Bellini Coconut Grove, Authentic Italian Cuisine In Miami

Finding Truly Italian Fare In Coconut Grove

Coconut Grove, less than five miles south of downtown Miami, is the county’s oldest neighborhood. It has an ambiance of its own, laden with historic homes, spacious parks, and quiet tree-lined streets, although it is best known as the home of the Renaissance-inspired Vizcaya Museum and Gardens.

The Bellini restaurant is located on the top floor of the Mr. C hotel, a boutique property with 100 rooms and suites that opened in 2019, just before the onset of the pandemic. The concept of this modern hotel was the brainchild of brothers Ignazio and Maggio Cipriani, the fourth generation of the Cipriani family.

The dining room has a classic, European style with waiters dressed in starched white jackets and black bow ties. Service is polished but not pretentious. Each knowledgeable waiter can explain the origins and ingredients of the dishes. The room tends to be lively but not too noisy for conversation.

The menu was inspired by the brothers’ travels and represents the breadth of Italian regional cuisine, including some of their favorite dishes. It is broken down into proper sections: antipasti, pesce (including signature dishes such as Octopus Carpaccio with Sliced White Asparagus and Hawaiian Red Bigeye Tuna Tartar), zuppe, insalate, pasta and risotto, and entrees from land and sea.

Many of the food products are directly sourced from Italy; others come from exclusive Cipriani purveyors, such as Green Circle chicken, sourced from small Amish and Mennonite family farms in Pennsylvania, and Australian lamb, imported fresh from the Colac region of Victoria, Australia.

The chunks of slightly nutty Parmigiano Reggiano DOP cheese served at the table with warm Focaccia bread were as good as any we had eaten in Italy. After our Bellini aperitivi, our waiter split a creamy Endive Salad with Avocado, sweet Bosc Pears and Pecorino on two plates at our table.

My husband and I had some difficulty choosing two different pastas from the list of appealing options, but we settled on Pasta alla Norma and Bucatini Cacio e Pepe. Both dishes were perfectly prepared al dente and sauced with restraint, unlike many Italian-American eateries.

Although we were intrigued by several dessert choices on the menu, our waiter, Sabino, a native of Puglia, encouraged us to try a pistachio gelato prepared à la minute. Even in Italy, we hadn’t had the opportunity to taste freshly-made gelato that didn’t come out of a refrigerator case. Served in what seemed like a bottomless dish large enough to share, it tasted incredibly fresh and flavorful.

A Welcome Addition To A Diverse Culinary Scene

Miami is a booming culinary capital, with global hospitality groups rapidly opening restaurants here. As one of the most culturally and ethnically diverse counties in America, Miami-Dade County also has a wealth of top-notch Cuban and Latin American eateries. Because Miami is surrounded by the rich waters of the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, there is also an abundance of fish restaurants.

There’s also plenty of competition when it comes to upscale Italian restaurants, including red sauce ones. To some, the cuisine at Bellini may seem relatively conservative compared with Miami’s more inventive Italian restaurants.

However, the best Italian cuisine is simply prepared, regional, and seasonal, and relies on high-quality ingredients. Our dinner experience at Bellini Coconut Grove met those criteria. With attentive service in a relaxing setting, one could easily feel as if they were dining at a seaside ristorante along the Italian coastline.

IF YOU GO

Bellini Restaurant is on the fourth floor of Mr. C Miami Coconut Grove, located at 2988 McFarlane Road. Antipasti range from $22 to $30; Pastas from $29 to $42; and Entrees from $40 to $65, in line with pricing at other fine-dining venues in Miami.