October 2, 2026
Each Friday, we try to compile South Florida food-related news and events that we couldn’t fit on the site earlier in the week, as well as other local news that piques our interest. Want to be included in our next roundup? Shoot us an email at bark@miamifoodpug.com.
COTOA Moves to New Location
Coming Soon: Apotheke
Mahjong Social at Sadelle’s
Now Open on Mondays: Daniel’s
COTOA Moves to New Location
Following a year of growth and national recognition, Ecuadorian chef Alejandra Espinoza is entering a new chapter with COTOA, relocating her MICHELIN Bib Gourmand restaurant to a larger home in North Miami. Opening on Thursday, October 22, the new 80-seat restaurant located at 1111 NE 125th Street, Suite 200 will offer an expanded menu, beverage program and dining experience while maintaining the same warm energy of the original.
Located just minutes away from its previous home, the move marks the next chapter for COTOA, which opened its first standalone restaurant in April 2025 and has since become one of Miami’s most exciting culinary destinations known for Espinoza’s modern approach to Ecuadorian cuisine.
The new space will further immerse guests in Ecuadorian culture through food, art and hospitality. Curated artwork from Ecuador will complement Espinoza’s cooking, creating a distinctly Ecuadorian experience that takes guests on a journey through the country’s flavors, creativity and culture.
“The first COTOA gave us the opportunity to introduce people to Ecuador and show how much depth, history and diversity there is within our cuisine,” says Espinoza. “The response to the restaurant has been incredibly special and we can’t wait to continue building on that. This new space gives us room to tell more of that story and give guests even more ways to experience the food and culture of my country.”
The larger kitchen will allow Espinoza and her team to expand the menu, continuing to represent Ecuadorian cuisine in a modern light, pairing traditional ingredients and preparations with Espinoza’s contemporary approach. Upon opening, the menu will introduce new dishes planned for each section of the menu, that complement COTOA’s beloved signature dishes.
Sourcing will remain central to COTOA’s cooking. Ingredients from Ecuador will continue to appear together with products grown and harvested closer to home, including produce sourced from Swank Specialty Produce, connecting the flavors of Espinoza’s home country with South Florida’s agricultural landscape.
The move also gives COTOA greater capacity to accommodate large parties, something that was much needed in the previous space. In addition to the main dining room, which seats 60, the restaurant will introduce TOA, an intimate eight-seat private dining room, along with a 10-seat bar. The new format offers more flexibility for everything from dinner with friends to private celebrations and special chef-driven experiences. COTOA’s existing beverage program, which includes an impressive wine list, will also evolve with Miami veteran bartender James MacInnes developing a new cocktail menu.
The expansion arrives at a particularly active moment for Espinoza, whose work continues to bring greater international attention to Ecuadorian cuisine. This fall, she is featured as one of three Florida chefs in Season Two of Apple TV’s Knife Edge: Chasing Michelin Stars, the documentary series that follows chefs and restaurants navigating the pursuit of MICHELIN recognition.
Espinoza is also preparing for the release of her forthcoming cookbook, an exploration of Ecuador through its ingredients, recipes, people and culinary traditions. The project is part of a broader body of work centered around preserving and sharing Ecuadorian food culture, which also includes a podcast project dedicated to documenting the people, traditions and stories behind the country’s culinary identity.
Born and raised in Ecuador and classically trained in France, Espinoza has built her career around reinterpreting the food of her home country without losing the traditions behind it. She is also the chef and founder of SOMOS in Quito, opened in 2019 and recognized among Ecuador’s leading restaurants. COTOA brought that vision to Miami, introducing diners to dishes and ingredients that remain underrepresented in the broader American dining landscape.
For Espinoza, each of the upcoming projects is part of the same larger mission: creating more opportunities for Ecuadorian cuisine and culture to be seen, understood and celebrated beyond the country’s borders.
COTOA will open on Thursday, October 22 at 1111 NE 125th Street, Suite 200 in North Miami. The restaurant will be open Wednesday and Thursday from 5:30pm to 10pm; Friday from 5:30pm to 11pm; Saturday and Sunday will have lunch service from 11:30am to 3pm, and dinner service from 5:30pm to 11pm on Saturday and until 10pm on Sunday.
Photo Credit: Monica Varela
Coming Soon: Apotheke
Apotheke South Beach, a botanical-infused cocktail concept designed for seekers and the inquisitive mind, officially debuts on October 16 in Miami Beach’s Art Deco District, behind an unmarked entrance on Washington Avenue at Moxy South Beach. The opening marks the latest chapter for Apotheke Mixology. The brand began in 2008 behind an unmarked oak door on New York City’s Doyers Street. Following the original location, Apotheke Los Angeles opened in 2018, followed by Apotheke NoMad New York City in 2022. Named for the old-world apothecary and rooted in the belief that plants are medicine, Apotheke Mixology brings its Original Formulas to South Beach for the first time. More than a bar, Apotheke is a cocktail apothecary, where high-proof spirits are used to extract what’s needed from botanicals, invoking the same practice that helped inspire modern medicinal mixology.
