Want the intel on Miami's most happening local spots?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp and SafeGraph, a data set of commercial points of interest and their visitor patterns, to uncover which restaurants have been most discussed this month.
To find out who made the list, we first 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 increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance. Then we analyzed foot traffic data from SafeGraph to validate the trends.
Read on to see which spots are worth exploring this autumn.
Rice Mediterranean Kitchen
This Mediterranean, Persian/Iranian and Middle Eastern spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Mediterranean" on Yelp.
Citywide, Mediterranean spots saw a median 1.6% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Rice Mediterranean Kitchen saw a 44.8% increase, with a slight downward trend from a 4.5-star rating a month ago to four stars today. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis, Rice Mediterranean Kitchen's review count increased by more than 430%.
It's not the only trending outlier in the Mediterranean category: The Deck at Island Gardens has seen a 22.7% increase in reviews.
Located at 2500 Biscayne Blvd., Rice Mediterranean Kitchen offers hummus, falafel, braised lamb and more on the menu.
Piccola Italia Pizza
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Coral Way's Piccola Italia Pizza, the Italian spot, which offers pizza and more, is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Italian" on Yelp saw a median 2.2% increase in new reviews over the past month, Piccola Italia Pizza bagged a 4.3% increase in new reviews within that timeframe, maintaining a mixed 3.5-star rating. According to SafeGraph foot traffic data, Piccola Italia Pizza saw visits more than double in the past month.
Open at 2389 Coral Way since 2009, Piccola Italia Pizza delivers pizza and other authentic Italian dishes per its Yelp business description.
Tigertail + Mary
Tigertail + Mary is also making waves. After opening this year at 3321 Mary St., the cocktail bar, cafe and New American spot has seen a 12.5% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.5% for all businesses tagged "American (New)" on Yelp.
Tigertail + Mary offers lunch, dinner, happy hour and brunch. Over the past month, it's maintained a solid four-star rating among Yelpers.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
