Lido Restaurant at The Surf Club
Italian-inspired coastal cuisine
Reminiscent of an elegant seaside eatery in Italy, Lido At The Surf Club has offered diners the romance of an Italian summer since the hotel first opened in 1930.
Once the centerpiece ballroom where the society set came to drink and dine (events were so lavish back in the day that they included elephants or hundreds of tables carved out of ice), the restaurant now spills out to the ocean-facing Lido Terrace, which overlooks one of the hotel’s three outdoor pools.
Florentine chef Marco Calenzo is behind the contemporary Italian menu. The Lido Restaurant offers dinner service in the white-tablecloth-clad, cathedral-style dining room, which sits next to the sleek Champagne Bar, home to Miami’s largest selection of bubbly.
Our Inspector's Highlights
- Chef Marco Calenzo's passion for the cuisine of his home country is felt through dishes such as the Cotoletta Alla Milanese, a breaded veal cutlet.
- The well-priced wine list is easy to navigate and features a range of selections from Italy’s famous wine regions, including Umbria, Campania and Piemonte.
- One of the signature, must-try dishes is the decadent Tagliatelle All’astice; the egg pasta is made in-house and served with Maine lobster and a Sicilian pesto variation.
- The white dining room feels bright and fresh, thanks to the cathedral ceiling, arched doorways and windows and abundant greenery.
- Creative platings like edible flowers served atop ribbons of zucchini and grapefruit halva sorbet crowned by a piece of edible golden leaf add a sense of play to the meal.
The Food
- Chef Calenzo infuses his experiences in kitchens worldwide into his Italian fare, perhaps best exemplified by his spin on ‘Cacio e Pepe’ that features raw yellowtail.
- The secret behind the lick-your-plate tomato sauce: four tomato varieties, Ligurian olive oil, 14-month Parmigiano Reggiano and fresh basil finish.
- Diners can choose between the Percorso tasting menu or an à la carte menu.
- Although the dessert menu features many tempting options, the layered lady-finger espresso liqueur tiramisu served family style proves hard to resist.
Lido Restaurant at The Surf Club
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