El Vez

A local institution offering breakfast, lunch and dinner all day and night. Try the egg specials or hot cakes for breakfast, catfish fingers for a mid-day snack, and then a burger for dinner. No credit cards accepted, but there is an ATM on-site.

This extremely popular Las Olas bar and restaurant offers traditional favorites: tamales, chimichangas, enchiladas and of course tacos. Guacamole is prepared table side, and 225 varieties of tequila are waiting to be tasted.

Former Miami Dolphin Kim Bokamper and partners have opened their latest venture featuring New Orleans-inspired cuisine and vibes. The two-story restaurant with rooftop seating and balcony space is led by executive chef Simon Porter, whose menu blends French, Spanish, West African, Amerindian, German, Italian, Irish and Vietnamese tastes to create the New Orleans-inspired flavor. Menu items include alligator and shrimp jambalaya, fried green tomatoes and Southern confit duck Cobb. Weekly specials include all-you-can eat Saturday crawfish boils and a Sunday jazz brunch.

Friendship Grill is an extension of The Friendship Circle of Fort Lauderdale, a not-for-profit organization that offers training and education for those with developmental disabilities. Menu items include falafel, pita, pizza, wraps, sandwiches and vegan food. The café also serves breakfast.

Mario’s Catalina Restaurant is named for its flamboyant chef/owner Mario Flores, who puts equally strong emphasis on creating an elegant ambiance and providing outstanding service and cuisine. White linen tablecloths contrast with an assortment of colorful paintings with ornate frames and Mario’s collection of tchotchkes. The food is a combination of Cuban and Spanish favorites, like roasted pork with caramelized plantains, white rice and black beans, vaca frita, and garlic shrimp.

Founders Robert and Abby are longtime surfers and beach lovers. They were inspired by their many trips to exotic beach locations including Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, California and Hawaii. Each destination featured its own spin on acai or pitaya bowls. When they came back home, they were inspired to recreate their versions of some of their favorites. The menu features a wide variety including banana bowls like the Nica Bowl (banana blend topped with granola, banana, cocoa nibs, walnuts, strawberry and peanut butter).

The new location in Southport Shopping Center on 17th Street offers what customers have come to love from the first location on North Federal Highway. The Mexican restaurant is inspired by the food originating from the Baja Coast Peninsula, to be specific. They strive to bring light and fresh Mexican food that can be eaten every day to South Florida.

Come and experience our handcrafted organic cold pressed juices to cleanse, replenish and energize your body from the inside out. Our juices are for every lifestyle, simply grab a juice and go! Experience our elixir, healthy bites and smoothies too at the Las Olas location. SpaJuiceBar is a way of life, we want you to be healthy and energized.

The healthy fast casual concept stays true to its local supply chain philosophy by sourcing much of its produce from J&J Family of Farms in Loxahatchee and herbs from Harvest Sensations in Miami. The name’s a bit of a misnomer; Just Salad also does wraps, smoothies, “warm bowls” featuring dishes like shawarma and umami, and soups.

This new Pan-Asian/Latin restaurant features waterfront dining and private dinner gondola cruising. Other notable features include a zen garden, fire globes and a full “freestyle sushi bar.” The restaurant takes the place of Bao Bar + Asian Kitchen but pays homage by keeping some menu favorites. Specialty dishes include lobster guacamole, Chinese sticky ribs and Asian-inspired popcorn given to all guests who want it as a small appetizer.

This beachside restaurant offers casual, classic Floridian breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Traditional Italian cuisine in a casual atmosphere. For lunch, enjoy a selection of pastas, panini and salads. For dinner, Chilean sea bass, rack of lamb or Bistecca Alla Fiorentina (a 32 oz. USDA prime T-bone steak).

Serving more than 15 gourmet burgers along with vegetarian options, the new burger house has a 15-step cooking process along with its proprietary blend of all natural, no-antibiotic and no-hormone beef. Add in a good selection of craft beers, specialty cocktails and an extended selection of wines by the glass, and this looks like an interesting new addition to the Las Olas restaurant and bar scene.

Louie Bossi is not your typical chef. Growing up in an Italian household in New York he remembers the aromas of roasted garlic and fresh meatballs sizzling from his family’s kitchen. Raised by a single mother juggling three jobs, Bossi taught himself to cook at the age of eight. Working his way from dishwasher to cook at the local pizzeria Bossi developed a love for the art of pizza making.

Calabrian owner Tony Cupelli brings his family’s ancient recipes to this chic, modern Las Olas eatery. There’s pan-fried rigatoni with meatballs and specialty pizzas topped with smoked mozzarella, Italian sausage, eggplant and parsley. Cupelli’s pollo alla Francese in white wine-lemon sauce pairs with Venetian pinot grigio.

This attractive main street bistro serves more than just pasta and sandwiches. Sit on the terrace and people watch, or take a table inside under large black-and-white photographs, and enjoy pan-seared Canadian salmon or a classic eggplant parmigiana. The mozzarella is made in-house.

A modern take on Mexican food has hit Las Olas in a big way – 6,000 square feet to be exact. The highly anticipated Mezcal and tequila bar offers a modern take on “Mexican soul food” and also has more than 400 varieties of tequila and Mezcal along with specials like $3 margarita Mondays and $2 taco Tuesdays. Unique dishes include Swiss chard and hongos quesadillas (herbed mushrooms, Swiss chard, queso blanco and ranchero sauce), smoked brisket enchiladas and Nutella flan. They’ve also partnered up with Funky Buddha to create a New England-style IPA, which is available at the restaurant.

This little pocket of Creole cooking hugs the southern end of the Victoria Park Shoppes and serves up dishes of red beans and rice and bowls of thick gumbo, as well as po’ boys: oyster, shrimp, catfish, etc. The Black N’ Voodoo Burger comes with jalapeño peppers, horseradish and voodoo sauce.

Famous for meatballs, Anthony’s lives up to its name by getting your meals prepared and to your table in no time. However this doesn’t mean they don’t offer made-to-order dishes. Their menu features pasta, sandwiches, burgers, pizza, wings and more.

The Wan family has been running successful Chinese restaurants in South Florida since 1966, and this outpost in the Winn-Dixie shopping plaza serves up all the classics. Christina Wan’s does it all in a relaxed atmosphere, including dumplings, slices of caramelized roast pork, and beef lo mein. A full bar is its newest draw, so you can sip cocktails with your honey garlic wings. Wood tones and white tablecloths complete the motif, and a flat-screen hangs over the bar so you can catch the big game while dining.