When it comes to food, South Florida is a great place to be. So many new restaurants open nearly every day. Here’s what’s coming soon to a city near you.
Burtons Grill & Bar, Plantation
1003 S. University Drive; BurtonsGrill.com
Seven years after its first location bowed in Boca Raton, this Massachusetts-based chain is scheduled to finally open its second Florida location on Tuesday, May 21, according to the Burtons Grill website. The 6,200-square-foot storefront will occupy the Market on University plaza, with murals from Miami artist Juan Manuel Rozas splashed across the 175-seat dining room. There’s also a patio and a 50-seat private dining room. The menu includes cheesesteak spring rolls and crispy calamari for starters and General Tso bowls and Mediterranean chicken risotto for mains, along with steak frites, burgers and salmon romesco.
Piu Argentinian Ice Cream, Davie
6310 Griffin Road, Unit B-101
This frozen treat shop registered to owner Mauricio Bastidas Castillo is coming later this year to the University Pointe apartment complex on the southeast corner of Griffin and Davie Roads, next to Pho Bar Vietnamese Kitchen and Taco Love. Although a menu isn’t available yet, it will specialize in Argentinian “helado,” a delicious middle ground that marries the density of Italian gelato with the soft, creamy texture of traditional ice cream, without quite tasting like either.
Sugar Factory / Courtesy
Why, yes, that is a Flaming Hot Cheetos Burger. It’s a menu item at Sugar Factory American Brasserie, scheduled to open later this summer in downtown Delray Beach. (Sugar Factory / Courtesy)
Sugar Factory American Brasserie, Delray Beach
307 E. Atlantic Ave.; SugarFactory.com
Adorned in neon, sprinkles and Instagrammable grass walls, this candy-coated chain is expected to arrive in Delray Beach this summer, replacing Lionfish, the acclaimed seafood restaurant on swanky Atlantic Avenue that abruptly shut in April after 3 1/2 years. The new, over-the-top restaurant is a celebrity magnet known for creating cocktails and Couture Pops (lollipops) endorsed by the likes of The Rock, Bruno Mars, Nick Jonas, Kendall Jenner and Pitbull. And the food menu itself? It’s just as grandiose, with rainbow-colored sliders served with a rubber duck, cheeseburger- and pizza-loaded fries, a Flaming Hot Cheetos Burger, another hamburger dipped in 24-carat gold leaf, a firecracker shrimp stir-fry, a salted caramel cheesecake “insane milkshake” and a $99 “King Kong Sundae.” A Sugar Factory spokesperson told the Sun Sentinel in April that an attached retail shop will offer 100 varieties of candy and “party accessories such as sashes and tiaras.”
ROK Prime Korean BBQ, Boynton Beach
1729 S. Federal Highway
One of South Florida’s longest evangelists of Korean cuisine, chef-owner Michael Kwon will bring a sister restaurant to his 12-year-old ROK Korean BBQ in Lauderhill sometime later this summer. His new 2,200-square-foot restaurant in the Sunshine Square plaza will feature tabletop grills firing all-you-can-eat prime cuts of meat such as pork belly and bulgogi, along with banchan, vegetable-loaded side dishes that are staples on Korean barbecue menus. The opening of ROK follows the 2022 closing of Bap Bistro in Sunrise, where Kwon (Mandarin Oriental in Washington, D.C.; Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne) served build-your-own bibimbap bowls.
Man Ray, Lake Worth Beach
522 Lucerne Ave.; Sub-Culture.org
Named after the iconic painter and photographer subversive who straddled two art movements — Dada and Surrealism — this restaurant is expected to open later this year on Lucerne Avenue in downtown Lake Worth Beach, replacing the former C.W.S. Bar + Kitchen. Billed as a spinoff of Dada in Delray Beach, the eclectic sit-down comes from Palm Beach restaurant impresario Rodney Mayo (Kapow!, Sassafras, Hullaballoo, the recently opened El Segundo) and features no menu yet.
Pura Vide
Founded in Miami, Pura Vida has been focusing on expanding in Palm Beach County. Pictured here is a recent ribbon-cutting in Jupiter. (Pura Vida/Courtesy)
Pura Vida, Delray Beach
6 South Ocean Blvd.; puravidamiami.com
This Miami-based, health-conscious chain is quickly expanding throughout SoFlo with a particular focus on Palm Beach County. The new Pura Vida Delray Beach will overlook the ocean when the 4,000 square-foot space opens this summer. Founded by Omer and Jennifer Horev in 2012 (there are already 24 eateries), the fast-casual keeps an eye on food allergies and dietary restrictions, offering dishes such as pasture-raised egg sandwiches, salads, raw organic acai bowls, wraps and gluten-free vegan sweets. “We are thrilled to continue our journey of growth in Palm Beach County with the opening of our new stores in Jupiter and Delray Beach,” Omer Horev says. “Our aim has always been to foster spaces where individuals can come together to enjoy not just great food, but a lifestyle centered around health and wellness.”
