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May 08, 2023

Now open: Carrot Express in Plantation, Negroni in Weston

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Carrot Express, Plantation

This fast-casual, veggie-centric chain opened its newest storefront on May 24 inside everyone's favorite plaza, Plantation Walk. "We specifically wanted to open in Plantation because, like us, the city is growing fast and has been named among South Florida's most desirable suburban neighborhoods," owner Mario Laufer said in a statement. The restaurant serves up turkey bacon and Scottish salmon wraps, a California "eggwich," huevos rancheros burritos, avocado toast, and vegan picadillo bowls, among other specialties. There are also salads and desserts (including carrot cake, of course!). Founded inside an Alton Road gas station in the ’90s, Laufer's chain is having a growth spurt, with future locations heading to Fort Lauderdale's Las Olas, Hollywood and Miami's Coconut Grove. 301 N. University Drive, Suite S2500, Plantation; EatCarrotExpress.com

Negroni, Weston

Peruvian and Japanese cuisines collide at this 5,000-square-foot kitchen that debuted in late May at Weston Town Center. It's the second Florida location for the hip Argentine brand, joining outposts in Midtown Miami, New York and Los Angeles. The centerpiece of Negroni's 220-seat dining room is a Nikkei-style sushi bar serving ceviche, tiraditos, nigiri and other signature rolls. Meanwhile, the Latin American-Italian-Asian menu includes a sharable parrillada spread of ribeyes, Argentine sausage and beef tenderloin; truffle gnocchi; provoleta (roasted provolone cheese) flambéed with rum and paired with Galician bread; and antipasti, salads, flatbreads, paninis and burgers. "We’ve been overwhelmed by the excitement and anticipation from the local community, and we are thrilled to finally welcome guests to our lively and fun establishment," founder Pablo Sartori said in a release. And yes, the drink menu also features the restaurant's namesake aperitif, along with craft cocktails, wines and nonalcoholic spirits. 1744 Main St., Weston; 954-444-0096; negronius.com/weston

CRU Lounge, West Palm Beach

This clubby hookah bar and small-plates franchise debuted June 2 in West Palm Beach's hip, mural-splashed Northwood Village district. CRU, operated by local franchisee Stephon Williams, touts a hookah menu as sweet as its sugary cocktails, which include Liquid Hemp (coconut rum, pineapple juice) and Nyak Hulk (fruit juice, vodka, cognac, sour patch candy straws). The lounge also serves Philly cheesesteaks, lollipop lamb chops, garlic shrimp skewers and lobster mac ‘n’ cheese. CRU's West Palm Beach location joins outposts throughout the country, including in Alabama, Georgia and Texas. 538 Northwood Road, West Palm Beach; 561-268-7551; CRULounge.com

Pummarola Pizzeria Napoletana, Fort Lauderdale

The location of the newest Pummarola Pizzeria Napoletana, which had a grand opening on June 6, was irresistible to the four Mele brothers who own the boutique chain and imported their grandmother's original eatery from Naples to South Florida. It's behind the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, at the foot of the drawbridge on Avenue of the Arts, and joins other locations in Boca Raton, Midtown Miami, Coral Gables, Kendall and Miami Beach. (Find two more in Spain: in Barcelona and Ibiza.) The first thing that catches your eye when you go to a Pummarola Pizzeria Napoletana is a sawed-in-half Fiat 500 mounted on the walls, a nod to nonna Rosa Donna Rummo, who was known to tool around town in her red sports car (which Neapolitans said looked like a tomato, or "pummarola"). But once you get past that, "the ingredients are what really shine at Pummarola," says Larry Mele, one of the brothers/owners. "They range from San Marzano tomatoes to imported (double 0) pizza flour, smoked buffalo mozzarella … (Protected Designation of Origin) Parma Prosciutto. These are just a few of examples of the premium products used." 620 W. Las Olas Blvd., Fort Lauderdale; 754-276-5965; Pummarola.us

