11 February 5-11, 2026 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES | CONTENTS | LETTERS | NEWS | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | CAFE | MUSIC | BRUNCH EVERY SAT & SUN BEST WATERFRONT VIEWS IN MIAMI 3201 RICKENBACKER CWY, KEY BISCAYNE, FL 33149 | 305.361.3818 WWW.THERUSTYPELICAN.COM BE SOCIAL WITH US! /RUSTYPELICANMIAMI Month XX–Month XX, 2008 miaminewtimes.com MIAMI NEW TIMES | CONTENTS | LETTERS | RIPTIDE | METRO | NIGHT+DAY | STAGE | ART | FILM | CAFE | MUSIC | ▼ DESIGN DISTRICT WHERE’S THE BEEF? Now open in the Miami Design District, Karyu introduces a menu built almost en- tirely around Japanese beef. While most tast- ing menus and omakases treat Wagyu as a single, decadent course, this Tokyo-born res- taurant uses the beloved beef as the star of nearly every course. This opening marks the latest project from Spicy Hospitality Group, the team currently expanding its Miami footprint with spots like the Joyce, Le Specialità, and Yasu Omakase. The meal follows the kaiseki (traditional multi-course) format, focusing on pacing and temperature. It starts with nikusui (clear beef broth), an umami-rich soup meant to wake up the palate. That is followed by a beef cutlet sandwich made with Kobe tenderloin and a “taco” that swaps the tortilla for a shiso leaf and lettuce, topped with aged Gruyère and a raw egg yolk mixed at the counter. The meal then moves into heavier prepa- rations, including a Tajimaguro chateaubri- and and traditional sukiyaki (simmered beef) served with Japanese rice. The savory side of the menu ends with tantanmen (spicy sesame noodles) in a sesame broth, then finishes with a seasonal kakigori (shaved ice) dessert. The menu is tied to the Japanese calendar, so it changes monthly to reflect the country’s microseasons. Chef Haruka Katayanagi is the man be- hind the restaurant, but has tapped three of his top protégés from Tokyo to run the Miami outpost. Head chef Hiroshi Morito runs the kitchen, while sous chef Seishiro Tatsukawa serves as the sommelier. Akiho Saito oversees the dining room as service director to make sure the space matches the standards of the Michelin-starred Japanese flagship. The kitchen has an exclusive pipeline to Ueda Chikusan, a family-run ranch in the Japanese mountains. They raise Tajimaguro cattle, a rare breed with DNA similar to that of Kobe beef. Karyu is currently the only res- taurant in the country serving beef from this farm, using different cuts and techniques to show that wagyu can be more than just a rich slab of fat meat. The beverage program centers on sake, with ten rare selections anchoring the drink options. The wine list is small, featuring three whites and five reds, all chosen for their acid- ity to balance the richness of the beef. The Rockwell Group designed the 40 NE 41st St. space to feel like a traditional Japa- nese home. Guests enter through a white-oak storefront and pass through linen curtains into a sake room decorated with an ikebana (traditional flower ar- rangement) installa- tion. The main 12-seat room is made with materials like Japa- nese cedar, hand- molded pottery, and plaster mixed with real hay. The floor is a green terrazzo with brass accents, and the space is divided by indigo linen noren screens. Karyu. 40 NE 41st St., Miami; karyu-mia. com. OLEE FOWLER ▼ MIAMI OH, THE PLACES YOU’LL GO Just a few months after Miami was ranked as the top foodie city in the U.S., the Magic City has just earned another bragging right, and this one comes straight from the people who matter most: hungry travelers with very strong opinions. According to Tripadvisor’s newly released Travelers’ Choice Awards Best of the Best 2026, Miami has been ranked the fifth-best food destination in the United States — a na- tionwide nod based entirely on restaurant and travel reviews and ratings collected over a 12-month period. However, the ranking comes as no sur- prise to most. In the past five years, Miami has seen a culinary boom, with Michelin- starred restaurants flourishing, incredible lo- cal gems, omakase spots that even rival those | TASTE TEST | ▼ Café Photo by World Red Eye Japanese Wagyu restaurant Karyu is now open in the Design District with delicious Tajimaguro beef and sandwiches. THIS TOKYO- BORN RESTAURANT USES WAGYU AS THE STAR OF NEARLY EVERY COURSE.
