COCONUT GROVE, Fla. – A love of Mexico’s indigenous heritage, a passion for traditional Mexican fare, a thirst for natural wine (that tastes better when enjoyed among friends), and a longing for vinyl music is the inspiration behind Coconut Grove’s newest restaurant, Los Felix, opening this month.
The restaurant, established by Grassfed Culture Hospitality, is set to open sometime in September as Coconut Grove’s first modern, neighborhood Mexican-style, intimate restaurant and natural wine bar.
Recommended Videos
Los Felix is the creative fruition of restaurateurs Josh Hackler, Pili Restrepo, and Chef Sebastián Vargas – whose culinary résumé boasts Michelin-starred restaurants Osteria Francescana, Eleven Madison Park, and Fäviken Magasinet – who founded Grassfed Culture Hospitality in 2020.
Best described as “an open love letter to the fine and nearly extinct traditions that make up authentic Mexican cuisine,” the eatery will focus on crafting traditional Mexican fare by using heirloom corn and Milpa farming techniques. Milpa is a crop-growing system used throughout Mexico, especially in the Yucatán peninsula.
“Milpa farming is one of the few sociocultural connections we still have to the ancient indigenous farmers that came before us,” explains Vargas. “The making of Milpa is awakening to the sacred connection between self and land, between community and the interconnected realms of existence. It is reverent hands in soil and looking skyward for guidance. It is honest earthwork, and a cosmic portal to our infinite nature through the honoring of corn, chiles, cacao and squash. Milpa is living wisdom.”
With corn as the foundation of Los Felix, the menu will feature homemade Mexican tacos and quesadillas that are hand-crafted on the restaurant’s molino (a traditional Mexican tortilla mill). The menu will also include tamales, aguas frescas, and a mix of seasonal dishes paired with natural wines and craft beers.
However, corn is not only the foundation of their restaurant — it is also the foundation of Mexican cuisine, according to Vargas.
“In the beginning when all was stillness, silence and water, humans looked to corn to restore their strength and feed their souls,” adds Vargas. “Our mission is to craft authentic Mexican dishes bursting with flavor that honor the sacred connection between man and corn using only ingredients we would feed to our families; seasonal, locally sourced and pastured food.”
As for the name, “Los Felix?” The meaning behind the name may be just as meaningful as their hand-crafted corn tortillas. According to the restaurant, “Los Felix” was inspired by Mexican film actress, María Félix, and pays homage to the legacy she left on Mexico, Latin America, and Europe. The name also honors the hard-working women who have evolved Mexican cuisine through the generations.
“We are modern Mexican cuisine rooted in indigenous heritage,“ explains Restrepo, creative director of Grassfed Culture Hospitality. “With the name Los Félix, we nod to the grandmothers who carried the fire of ancestral wisdom, the mothers who preserved ceremony, and the female trailblazers who embodied the fierce and the tender, by way of iconic muse Maria Felix.”
Los Felix will also house a natural wine bar with an extensive by-the-glass and bottle program led by Hackler, CEO of Grassfed Culture Hospitality.
Expect wines ranging from amber wines and chilled reds to unique sparkling and white wines from small family producers in South America, Mexico, Europe, and California.
And further adding to the fact that Los Felix is not your ordinary Mexican eatery — the restaurant plans to host Miami’s first-ever weekly vinyl DJ night using an analog sound system (with sweet tunes ranging from Donna Summers to other cultural icons from CEO Josh Hackler’s grandfather’s vinyl collection).
“Los Félix is a multi-sensory celebration that honors truth through flavor, imagination through natural wine, and atmosphere through vinyl records,” says Hackler. Our take on an authentic Mexican eatery is unique and blends our understanding of Mexican culture and traditions with our desire to provide exceptional tastes and funky tunes. You may come for the tacos, but you’ll stay for the ambience, culture and authentic eats.”
Los Felix is Grassfed Culture’s second restaurant concept to open in Coconut Grove. Their first restaurant venture, Krüs Kitchen, launched in November of 2020 as an artisanal food and wine market specializing in city-inspired eats.
Los Felix is located at 3413 Main Hwy, Miami, FL 33133. The restaurant will be open for dinner Tuesday – Thursday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. (kitchen closes at 10 p.m., bar bites available until 1 a.m.) and Sundays for brunch from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The restaurant will also offer takeout and delivery to select locations.
For more information about Los Felix, click here.