10 Miami/South Florida Venues for Company Picnics and Summer Entertaining

Ocho is an oceanfront taqueria and tequila bar on the eighth floor of Soho Beach House.

An already established brand of upscale Chinese cuisine in Miami, Philippe made the bold move of relocating from the Gansevoort to Ocean Drive at the end of 2011. Its new home includes a luxury dining room addition with the option to dine under the stars. A retractable moonroof sits overhead a 3,500-square-foot room that can be rented out for private events and corporate dinners.

Dinner Key Dining Room opened in January and joins the earthy Coconut Groove Peacock Garden Café. An ideal spot for bridal showers, luncheons or company parties, the space seats up to 200 guests and sits just steps from the bay. Movable wall partitions adjust to the size of any gathering, and event producers and party planners are welcome to create specialty menus with chef Oscar del Rivero. The floral garden serves as a cozy outdoor sanctuary for cocktails or activities before, during, or after any event.

Soho Beach House introduced its newest addition to the luxury property in February. Ocho is an oceanfront taqueria and tequila bar on the eighth floor of the property, featuring bar seating, low-top tables, and cabanas. Both members and nonmembers are invited for special events after 6 p.m. Features include projection walls, surround-sound speakers, and added grill or paella stations. Ocho welcomes weddings, fashion events, corporate events, and movie premieres to its 3,761-square-foot space with special catering-menu options.

Following a multimillion-dollar renovation and reopening, Shelborne Miami Beach has added a number of new venues to the South Beach resort staple. For summer events, the new ocean-view Mezzanine Terrace, which opened in December, welcomes events including private performances, sunset weddings, happy hours, or outdoor speaking engagements. Boasting 3,535 square feet of space, the special sun deck can accommodate seating for up to 300 guests.

Planted by the noted pool scene at the newly made-over Kimpton’s Surfcomber South Beach, Lantao Kitchen + Cocktails, which opened in December, is a Southeast Asian restaurant with a beachside ambiance. Patio dining with communal tables are available for company parties or summer celebrations at the Collins Avenue refuge.

Located on the penthouse level of 11 11 Lincoln Road, Juvia, which opened in February, is a breezy indoor-outdoor eatery with its own vertical rooftop garden and a 360-degree view of South Beach. Available for al fresco parties and weddings, Juvia features a retractable roof over its terrace, so weather conditions won’t spoil any occasion. The Asian-Latin-French fusion restaurant seats an intimate group of 20 on the terrace at its communal table, with an additional 13 seats by the bar, and a capacity of 168 indoors.

Highbar at Dream is a '70s-inspired rooftop hot spot, complete with infinity pool and views of the Atlantic Ocean. The Miami Beach venue opened in December and is ideal for an upscale gathering with specialty cocktails or bottle service for V.I.P. clientele. Hosting up to 275 people, patrons of Highbar can indulge in modern cuisine under the direction of co-partner and chef Geoffrey Zakarian, who offers a menu of modern eats to go swimmingly poolside.

A raw space suitable for a variety of events, the new Grand Central Park (opened in January) is a fresh outdoor venue in downtown Miami. It can accommodate up to 10,000 people for large-scale events or private gatherings—think food-truck roundups, outdoor movies, open-air fashion shows, or music festivals. The five-acre community park is a sustainable green space, with a backdrop of the skyline and 250 trees providing fresh air and shade.

Edge Steak & Bar at the Four Seasons is already a star eatery among locals. Opened in late March, the venue expands into an outdoor oasis with views of the hotel’s two-acre pool area and the sparkling Biscayne Bay. The upscale patio will act as a candlelit lounge, illuminated further with fire pits and dressed in lush landscaping. Consider the lounge a space for small groups, with communal tables for interacting.

The newest addition to the artsy neighborhood of Wynwood, Wood Tavern is a new dive bar situated across from the popular Wynwood Walls exhibit. Past its quaint indoor bar lies a 2,100-square-foot beer garden, surrounded by dozens of hand-painted murals by local street artists. With capacity for 80, the beer garden is an enclosed space available for private events—think laid-back happy hours. The space opened in December.