Miami: a city containing a multitude of restaurants and countless cuisines that brand it as a haven for the ultimate foodie. This fall season is welcoming various new spots to add to the plethora of restaurants scattered all over the 305.

Italica Midtown 

An Italian restaurant located in Midtown Miami, Italica Midtown, opened its doors on Sept. 22. The first restaurant opened in 2019 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and later in Aventura, FL. 

Pablo Sartori, alongside the Latino Hospitality Group, developed the unique 3,500 square-foot eateries as a way of bringing a different perspective to Italian cuisine, featuring Mediterranean-style pizzas, a spritz bar and fresh, unique ingredients used to develop delectable dishes.

Located in a small, yet lively neighborhood, Italica Midtown adds an enjoyable corner to grab a pizza for lunch, dinner and even brunch on the weekends. The restaurant offers a 165-seat indoor dining area surrounded by colored bottles displayed on window-filled walls and a bar decorated with mosaic tiles. Multiple pizza ovens adorn the room and give guests a special view of the pizza-making process. Additionally, the outdoor area seats 40 guests and provides a view of the town.

The unique menu presents a variety of dishes that appeal to anyone’s palate. The selection consists of appetizers such as Octopus Carpaccio ($19), pasta options like Truffle Cacio e Pepe ($26), salads such as the Gamberi ($16) which includes arugula, shrimp and fennel, main courses including the popular squid ink risotto with cuttlefish, Risotto e Seppie ($32) and of course, a range of pizzas with ingredients such as sauteed mushrooms, mortadella, black truffle and classic pizzas all ranging from $15-$26. For vegetarians, a wide selection of dishes from each section are available to enjoy as well. 

Whether it is to grab a bite with friends or get a taste of Italy, this is a great new communal spot.

Aba

Aba, stemming from a market in Chicago, IL., opened in The Bal Harbor Shops on Nov. 2 to offer a Mediterranean taste in Miami. With an additional location in Austin, TX., Aba’s third location opened for the first time in Florida by Lettuce Entertain You Restaurants, Chef CJ Jacobson and executive partner Marc Jacobs. In Chicago, the restaurant has been recognized as one of “Chicago’s Best New Restaurants” and earned the “Gold Key Award for Excellence in Hospitality Design.”

Aba’s interior is cozy with beige tones and a garden-like feel with olive trees, hanging plants and potted trees. The dining room seats 250 guests, while simultaneously offering an outdoor patio area and a second floor with a bar and an outdoor terrace. Currently, Aba only offers dinner, but will soon open for lunch and weekend brunch.

Offering flavors from Turkey, Lebanon, Greece and Israel, the restaurant will add more to the variety of international spots in the city. The menu consists of a varied traditional menu and a gluten-free menu. Guests can choose from five different kinds of Hummus plates — Classic ($14.95), Smoky Garlic ($15.95), Pumpkin ($16.95), Spicy Lamb Ragu ($18.95) and Avocado Hummus with Maine Lobster ($32.95). Other popular dishes include Green Falafel ($14.95), Hamachi with Charred Avocado ($19.95) and Lamb and Beef Kefta ($21.95). 

Aba fits right into the luxurious outdoor scene where shoppers can enjoy a stroll around the Bal Harbor Shops.

Tablé

Antonio Bachour, known for his elegant pastries in Coral Gables and Doral’s Bachour locations, will open Tablé, a reimagined Parisian brasserie in the heart of the Design District this November. Since Bachour’s debut in Miami, the chef has won the “Best Pastry Chef of 2019,” Best Pastry Chef Award” in 2018 and “Best Chef Award” in Milan. Tablé will include the main restaurant, a cafe for a quick coffee and pastry and a grab-and-go market to purchase fresh sandwiches and baked goods.

The 5,500 square foot area will feature a modern space with minimalist adornments, plenty of greenery and a glass wall providing a full view of the chefs at work in the pastry kitchen. The experience offers a 69-seat indoor area and a 42-seat outdoor eating space, along with a bar seating 16 guests. The restaurant will open for breakfast, lunch, dinner and weekend brunch, with numerous options. The menu will include a few from Bachour, but will also incorporate new dishes such as the BBQ Pork Sandwich, Ora King Salmon and Steak Frites. 

“I think that for sure it is a good location because mainly at the Design District people like shopping and they are walking around. I think that the location is really gonna do well for [Bachour] because people might want to have a coffee or just sit around,” Miami Palmetto Senior High junior and foodie Olga Padilla said. “Considering his other locations are in Doral, which is not that popular, I have not heard about that one that much, and the Coral Gables one, it is not isolated but it is not in a place where there is a lot of transit. If you go there, you are going because you want to go to Bachour. But over [at the Design District] I feel like it will definitely draw more attention to people that do not currently know of his restaurant.”

Tablé suits the upscale location of the Design District and makes it a pleasurable stop for a pastry as one shops around the area.

Beauty and the Butcher.

Beauty and the Butcher, a steakhouse making its debut in Coral Gables, will open this November under Grove Bay Hospitality Group and chef Jeremy Ford, to offer a variety of meats and alternating seasonal small plates. Ford, a season 13 “Top Chef” champion, opened a fine dining restaurant in 2017 named Stubborn Seed. Located in Miami Beach, Stubborn Seed has earned Michelin star recognition due to its culinary excellence. Though his first restaurant is considered a more luxurious experience, his brand-new restaurant will be slightly more casual. Ford holds the name of the restaurant close to their heart as it originated from his relationship with his daughter, where he is the butcher and she is the beauty.

The restaurant’s interior has a clean look with green booths and adorned wooden shelves on the walls. The space will offer an enjoyable dining experience that is sure to live up to its Michelin-star counterpart.

Miami’s culinary experience is filled with high-end locations attracting tons of people to the city. Chefs from different backgrounds and cultures have demonstrated their own passions in the kitchen to make the city one of the top food destinations in the country.