Behind an unmarked door on Washington Avenue, Apotheke South Beach is discreetly accessed from the street rather than through the hotel. Apotheke complements the property’s diverse culinary lineup, including Serena, a rooftop oasis serving Latin fusion specialties, and Naked Tomato by Chef Eyal Shani, a modern Israeli restaurant rooted in simplicity, seasonality, and ingredient-driven cooking. Apotheke South Beach reveals a botanical-infused cocktail lounge built for those who prefer to explore what others may overlook.
Apotheke South Beach invites guests to step off the beaten path and into a different kind of nightlife experience, one where human connection and mixology take center stage, alongside live music and surprising DJ selections that create a rhythm all their own. The result is a space designed for conversation and discovery, offering something distinctly different from the usual South Beach scene.
At the center of the experience is Apotheke South Beach’s Original Formula List, a collection of cocktails built around plants and botanicals to explore flavor, extraction and feeling. Curated by Apotheke’s Mixology Director, Nicolas O’Connor, the Formula List features nine all-new Original Formulas crafted exclusively for the Washington Avenue location, including Novia Del Sol, Write It Off, Dry Until Vitae, Dawn Patrol, Bait & Switch, Bilongo, Will-O’-The-Wisp, Ears to You, and Collins Cure. These exclusive offerings are complemented by rotating Historic Formulas from Apotheke’s New York and Los Angeles locations.
“Apotheke doesn’t just garnish with plants like an afterthought,” said Nicolas O’Connor, Mixology Director at Apotheke. “We build the drink in collaboration with them. That celebration of flora and life is what we’re so excited to bring to South Beach.”
The Formulas are organized by the feeling they are designed to evoke, with categories including Health & Beauty, Stimulants, Painkillers, Aphrodisiacs, Euphoric Enhancers and Stress Relievers, offering something for every mood.
Health & Beauty includes Novia Del Sol, made with vodka infused with Calendula, coconut and California Orange Cordial, tamarind, turmeric, Meyer Lemon, and a splash of club soda. Painkillers include Write It Off, a blend of bourbon, Amaro Montenegro, date nectar, tamarind, matcha bitters, and candied almond, while the Stimulants feature Dawn Patrol, combining dark-aged rum, ube, dark roast coffee, condensed coconut milk, cardamom, burnt cinnamon, and a sprig of mint.
For something more indulgent, Aphrodisiacs include Bilongo, featuring dark-aged rum, açai, pistachio cream, lime, goji berry, perilla, maca root, sea salt, and Dubai Chocolate Bitters. Additional categories include Euphoric Enhancers and Stress Relievers, with the full Formula List offering an extensive mix of spirits, organic produce, herbs, botanicals, and other ingredients.
Apotheke South Beach is designed to become a ritual, open daily from 6:30 p.m. until late, with walk-ins welcome as capacity allows.
Photo Credit: Max Milla
Mahjong Social at Sadelle’s
Bring your mahjong game to Sadelle’s Coconut Grove for a morning of tiles, toasts, and team play with Abby of Mahj in Miami, a modern mahjong movement based in Miami. Designed for skilled players already familiar with the game, the two-hour social offers a morning of friendly competition and community over Sadelle’s breakfast and brunch favorites.
Each $40 ticket includes one player seat and a choice of a Sadelle’s matcha latte or smoothie, with the restaurant’s full à la carte menu available to order throughout the morning. Guests may RSVP for one, two, or three seats, though tables of four cannot be guaranteed. No lesson will be provided. RSVP here.
Photo Credit: Douglas Friedman
Now Open on Mondays: Daniel’s
Daniel’s, A Florida Steakhouse will officially be open on Mondays starting October 5th and is excited to also announce the launch of Monday Night Wine & Dine. Guests can enjoy 25% off the entire wine list, featuring selections from the restaurant’s award-winning wine program curated by Wine & Beverage Director Daniel Bishop, alongside four sommelier-selected wines available by the glass for $15 each.
For burger lovers, Mondays will also offer a limited opportunity to try the Florida Wagyu Burger for $38, made with Suwannee River Wagyu and served on a homemade bun. With only a few burgers available on Mondays, the offering gives guests an exclusive way to experience the restaurant’s Florida-focused approach to steakhouse classics. Guests can also take advantage of 15% off their check for ITB members and Happy Hour will run from 5–7 PM at the bar. Whether it’s a glass of wine at the bar, a limited Florida Wagyu burger or a full steakhouse dinner, Monday Nights at Daniel’s brings a new weekly reason to make the start of the week feel a little more special.