Skillets, Delray Beach

This Naples-born, breakfast-lunch diner chain founded by Ross and Noreen Edlund in 1995 hosted the grand opening of its 14th Florida location on June 1 inside buzzy Delray Marketplace. True to its namesake, the diner slings skillets that include keto and corned beef hash, along with potato pancakes and blueberry blintzes, Denver omelets and smoked-salmon benedicts, and Crêpes Suzette and vegetable frittatas. For lunch, there are salads, paninis, wraps and sandwiches such as Reubens and triple-decker BLTs. 14851 Lyons Road, Suite 134, Delray Beach; SkilletsRestaurants.com

Lantern Local Tavern, Lantana

Offering what they describe as "elevated classic tavern food" from a scratch kitchen, this gastro pub debuted in May in the space that formerly housed The Hive Bar & Grill, offering breakfast, lunch, happy hour, dinner and late-night bites. Seating a total of 155 indoor and outside, Lantern Local Tavern is owned by Lindsay Lipovich, who also helms West Palm Beach's BRK Republic as well as Lake Worth's Lilo's Streetfood & Bar. "Lantern Local Tavern is aiming to become the local neighborhood watering hole in Lantana," Lipovich says. "Our location and building allows us to offer three unique atmospheres: Old-school Florida diner to enjoy breakfast and brunch, a tavern bar perfect for lunch and happy hour, and a candle-lit dining room for dinner." 618 W. Lantana Road, Lantana; 561-612-5655; lanternlocaltavern.com

Pubbelly Sushi, Pembroke Pines and beyond

This Japanese-Latin fusion sushi restaurant founded by chef Jose Mendin (a five-time James Beard Award semifinalist) opened June 2 inside Pembroke Centre in Pembroke Pines. It's the first foray into Broward and Palm Beach counties for the Miami-born mini-chain, with future taverns planned this year for Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton and West Palm Beach. The restaurant is adorned with bamboo furniture, granite accents and red tufted leather banquettes, and its popular menu items include short rib and truffle dumplings, tostones con ceviche and bao buns. 306 SW 145th Ave., Pembroke Pines; 954-367-7970; PubbellyGlobal.com

Sushi by Boū, West Palm Beach

This omakase experience opened inside West Palm Beach's Vinyl Fish Club on May 25. Named after sushi master and Boca Raton native David Bouhadana, Sushi by Boū offers an hourlong meal of 12 courses for $60 per person or 17 courses for $100 per person. Patrons may also order regular a la carte specialties and seasonal mochi ice cream for dessert. Next up will be a Sushi by Boū freestanding restaurant in east Boca Raton, slated to open in June. Sushi by Boū first landed in SoFlo in Miami Beach at the former Versace Mansion before moving over to the SLS Brickell Hotel, where it remains today. In Broward County, the concept debuted during the summer of 2021 at the Residence Inn by Marriott in Pompano Beach before decamping to Salt7 Fort Lauderdale in early 2022, where it remains still. 340 W. Clematis St., West Palm Beach; sushibybou.com

I Heart Mac And Cheese, Wellington

The Fort Lauderdale-born restaurant that made its name elevating elbow macaroni from side dish to gooey main course opened its newest location in early June in the Marketplace at Wycliffe under local franchisees Robert Sukman and Mark McLeod, who also run outposts in Jupiter and Coral Springs. Patrons can customize their mac-and-cheese bowls and grilled-cheese sandwiches in assembly-line fashion. Bowls begin with a base of pasta, broccoli, cauliflower or quinoa, followed by a choice of vegetables, cheeses (vegan included) and proteins including short rib, chicken parmesan, Buffalo chicken and lobster and white truffle. 4095 S. State Road 7, Suite Q1, Wellington; 561-225-1020; IHeartMacAndCheese.com

