Café La Trova Miami has been earning global recognition well beyond the moment Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez were spotted dining there in September 2022, and a recent visit makes clear why the Little Havana restaurant keeps drawing crowds that include both first-timers and devoted regulars.
The pair were seen enjoying dinner, drinks, and live music at the venue. Within a year, Bezos announced he was relocating from Seattle to Miami. He now lives on Indian Creek Island, the enclave known locally as Miami’s ‘Billionaire Bunker,’ where, according to the Wall Street Journal, he closed on a $68 million mansion in June 2023 before adding an adjacent $79 million property next door.
A Little Havana institution with serious global credentials
Founded by bartender Julio Cabrera, who was born in Cuba, and James Beard Award-winning chef Michelle Bernstein, Café La Trova opened in 2019 as a tribute to classic Cuban culture, food, and hospitality. The restaurant’s official website credits Cabrera with the Roku Industry Icon award at the North America’s 50 Best Bars ceremony in 2023.
The bar’s ranking record backs up the hype. Café La Trova sits at No. 42 on the North America’s 50 Best Bars list for 2026 and at No. 82 on the World’s 50 Best Bars 2025 expanded list. Its press page also lists the Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Award for Best U.S. Restaurant Bar in 2023 among its honours.
Those accolades shape expectations walking in. The reality, at least on a Tuesday evening in April, matched them without feeling stage-managed.
What Café La Trova Miami actually feels like to visit
Despite a full house, the room avoids the flashy exclusivity common to Miami’s more self-conscious dining destinations. Crystal chandeliers throw warm light over bistro tables arranged in front of a live stage, while a back room offers larger, quieter seating. Vintage photographs, retro memorabilia, and a vintage car worked into the décor evoke old Havana without tipping into theme-restaurant territory.
The live music programme runs daily, featuring traditional Cuban bands, boleros, and salsa artists. Guests were clapping along and singing before the first course arrived.
Chef Bernstein’s menu anchors itself in traditional Cuban cooking while allowing for modern detours. The Cuban sandwich empanadas ($15 for two) carry all the familiar flavours of the original in an unexpected form, served with a sharp, vinegar-forward dipping sauce. The mojito criollo ($15), made with Mount Gay Silver Rum, lime juice, sugar, mint, soda water, and Angostura bitters, arrives well-presented and genuinely refreshing, its mint forward without being overwhelming.
The Peruvian ceviche ($25) was the standout dish of the evening. Made with local Florida fish and dressed with cilantro, lime, red onion, huancaína sauce, and crunchy cancha, it arrived looking as vibrant as it tasted, with slices of sweet potato softening the citrusy punch of the marinade. Intended to be shared, it was difficult to stop eating solo.
The prawns al ajillo ($28) placed plump prawns over a rich white bean stew with crunchy garlic, confit tomatoes, and toasted bread. The confit tomatoes cut the savour of the garlic, while the white beans gave the dish a heartiness that lifted it beyond a simple tapa. The plate also illustrates the Spanish culinary influences woven into Cuban cooking over generations.
The overall atmosphere achieves something genuinely rare in a city saturated with trend-chasing restaurants: it feels both lively and low-key enough that a recognisable face could eat undisturbed. Grabbing a table near the stage is the move, particularly for anyone visiting Miami without prior experience of traditional Cuban live performance.
With North America’s 50 Best Bars rankings confirmed through 2026, and the venue’s daily live music programme showing no signs of slowing, the waiting list for a front-row table at Café La Trova is only likely to grow longer.