Sunny’s Steakhouse (affectionately known by many as Sunny’s) opened in early October as an indoor/outdoor dining establishment in the up-and-coming Little River neighborhood of Miami, Florida. To say this opening was highly anticipated and eagerly welcomed is an understatement—for a variety of reasons.
For starters, Sunny’s Co-Owner Will Thompson has a recent history of setting up accolade-generating ventures in Miami. Notably, Thompson and Partner/Chef Carey Hynes opened the Michelin-recognized Jaguar Sun in the lobby of a Downtown Miami apartment building back in 2018. This intimate, 40-seat cocktail bar/pasta restaurant garnered loyal popularity with patrons as well as national and global recognition through its tropical-themed ambiance and award-winning line-up of spirits and cocktails, such as the iconic Green Ghoul. Even more impressive is that Jaguar Sun started with very minimal staff in its earliest days and eventually grew to a team of 35 members. (Note: Thompson also recently co-opened ViceVersa, a well-received Italian aperitivo bar with a distinctly Miami point of view, in partnership with Valentino Longo.)
Thompson is a well-known bartender and restaurant owner who always generates plenty of buzz wherever he goes. After DRINK received the coveted Spirited Award from Tales of the Cocktail for "World's Best Bar" in 2013 under Thompson's leadership, the then-Boston native expanded into developing notable bar programs for preeminent restaurants and nightclubs. He also traveled extensively as a brand ambassador for Grand Marnier. It was during one visit to Miami in this role and witnessing first-hand the unique potential and possibilities in the hospitality landscape of this bustling, lively Florida metropolis that he decided to uproot and relocate there.
The seed for Sunny’s began in 2020, when Thompson and Hynes started a residency, Sunny’s Someday Steakhouse at Lot 6, in Miami’s Little River district. Thanks to pandemic-related lockdowns and closures going on at this time, the team had to reinvent their steakhouse plans as an outdoor pop-up instead. Positioning it around a massive banyan tree aided their visibility. Meanwhile, their food offerings increased their popularity. This residency quickly grew to become one of the most successful restaurants in the city, even attracting a “cult-like” following.
In 2022, the pop-up Sunny’s Someday Steakhouse at Lot 6 earned honors as one of the “Top 50 Restaurants in the U.S.” by Bon Appétit magazine. So you can probably imagine the shocked feelings patrons experienced when the co-owners ended the residency later that same year.
They shouldn’t have worried. It turns out Thompson and Hynes had a plan—they wanted to turn their pop-up steakhouse into a permanent establishment. “Operating as a residency was legally and logistically very, very challenging for us,” explains Thompson.
Sunny’s Steakhouse was no longer a “someday.” The establishment is “today” with a 13,000-square-foot, 220-seat indoor and outdoor restaurant located in the same space it had occupied for two years, complete with its “beloved” outdoor brick courtyard and large-sized banyan tree.
However, the owners did have to make some tough choices before opening. A major one involved closing the still-popular Jaguar Sun.
Thompson remarks that restaurants take up a lot of presence, which played a big factor in deciding to focus 100 percent of their attention toward Sunny’s. “We’d rather have one thing we can be proud of [and] create careers for our team, rather than two things that underperform because we had split our team and attention in half,” he says, noting that Sunny’s is a “great big, real restaurant.”
But all is not lost when it comes to the now-defunct Jaguar Sun.
The new Sunny’s is kind of a “best of both worlds” situation, with strategic elements from Jaguar Sun incorporated into it. “Notice that “Sun” is a part of the Sunny’s name,” says Thompson. “We are also keeping the Jaguar Sun team, a few pastas and cocktails, and part of the Jaguar Sun space that’s easy to drop in,” says Thompson. “Those were the most important aspects to everyone on our team.”
Sunny’s is, at its core, a steakhouse, yet one that’s “executed through a contemporary lens” reflective of its Miami surroundings. Their emphasis is on product “sourcing, quality, and handling.”
Hynes and Executive Chef Aaron Brooks lead the Sunny’s kitchen, offering a contemporary steakhouse and seafood menu that echoes the restaurant’s intent to present the best versions of their unique classics that can be considered “singularly Sunny’s.”
The restaurant’s food selections consist of wood-fired steak cuts straight from their in-house, dry-aging program; a healthy selection of seafood options; citrus-marinated chicken; and Rohan duck. Their raw bar features the finest fish and shellfish drawn from Florida waters and afar. In a tip of the hat to Sunny’s tropical location and the kitchen team’s world-class background, sushi-grade seafood is handled on par with traditional omakase-style concepts.
In fact, Sunny’s is a mixture of some things borrowed and some things new. “[Our] menu is a blend of the hits from the Sunny’s Someday Steakhouse pop-up, as well as handmade pasta favorites relocated from Jaguar Sun, such as the corn agnolotti with blue crab and saffron,” says Hynes. “We have also created some fun new dishes that we couldn’t execute to our standard without a proper kitchen, which we lacked at the pop-up.”
Sunny's talented bar team has developed a high caliber classic and house cocktail program, a “pick-your-path” martini menu reminiscent of Sunny’s prior residency days, and a low- and no-ABV cocktail selection, as well as a robust wine list crafted by Director of Operations Matt Whitney. A handful of cocktail favorites from Jaguar Sun also made the move to Sunny’s, including their iconic Green Ghoul (made up of tequila, mezcal, poblano, cucumber, lime, and salt).
Thompson and Hynes both predict that their martinis as well as the Circus Permit cocktail made with mezcal, elderflower, madeira, lime, and chili will prove tasty hits with patrons. “And for fans of the pop-up and Jaguar Sun, the Green Ghoul will always be a favorite,” says Hynes. “As for food, it really depends on the kind of night a guest is looking to have. Sunny’s is meant to be a space where you can drop in for oysters and fries or come in for a special occasion and enjoy an Australian Wagyu ribeye with a Caesar salad.”
At 13,000 total square feet, the indoor/outdoor Sunny’s is much larger than both the pop-up residency and the Jaguar Sun. This meant a totally opposite approach had to be employed when designing the new restaurant as opposed to these now-former locations.
Thompson worked diligently with New York-based interior designer Amy Butchko of The Springs Collective to “preserve the magic” of its original outdoor-only iteration.
The character of the courtyard still remains, only now, in an effort to encourage “connection,” it features an approachable outdoor bar with casual seating. The outdoor dining area is still situated around the beloved banyan tree, only now it has been expanded to 3,000 square feet. Upholstery and still-white tablecloths aid in keeping the ambiance simple yet “slightly updated.”
Aesthetic nods to mid-century modernism and Palm Beach Regency history are accentuated throughout the indoor dining room area thanks to glittering antique light fixtures, hand-carved woodwork, a Hermann Herzog-inspired mural, and stone floors.
Elements from the Jaguar Sun are also employed. “We have a lot of weird treasures and animal decor/servingware that was reflective of Jaguar Sun,” adds Thompson, “even though the new space is substantially different.”
Sunny’s is currently open for reservations. Dinner is served Wednesday through Saturday from 5:00pm to 12:00am and on Sundays from 4:00pm to 10:00pm.
While the rave reviews and packed crowds are proving chef’s kisses for Thompson and Hynes, the co-owners say their intent for Sunny’s is to bring back something special. “It feels like much of what makes restaurants special has gotten lost,” Thompson said in a press release, noting that their restaurant is a nightly dinner party that needs to be experienced. “Sunny’s is our attempt to bring some of that magic back, in a space that’s as easy to drop into for French fries and a martini as it is for a 50th wedding anniversary.
“It’s got to be about more than just what is on a plate or in your glass.”
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