Overhead spread at Guarapo: sesame-crusted tuna on arugula with quinoa, a poke bowl, salad, a fruit bowl, green juice and a pink smoothie

Guarapo Cafe: Fresh Juice, Sugarcane Blends and All-Day Breakfast

Some mornings call for a cafecito. Others call for something green. For those, there's Guarapo Cafe, a juice cafe in Midpoint Plaza at 553 NE 81st Street, less than a mile west of Shoe Gallery and a couple of blocks north of 79th Street. Fresh juices, smoothies, all-day breakfast and real lunch plates, all in one stop.

First Impressions & Vibe

The name tells you what matters here. Guarapo means sugarcane juice, the kind crushed from peeled cane, and cane juice runs through a whole section of the menu. The cafe says it has been serving Miami for more than ten years, and the photos on its own site set the mood: a bright green wall, wooden tables and leafy plants. It's the kind of spot you hit before a long day, or after a workout when you want something that actually feels good.

What to Order

Start at the juice bar. The International Juices are built on cane juice: the Miami Cane mixes strawberry, lime and orange, the Brasil brings passion fruit, ginger and carrot, and the Sugar Pine keeps it simple with pineapple and ginger. If you want your greens straight, the juice blends cover it, from SoBe Greens (spinach, cucumber, apple and lime) to the Brickell Cleanse with beet, ginger and apple. Smoothies and protein smoothies like the Hulk, with spinach, banana, peanut butter and whey, handle the post-workout crowd. Need a quick hit? The shots menu includes the 6 Golpes, with turmeric root, ginger, beet, lime, cayenne and honey, and the coffee menu covers the cafecito crowd with cortaditos and coladas.

Hand holding a layered green and golden yellow juice in a clear cup over a wooden table, with a green wall and plants behind

Hungry? Breakfast is served all day. The avocado toast comes with two poached eggs and pico, Emma's Pancakes are spinach pancakes topped with banana and strawberries, and there are açaí, dragon fruit and papaya bowls. For lunch, look at the Poké Bowl with ahi tuna and seaweed salad, the sesame-crusted Ahi Tuna Steak over quinoa, the Manolo Burger with a quinoa, lentil and black bean patty, or one of the wraps.

How It Started

The Guarapo name goes back to 2013 in this neighborhood, when Karen Franco and Edwin de los Santos opened Guarapo Organic Juice Bar on NE 79th Street. When Miami New Times asked why they picked the area, Franco said 79th Street was growing and they lived nearby. In her words: "We wanted to do the juice bar in our very own neighborhood." Trust us, we know that feeling. Two juice names from that 2013 menu, the Brickell Cleanse and the SoBe Greens, are still on the menu today.

Avocado toast on whole grain bread topped with two poached eggs and pico de gallo, with a side salad of greens and shredded carrot

Know Before You Go

  • Address: 553 NE 81st Street, Miami, FL 33138 (Midpoint Plaza)
  • Website: Guarapo Cafe website
  • Getting there: Directions to Guarapo Cafe
  • Good to know: The cafe takes online orders through its website, and breakfast is served all day.

Grab a juice, grab a bowl, then head down to 79th Street and make a day of it with a stop at Shoe Gallery.

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