Rock & Brews, Plantation

The slow drip of eateries opening at the Plantation Walk mega-shopping wonderland continues with this 8,000-square-foot scratch kitchen founded by KISS Hall-of-Famers Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley. The restaurant, which opened in mid-May, boasts two bars — one indoors, one patio — serving craft beers on tap and full liquor. Its menu features "opening acts" such as crispy calamari, Gulf shrimp sriracha, garlic-herb bruschetta and chicken wings, along with "headliners" such as its Demon Chicken Sandwich, Extreme Pepperoni Pizza, barbecue baby back ribs and seven styles of craft hamburgers. 341 N. University Drive, Suite 1100, Plantation; 754-289-7625; RockandBrews.com

American Social Bar & Kitchen, Boca Raton

This local sports-pub chain with locations in Brickell and Las Olas has shuffled into yet another touristy enclave of South Florida — ritzy Mizner Park — with its newest outpost that opened on May 23. The 9,100-square-foot location touting American pub grub, craft beer and walls of giant flat-screen TVs comes from Laurie and Tony Mijares Jr., son Rick Mijares, and partner Paul Greenberg, and touts a rustic-chic dining room accented in exposed brick, metal and wood. AmSo's menu, identical to that of other locations, features Wagyu steak fried rice, pan-roasted salmon and grilled chicken mac ‘n’ cheese, along with handhelds including smash burgers, mahi sandwiches and Wagyu truffle melts. Brunch offers fare including Fruity Pebbles chicken and waffles topped with maple mascarpone, mimosas and Bloody Marys. 351 W. Plaza Real, Boca Raton; 561-710-7272; americansocialbar.com/boca-raton

Pizza Cucinova, Wellington

Just shy of a year and a half ago, Pizza Cucinova opened three blocks from Fort Lauderdale beach, near where Las Olas Boulevard ends at State Road A1A. Then roughly 10 months later, that location suddenly closed with zero notice on their website or social media. Now, the restaurant has moved operations. Having opened at The Mall at Wellington Green on May 5, Pizza Cucinova offers pizzas, pastas and salads in the $8 to $15 range. 10300 Forest Hill Blvd., Wellington; shopwellingtongreen.com

Cluck Face, Boca Raton

South Florida is officially caught up in a chicken fight, with more than a dozen independently owned fried-bird joints opening over the past 12 months, each hoping to court diners with its seasoned wings. The latest contender is Cluck Face, a Nashville hot chicken-inspired spot registered to Shaban Malik and Sabri Arslankara that offers tacos, sliders and tenders in four different spice levels, from "mild" to "cluck it!" The restaurant also serves nacho-cheese fries, coleslaw, mac ‘n’ cheese and french fries a la carte, plus sodas, orange juice and Red Bull slushies. 1179 S. Federal Highway, Boca Raton; 561-465-4545; CluckFace.com

Verino's Pizzeria & Grill, Fort Lauderdale

The recipes for Verino's Pizzeria & Grill come from pals with restaurants in Boston's North End neighborhood — with menu fare such as brick-oven, thin-crust pizza, lasagna, grilled skewers of steak tips, lamb, chicken or house-made sausage. That was the plan all along for husband-and-wife owners Brian Turnbull and Sayaka Tobimatsu, who opened Verino's on April 28 in the former spot of Jade Palace Restaurant, across Sunrise Boulevard from The Galleria mall. Tobimatsu is from Tokyo, where generations of her family ran an eatery in the entertainment enclave Asakusa for more than 150 years. After getting a hospitality management degree from Florida International University, she worked for Benihana and the Ritz-Carlton. Turnbull worked in the casino industry in Connecticut and Boston. Verino's is named after his grandparents who immigrated from Italy. "We love the art and science of making pizza," Turnbull says. 2465 E. Sunrise Blvd., Fort Lauderdale; 954-999-5506; verinospizza.com

