Take a culinary trip to Cuba without leaving the United States

You’ve come to Miami for the nightlife and those stunning beaches, but you’re also here for the food. Step outside your vacation rental home and walk, bike, or take an electric golf cart tour through Little Havana and sample until you’re sated.

Here are just a sampling of guided food tours that will get you started on your road to finding Cuban delicacies like medianoche sandwiches and croquetas in Miami, Florida.

Miami Culinary Tours

This company was featured in Bon Appetit magazine’s travel specialists. It has been rated as the number 1 food tour in Miami for seven consecutive years. The Little Havana food tour is one of several they offer. It includes 5 restaurant stops and a guided cultural tour. The tour is guided by a local and includes a blending of historical, architectural, and cultural experiences with a behind-the-scenes culinary introduction into the best cuisine the area has to offer. It takes you through 8 short city blocks and lasts approximately 2.5 hours. The tour is $59 per adult and $49 for children 8 to 13 years. Tastings equal a full meal. Tours depart daily at 12:30 p.m. from 1652 SW 8th Street in Miami.

Gray Line Miami Food Tours

A local guide takes you to 6 food stops with tastings at each location. The tour can be customized for vegetarians, just let them know upon booking. Bookings must be 24 hours in advance. This is a kid-friendly tour, but if you’re children won’t be eating, let them know upon booking. The tour is $59 per person and operates Saturdays at 12:30. Tours meet in front of the Agustina Gainza Arts Gallery on 1652 SW 8th Street in Miami.

Miami Food Tours

There are 2 tour options from this company, which received the Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence in 2016. A SoBe Tour des Forks walking tour or a Swooped with Forks tour on an electric golf cart. Each of these guided tasting tours take you on a culinary adventure through Miami’s famous neighborhoods. You’ll get delicious food, drinks tastings, plus historical and architectural sights.

The walking tour takes 3 hours and runs every day from 11am to 4:30pm. It costs $58 per person. The electric golf cart tour takes 3.5 hours and runs Mondays through Fridays at 10:30am. It costs $129 per person.

Little Havana Bike and Food Tour

Dynamic Cuban cuisine is paired with a fascinating history in this guided biking food tour. It’s an easy 8-mile bike ride tour that takes approximately 3.5 hours and begins and ends on Miami Beach. Your guide will take you past several family-owned and operated Cuban restaurants to sample local cuisine and learn about the history and Cuban heritage of Miami. Tours cost $69 per person.

Taste of Little Havana Bike Tour

Sample homemade dishes from appetizers to desserts in this biking food tour. The food is prepared by family-run Cuban restaurants and the guide is local. This biking food tour lasts about 4 hours. It takes you on an easy 11-mile bike ride through Little Havana. Tours start at 10:30am and leave from 401 Biscayne Boulevard in Miami. Though an easy ride, this tour isn’t recommended for children.

South Beach (or SoBe) is located within Miami Beach and has been called the Art Deco playground and the American Riviera. Here you’ll find world-class shopping, culinary delights, and clear blue water with white sand beaches.

SoBe offers both casual and upscale experiences, but is generally for the well-dressed set. So, even if you’re hitting the beach, be sure to don a stylish hat and sunglasses before you walk out the door of your vacation rental home.

White Powder Sand and Turquoise Waters of South Beach

South Beach is a free public beach. There’s plenty of parking and the municipal parking garages offer the best deals. Locals suggest getting there early as garages and open beach space fill up fast. Rental shops offer chairs and umbrellas. For less than $40 you can have both. Lifeguards are on duty during the day. There’s no shortage of food and drink options available along the beach.

Lincoln Road

This miles-long outdoor mall has an open plan and is designed for pedestrians only. The promenade has top-notch fashion, art, architecture, and people-watching. Walk from Washington Avenue to Alton Road to discover a pop-up market where handcrafted jewelry, origami, and a variety of other handmade wares displayed casually on card tables or rugs laid on the ground. Lincoln Road also offers a boon of name brand stores and local shops and galleries.

Lunch with a Beach View

You can find an amazing lunch restaurant anywhere, but these offer spectacular views to remind you that you’re in dazzling South Beach. These beach views are coveted so make reservations ahead of time. Juvia is an upscale chic fusion restaurant blending Asian and Peruvian cuisines with a classic French flair. Celebrity-owned Larios on the Beach is made famous by its owners Gloria and Emilio Estefan and its spectacular views of South Beach and Ocean Drive. Their upscale Cuban food and mojitos make it perfect. Monty’s Sunset is located poolside and waterfront on the docks of Miami Beach Marina. Here casual dining means local fresh-caught seafood, a raw bar, and entertainment.

