Noche Kitchen & Bar, Miami

The words "Italian restaurant" often conjure images of checkerboard tablecloths, straw-covered bottles of chianti, and big helpings of old-fashioned pastas. From their bustling kitchen, the chefs at Noche Kitchen & Bar turn that traditional wisdom on its head with upscale, vibrant recipes from Italy's contemporary scene. Dinners of short rib ragu, ahi watermelon poke, and fiocchi di pera (pear-stuffed pasta with gorgonzola and candied walnuts) pair well with the restaurant's other obsession: hand-mixed cocktails crafted by the bar's expert mixologists.