KAO Bar & Grill, Hallandale Beach

A spinoff of the KAO Sushi & Grill brick-and-mortar in Coral Gables, this two-story, Argentine-American fusion restaurant opened May 19 within repurposed shipping containers. The 5,000-square-foot KAO Bar & Grill, splashed in rainbow-hued murals, is a project from restaurateur Matias Pagano (J&J's Fresh Kitchen in Boca Raton) and features an al fresco patio with lounge chairs, sofas and a 14-seat bar. KAO's menu includes Argentine-style prosciutto pizza, empanada platters, fire-grilled lamb ribs, ribeyes and branzino plated with housemade chimichurri, along with choripan handhelds and Angus cheeseburgers on brioche. 11 NE First Ave., Hallandale Beach; 786-864-1212; KaoBarandGrill.com

Pâté Bar, HollywoodWhether you know it as a pâté, patty, empanada or pastellio, the handheld snack is a staple among Caribbean, African and Latin fare. Chef The Rose (the nom de cuisine of Rose Jean) celebrated May's Haitian Heritage Month with the grand opening of her food kiosk at the Polo Bar and Grill on May 18. "Our menu is all about sharing the flavors from various cultures and traditions of my home country, and we can't wait to introduce our guests to these unique dishes," says Chef The Rose. Among other menu items, the signature pâté has 12 filling options, including seafood and vegan. Polo Bar and Grill owner Paul Neil adds, "This is a unique dining experience that you won't find anywhere else in Hollywood, and we’re looking forward to sharing the Pâté Bar experience with the community. This is one of South Florida's best-kept secrets." 5590 W. Hallandale Beach Blvd., No. 5329, Hollywood; thepolobarandgrill.com/pate-bar

MISO Japanese Tapas, Fort LauderdaleChef Thuan Lam, best known for creating Phat Boy Sushi and Poke Lolo, quietly opened his long-awaited restaurant to no social-media fanfare on May 18, inside a bold blue-and-white-streaked building in Fort Lauderdale's industrial Progresso Village. The restaurant has been in the works since mid-2021. A cross-pollination of Japanese and Latin cuisine in small plates, MISO, led by chef Julien "Jay" Barashari of Poke Lolo fame, also features a sushi bar. 801 NE Second Ave., Fort Lauderdale; instagram.com/miso_ftl

Baked561, Delray Beach

This dessert shop specializing in Nutella pizzas, cookie dough, ice cream sandwiches and custom cakes has opened its first location in Delray Beach, in a small west-of-Interstate-95 strip mall shared with Rogie Pierogies and Proper Ice Cream. This pickup-only bakery, with no indoor seating, opened May 18 with delivery via Postmates and Grubhub, and is owned by Diana Grow, Juan Tunon and baker Carolyn Tunon Schmidt. The shop, of course, also offers over-the-top cookies studded with Lucky Charms marshmallows, Oreos and s’mores. 1445 N. Congress Ave., Delray Beach; 305-979-0667; Baked305.com

Padrino's, PlantationThe original location of this 31-year-old Cuban classics chain has relocated across the street into a 5,000-square-foot location, undergoing a decor and menu facelift to match its newest digs. The restaurant, which had its ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 11, comes from third-generation owners Eduardo and Mario Padrino and their sister, Laura Padrino Corredoria, and is adorned with art deco lighting, indoor palms, geometric chandeliers and tropical wallpaper. The menu — which uses recipes created by their grandmother — features lechon asado, churrasco, arroz con pollo and flan, plus mojitos and cocktails. The Plantation location joins other outposts in Fort Lauderdale, Dania Beach, Hallandale Beach and Boca Raton. 1039 S. University Drive, Suite 210; Padrinos.com

