13 Great Tasting Menus in Miami, From Under $125 to Splurge Worthy

TASTING MENUS UNDER $125

Though it’s beloved by regulars and those who have graced its intimate dining room, this sushi sanctuary in Edgewater remains a relative secret compared to other sushi hot spots (perhaps it’s the fact that there’s no name on the door). Aoko’s warm wood tones, soft lighting and soothing music all welcome you in for an almost-meditative meal of pristinely prepared raw fish, which makes it the perfect pick for an approachable omakase experience. In addition to offering an à la carte menu of nigiri and sashimi by the piece and maki and temaki by the roll, Aoko also has an excellent 10-piece nigiri omakase for $75 or a 14-piece sashimi selection for only $10 more. And if you’re looking for an expedited selection of the chef’s choosing, opt for their “omakase” version of a chirashi bowl — a colorful, jewel-like arrangement of the day’s best sashimi atop warm sushi rice — for $38.

Cost: $75 per person for the 10-piece nigiri omakase; $85 for the 14-piece sashimi omakase.

With four locations across Miami (in Midtown, Brickell and South Beach), and now Fort Lauderdale, you could say that beach-themed Bondi Sushi has one of the city’s most accessible omakase menus. This growing upscale-meets-casual sushi chain is known for their quality fresh fish offered at fair price points, including a speedy 12-piece omakase tasting available at their central sushi bar for $80. You can also order nigiri, sashimi, hand rolls, and specialty rolls like surf and turf or salmon and lobster, along with their cult favorite crispy rice. And don’t miss out on Bondi’s cocktails, which were curated by NYC-based Michelin-starred sister concepts, Noda and Shinji’s.

Cost: $80 per person for 12 courses.

Cote’s Butcher’s Feast is the ultimate tasting menu for meat aficionados and the perfect entry point to a meal at this Michelin-starred Korean steakhouse. Here, guests gather around a tabletop grill meant for searing raw steak cuts, but instead of cooking it on your own like this is some sort of commoner’s melting pot, the servers work in mezmerising unison to season, flip and grill your steak like a perfectly choreographed dance. For $82 per person, you’ll get four different cuts of prime and American wagyu beef, along with a whole slew of Korean accompaniments that make it a real feast, like spicy stews, a savory egg soufflé, salads, rice, and banchan. It’s more than enough to leave you feeling satisfied (and spoiled), and there’s also a much more elaborate steak omakase option if you’re looking to splurge.

Cost: $82 per person for the Butcher’s Feast.

Kojin’s tasting menu feels less like a greatest-hits reel and more like a favorite album: deliberately curated from the first bite to the last, and better when you let it play all the way through. The eight-course menu ($120 per person) is chef Pedro Mederos’ clearest expression of the Coral Gables restaurant he runs with wife Katherine Mederos, moving through seasonal plates that slowly build, take sharp creative turns, and land a few surprises without showing off too much. Plus, Kojin also offers a four-course option for $75 per person as an attainable entry point (that balance is the appeal). Expect serious technique that never feels trapped by fine-dining seriousness, and Katherine’s pastry program keeps pace with desserts that can go as savory, strange, or comforting as the meal requires. The open kitchen gives the room a pulse, especially in a 30-seat space that still carries the intimacy of its pop-up roots. For the full “yes, chef” experience, request the two private counter seats in front of the kitchen, where the chef plates and serves the meal directly to you.

Cost: $75 per person for four courses; $120 per person for eight courses.

One of the best Italian restaurants in town also offers one of our favorite tasting menus. At this beloved family-run trattoria, you get rustic Italian fare from chef Mike Pirolo, inspired by his time cooking in New York and Italy, plus an impressive wine program of natural-leaning Italian wines curated by beverage director and Pirolo’s sister, Jacqueline Pirolo. Macchialina is where locals go when they’re craving a perfect bowl of housemade pasta, and elsewhere on the menu, plates of polenta, gnocco fritto (fried bread), and veal Milanese are equally comforting. The chef’s four-course tasting menu for $75 makes for an ideal introduction to Pirolo’s signature dishes for any first-timer, but if you’re there on Wednesday night, you’re in luck. That’s when the restaurant’s signature Pasta Omakase is offered at the 12-seat bar only, featuring three off-menu crudo dishes and three of the chef’s latest seasonal pastas served omakase-style for $108 per person.

Cost: $75 per person for the chef’s four-course tasting menu; $108 per person for the six-course Pasta Omakase.

If you’re like us and crispy rice is secretly your favorite part of any sushi meal, this stylish hand roll bar in Coral Gables is likely to be up there with your go-to omakase experiences in Miami. Miss Crispy Rice offers several tasting menu options, and luckily, they’re available for under $100. Lunch starts at eight courses for $35, while dinner starts at 12 courses for $67 per guest (though you can upgrade to the 14- and 16-course omakase, or add extras to your meal from the excellent à la carte menu). Ingredients here are flown in from Tokyo’s fish markets, and the sushi ranges from the simple (hello, classic spicy tuna crispy rice) to the all-out gourmet (who can say no to the chef’s signature hand roll of pork belly, fatty tuna and caviar?). Make sure to book a spot at the 16-seat omakase bar for the tasting menu experience. For those who want to take a stab at the DIY version, on the weekend, there’s a four-seat bar reserved exclusively for their sashimi service, which comes with a tray of 12 sashimi slices plus toppings, sauces and accompaniments to experiment with yourself.