Howl at the Moon, Fort Lauderdale
600 SE Second Court; 754-356-4695; HowlattheMoon.com
In a bygone Fort Lauderdale party era, dueling-piano bars tickled the ivories into the wee hours of the morning at Beach Place. Now one of those singalong nightspots, Howl at the Moon, is staging a comeback with a 5,000-square-foot venue off Las Olas Boulevard, behind Big City Tavern. It is slated to open in October. As with the other 12 national locations, this new piano-bar will sling cocktails, shots and beers, no doubt to loosen your tongue for belting out “Don’t Stop Believin’” for the 50th time. Meanwhile, performers will face each other across black baby-grand pianos, taking song requests for tips while inviting customers onstage.
Mister O1 Extraordinary Pizza, Miramar
1 Main St.; mistero1.com
Renato Viola’s pizzeria is expected to open this fall at the new Manor at Miramar, an eight-story, mixed-use development right in the heart of the southern Broward County city. Known for star-shaped, Neapolitan-style pizzas, Mister O1 has multiple South Florida locations, including in Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, Pembroke Pines, Aventura and South Beach.
The Knife Parrilla Argentina, Coral Springs
9231 W. Atlantic Blvd., TheKnifeRestaurant.com
After closing locations in Hallandale Beach and Sunrise over the years, Argentinean-style steakhouse The Knife is carving its way back into Broward with a new home within Coral Square Mall. The 38-year-old restaurant chain’s newest outpost expects to debut this spring at the mall’s east entrance, beside Foot Locker, according to the mall’s website. The “parrilla,” which touts all-you-can-eat cuts at a fixed price, includes short ribs, rump and bottom sirloin, picanha, N.Y. strips, boneless chicken thighs, flank pork and beef briskets, along with side bars devoted to appetizers, salads and charcuterie. (There are also empanadas, desserts and cocktails including the Messi Favorito Mojito, in honor of Inter Miami superstar Lionel Messi, of course.) Other locations remain in Doral and at Miami’s Bayside Marketplace.
Bondi Sushi, Oakland Park
3333 N. Federal Highway; BondiSushi.com
This beachy, Big Apple-born, sushi-bar chain is expanding with its first Broward outpost, which expects to debut this summer at Oaklyn, a new sky-high tower giving Oakland Park a jolt of big-city appeal. The 2,100-square-foot kitchen comes from founder-partners David Hess, Aiden Carty and Justin Hauser, and will occupy space next to soon-to-open burger joint La Birra Bar and the motorcycle-themed Imperial Moto Café. The dining room will be distinguished by a Japanese-style cocktail bar and a sweets shop called Icebergs, which will serve Japanese ice cream, rice-cake desserts, sodas and candy. Bondi, which also operates a Miami Beach outpost, will serve king salmon and yellowtail jalapeno sashimi, 12 kinds of handrolls (from lobster and toro to A5 Wagyu and truffle avocado), 14 types of nigiri (sea scallop, seared albacore), crispy rice and shishito pepper appetizers.
John McCall / Sun Sentinel / South Florida Sun Sentinel
Jarael Holston-Jones, owner of Fat Boyz Barbecue, is planning to open a Coral Springs location sometime this spring. (John McCall / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Fat Boyz Barbecue, Coral Springs
10334 W. Sample Road; FatBoyzBarbecue.com
Owner Jarael Holston-Jones has grown and shrunk his smoky empire of barbecue multiple times over the years, so you’d be forgiven for feeling déjà vu over the pitmaster’s soon-to-open Coral Springs location. After the pandemic and overaggressive expansion killed his last outpost there in 2021, Holston-Jones’ shrine to Southern-style smoked ribs and brisket is expected back this spring. The new 1,000-square-foot shack will replace the former Juana La Cubana Café on West Sample Road and cater to take-out crowds, although its menu will be identical to other locations in Deerfield Beach and Fort Lauderdale. Its usual crowd-pleasers include dry-rubbed St. Louis spare ribs kissed with hickory and spice, Texas-style brisket, smoked lean pastrami and its Big Daddy sandwich, a combo of pulled pork, chopped brisket and mac ‘n’ cheese on a kaiser roll.
SoHo Kitchen, Fort Lauderdale
3020 N. Federal Highway; Instagram.com/sohokitchenfortlauderdale
This breakfast-lunch café plans to open this spring in Plaza 3000, next door to Lotus Chinese Kitchen and The Mason Jar Café. The eatery, which comes from husband-and-wife New York transplants Andrew and Jutbina Pirgousis, doesn’t have a full menu available yet but is said to specialize in all-day brunch and lunch specials.
