Miami Spice, decoded
The honest read on Miami Spice: who's participating, the tiers and days each restaurant runs, a full profile for every venue, powerful filtering, and how it all overlays with the dining, entertainment and deals MiamiNav tracks year round.
What Miami Spice actually is
Miami Spice is Miami's dining season. For two months every summer, hundreds of restaurants across the county put a fixed-price menu on the table at once. It has run for more than two decades, and the idea has always cut both ways: diners get a low-risk way into kitchens they might never book at full price, and restaurants fill their two slowest months. The Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau launched it right after 9/11, when a sharp drop in tourism landed on the August and September slump restaurants already faced. Each one opts in, sets its own menu within a price tier, and picks the days it runs.
For 2026 there are four standard tiers plus a premium one: $40 for brunch and lunch, $50 and $65 for dinner, and Reserve at $95 and up. A standard menu is three courses. Reserve is the notable change this year, though a premium tier is not itself new to the program.
Two things the price alone will not tell you. Drinks, tax and tip are not included, so the real check runs well above the menu price. And many restaurants charge a supplement for premium dishes, so the tier is a starting point rather than a ceiling. Days vary by restaurant, which is why every card here links the official menu instead of copying it.
The price tiers
Every participating restaurant sets a fixed menu at one of these prices. Higher tiers usually mean more courses or premium kitchens, not a worse deal.
$40
Brunch & lunch
Midday three-course menu. The lowest per-course cost of the season.
About $13.33/course across 3 courses
$50
Dinner
The entry dinner tier: three courses at a fixed $50.
About $16.67/course across 3 courses
$65
Dinner
Higher-end dinner tier, often at the buzzier and award-recognized rooms.
About $21.67/course across 3 courses
$95+
Reserve
Premium tier at the marquee kitchens, usually with more or elevated courses.
Format varies by restaurant
Is it actually a deal?
Usually, but not automatically. The saving comes from the format: three courses at one fixed price, which beats ordering the same three things a la carte at most of these kitchens. How much you actually save depends on what you would have ordered anyway.
Value calculator
Pick a tier, say how you'd actually eat, and see the real check plus whether it's worth it for you.
All three courses at about $13.33 each. At most participating kitchens that likely beats ordering the same dishes separately.
Courses aren't priced equally on regular menus: appetizers and desserts usually cost less than entrées. The verdicts above assume that.
What you'll actually pay
- Fixed menu
- $40
- Sales tax (8%)
- $3.2
- Service (20%)
- $8
- Estimated total
- $51.2
Estimate only. Miami-Dade sales tax on dining runs roughly 7–10% depending on the establishment; we use 8%. Service is figured at 20%. Your actual check depends on the restaurant, what you drink, and any premium-item supplements.
Where it genuinely pays off
- It lowers the entry price at kitchens that are otherwise a special-occasion decision. The $65 and Reserve tiers are where that gap is widest.
- Award-recognized restaurants take part, and they are marked with a badge here. Those tend to treat the menu as a showcase rather than an obligation.
- The food price is fixed and known before you sit down, which is rarer than it sounds at this end of the market.
- The $40 brunch and lunch tier is the strongest math of the season: the same kitchens, in daylight, at the lowest per-course cost.
- It works as a low-risk audition. If a kitchen impresses on its Spice menu, a full-price return is probably worth it. If it doesn't, you found out for $50 instead of $150.
Where it does not
- Quality is uneven. Some restaurants build a real menu, others assemble the cheapest three courses that qualify. The badge and the linked menu are the fastest way to tell which.
- Premium dishes often carry a supplement, so the tier price is a floor rather than a ceiling.
- If you would not normally order three courses, the maths gets thinner. Skipping dessert on a normal night and paying for it here narrows the gap considerably.
- Drinks, tax and tip sit on top. A $50 dinner is not a $50 evening.
- Portions can be smaller than the a la carte version of the same dish.
- Some kitchens swap in cheaper ingredients on the Spice menu than they use on their regular one.
New for 2026
What changed from last season, per GMCVB's own announcements.
- A new top tier. GMCVB is billing Miami Spice Reserve, $95 and up at a smaller group of marquee kitchens, as new for this year's edition.
- Prices stepped up across the board. Lunch and brunch went from $35 in 2025 to $40, and the dinner tiers moved from $45 and $60 to $50 and $65.
- A milestone season. GMCVB called 2025 the program's 24th year, which makes 2026 the 25th edition.
How the price has moved
What a Miami Spice menu has cost across the years.
Good to know
Miami Spice 2026 FAQ: the questions people actually ask before booking.
When is Miami Spice?+
August 1 – September 30, 2026.
How much does it cost?+
Brunch & lunch $40 · Dinner $50/$65 · Reserve $95+, for a fixed multi-course menu at each participating restaurant.
Do I need a reservation?+
Many participating restaurants take walk-ins, but a reservation is smart for the popular and award-recognized spots, especially at dinner.
Is Miami Spice worth it?+
For multi-course meals at higher-end restaurants, usually yes. The fixed price often beats ordering the same dishes a la carte. Use the award filter to find the strongest kitchens, and check each official menu before you go.
What is Miami Spice Reserve?+
Reserve is the premium tier: a smaller set of higher-end and award-recognized restaurants offering a $95+ fixed menu, usually with more courses or premium ingredients than the standard $50 and $65 dinners. Same season, elevated experience.
Where can I find deals like this the rest of the year?+
Right here. MiamiNav tracks prix-fixe menus, happy hours, and dining deals across Miami all year, not just during the named promotions.
Participating restaurants
Filter by neighborhood, cuisine, price, and award status. Tap a name for hours, location, and what else is on.
252 restaurants
Latin American · Edgewater
- Prix Fixe$40 three-course lunch
- Prix Fixe$65 three-course dinner
French · Design District
- Prix Fixe$40 three-course lunch
- Prix Fixe$65 three-course dinner
Menus and prices are set by each restaurant and can change during Miami Spice. We link the official current menu on every card rather than copying it.
Miami Spice official siteMiami Spice is a season. MiamiNav is every day.
We track 1,672 verified deals across 19 Miami neighborhoods, every month of the year: prix-fixe menus, 509 happy hours, and 124 rooftop and waterfront bars. Filter by the night you actually want, not just the one with a name.