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Restaurants in Fort Lauderdale
For years, Fort Lauderdale’s food scene has been the Jan Brady of South Florida, with Michelin-saturated Miami being Marcia, Marcia, Marcia, and Palm Beach being not necessarily the youngest, but the most precocious sibling in highly curated curls. But as all siblings do, each has grown into their own distinct personalities, and to some seasoned foodies surprise, the 954 has become one to watch when it comes to cuisine appealing to almost every tastebud and every budget. Take that, Marcia!
- Italian
Anthony's Runway 84
Red velvet chairs, monogrammed plates, chandeliers, and a Frank Sinatra sing-alike crooning on a small stage: yes, it does feel like you’re dining on an updated set of Goodfellows here (or The Godfather. Or The Sopranos). And that’s a big part of the fun of this contemporary supper…$$$Fort Lauderdale - Italian
Café Martorano
Yo, cuz! Steve Martorano is quite the character—a big tattooed lug of a South Philly DJ-turned-restaurant guy who set up shop in a strip mall on a busy thoroughfare in 1993, and went on to become a Lauderdale icon. His café is loud, it’s festive, it’s got classic, Italian and…$$$Fort Lauderdale - Floribbean
Cafe Maxx
Despite its bleak location, Cafe Maxx is still one of the best restaurants in Broward County. When it opened in 1984, it was the first restaurant to have an open kitchen, and what a stir that caused! Now, instead of the kitchen, the marvel is what comes out of it, like Southern BBQ…$$$Pompano Beach - Seafood
Cap’s Place Island Restaurant
Opened in 1928 by a bootlegger who ran in the same circles as gangster Meyer Lansky, this barge-turned-restaurant is the oldest eatery in Broward County. Although it’s no longer a rum-running operation, its illustrious past (FDR and Winston Churchill dined here together) landed it a…$$Lighthouse Point - Italian
Casa D’Angelo
Although Fort Lauderdale may be transforming into a thoroughly modern 21st-century beach city, Casa D’Angelo remains steeped in old-school, old-world style and service with an impeccable reputation for some of the best Tuscan-style Italian food in South Florida. Don’t be intimidated…$$$Fort Lauderdale - Mediterranean
Casablanca Cafe
There are a ton of swell dining spots along the beachfront, but you must remember this: As time goes by, few have been able to match the ambience and romance of this historic neo-Mediterranean manse turned restaurant and piano bar, tucked rather unexpectedly onto a corner amid the…$$Around Town - American
Coconuts
A block in from the beach, dockside on the Intracoastal, Coconuts sports a very local-South-Florida feel to it and a loyal local following to match. Choice of dining is indoors, out on a shaded deck, or right down dockside with a front-row seat to the passing boats, paddleboarders,…$$Fort Lauderdale - American
Gilbert’s 17th St. Grill
While some places brag about having the best burgers in town, family owned, unpretentious Gilbert’s actually has the best and doesn’t need to brag because legions of regulars keep this place packed. Tucked away off the bustling 17th Street Causeway en route to the Fort Lauderdale…$Near 17th Street Causeway, Fort Lauderdale - Ice Cream Parlor
Jaxon’s Ice Cream Parlor & Restaurant
Yes, it’s a bit of a tourist trap. But this is also South Florida’s best and only authentic old-fashioned ice-cream parlor/country store so it attracts those with sweet tooths from all over the area. Kids love the candy store in the front, and all enjoy hand-churned flavors. For the…$Dania Beach - Sandwiches
La Spada’s Original Hoagies
An institution since 1973, La Spada’s is a hero to every sandwich fan whether you call it a sub, grinder, or a hoagie. The artful arranging of layers of fresh meats piled into a chewy roll with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and their own blend of marinated sweet peppers make us…$Lauderdale-by-the-Sea - American
Le Tub
Hands down, this is one of the coolest, most unpretentious, quintessential pre–swanky So Flo restaurants. Established in 1959 as a Sunoco gas station, Le Tub was purchased in 1974 by a man who personally transformed the place into this waterfront restaurant, made out of flotsam,…$Hollywood - American
Lester’s Diner
Down near Port Everglades, the original Lester’s (there are four branches) is another Fort Lauderdale institution, slinging hefty portions of good greasy-spoon fare (including breakfast 24/7) since 1967, when it started out as a truck stop. It’s got snappy, no-nonsense yet friendly…$Near Port Everglades, Fort Lauderdale - Seafood
Rustic Inn Crabhouse
Do I really have to spell it out for you? Alrighty then—the word “rustic” in the name isn’t just a marketing ploy—this seafood joint just west of the airport has been kicking around since the year Disneyland opened, and the fact that it has practically zero ambience doesn’t bother…$$Around Town - Food Hall
Sistrunk Marketplace
This hip food hall located in Fort Lauderdale's art district, offers 40,000 square feet of foodstuffs, craft beer, artisan coffee, local art, and live music. Highlights include Crunly Churros & Ice Cream, from the West Palm Beach food truck of the same name, Wynwood pizza palace…$Art District, Fort Lauderdale - Seafood
Southport Raw Bar & Restaurant
There's a fantasy of Florida, given life in many a Jimmy Buffet song, that you can live out at the iconic Southport. It's the type of friendly dive that hasn't changed an iota since the 1970's, as you'll see if you peer in through the round "portholes" in the front door at the…$Lauderdale Harbours - Steakhouse
Steak 954
Housed in the W Fort Lauderdale, this playful creation of restaurant mogul Stephen Starr of Morimoto fame is tops for ambience: dark woods and bold floral silk wall panels, with the restaurant’s centerpiece being a 15-foot-long reef aquarium, home to hypnotic jellyfish. Its…$$$Fort Lauderdale - Fusion
The Katherine
Once upon a time, no Miamian of a certain level of epicurean snobbery would ever cross into Fort Lauderdale to eat, but that was then. Just ask Timon Balloo, one of the Magic City’s most lauded chefs of Sugarcane Raw Bar Grill fame who, along with his talented wife Marissa, packed…$$Fort Lauderdale - Steakhouse
Tropical Acres Steakhouse
Near Rustic Inn is yet another SoFlo dining landmark, this time, an old school steakhouse dating back to 1949, when New York restaurateur Gene Harvey decided to turn an old-frame house into a carnivorous club of sorts. Fast forward to the twenty twentys and people are still packing…$$Dania Beach