Cookie Plug, West Palm Beach

At this rapidly growing California franchise of sweet shops, the soft and brownie-thick cookies are dubbed "phatties," graffiti coats the walls, and ’90s West Coast hip-hop flows over loudspeakers. The bakery founded by Erik Martinez is bringing six locations to South Florida, the first of which had its grand opening on May 6 near Clematis Street and South Olive Avenue, a block west of the downtown waterfront. The menu includes the self-explanatory Snooperdoodle, Mac Daddy (white chocolate macadamia nut), Crunch Nugget (chocolate peanut butter), Bam Bam (fruity cereal) and the Pink Elephant (strawberry cheesecake). The five other locations are heading to Miami-Dade County, joining 300 total Cookie Plugs planned by the end of 2026. 105 S. Olive Ave., West Palm Beach; CookiePlug.com

Jackson's Chicken Shack, Lake Worth Beach

Fried-chicken purveyors are having a moment in South Florida, and the latest example is this shack registered to owner Stephen Difiore, which opened in early April in a Jog Road plaza shared with Walmart Neighborhood Market. Jackson's touts fried and grilled chicken handhelds, wraps, salads, fries — and tenders, naturally — slathered in toppings, dressings and cheeses. 6169 Jog Road, Lake Worth Beach; JacksonsChickenShack.net

Adrienne's Pizzabar, West Palm Beach

Known for square-shaped pizzas, Adrienne's Pizzabar opened April 15 at the 360 Rosemary building in West Palm Beach. The new eatery is part of the restaurant brand that includes Harry's, a classic cuisine mainstay in the financial district of Manhattan for a half-century and a favorite of the Wall Street crowd. Sometime in late May, when Harry's is expected to join Adrienne's Pizzabar as a sister restaurant here in SoFlo, both eateries will share a combined 11,000-square-foot indoor and outdoor space where patrons can intermingle and order from both. 378 S Rosemary Ave., West Palm Beach; adriennespizzabarnyc.com

Rara's Pizza and Wings, Boca Raton

Chef-owner Samir Changela's pandemic-born obsession with Detroit-style pizza — Rara's — permanently shut in late May in a west Boca strip mall. A social-media post on May 27 reveals little about the abrupt closing, with a note that reads, in part: "We extend our deepest thanks to each and every one of you for your unwavering support, loyalty, and hard work." Changela told the Sun Sentinel in 2021 that Rara's was sparked by a visit to Detroit's Buddy's Pizza with his uncle, a Chrysler executive. That yielded a menu built around 14 Detroit pies made from 36-hour fermented dough, layered with Wisconsin brick cheese and fired in a blue steel pan. "If it's not a blue steel pan it's not real Motor City pizza," Changela said at the time. The restaurant also offered New York-style pies and garlic rolls. 11419 W. Palmetto Park Road; 561-945-8984

925 Nuevos Cubanos, Fort Lauderdale

One of the rare, old-school ventanitas north of the Miami-Dade County border, the restaurant-cafe draped in many Cuban flags was a colorful stalwart of Havana classics, including medianoches, pastelitos de guayaba and even fritas Cubanas. The blue-and-red building off Sunrise Boulevard closed without fanfare in May, one of the last defiant holdouts of the rapid gentrification of Fort Lauderdale's Progresso Village around it. Founded by Luis Valdes Sr. in 1976, the restaurant-cafe was passed on to second-generation owners Luis and Marcia Valdes. With kitschy murals and rooster cutouts and hand-painted "Scarface" signs as its decor, 925 also served cafecito, burritos, tacos, steak platters with plantains, black beans and rice, vaca frita, ropa vieja and seasoned lobster. 925 N. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale

Copper Blues Rock Pub and Kitchen, West Palm Beach

After nine years in the city, this live-music haunt and cathedral of pub-grub classics closed May 15 at The Square, the plaza formerly called CityPlace. Owner Joel Bachkoff confirms the industrial-chic restaurant will move to Tuttle Royale in Wellington, which is being billed as the "CityPlace of the West," sometime in 2025. (Bachkoff is also migrating his sister Square venue Palm Beach Improv — which also closed in May — to Tuttle Royale.) The entertainment venue is closing as a flurry of high-end office towers, financial firms and New York restaurants such as Milos, Felice and Harry's are shuffling into The Square. Copper Blues offered brick-oven pizzas, hamburgers, beef sliders, quesadillas, salads, fish and chips, charcuterie boards and craft beer. 550 S. Rosemary Ave.; 561-404-4101; CopperBluesLive.com

