Best Restaurants in Naples

With new owners Sandie and Anthony Ethuin reopening this French bistro in southwest Naples on December 15, 2020, this neighborhood gem has served its French cuisine minus the expensive price tag. The atmosphere is elegant but casual with high-backed seats and white linen tablecloths. Enjoy a lunch of French baguette sandwiches or a lunch special that offers either two dishes or one dish and a glass of wine at a special price. For dinner, enjoy classic French dishes like rack of lamb, frog legs in butter, or veal sweetbreads in a mushroom sauce.

Located in Third Street South Shopping Mall, the brightly colored restaurant is hard to miss; with vibrant flowers and white decor, it takes passersby and diners from Florida to the Mediterranean immediately. The outdoor seating has been awarded for two years as one of the 100 best al fresco dining restaurants in America by OpenTable. The menu celebrates Mediterranean countries like Greece, Italy, Morocco, and Spain with offerings like lamb keftedes, Moroccan salmon, beef tagine, and a selection of paellas. Don’t forget to stop by for happy hour during the week for select discounts on wines and sangrias.

The vibrant and stylish Peruvian restaurant located in the Village Falls shopping center was the dream of owners Dario and Amanda Gonzalez Zuniga who opened in 2016. Their mission was to create a little piece of Peru in Naples, and with Peruvian classics on the menu like Macho fish, quinoa salad, and the iconic Aji de Gallina, they did just that. Another highlight to this restaurant is the pisco cocktail bar that offers over 20 different infused pisco sours. The restaurant has a small but welcoming atmosphere with Peruvian decor and white tablecloths with a brightly colored bar, mixing the bright colors of Peru with dark woods, white walls, and romantic dark ceilings.

This elegant fine dining seafood restaurant opened in Naples in late February 2018, and continues to provide an array of flown-in seafood from around the world. The bar is shaped in a sail of marble and is a perfect spot for raw delights like oysters and tuna tartare. The kitchen, run by chef Darren Veilleux, also uses a cherry-wood burning grill to perfect the octopus dish. Not only does Sails offer a dinner menu and raw bar menu, but also a champagne brunch on the weekends and a sunset menu consisting of three courses nightly.

Opened by chef and owner Michael Mir on the famous Royal Road in Naples in 1997. The elegant dining room with touches of silk fabric with deep purples, golds, and oranges sets the scene for a dining experience. Bha! Bah! In Persian, it means “yum, yum”, and with dishes like lamb eggplant napoleon, pistachio lamb meatballs, and the signature dolmeh, the name was chosen for a reason. There is both indoor and outdoor dining and the restaurant is only open for dinner service.

Open since 2014, in an unassuming location in Park Shore Plaza shopping center, surprises with a large comfortable and cozy outdoor seating area that leads to the indoor dining and smells of classic French cuisine. As its namesake suggests, there are plenty of variations of escargot on the menu, as well as foie gras, homemade country pate, and French classic dishes of seafood and meats. To pair with the French cuisine, Escargot offers an extensive wine list; ask the talented staff to help suggest a wine to go with each dish.

Five-star fine dining on Vanderbilt beach in the luxurious Ritz-Carlton Hotel. Elegance falls from the crystal chandeliers to the large fireplace, felt in the soft fabric of the tall-backed chairs at each meticulously set table. There are traditional high-quality steakhouse menu items such as dry-aged New York Strip and Ribeye coupled with flown-in seafood like Nantucket scallops and grilled swordfish. The wine program at The Grill has been awarded in Wine Spectator’s Restaurant awards as well as a Forbes Four Star.

Chef Patrick Figini opened L'Auberge in 2014 in North Naples. The romantic and relaxed setting offers both an a la carte menu full of French cuisine favorites like roasted duck, lamb shank, and a variety of escargot and mussels to choose from as well as a set nightly menu of the courses for a fixed price. L'Auberge is the spot for wine enthusiasts as they offer over 60 French wines by the glass by using the Coravin wine preservation system which allows the wine to stay preserved for a long period of time after the bottle is opened.

