STEPHEN SAWITZ

OWNER, JOE'S STONE CRAB, MIAMI BEACH

Founded in 1913, Joe's Stone Crab is one of Florida's most renowned homegrown, family-owned restaurants and, under Sawitz's leadership, has grown its footprint to include eateries in Chicago, Las Vegas and Washington, D.C. The great-grandson of founder Joseph Weiss, a Hungarian immigrant, he's a fourth-generation owner of Joe's Stone Crab, which, as the single largest buyer of Florida stone crab claws, has become a key cog in the state's aquaculture sector. Sawitz also oversaw the restaurant's expansion into overnight retail and wholesale shipping, and he grew the restaurant's fishing operations in Everglades City and Marathon, even providing financing for local crabbers. In 2025, when the cost of nearly everything seemed to be going up, he lowered prices, saying everyone should be able to enjoy a meal at Joe's Stone Crab, “no matter who you are or where you're from.”