March 5, 2020

Miami, Florida Vegan Travel Guide

Miami was such a special place to visit. I was lucky enough to be shown around by one of my friends who is from there, so I got to see what it’s like as a local! There were so many places we wanted to go, but on a weekend trip, we made sure to go to the best spots. Please enjoy this Miami Vegan Travel Guide!

Breakfast

Juicense

Avocado toast and plants on a wood table.

The only thing I wanted to get for breakfast was a refreshing smoothie bowl. When we first rolled up to Juicense, I was in love with their entire menu. It was filled with so many fresh and healthy options.

We decided to be basic and order Avocado Toast (artisanal bread, avocado, curry powder, sea salt, olive oil, pumpkin seeds). We also got an Acai Bowl (classic acai – acai, banana, honey, vanilla extract, almond milk, almond butter). Make sure to get happy toppings – banana, strawberry, coconut chia granola, cacao nibs on that bowl!

I was shocked at how large the Avocado Toasts were and they definitely didn’t hold back on toppings for the Acai Bowl.

Lunch

Charly’s Vegan Tacos

I read such great reviews of this place and Charly’s Vegan Tacos did not disappoint. The inside was colorful with a really cool mural on the side wall. I loved the way they designed their menu. You select between 3 different taco assortments and each one comes with 3 different types of tacos.

I was able to try the following tacos:

Charly’s Signature Miami Tacos
- Carne Asada – grilled seitan steak roasted in garlic, served with creamy avocado salsa, onion, cilantro)
- Chorizo – soy marinated in guajillo pepper, ancho pepper, oregano and cumin, scrambled with grilled tofu and topped with sour coleslaw
- Yuba Carnitas – grilled yuba stewed in chipotle garlic adobo, served with pickle white onion oregano, cilantro
De La Tierra Tacos
- Al Pastor – grilled mushrooms marinated in achiote, garlic, pineapple and cilantro, served with cured red onion, fresh pineapple, cilantro
- Rajas Poblanas – grilled poblano peppers, caramelized onions, vegan crème, topped with grilled madura, onion, cilantro
- Smoked Portobello – smoked portobello mushrooms and onions slow roasted in garlic and black pepper oil, topped with Alex’s kimchi, cilantro, onion

I was also able to try the Guaca-mango (avocado, mango, cilantro, roasted garlic oil), which is a guacamole, and the Kale Salad (spinach, avocado, hummus, strawberry, hemp seeds, tofu, shredded carrot, hibiscus vinaigrette).

The guacamole was fresh, the Kale Salad was killer, and I was in love with every bite of the tacos. My favorite taco was by far the Yuba Carnitas!

Coconut Grove Organic Market

Farmer’s market with blue and white tent.

I was looking forward to the Coconut Grove Organic Market, which is a Vegan Saturday Farmer’s Market. There were tons of different food vendors, products, crafts, and produce.

The number of free samples that are being offered blew my mind. You could easily just have a meal on the samples alone.

Some of my favorite foods I got to try were from an Authentic Indonesian stand run by a lady that will serve you a sample of everything if you are patient. Each thing she handed me was absolutely delicious! One of the best burgers I have ever eaten was the Umami Vegan Burger from Plant b.

From the Raw Vegan Organic Deli Menu, I devoured the following:

Raw Nori rolls (sprouts, baby greens, avocado, tomatoes, scallions, carrots, cucumbers, herbs)
Pates (my favorite was the Sunflower Herb Pate)
Mock Tuna Boat (romaine leaves, Mock Tuna Pate, baby greens, sprouts, carrots, tomatoes, scallions, avocado, herbs)
The best parts were the Creamy Umami Tahini Cashew and Pacific Asian dressings that came with the food

To top it all off I had the best Matcha Lemon Cupcake from Unreal Foods!

Dinner

Planta

If you’re looking for a more upscale venue that will serve more healthier vegan options, then Planta is a great spot for dinner! They also serve brunch with items like French Toast and Pancakes.

I found that it was similar to Plant Food + Wine in LA, but if I had to choose between the two I would pick Plant Food + Wine.

I was able to try the following items:

Kelp Caesar (kelp noodles, cashew Caesar dressing, romaine, brussels sprouts, almond parmesan, pickled onion, capers, garlic croutons).
Bianca Pizza (roasted rosemary potatoes, kale, olives, capers, hot chili oil, cashew mozzarella, onions).

Everything was delicious, the inside was very sleek, and the food came out fast… always very important haha.

Sweets

Sweets are of course the most important part of my Miami Vegan Travel Guide, and they did not disappoint! Enjoy!

Bunnie Cakes

Vegan cakes and cupcakes in a display cake with a pink background.

I was like a kid in a candy shop surrounded by so many vegan delicious treats at Bunnie Cakes! There were cupcakes, cakes, cookies, and all the baked goods your heart could desire. The best part was it was buy one get one free for the cookies, so I took full advantage of that discount!

The cookies were really good mainly because they were soft, and I love soft cookies. It almost reminded me of a dense cake in the form of a cookie, but there were no complaints on my end.

Chef Chloe Café

Vegan cupcake and cookie from Chef Chloe on a white table.

I visited By Chloe when I was in New York and I wasn’t a huge fan of the food, but I loved the desserts! It was great to see she opened up a place dedicated just sugary sweets.

I was even more happy when I saw there was soft serve! I ordered their flavor of the day, which was Strawberry. The strawberry soft serve was cashew based, served up in a coconut bowl, and topped with sprinkles. It was refreshing, light, and perfect post beach.

My other awesome find was the Matcha Cookie! It was soft, not too sweet, and the Matcha flavor pulled through perfectly. I also tried the peanut butter and s-mores cookies, but Matcha was by far my favorite flavor.

To Do

Wynwood

This was a fun area to walk around during the day and night. It’s a cool Arts District with a variety of different boutiques, shops, great places to eat, and murals on all the walls.

I didn’t have a chance to walk around and look at all the shops, but it is definitely a place I recommend.

I specifically recommend the Wynwood Walls park. There are murals painted on all the different walls along with an indoor cool museum filled with different interesting artistic items.

South Beach

This highly trafficked beach reminded me of Waikiki in Hawaii. It wasn’t the most beautiful beach I’ve ever been to, but it did the job of getting a nice dip into the ocean with some sunshine. The beach is huge and there are tons of different restaurants that line the street from across the ocean.

Night Life

I got to check out a couple of fun bars in Wynwood. I went first to Proyecto Tulum because they were playing some deep house and I am always down for some good deep house. It wasn’t too crowded, but I am not a fan of very crowded places anyways. After, we made our way over to The Dirty Rabbit and ended the night dancing to some fun music!