Art Deco District

Miami’s South Beach is home to the largest concentration of 1920s and 1930s architecture in the world. It’s known as the Art Deco District. It’s recognized by the National Register of Historic Places and boasts 800 historical structures. The district draws visitors from around the globe.

Official Historic Tours of the Art Deco District

The Miami Design Preservation League (MDPL) offers the only official tours. Their Official Art Deco Walking Tour is a 90-minute tour that literally walks you through an introduction to the Art Deco, Mediterranean Revival, and Miami Modern (also known as MiMo) styles. Tours depart from the Art Deco Welcome Center at 10:30am Mondays through Sundays with an additional 6:30pm tour on Thursdays. Tours are $25 or $20 for seniors, veterans, and students. You can make advanced reservations, but they’re not required.

Happy Hour

Whether it’s from 5pm to 7pm during the week or 10pm to Midnight, there are always fun places you can drink and nosh on a dime. Streaming with light and perfectly chic, Byblos offers happy hour starting at 6pm with $8 cocktails and small bites for $12 and under. The comfortable Social Club is in the heart of Miami Beach and offers a late night happy hour with a flair for breakfast. It also offers $5 draft and 50% off wines by the glass. South Pointe Tavern’s happy hour offers 50% off beer, house wine, and cocktails.

James Beard Foundation 2017 Restaurant and Chef Semi-Finalists

It’s been called the Oscars of the North American food world. In February, the prestigious James Beard Foundation released their list of semi-finalists for the 2017 Restaurant and Chef Awards.

Get to Know the James Beard Foundation

The explosion of food knowledge over the past decade means that James Beard is a household name. The late James Beard was a cookbook author and teacher with an expansive knowledge of food. Today, his not-for-profit foundation offers diverse programs including educational initiatives and training as well as the yearly food industry awards.

How Are Semifinialists Chosen

Each October the James Beard Foundation has an open, online call where anyone can submit up to two entries per category. The foundation’s restaurant and chef awards committee includes critics, writers, and editors who produce the list of semifinalists. The list is voted on by former Beard Award winners, Restaurant and Chef Award Committee members, and other regional panelists. Judges cast their votes and the five semifinalists with the highest number of votes in each category advance to become the nominees.

The James Beard finalists will be announced on March 15 and the winners will be honored at the James Beard Awards Gala on May 1.

Ten 2017 semi-finalists call Florida home, which means no matter where your vacation rental home is located, you’re never far from a memorable dining experience. Here’s the official list of Florida’s 2017 James Beard Award semi-finalists by city.

Miami

Getting a nod for Best Chef in the South category is Deme Lomas from NIU Kitchen. He is the executive Chef and Managing Partner of this eclectic Catalan style kitchen that plays with regional ingredients to make them extraordinary.

Brad Kilgore with Alter got his second nomination for Rising Star of the Year. Alter’s cuisine is focused on locally-sourced, seasonal Florida ingredients. Chef Brad Kilgore offers a tasting menu that changes daily.

KYU was nominated for Best New Restaurant. Chef Michael Lewis and General Manager Steven Haigh offer a diverse wood-fired and Asian-inspired menu.

Zak Stern of Zak the Baker  was nominated for Outstanding Baker. His traditional artisan baked goods can also be found in various Whole Foods and farmer’s markets around Florida.

Tampa

Ferrel Alvarez of the Rooster & the Till was nominated for Outstanding Baker. Not just a baker, Chef Ferrell is the creative force behind the restaurant’s locally-focused modern American cuisine.

Richard Gonzmart of Columbia Restaurant Group was nominated for Best Restaurateur. His restaurants include Spanish-style The Columbia, Floridian Native American-inspired Ulele, and the revamped vintage burger joint Goody Goody.

Clearwater

Best Chef, South nominated Christopher Ponte  is the classically-trained French chef behind Café Ponte’s modern American café.

Orlando

Kathleen Blake of The Rusty Spoon was nominated for Best Chef, South. At the Rusty Spoon Chef Kathleen creates locally-sourced American food with European roots.

Palm Beach

Clay Conley was nominated for Best Chef, South. His Florida hot spots include Buccan, which offers small plates that include locally-sourced ingredients with big flavors and Imoto that shares the small plate focus only with an Asian flair.

Winter Park

Best Chef, South Brandon McGlamery of Luma on Park offers an upscale, casual American menu inspired by local ingredients.