increase in reviews within that timeframe, maintaining a superior four-star rating. It significantly outperformed the previous month by gaining 7.5 times more reviews than expected based on its past performance.
There's more that's trending on Miami's New American scene: Glass & Vine has seen a 7.6 percent increase in reviews, and Le Chick Miami has seen a 10.6 percent bump.
Open at 31 S.E. Fifth St. since 2015, El Cielo offers a 16-feast course for the palate as well as the senses; highlights include the Tree of Life—yucca bread propped up by copper wires—served with a passionfruit-and-cacao dipping sauce; carrot air soup with a sliver of guava; Andean pacific crudo, which combines pineapple vinaigrette with quinoa, tuna sashimi and more yucca; and Bocadito de Amor (phyllo pastry cups stuffed with lavender).
Vista
Little Haiti's Vista is also making waves. Open since July at 5020 N.E. Second Ave., the new cocktail bar and Italian spot has seen a 36.4 percent bump in reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 3.9 percent for all businesses tagged "Cocktail Bars" on Yelp.
Vista's menu includes a sweet grilled peach salad with stracciatella and toasted pine nuts and a daily rotating risotto, plus main dishes, ranging from a half roasted chicken and veal chop milanesa to an eight-ounce burger made with a blend of sirloin, brisket and ribeye, garnished with portobello mushrooms, mozzarella and sun-dried tomato spread. Over the past month, it's maintained a convincing four-star rating among Yelpers.
