I hadn’t appreciated just how different mainland Miami was compared to South Beach Miami, until I went on the Wynwood Art and Culinary Tour and saw that there’s more to this city than white sand and clear ocean.
For some bizarre reason I decided to walk to Wynwood from South Beach via the Venetian Causeway across Biscayne Bay, a 4km bridge connecting the two sides with a series of man-made islands along the way. It took two hours, but it was a very scenic route so I’d highly recommend doing it if you’re into long walks in blazing sunshine!
| Wynwood walls
Arriving at Wynwood Walls, I was greeted by the very friendly Lana who is a Miami resident born in Russia, and a group of four women on a bachelorette party. Wynwood Walls is unlike anything I’ve seen before; it’s the world’s largest showcase of urban street art stretching over six buildings, with some of the best artists coming from every continent to paint huge murals. It’s the brainchild of “renowned community revitalizer” Tony Goldman, built in 2009 to transform the dilapidated and suffering area to a place that was attractive to tourists and locals alike.
| Wynwood Kitchen & Bar
Our first food stop was by the entrance to Wynwood Walls; Wynwood Kitchen & Bar, a restaurant owned by the late Tony Goldman and his daughter, Jessica Goldman Srebnick. They specialize in ‘global cuisine and art’, so we had chicken empanadas, maduros plantain with cheese, Venezuelan party food tequeños, paired with a light blond ale from a local brewery. It was all incredibly good, and a great start to the tour.
| Wynwood Murals
The art at Wynwood Walls is rotated annually, so every year they paint the walls white and new artists come in to make their mark. It was quite sad to think that these detailed and intricate murals would be erased forever - so I made sure to take lots of photos! There was work from Shepard Fairey, Futura 2000, David Cho, Pixel Pancho, Faith XLVII, Joe Iurato who designed the gate, and loads more to see in just the first courtyard! Out of the museum and onto the streets, our next stop was a couple of blocks over; Dr. Smood.
| Dr. Smood
Founded by Italian architect Patrizia Manici Sindlev, Dr. Smood was created to fill a gap for healthy, organic food that makes you feel revitalized. Here we had a vegan avocado, spinach, tomato, pesto and hummus sandwich on organic spelt flour bread - definitely the best vegan sandwich I’ve ever had. After Dr. Smood we popped into the Alberto Linero Gallery, an intimate space showcasing the works of up and coming Latin American artists. I would highly recommend a visit if you’re in Wynwood!
| GK Bistronomie Wynwood
Round the corner was our next stop; GK Bistronomie Wynwood, a Peruvian inspired restaurant owned by head chef Rafael Perez. Here we were served corn tortilla slow roast pork taquitos (to die for), and mahi-mahi ceviche (fast becoming my favorite food), which were both so delicious I could have eaten them forever. Whilst we ate Lana told us the truly fascinating histories of both ceviche and sangria, but you’ll have to take the tour if you want to know more!
| The Taco Stand
A few blocks down was stop number 4; The Taco Stand, a newly opened restaurant inspired by the foods of Tijuana and the Baja Peninsula. With an open kitchen, salsa bar, and very reasonable prices, The Taco Stand has to be one of the best Mexican restaurants in Miami - we had the carne asada which was just delicious! There’s also a semi-secret Japanese restaurant in the back that books out months in advance, as if this place wasn’t already cool enough.
| Wynwood Gardens
Circling back round to Wynwood Walls, we walked through Wynwood Gardens which starts with a huge sculpture of a Florida panther sitting on an aircraft, completely made from trash cans (by Bordalo II). We also witnessed ‘calligraffiti’, work by London Police, and a controversial piece by Ron English. The next section of the tour was called Wynwood Doors, which features a piece by the only local artist on display; Tatiana Suarez. There’s also work by Tavar Zawacki who just so happens to be colorblind!
| Flavian Gelateria
Our final food stop was for a much-needed ice cream at Flavian Gelateria on NW 2nd Ave, who have a wide range of unusual flavors like French lavender, walnut and fig, and matcha. I went for the lime and basil flavor which was exactly what I needed in the hot weather - it tasted like a frozen mojito!
| Thanks for reading!
That concluded our tour, but there was plenty more of Wynwood to see and a lot of street art that isn’t confined to the Wynwood Walls museum. Huge thanks to Lana for giving such an amazing tour, one that I would recommend to anyone with an interest in art and local cuisine - you certainly won’t come away hungry!
