Restaurants

“Meraki” is a term Greeks use to describe doing something with soul, creativity, and love. It entails putting a little of yourself into whatever you do, and that’s precisely what owner Alex Karavias did with Meraki Greek Bistro (142 SE First Ave., Miami; 786-773-1535), which debuted several months ago. It’s always been his dream to open an authentic Greek restaurant, so he and his wife renovated an intimate space in an alley hidden in downtown Miami.

It turns out longtime Miami caterer and restaurateur Ken Lyon is running the bar at the Wynwood Yard. It’s the one that requires you pay a corkage fee for your bottle of nigori sake before you sit down for Ryo Kato’s omakase at Myumi. The Yard’s founder, Della Heiman, turned to Lyon, who helped revitalize Lincoln Road when he opened the gourmet market Lyon Frères et Compagnie in 1992, to get her food truck up and running in the summer of 2015.

As a young boy in Naples, Italy, Giovanni Gagliardi remembers dragging a chair up to the counter in his grandfather’s kitchen. Though he was too short to reach the top, he was determined to make pizza without anyone’s help. This spring, Gagliardi, who helped open Ironside Pizza in Little River, will start up…

March was a busy month for South Florida, with plenty of restaurant openings (so many it’s hard to keep track) and barely any notable closings. The month welcomed the addition of long-awaited establishments/. There was everything from craft brewery NoBo Brewing Co. in Boynton Beach to ramen hotspot Ramen Lab…

After hours of drinking, your stomach is a gurgling mess. You need something to eat, and fast. So you stumble north on Collins Avenue and turn on 20th Street toward the beach. A small sign that reads “K Ramen. Burger. Beer” lures you into the Townhouse Hotel. After stepping through the narrow front door, you’re guided down a black staircase and into a room with the frenetic lights and sounds of a Japanese pachinko parlor.

The growth of Miami’s culinary scene looks like it’s not slowing, with expansion west to Doral, Kendall, and Little Havana. Multiple eateries recently opened in Doral, including Cooper’s Hawk Restaurant & Winery and Rusty Bucket, both at the new shopping, dining, and entertainment complex CityPlace Doral. Though openings were significant, including the appearance of Madrid’s Tatel in South Beach and Estefan Kitchen in the Design District, closings tugged at local foodies’ heartstrings.

Miami’s food scene is ever-changing. Each month brings a veritable treasure trove of delights to try. March was especially fruitful, with eateries and bars opening that ranged from authentic Neapolitan pizza to a celebrity-studded import from Spain to a new take on the humble paleta. Here are five new Miami spots to try this weekend.

The culinary world has many delights, but the simplest one is arguably the oyster. There might be nothing finer than the taste of a chilled mollusk, followed by a sip of cold wine or champagne. If you’re looking for an excuse to order a dozen, today is National Oyster on the Half Shell Day. Miami is teeming with oyster bars and seafood restaurants, but here are the five best places to get shucked.

When Mignonette Uptown opened in January, seafood fans in Northeast Miami-Dade were in for a culinary treat. The restaurant, a partnership between chef Daniel Serfer and Ryan Roman, replaced the Gourmet Diner, swapping steak frites and burgers for oysters and lobster rolls. Beginning April 1, the restaurant will open its doors for weekend brunch.

Last evening, Johnson & Wales University paid tribute to Miami’s most gifted chefs and restaurant owners at its sixth-annual Zest Awards ceremony. The school created the awards in 2012 to recognize leaders in the local culinary industry, many of whom are Johnson & Wales graduates.

Edible cookie dough, the latest dessert trend to hit the 305, is here. Dough Miami, a family-owned sweets company, makes 100 percent safe-to-eat raw cookie dough garnished with sugary toppings like rainbow sprinkles and chocolate chips. Based in Westchester, a sister-brother duo and their spouses are behind the city’s first business to specialize in the dessert.

Last summer, Poke 305 jumpstarted Miami’s poke trend by opening a shop in downtown. Since then, a batch of other businesses opened too, including Ono Poke in Wynwood and PokeBao in Coral Gables. Now it’s time for expansions, and Poke 305 leads the way.

When Deborah Frazier baked cookies for her nieces and nephews in the 1980s, she didn’t know that simple act of kindness would change her life. Frazier found a new passion in baking and dreamed of having her own store. “I always had my eye on opening up a little cookie shop. I had my eye on that prize.” That dream became a reality when Frazier opened DD’s Gourmet Cookies at the Shops at Sunset Place in South Miami this past February.

For years, Place Invaders has traveled across the U.S. for its roving dinner series.Now, the rogue pop-up is partnering with Phuc Yea to invade Miami for the weekend.

One area that hasn’t stopped growing over the past decade is Brickell. In just the past year, Miami’s financial district has welcomed luxury hotels such as SLS Brickell, East Miami, and the lavish shopping project Brickell City Centre, which is seeing more high-end stores open every day. Now the neighborhood has a new restaurant and lounge, Level One.

In Forte dei Marmi, Italy, the sidewalks are made of marble, and the surrounding Apennine mountains are covered with the white rock. Though a recently opened South Beach restaurant is named for the Tuscan seaside town, its real draw is a softer, serene atmosphere in conjunction with the rustic Italian cuisine of chef Raffaele Mellino and his father Antonio Mellino.

Enrique Iglesias and two of Spain’s most notable athletes — professional tennis player Rafael Nadal and the San Antonio Spurs’ Pau Gasol — were at the newly opened Miami location earlier this week to officially induct the iconic Spanish restaurant into the heart of Miami Beach’s Art Deco District. If it’s authentic Spanish tapas you’re after, Tatel Miami is the place.

Few things are more “Miami” than dining alfresco with unobstructed views of passing and parked megayachts. At the Deck at Island Gardens (888 MacArthur Cswy., Miami), Sundays are reserved for an opulent brunch buffet, which gives way to a swanky sunset party often carrying late into the evening.

Palm Beach County will gain a bit of hipster cred when restaurants located in New York City and Miami’s Wynwood open 123 Datura and Coyo Taco in West Palm Beach and Palm Beach.

If you’re near the Wynwood Yard during breakfasttime, come hungry. The food, drink, and entertainment space now offers morning eats beginning at 10 a.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Koba Bowls and Yoko Matcha can be found whipping up health-conscious, breakfast-inspired bowls and small bites highlighting fresh fruits, vegetables, and other ingredients.

Shuji Hiyakawa, former executive sushi chef of Kuro at the Hard Rock, is behind Miami’s newest fine-dining Japanese concept, Dashi. Housed inside the River Yacht Club, the restaurant opens Friday, March 24, blending art and taste with aesthetically-designed plates.

For years, procuring a proper Korean bibimbap meant shlepping 45 minutes north to Lauderhill’s Gabose, where the blistering-hot stone bowls come filled with sizzling rice topped with sweet-soy-braised beef, pickles, and raw egg yolk. But in late January, Mijin Lee opened Fuchai Chinese & Korean Kitchen…