Opened in 2018 and located inside Bellasera Resort in downtown Naples, this stylish and dramatic but relaxed restaurant offers different spaces to enjoy their Southern-inspired seafood-focused menu. The Claw Bar dining room focuses on the bar that allows people front row seats into the open kitchen where chef Jack Raben and sous chef Carlos Rios captain the kitchen crew. The patio area has a romantic feel with chandeliers and candlelight. For live music to go with dinner, the London Club space offers jazz music nightly. The menu always focuses on seafood like lump crab and spiny lobster pot holes or fried oysters and there is always something fresh to order from the Claw Bar.

Located in the heart of a luxury residential community, The Club opened to residents and their friends in 2019, with different dining spaces including the indoor Royal Palm Room restaurant, or the outdoor more casual Terrace Restaurant. It also features the SandBar indoor/outdoor bar as well as a newer Tiki bar near the pool. A common thread is its focus on fresh ingredients and a healthy lifestyle. There are also happy hour specials at the Sandbar or Tiki bar serving craft cocktails and boasting an impressive wine list.

Hitting the Naples culinary scene in 2014, Fuse Global Cuisine brought smokey meats and fusion to the Plaza Walk Building. Owner and executive chef Gregory Scarlatos delights in combining cultural dishes with local and seasonal ingredients to boast unique dishes like Southern fried duck confit, Carolina pig smokehouse sandwich, and scallops and smoked pork belly. With an extensive whiskey list with flights, not only does the food stand out, but the varying tastes of peat and smoke from the whiskeys will delight the senses. The restaurant itself is simple and modern with white walls and tablecloths, allowing the vibrancy of the dishes to stand out on each table.

Sometimes a simple but comfortable small dining room lends itself to let the star of the show shine, like the homemade pasta and sauces of this trattoria. The family’s recipes are on show here in the white and light small restaurant with patio seating that opened back in 2014. For lunch and dinner, the kitchen serves up Neapolitan-style pizzas baked in a wood-fired oven or handmade ravioli dish that changes daily. Come for the food, but enjoy the wine list and craft cocktails like The Bella Dona or Italian Mule.

The newest restaurant to the family that owns Molto Trattoria, “the fish market” opened in downtown Naples in 2018 with the mission to highlight seafood sustainability in the menu. No heavy sauces here, the aim of each dish is to let the seafood shine like the imported and signature fish of the restaurant, Branzino. The pasta and sauces are made from scratch every day and the atmosphere is light and bright and the indoor dining spills out to the patio dining with yellow accents. Choose from the al la carte menu or opt for a fixed three-course dinner.

From Paris to downtown Naples, Lisa and Philippe Boët opened this vibrant bistro back in 2003. The bright red walls and accents complement the comfortable seating with open windows onto the street. French home cooking is the style, but a nod to Moroccan culture can be found on the menu with a variety of tagine options. Imported French cheeses and an extensive wine list that has a bottle for every budget is another great way to experience Chez Boet. Make a reservation online or simply walk in—this bistro is open for dinner seven days a week.

With recent awards like OpenTable’s Restaurants with the Best Service 2021 and new owners committed to standards and quality since they took over in 2017, Cote D'Azur is a Naples staple and local favorite French restaurant serving Provençal cuisine. Sit al fresco style or in a booth that feels like a private piece of Paris and enjoy fare like grilled octopus, milk-fed veal tenderloin, or Maine lobster with champagne and caviar sauce. Open for dinner only and closed on Mondays.

Traditional Greek food is only a short drive to North Naples to this restaurant owned by a husband and wife team that opened in 2016. Serving traditional Souvlakia, Greek spiced meats on a skewer, Moussaka, and Pastitso. Enjoy the painted walls and relaxed atmosphere hinting at being on the Greek coast, or sit outside in the large patio dining area. Try a Greek wine from their small but well-rounded wine list. This family-friendly spot does have live music some evenings.