Michael Laughlin/Sun Sentinel
Tacocraft plans to open its latest location in Coral Springs in June. (Michael Laughlin/Sun Sentinel)
Tacocraft, Coral Springs
3300 N. University Drive; Tacocraft.com
This growing taqueria chain is not only backed by powerhouse investors — gridiron great Dan Marino, radio star Paul Castronovo and restaurateurs Anthony Bruno, Pat Marzano and Marc Falsetto — but its new Coral Springs location will be its largest yet. When it debuts in June, the 4,500-square-foot, 200-seat restaurant from Handcrafted Hospitality will anchor the new City Village, a soon-to-open, mixed-use shopping plaza spanning two blocks on North University Drive. Along with a lineup of tacos (korean short rib, chicken al pastor, carne asada), there are trendy smash burgers, salads, fajitas, churro ice-cream sandwiches and a bar program of margaritas and tequila-forward cocktails. The Coral Springs location joins outposts in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Fort Lauderdale and Plantation.
Celis Juice Bar, Delray Beach
335 E. Linton Blvd., Suite B-12; celisjuicebar.com
This health-conscious eatery (make sure you check out their running club) will open its newest location in May, joining the original brick-and-mortar in West Palm Beach that opened in 2015 and the Palm Beach venue that followed a couple of years later. The quick-service restaurant offers fresh-pressed juices, smoothies, acai bowls and made-to-order breakfast and lunch. The boutique-chain is owned by the Celis brothers — Alex, Camilo and Felipe — and Taki Kastanis, who is also CEO of Yolk restaurants.
Yolk, Boynton Beach
9884 S. Jog Road, Suite D9; eatyolk.com
When this location opens sometime this spring, the number of Yolk eateries will increase to 18 nationwide — spanning across South Florida, Illinois, Indiana and Texas. The other two SoFlo locations are in Boca Raton and West Palm Beach. The new Boynton Beach venue will measure 2,900 square feet and seat 90 people inside and 72 on a patio designed with Yolk’s signature yellow umbrellas for shade. Touting a menu it describes as “constantly pushing the envelope with new and creative brunch dishes served in urban, upscale settings,” the eatery will be serving various French toast and eggs Benedict dishes as well as items such as Breakfast Mac & Cheese and Santa Fe Frittata. That’s in addition to gourmet five-egg rolled omelets, signature scramblers, pancakes, crepes, build-your-own options, burgers, sandwiches, coffees, lattes, craft beers, wines and cocktails. The brand has a test kitchen program to come up with foodie-forward culinary options.
Jerk and Lime at Nicole’s House, Delray Beach
182 NW Fifth Ave.; Instagram.com/nicoles_house_/
Owner Nicole Myers’ long-in-the-works Caribbean restaurant plans to open a slight jog west of downtown Delray Beach, a block north of the Spady Cultural Heritage Museum, sometime this spring, the restaurant’s Instagram confirms. Myers, originally from St. Ann Parish, Jamaica, is cooking up a menu that will include braised oxtail with plantains and rice and pea cabbage, stew fish, fried lobster tail with jumbo shrimp, fried catfish, pepper steak with mashed potatoes, and jerk chicken with garden fruit salad.
Juliana’s Pizza, West Palm Beach
905 N. Railroad Ave., West Palm Beach; JulianasPizza.com
For most pizza lovers, the arrival of Juliana’s to West Palm Beach’s rising NORA district heralds yet another New York-born pie shop sowing new roots in South Florida. But to folks fascinated with the Empire State’s very long and winding pizza wars saga, Juliana’s represents a slice of Big Apple royalty. The short version: Juliana’s was founded by restaurateur Patsy Grimaldi, who at various times ran Patsy’s and Grimaldi’s and traces his bona fides back to the original Lombardi’s, and has been selling pies in Brooklyn’s Dumbo neighborhood since 1990. (Juliana’s is named after Grimaldi’s late mother.) The history gets more convoluted from there, but Juliana’s has racked up countless accolades, topping best-pizzeria lists from TripAdvisor and USA Today to Cosmopolitan. The man most directly responsible for its South Florida expansion is cofounder Matthew Grogan, an ex-Wall Street executive and current Palm Beacher, who will bring Juliana’s menu of coal-fired pies with thin, crackerlike crusts, egg creams, meatballs and seltzer to West Palm in early 2025.
Drunken Dragon / Courtesy
Drunken Dragon, a Korean barbecue restaurant and tiki cocktail hub, has closed its longtime Miami Beach flagship and will reopen in Hallandale Beach’s Atlantic Village sometime in late 2024. (Drunken Dragon / Courtesy)
Drunken Dragon, Hallandale Beach
601 N. Federal Highway; DrunkenDragon.com
What happens when a Korean barbecue spot touting tiki-themed cocktails, Asian tapas and DIY grilling uproots from flashy Miami Beach? In Hallandale Beach, at least, enter the Drunken Dragon. The restaurant called it quits after 10 years on Alton Road with a Dec. 31 farewell party ahead of a planned late-2024 opening at Atlantic Village, a sprawling live-shopping complex. The move from cofounder Angel Febres and his Homecookin’ Hospitality Group (Rácket in Wynwood, Foxhole in Miami Beach) has been in the works since 2021. Drunken Dragon’s new 300-seat eatery is a rebranding of the barbecue house into what it calls a “craft-cocktail supper club,” with 37 communal grilling tables, a “Dragon Lounge” and live entertainment.