Years after shuttering in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, the elegant dining room at the Adrienne Arsht Center’s Ziff Ballet Opera House will finally reopen its doors this weekend. Downtown Miami's signature performing arts theater is set to unveil its dramatic new Teatro Restaurant on October 20.
Previously Brava by acclaimed Miami chef Brad Kilgore, Teatro will serve a New American menu with creative European and Latin influences from executive chef Jose Danger. Constellation Culinary Group—the same team behind Verde at the Perez Art Museum and The Restaurant at the Norton Museum of Art, among others—have envisioned the restaurant as a one-stop destination for pre-show dinners, craft cocktails and an expansive selection of wines.
The 2,500-square-foot dining room features a bold palette of deep red and gold tones, a not-so-subtle homage to the iconic red curtains of theater stages. To keep things streamlined prior to showtimes, the restaurant will offer a two-course prix-fixe menu featuring a choice of one appetizer and entrée or one entrée and dessert, along with a lineup of sides and a traditional à la carte menu.
For apps, think veg-forward dishes like an heirloom tomato carpaccio with mint tahini, toasted grains, Beldi olives and microgreens; Thai coconut curry mussels; huevos rotos made with crispy kettle chips, thinly sliced prosciutto and fried egg; and a “Big Mac” steak tartare of chopped black Angus beef with house special sauce, gherkins, shallots, French herbs and sesame air bread.
The main courses range from a hearty Cioppino fisherman’s stew and a creamy risotto carbonara to butternut squash rigatoni, Piri Piri brick chicken and pan-seared salmon, among others. During dinner hours, sides include crowd-pleasers like parmesan herb fries, crispy loaded potato and scampi-style jumbo shrimp in a white wine garlic sauce.
Dessert options include a choice of the chai coconut panna cotta, Key lime meringue tart and assorted seasonal sorbet and ice cream flavors.
Teatro also features a 12-seat bartop serving a robust menu of beer, wine by Gerard Bertrand, Champagne, specialty coffee drinks and a selection of signature cocktails. A separate menu of bar snacks (ideal for a quick, pre-show nosh) includes items like chilled pickled mussels, shrimp cocktail and a few of the more shareable items from the dining room’s main menu.
Starting Friday, Teatro will be open before select performances in the Ziff Ballet Opera House or Knight Concert Hall. Walk-ins are accepted based on availability. For more information and to make reservations, visit arshtcenter.org/teatro.