Become a Local Champion in Miami

A Local Champion in Miami has rated five different Miami places, answered three Top 3 questions about the city and made one list with a Miami place on it in the Mosey app. The title is earned by doing, never by what you say, and Miami's mix of Cuban, Haitian, Venezuelan and Nicaraguan food gives you a lot to do.

How do you become a Local Champion in Miami?

Rate five places, answer three Top 3 questions and make a list, all in the same town. In Miami that could be a week that starts with a cafecito, passes through a lunch on Calle Ocho and ends with a Haitian dinner. The card on Home shows each step as Done or To do, with counters like "2 of 5 rated" so you know what is left.

Only distinct places count, so five stops at the same walk-up window is one rating place. Mix up your neighborhoods and your meals and the five arrive faster than you expect.

Where do cafecito and pastelitos fit into five ratings?

Cafecito is strong Cuban coffee, often drunk standing up at a walk-up window, and pastelitos are flaky glazed pastries filled with guava or cheese. Both are a natural place to start, because they are cheap, quick and everywhere, and you can rate one on the way to work. Croquetas, the crisp fried cylinders stuffed with ham or chicken, are another easy one.

Rate the place, name the dish in the rating if you like, and move on. The app never reads what you wrote, only that you rated.

The walk-up window deserves a word of its own. A ventanita sells cafecito, and often pastries and croquetas, through a small opening onto the street, so a morning of two quick stops can supply two ratings of two different windows before nine. The tourism office points to cafecito stops in Coral Gables and a popular window in Miami Shores, which makes this a step you can finish on foot.

Which Miami neighborhoods can you rate in?

Miami is a city of neighborhoods with their own tables. Little Havana is the Cuban-heritage heart, with classic Cuban counters and Nicaraguan fritanga platters. Hialeah is known for croquetas, and the Hialeah Cuban food guide goes deeper. Wynwood is an arts district with sandwich counters and Peruvian ceviche. Coral Gables, Coconut Grove, Doral, Kendall and Miami Beach each add a different thread, from Venezuelan empanadas to key lime pie and stone crab claws in the cooler months.

Little Haiti is its own world, with griot, marinated fried pork served with a spicy slaw called pikliz. The Little Haiti guide is a good companion.

What are the Miami Top 3 questions about?

The app puts one Top 3 question in front of you per visit and waits at least four hours before the next. The questions are about kinds of food such as coffee, brunch, breakfast, pizza and Spanish. For a Miami regular, coffee is the question with the most opinions. Everyone has a window they swear by and a friend who thinks they are wrong. You name up to three places, ranked, and you need three questions answered in Miami for the title.

Skipping protects your daily streak yet adds nothing toward the title, so when you do answer, name at least one place.

What makes a Miami list count?

Make a list of your own with a Miami place on it. A list called "Cafecito run before work" or "Visitors who want Cuban, Haitian and Venezuelan in one weekend" is a good start. Two lists are excluded: the one called My Favorites and the list Top 3 builds from your answers.

Put a place on it, write yourself a note and send the list to a friend. Someone who knows a Doral empanada counter you missed can add it.

How do dishes, tags and friends help in Miami?

Rating by the dish is a gift in a city where the same name covers many versions. Name the pastelito, the cafecito or the griot, add tags to say what stood out and tag who you were with. Follow friends and their picks show up on Home under This week with friends. None of it changes whether you earn the title, because the app counts only that you did the activity.

What seasonal and street treats can you rate in Miami?

Miami's list of local foods runs well beyond coffee. Stone crab claws, served with their famous mustard sauce, arrive in the cooler months, and key lime pie has its own devoted followers in Coconut Grove. Out in the Redland farm country near Homestead, a farm family's cinnamon rolls have become a ritual stop. Bolis, frozen treats sold in small plastic bags, conch fritters in the Bahamian style and Venezuelan empanadas fried to order in Doral all make fine ratings.

None of these needs a long review. Name the treat, pick a tag if one fits and move on.

What happens once you earn the title in Miami?

You see a thank-you reading "You are a Local Champion of Miami", the title appears on your profile and beside your name on a rating of a Miami place, and a share button makes a picture card with three plain numbers. No prize or payment is attached. See the how-to guide for the exact rules, the Local Champion page for the screens, and the Atlanta page for another Southern city's version.

Mosey is free for a place to list, with no hidden fees and affordable tools. Supporting local in Miami means telling people which window, counter or kitchen you keep returning to. The US food guides list more towns to try.

Get the Mosey app, rate your next cafecito and start the Miami list that finishes your title.