Cost: $35 per person for eight courses during lunch; $67 per person for 12 courses during dinner. Additional upgrades to a 14- and 16-course omakase are also available.

At Palma, the chefs surprise guests each night with a boundary-pushing tasting menu, so you’ll be served small tasting plates of unexpected flavor pairings that are difficult to define as a familiar dish or set style of cuisine — but are always delicious. Florida-born chef Juan Camilo Liscano weaves his magic with ingredients to highlight local flavors and farmers with culinary techniques he’s gathered from across the globe. And while we can’t tell you exactly what will be on the menu the day you’re dining at Palma (other than a signature sweet plantain brioche bread and butter course that comes out mid-meal), the plates will range from memorable and inventive to wildly delicious. Palma’s evolving nine-course menu performance runs $115 per person, a steal in Miami, especially for a restaurant whose entire concept revolves around a tasting menu.

Cost: $115 per person for nine courses.

Sushi | Bar makes the case that an omakase in Miami can still feel fun, and relatively sane for the price. Hidden inside the boutique Esmé Hotel, the 12-seat South Beach counter serves a menu built around pristine fish and playful detours from tradition. These are bites with personality: barbecued eel gets paired with bone marrow, scallop picks up a hit of Calabrian chile honey, and other familiar nigiri formats come dressed with unexpected accents. Starting at $95 for 10 courses of the greatest hits, or $185 for the classic 17-course experience, it lands below many of the city’s splashier omakase counters without feeling like a compromise. The room is small and romantic, the sushi is carefully handled, and the whole experience has just enough whimsy to keep dinner from feeling too reverent.

Cost: $95 for 10 courses; $185 for 17 courses.

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TASTING MENUS WORTH THE SPLURGE

Elyu Omakase from chef Reiji Yoshizawa brings a more personal undertone to Miami’s sushi counter scene, where the details point beyond Japan. Raised in Manila and trained through Miami’s upscale Asian restaurants and omakase counters, Yoshizawa threads Filipino influences throughout the 15-course progression of raw fish. That might mean nigiri finished with asín tibuok, a rare Filipino sea salt shaped like a dinosaur egg, or sashimi sharpened with tamarind’s unmistakable tang. The fish is sourced from Japan, but the meal’s best moments come when technique and memory meet in one bite.

Cost: $245 per person; $155 per person for the optional sake pairing.

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Emelina uses its small 16-seat counter to ask a much bigger question: What would Cuban food look like if it had been able to keep evolving with the world around it? In West Palm’s Flamingo Park District, chef-owners Osmel González and Camila Salazar bring the polish of their training in kitchens like SingleThread in California and Spain’s Disfruta to a 10-course tasting menu that treats Cuban cuisine as something still in motion. Rabo encendido becomes braised oxtail with Carolina Gold rice; the classic minuta sandwich gets reworked as tempura-fried black drum with a lighter touch. It’s thoughtful, intimate, and more interested in possibility than nostalgia.

Cost: $275 per person for 10 courses.

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The restaurant that set the original omakase standard in Miami, Naoe asks you to settle in, pay attention, and trust the counter completely. It’s a place that makes most Miami omakase counters feel loud by comparison. On Brickell Key, the five-seat restaurant keeps everything exacting, with chef-owner Kevin Cory guiding a three-hour meal that moves at its own pace. With three dinner seatings a night, the seafood is sourced from Japan alongside local fisherpeople, but Cory’s family breweries in Kanazawa also play a key role. That’s where he gets the shoyu (soy sauce) that’s brushed over each artfully crafted nigiri, as well as the sake list. To round out the experience, dessert comes in the form of tea, fruit, cake and ice cream, rather than a single grand finale.

Cost: $280 per person for the three-hour experience.

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Ogawa is the omakase for diners who want the whole ritual, not just a pristine lineup of nigiri. The Michelin-starred counter from chef Masayuki Komatsu moves through a Kappo-style menu that gives cooked dishes as much weight as the sushi, with Japanese seafood and seasonal bites served in a steady progression. The space helps set the tone, starting with a serene Japanese garden that welcomes in guests before they enter the traditionally designed dining room with an intimate sushi counter. Expect nearly two hours of hot and cold dishes alongside nigiri (the menu is often tailored to who’s coming that night, based on guests’ preferences and special requests), plus sake and wine pairings that match the seriousness of the food. At $395 per person, it’s one of Miami’s most expensive omakase experiences, but also one that fully transports you.

Cost: $395 per person.

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At Stubborn Seed, chef Jeremy Ford builds much of the menu around what’s coming off his five-acre farm in Homestead, which means repeat visits can feel completely different depending on the season. Summer might bring corn panna cotta or charred avocado, while Miami’s best growing months can mean peak season tomatoes and strawberries. The dining space is industrial and restrained, which leaves plenty of room for the food to do the talking. Still, this isn’t a stiff fine-dining march. Playful bites like lime-jalapeño gushers or melon-shaped Jell-O bring some welcome mischief to all that precision. It’s one of Miami’s most polished tasting menus where the kitchen is still having fun.

Cost: $150 per person for six courses; $200 per person for nine courses.