A Lauderdale legend with a menu that’s more Floridian than a Jimmy Buffet album.
This ’80s pizza parlor features free retro video games – as well as gourmet pizzas like the Godfather (steak tips, caramelized onions, Gorgonzola blue cheese, mozzarella and cheddar cheese) and Cheeseburgerlicious (burger pieces, pickled onions, bacon and tomato, over Thousand Island dressing, mustard, mayo, ketchup, topped with mozzarella and cheddar cheese and finished with lettuce). Other menu items include salads, wraps, subs, wings, stromboli and calzones.
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.
Chicken marsala, veal picatta, meatballs, and Milanese are what’s for dinner at owner and Chef Marco Vico’s Fort Lauderdale fixture, voted one of America’s 1,000-best Italian restaurants by Zagat. Indulge in hearty bowls of pasta fagioli, lasagna that features a mix of meat sauce and béchamel. The ambiance is like a resplendent Tuscan villa, complete with walls adorned with old family photos.
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.
Fort Lauderdale’s first gluten-free restaurant specializes in vegetarian dishes – excellent salads plus Portobello and raw lentil burgers – but it also offers a tuna melt and a BLT (with turkey bacon) on house-made waffle bread. Save room for delicious quinoa cupcakes topped with seasonal fruit jam and goat cheese icing.
This restaurant in the Marriott Renaissance Hotel serves up an assortment of American and French-inspired items. Early arrivers can indulge in omelets, French toast, and interesting offerings like alligator eggs Benedict with blackened alligator medallions and orange hollandaise sauce. Small plates like shredded pork sliders with pineapple barbecue and chicken lettuce wraps with sesame ginger dressing are served as midday snacks. For dinner, it’s all about the filet with port wine cherry reduction. For dessert, there’s warm bread pudding with vanilla and caramel or the Florida Key lime pie with chopped fruit and orange Grand Marnier sauce.
Owner and Chef Angelo Elia has created a South Florida restaurant empire out of his original North Federal location. His dishes are punctuated by an attention toward great ingredients, like the branzino, so fresh it needs nothing more than a light butter sauce. The outstanding antipasti includes truffle-lemon carpaccio and pancetta-wrapped tiger prawns over broccoli rabe, and the fresh pasta is made in-house. Or go big with the oak-grilled NY strip, marinated in olive oil, garlic, and rosemary.
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 quaint French provincial restaurant is known for crepes that come filled with just about anything you can imagine. Sweet crepes include fresh fruit, Nutella, caramel, and ice cream. Savory ones come with seafood, meat, scrambled eggs, and cheese. Signature crepes include the Crepe Orleans, with blackened chicken breast, sliced tomato, and Gruyere cheese. The Crepe Nova Superbe is stuffed with smoked salmon, asparagus, capers, and béchamel. For dessert, try Johnny’s Favorite crepe, stuffed with fresh strawberries, banana, vanilla ice cream, and chocolate sauce.
Empanada Top specializes in Argentinian-style empanadas and serves wines and beers perfect to wash down the Latin delicacy. Their menu includes unique empanadas such as Hawaiian (ham, mozzarella cheese and pineapple), corn and pumpkin (corn, pumpkin, onion, red bell pepper, mozzarella cheese and seasoning) and guava and cheese.
This locally owned restaurant offers a wide selection of classic American dishes. The lunch and dinner menu includes Jamaican grilled wings, crispy walnut shrimp, orange chicken and a deep-sea tuna burger. On Saturdays and Sundays, guests can choose from a selection of made-to-order brunch dishes, including six styles of eggs Benedict.
Indian cuisine options have typically been few and far between on the eastside, but a new Cordova Road establishment looks to fill the gap. The Indian Harbor claims the ability to meet the desires of picky eaters while incorporating traditional Indian cooking. The menu’s a mixture of the paneers, masalas, biryanis and tandoori dishes fans of Indian cuisine will recognize. There are plenty of vegetarian options and of course, also some rich, traditional Indian desserts.
The owners of Sky Thai Sushi have opened another delectable Asian dining spot in Fort Lauderdale. 17th Street Thai Sushi stays true to the beautifully plated and carefully crafted cuisine that Sky Thai is known for. Their dishes include a variety of tapas, cucumber wrapped rolls, sushi boats and more. Menu favorites include the Pad Thai Lobster, pasta sautéed with lobster tails, egg, bean sprouts, scallions and peanuts; and the Five Spice Pork with the traditional Asian flavors of five-spice powder, mustard, ginger and hoisin sauce.
As you might have guessed, the Capital One Café on Las Olas belongs to Capital One Bank. Their goal is to have customers experience their digital and financial tools while grabbing some coffee and mingling with their ambassadors. Plus, they have free Wi-Fi.
As the name suggests, Tropical Smoothie Café is known for its plentiful selection of smoothies. The menu also features bowls, wraps, sandwiches and breakfast items. Their app includes a rewards program and also allows you to order ahead. Catering and delivery are offered as well.
Headed by two-time James Beard-winning chef partner Guillermo Pernot, the 9,200-square-foot eatery celebrates Cuban culture through its interior design, music and of course, cuisine. The menu is as authentic as it gets as chef Pernot takes his inspiration from travels throughout the island and experiences with the local chefs and restaurants. Selections include Octopus a la Parrilla, malanga fritters and Pernot’s Pineapple Guacamole Cubano. The rum bar offers more than 90 premium varieties of dark, light, spiced and aged rums.
A libation-lover’s paradise, this gastropub produces American-style grub and serves up frosty pints of craft beer, more brews from frozen “pour-it-yourself” beer taps, and spirits infused with sweet fruits. The decor incorporates old gas lanterns and Chicago bricks with an array of historic Life magazines. Flatbreads with barbecue chicken and marinated pork and snacks like parmesan-truffle fries and short rib sliders with bacon-onion jam pair well with darker, bold-bodied brews, while the arugula shrimp salad with toasted pecans, cranberries, and goat cheese works with lighter Belgian white beers including Hoegaarden.