‘Essential to South Beach’: Iconic beachfront restaurant reopens on Ocean Drive
In the days before the tourists returned, before we danced all night at cavernous clubs there, before the huge food festival and Art Basel, South Beach was the News Café.
The oceanfront restaurant, which opened in 1988, was one of the only dining outposts in the Art Deco District. Miami Beach was more shabby than chic then, not much of a draw for tourists because few dared to visit. But the breezy outdoor patio drew locals — including designer Gianni Versace, who lived right down the street — ordering coffee, croissants and the daily newspaper, available on newsprint and not a screen.
Now, the most iconic restaurant on Ocean Drive has reopened for business in the exact same location — and with its signature green awning and logo — just in time for the busy spring break season.
The News Café is located on the ground floor of The Tony Hotel, one of the properties developed by the late Tony Goldman, who was also instrumental in the rise of Wynwood’s art district. The restaurant was the creation of restaurateur Mark Soyka, also responsible for Soyka, one of the first notable restaurants along the Biscayne Boulevard corridor near Miami’s Morningside neighborhood.
As the allure of South Beach grew, the tourists discovered the News Café, but eventually the restaurant closed in January 2021. Now, Goldman Properties owns the brand and will operate the location with Vida & Estilo Restaurant Group, which just opened its third Oh! Mexico location next door.
In a statement, the group praised the significance of the original restaurant.
“The News Café was essential to South Beach,” said Jamil Dib, founder and co-owner of Vida & Estilo. “If you visited without going to the News Café, you didn’t experience the real South Beach.”
As a tribute to its past, the new News Café will serve some of the original menu items as well as dishes dreamed up by Chef Henry Hané, founder of Brickell’s B Bistro.
In a nostalgic mood? Try the original Tony’s tomato soup or a tuna melt or maybe even a Mediterranean plate or the eggs Benedict. New dishes include piña colada pancakes with grilled pineapple and coconut syrup and every carb lover’s favorite, loaded French fries. The restaurant will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Hané said he was “humbled” by the restaurant’s history and the chance to serve its customers.
“As a local, I remember eating at News Café with my family every Friday,” he said. “I know I’m not the only one who has felt its absence since it closed.”
In another nod to history, the restaurant’s famous newsstand will return, selling local, national and international newspapers (the actual paper kind). The new decor includes framed portraits of Versace and Goldman, and there’s even a “fashion corner” designed as an homage to Versace.
News Café
Where: 800 Ocean Dr., Miami Beach
