Since chef Michael White parted ways with Altamarea Group — the restaurant group behind some of New York City’s most popular restaurants, including Marea, Al Fiori and Osteria Morini — in 2021, he has kept busy with multiple restaurant openings, including Lido Restaurant in Surfside, Fla. at the Four Seasons hotel. That was followed by a revamp and reopening of the New York City’s The Lambs Club after its pandemic-induced hiatus, and then onto the Bahamas to open Paranza at the Atlantis Paradise Island resort.
Chef White’s latest project debut is Mirabella: a new coastal Italian restaurant that opened Oct. 24 at Fontainebleau Miami Beach, a resort-style hotel dating back to 1954 that has more than 1,500 guestrooms and suites. It replaces Scarpetta, the Scott Conant-led Italian concept that closed earlier this year.
“Mirabella is both a celebration of Italian cuisine and a reflection of my own culinary journey, which began 25 years ago during a transformative period for Italian cooking in the United States,” chef White said in a statement.
The restaurant spans 9,418 square feet and has 317 seats across the dining room, bar and lounge. It was designed by David Collins Studio and is meant to evoke coastal Italy while capturing the energy of Miami Beach. The scarlet red and lapis blue dining room is decorated with palm trees and hand-painted ceramic shells lining the back wall. The rear terrace looks out onto the ocean, and outdoor seats are protected by a yellow and white striped canopy.
Executive chef Paul Keyser is working alongside White and will lead day-to-day kitchen operations. The menu features shareable starters like fritto misto and prosciutto di parma. The raw bar is stocked with oysters, shrimp cocktail, and bluefin tuna tartare. Caviar is also available in 50-gram portions and served alongside crème fraîche, profiteroles, chives, and egg yolk.
Antipasti options range from a couple of salads to beef carpaccio with black truffle and octopus with gigante beans. The nine-dish pasta and risotto section includes spaghetti, bucatini agnolotti, and cavatelli, plus a seafood risotto with coral butter and basil. Larger plates include branzino, Dover sole, ossobuco, and a bone-in veal chop parmigiana. The “from the grill” section rounds out the menu with ribeye, filet, and lamb chops.
Mirabella’s bar serves spritzes and other Italian-inspired cocktails, and the extensive wine list was put together by Fontainebleau Miami Beach director of beverage Gary Evangelista.
“Opening Mirabella at Fontainebleau Miami Beach presents an exciting opportunity for us to transport our guests to the captivating coastal regions of Italy while providing a unique and vibrant culinary experience,” White said.
Mirabella is open for dinner Tuesday through Sunday. It joins a collection of a dozen food and nightlife concepts at Fontainebleau Miami Beach, including the modern Chinese restaurant Hakkasan, Prime 54 steakhouse, and the upscale LIV nightclub.
