<p>We will be visiting U Miami for the accepted students open house on 4/7 (SO excited), and will be at the Hampton Inn in Coconut Grove for two nights. Can anyone recommend some good nearby restaurants. We may want to eat in Coconut Grove one night and venture to South Beach the next night. We would love to eat outside and would like nice but not outrageously expensive places.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Congrats! My son also also got accepted in UM and I am a Grove resident, so I am very familiar with the area. In the Grove the best option are: Cafe Lulu, Green Street, Jaguar, all are affordable. Also in Cocowalk you will find Cheesecake Factory, Chilli’s and many others. In South Beath the best option are in Lincoln Rd. Many restaurants in the area.</p>
<p>My D loves Monty’s in South Beach. From what I gather, it’s a huge gathering place for lots of UM kids. Anyway, she always has a great time there, and she said the food is good. Here’s the website:
[Monty’s</a> South Beach | Monty’s Raw Bar at South Beach](<a href=“http://www.montyssobe.com/]Monty’s”>http://www.montyssobe.com/)</p>
<p>And I love the Yardhouse at Villages of Merrick. Great food and drinks, but large portions. Fun atmosphere. And the shopping area is always a treat.
<a href=“https://www.yardhouse.com/FL/coral-gables-restaurant/[/url]”>https://www.yardhouse.com/FL/coral-gables-restaurant/</a></p>
<p>The Monty’s Raw Bar in Coconut Grove is a big UM happy hour hotspot, outdoors, right on the water, and it is stone crab season now. 
The place we miss most since S graduated is Le Bouchon Du Grove. It was our favorite breakfast place when visiting our UM student. H loves the Cajun omelet! [Le</a> Bouchon du Grove French Restaurant in Coconut Grove](<a href=“http://www.lebouchondugrove.com/]Le”>http://www.lebouchondugrove.com/) Our first stop after landing is always NY Pizza to grab a slice.</p>
<p>Part of the fun is just wandering through the Grove or along Lincoln Road and Ocean Drive in South Beach looking at the menus. I think more UM kids hang out in Coconut Grove on a regular basis and your student will get a real feel for the social life off campus there. Kids also go to Sunset Place, an open air shopping mall with several restaurants.
[The</a> Shops at Sunset Place Mobile Website - South Miami, FL 33143-5379 - Simon Malls](<a href=“http://www.simon.com/mall/the-shops-at-sunset-place]The”>http://www.simon.com/mall/the-shops-at-sunset-place)</p>
<p>Have a great visit!</p>
<p>I was just there this past weekend and didn’t even make it to Coconut Grove, we stayed in the Red Road/Sunset area a short walk from campus. We ate at Casa Larios an amazing Cuban place. For breakfast there is a really good crepe place further down Red Road, Le Crepe I think it was but it was fantastic and very authentic French food! We had Moon Thai for lunch one day at someone’s suggestion (right on Hwy 1 near the Gables 1 tower) and I was not impressed, it was very over priced and not that great of Thai food to be honest. Have fun down there, I wish I could go down again!</p>
<p>My absolute favorite place to stay is the Biltmore Hotel in Coral gable. The best place to eat around UM is Cafe Vialetto or La Fontana at the Biltmore. Enjoy our visit!
[Biltmore</a> Hotel in Miami | Luxury Resort with Award Winning Spa, Golf Course & Restaurants](<a href=“http://www.biltmorehotel.com/]Biltmore”>http://www.biltmorehotel.com/)
[Cafe</a> Vialetto, Coral Gables, FL 305 446 5659](<a href=“http://www.caffevialetto.com/]Cafe”>http://www.caffevialetto.com/)</p>
<p>If you’re looking for something absolutely off-the-radar, try Bali Cafe downtown. Very unique Indonesian place that won’t destroy your wallet. Though it is, for reasons I cannot fathom, cash only. So keep that in mind if you want to try it out.</p>
<p>But then, I have a special place in my heart for little hole-in-the-wall places like that, and perhaps that’s not what you’re looking for. Havana Harry’s is a nice and also not-obnoxiously-expensive Cuban restaurant in Coral Gables relatively close to campus (though you can’t walk there).</p>
<p>Any of you locals ever been to Joe’s Stone Crab in SoBe? The reviews are so mixed on Yelp and TripAdvisor and I get the impression it is very expensive. I love seafood and have stone crabs on the food division of my bucket list. Where can I get some good stone crabs for a reasonable price in the Miami area?</p>
<p>Zinc, Joe’s is a great place for stone crab, but is expensive and crowded. Monty’s is also good choice and much more affordable. Keep in mind that the price of stone crab varies depending on the size of the claws and Monty gives you different prices depending on the size you choose. Someone mention Havana Harry’s, a great place for Cuban food. If you really want to go for authentic Cuban food for a very affordable price you cannot miss Versailles Cafe. It is the a Miami institution.</p>
<p>Thaniks ddahwan, I’ll add Monty’s, Havana Harry’s and Versailles Cafe to my list.</p>
<p>If you are in South Beach, for reasonably priced Cuban food try Puerta Sagua at the corner of 7th and Collins. I echo other’s comments about Joe’s- great stone crabs but crowded and expensive and no reservations. Monty’s is good but not in same class as Joe’s as far as the food; it is, however, less expensive.</p>
<p>Joe’s is expensive and much more formal (waiters in tuxedos) than Monty’s (shorts are fine), but Joe’s does have a take away cafe section that is great. We get stone crabs to go and then head to the beach for a picnic. You also can have stone crabs shipped and we have had them sent here to NH! The Monty’s in SoBe will have more tourists than UM students and the Monty’s in Coconut Grove will have more UM students than tourists.</p>
<p>I also agree with the recommendation of Cafe Versailles. Now, I’m getting hungry! :D</p>
<p>puerto sagua is good and cheap! on south beach, an actually amazing, super trendy southern style grill and bar is Yardbird (on like 16th and lennox, by lincoln road)</p>