Unsure 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 discover 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 worth exploring this winter.
Three
Open since October 2017, this fine-dining establishment is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "American (New)" on Yelp.
Citywide, New American spots saw review counts increase by a median of 1.5 percent over the past month, but Three saw a 12.5 percent increase, maintaining a sound four-star rating throughout. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis review counts increased by more than 300 percent.
It's not the only trending outlier in the New American category: St. Roch Market Miami has seen an 8.3 percent increase in reviews, and World Famous House of Mac has seen an 8.5 percent bump.
Located at 50 N.W. 24th St. at Wynwood Arcade, Three encourages diners to choose three courses from the regularly changing menu — or allow chef Norman Van Aken and his team to select five courses for them.
The seasonal menu has featured offerings like a creamy conch chowder — a favorite among Yelpers, grilled octopus, paella and a porterhouse steak for two. There's also weekend brunch, with bottomless mimosas on offer.
Crazy Poke
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Crazy Poke is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Seafood" on Yelp increased their review count by a median of 2 percent over the past month, Crazy Poke bagged a 7.5 percent increase in reviews within that timeframe, maintaining a healthy 4.5-star rating.
Open at 312 N.W. 24th St. in Wynwood since November 2017, Crazy Poke serves up poke bowls and sushi burritos. A favorite among Yelpers is the spicy tuna bowl, featuring ahi tuna, sweet onion, scallions, avocado, hijiki seaweed, masago, seasame seeds and spicy Japanese mayo. (See the full menu here.)
Sette Osteria
Sette Osteria is also making waves. Open since May 2018 at 2103 N.W. Second Ave., the Italian restaurant has seen a 16 percent bump in reviews over the past month, compared to a median review increase of 3.4 percent for all businesses tagged "Breakfast & Brunch" on Yelp.
Like any good Italian restaurant, Sette Osteria offers house-made pastas and pizzas and wine. But at brunch, expect selections like Nutella flatbread, topped with fruit and caramel sauce; crab cake eggs Benedict; and a variety of omelettes featuring Italian sausage, smoked salmon, crabmeat, shrimp and other delicacies.
Over the past month, it has maintained a sound 4.5-star rating among Yelpers. (Check out the menu here.)
