Fans thought this downtown Miami coffee shop was closed for good, but it just reopened
All Day was one of countless Miami area restaurants that closed during the pandemic but it’s doing something few others have managed: It’s reopening.
The beloved downtown coffee shop, a favorite with the breakfast and lunch crowd, reopened two weeks ago just as its owner had hoped when she closed it last May — days short of its five-year anniversary.
“It’s the most polished version it has ever been,” co-owner Camila Ramos said.
Ramos had led the way in creative thinking to keep her business afloat even during the heart of the pandemic. She was among the first to turn her restaurant into a grocery store when restaurants weren’t allowed to be open, selling the produce that farmers were stuck with. She used part of the money to provide groceries to out of work employees. And when the restaurant first reopened, she demanded strict COVID testing of herself and her staff.
But she said she struggled with the environment in which the restaurant reopened, with staff harder to hire and to retain. Meanwhile, her partner in the business — landlord Chris MacLeod — suffered long-term symptoms of COVID, leaving her to run most of the business while raising the 6-year-old they have together. So they decided to close the business to restructure it.
They reopened two weeks ago with service at their busy ventanita, at the counter inside and with table service from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. seven days a week.
Ramos said she also hired a general manager so she could focus on controlling the quality of the food and drinks. What set All Day apart was Ramos’ insistence on high quality products, sourced from ethical local producers — from ensuring fresh greens from Homestead farms to meat from one family ranch in Ocala and using premium coffee with skillfully trained baristas.
She hopes diners who return will see it at its best.
“This is the best I’ve ever felt about the store,” she said. “The feeling is tangible.