After The Anderson’s quiet closure in 2024, the newly formed All We Need Hospitality Group is filling the space with another electric cocktail oasis. Upper Eastside Hangout is now open as a sprawling, 250-person venue at 701 NE 79th Street.
As its name suggests, the outdoor food and drink garden blends Old Florida charm with a neighborhood first approach, transitioning from a family-friendly daytime gathering place to a late-night destination. The new courtyard is laid out with soft green turf, candy coral and citrus green accents, picnic tables and cream shade sails woven with string lights overhead.
Giant LED screens, cornhole boards and a foosball table also await for game days, movie nights and weekly programming. When guests get hungry, familiar local concepts like Cheese Burger Baby, Tacomiendo, Noodle Bar and Professor Snacks anchor the space.
“Miami’s nightlife has always been part of our city, but not a lot of places like ours that take shape as the day goes on, where you can bring your kids at 3 p.m., come back with friends for Happy Hour, and return for a date night at 9 p.m. that carries into late night,” said Travis Rogers, co-founder of All We Need Hospitality Group, in a statement.
“We wanted the Upper Eastside to have a little bit of everything in one place, a spot to hangout for all. We live in the area, and we know this has been missing for a while now.”
In an effort to preserve the legacy of a property that boasts a liquor license dating back to 1937, Upper Eastside Hangout not only revives the empty property, but keeps its historic 200-square-foot bar. Dubbed “The Original Bar Shack” and believed to be the city’s smallest cocktail bar, this retro coral-and-green mini-house seats just 15 people.
Inside, the energy shifts to a moody, tropical lounge with leaf-print wallpaper, brass palm sconces and golden amber lighting. Veteran Miami bartenders shake up a menu with Florida-grown ingredients, from the Florida Spritz cocktail (Ketel One Botanical Peach, Paw-Paw Liqueur, mint, lemon, hibiscus bitters, prosecco) to the Dade Runner (spiced rum, banana, blackberry liqueur, pineapple ginger beer, orange bitters).
$5 Happy Hour (and beers are $5 all the time)
One notable highlight at Upper Eastside Hangout is that Happy Hour runs Tuesday through Friday, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., with $5 mixed drinks, wines and frozen cocktails. Weekly programming also includes Taco Tuesdays, with $3 tacos and $5 margaritas.
But the real kicker is that beer is $5 all the time, whether it’s Happy Hour or 11 p.m. on a Saturday!
Plan your visit
Upper Eastside Hangout is located at 701 NE 79th Street, Miami, FL 33138 (former Anderson Bar space), and is open Tuesday through Sunday, from 2 p.m. to 1 a.m. It serves as the flagship for the 17,000-square-foot property, with two additional concepts slated to open later this year: Here to There and In Between Wine Garden.
