As the saying goes, when one door closes, another opens. In this case, the doors opened unto a true gem of a restaurant called Serafina. Serving Northern Italian cuisine, Serafina has earned a reputation amongst NYC residents for serving fresh salads, delicious pizzas and homemade pastas for over ten years. Restaurateurs Vittorio Assaf and Fabio Granato have expanded their empire all across the world, and their most recent venture brought them to South Beach.
Located on the first floor of the Dream South Beach hotel, the restaurant has made quite the home inside this Art Deco icon. With authentic frescos covering the wall by artist Michela Martelo, the atmosphere is pure Italian.
For those who prefer to dine outside, their patio is a great spot to visit before or after the beach.
If you find yourself on our South Beach lunch tour, we make a stop at Serafina for their superb gazpacho. This chilled tomato soup originated in the south of Spain but is now served all over the Mediterranean. It’s a perfect dish for a hot Miami day, combining fresh locally grown tomatoes with salt and pepper. That is drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and topped with finely sliced cucumber.
Believe it or not, there is not one bakery in Miami Beach that makes real Italian bread, but Serafina filled this void. They installed their own oven in the kitchen made with lava stone from Mount Vesuvius and fueled with burning cherry-wood. On the side of your gazpacho, they serve focaccia bread made with flour from Naples and filtered water and sea salt from Sicily in that oven. This is the closest taste of Italy you can get without hopping on a plane.
Whether its pizza, spaghetti or gazpacho you crave, Serafina is ready to offer an authentic taste of Northern Italy now.
1111 Collins Ave
Miami Beach, FL
(305) 534-8455
By Miami Food Blogger, Cassie Glenn
This site uses Google reCAPTCHA V3. Read the privacy policy and terms of service for more information.