Ta-boo, Palm Beach

Quick: How many South Florida restaurants can you name that were open during World War II and still exist? Now subtract one from that list: An 82-year-old institution in Palm Beach permanently closed on May 29 after an eviction from its perch on Worth Avenue. The restaurant had catered to high society since its outset, including Frank Sinatra and John F. Kennedy to current Palm Beachers Rod Stewart and James Patterson. Owner Franklyn de Marco, Ta-boo's steward since 1990, revived the restaurant when it floundered in the 1980s savings-and-loan crisis. Ta-boo served a combination of new- and old-school fare, like baby back riblets, deviled eggs and fennel garlic mussels, as well as cauliflower tabbouleh, spicy pork tacos and short-rib empanadas. A spokesperson for restaurateur Thomas Keller (The Surf Club Restaurant, The French Laundry, Bouchon) told the Sun Sentinel that the renowned chef plans to take over the lease and open a still-unnamed restaurant in its place. 221 Worth Ave., Palm Beach; 561-835-3500, TabooRestaurant.com

Fk Your Diet, Sunrise

The brief, wondrous life of this charity-minded diner, which shuttered May 13 in the Sunrise West Shopping Center, was marked by bold deeds and bad timing from the moment it opened in August. Arriving with a provocative name — the "FK" actually stood for "foster kids" — its kitchen pumped out platters of over-the-top food, from 5-pound breakfast burritos as wide as pro wrestler's arms to fried doughnut burgers to maple bacon-flavored milkshakes. (Proceeds went to local foster organizations.) Then, in late September, the lights went dark for four months when father-and-son owners Doug and Jake Miller and Doug's wife, Amy Eldridge, shifted Sunrise workers to FK Fort Myers to cook free meals for West Coast victims walloped by Hurricane Ian. Too preoccupied in Fort Myers, owners eventually sold a partnership stake to first-time restaurateur Chris Thompson, who reopened the Sunrise location in January. Still, the restaurant quietly closed without fanfare or explanation "because we bit off more than we could chew with the storm," Doug Miller told the South Florida Sun Sentinel. "Chris needed us to come over and help him run Sunrise, and we couldn't, so we paid off the lease." 9210 Commercial Blvd., Sunrise; FKYourDiet.com

Brighton Beach Bagel and Bakery, Delray Beach

This Brooklyn-inspired bagel pitstop and deli closed on May 20 with a "hug and a schmear" after seven years in business on the corner Military Trail and West Atlantic Avenue. The breakfast-lunch restaurant, which specialized in black-and-white cookies, plump lobster and scallop rolls, spinach-and-feta knishes, matzo-ball soup and thick-cut pastrami sandwiches, shut "due to circumstances out of [our] control," owners Louis and Meredith Rosenwein posted on social media earlier this month. In subsequent announcements, the owners teased that a version of the bagel shop's recent Brighton Seafood Nights, hosted Tuesday through Saturday evenings, could pop up in a nearby location soon. 14587 S. Military Trail, Delray Beach; BrightonBeachBagel.com

The Falcon, Delray Beach

A year after Annie Blake staged a funeral (literally) for her gothy drinking den Death or Glory and reopened it as The Falcon with business partner Sean Iglehart (Sweetwater Bar & Grill in Boynton Beach), this bird has also flown its perch. The craft-cocktail gastropub permanently closed in April after 11 months in business. The menu featured a menu of global street foods, from Mexican (elote loco salad) and Puerto Rican (pork belly mofongo) to Danish (frikadeller meatballs) and Korean (bulgogi bao). This time, the restaurant shut without fanfare, and its website has been deactivated. 116 NE Sixth Ave., Delray Beach

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