If you haven’t heard of these famed chefs by now, then you have some dining to do. Lucky for you, the five celebrity chefs listed below all have restaurants here in Miami. So, ready, set… (go out to) eat!

Nobuyuki Matsuhisa
Nobu
Known to most of the world as “Nobu,” Nobuyuki Matsuhisa is a household name in every major metropolis around the world—especially the celebrity world. In fact, with his namesake Nobu and Matsuhisa restaurants sprinkled across five continents, you’d be hard-pressed to find an A-list foodie who hasn’t dined at one of them. Born and raised in Saitama, Japan, the acclaimed sushi chef first began his training in Tokyo, at one of the city’s top sushi bars. Gaining a passion for his craft, he opened his first sushi bar in Peru, fusing his classic training with local cooking techniques to develop what has now been coined as his signature “Nobu style.” Working all over the world, he opened his first namesake restaurant, Matsuhisa, in Beverly Hills, California, in early 1987. His success there drew one very notable fan, Robert De Niro, and the two partnered to launch the Nobu empire in NYC in 1994. Fast-forward to today, and there are 38 Nobu restaurants, many of which have earned nods from the James Beard Foundation and Michelin Guide. Lucky for us down here in Miami, Nobu {4525 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 305.695.3232} opened in late 2016 as part of its surrounding Nobu Hotel at the Eden Roc Miami Beach.

Paul Qui
PAO by Paul Qui
If you’ve been to PAO by Paul Qui {3201 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 786.655.5630} at the equally-jaw-dropping Faena Miami Beach, then you know there is nothing Paul Qui can’t do. Born in Texas, he began his career in a series of Asian restaurants in Austin. He worked his way up to chef de cuisine and executive chef, and shortly after, was discovered by the rest of America when he won Season 9 of Top Chef in 2011. After the show, Qui returned to Austin to open his flagship restaurant, Qui, as well as a food truck venture called East Side King. In 2015, he opened Otoko, a 12-seat omakase sushi restaurant in Austin’s South Congress Hotel, followed by Miami’s PAO by Paul Qui.

Francis Mallmann
Los Fuegos by Francis Mallmann
Born in Buenos Aires, modern Argentine “gaucho” Francis Mallmann is one of the youngest chefs and restaurateurs to get his name in the spotlight. After opening his first restaurant in Bariloche at just nineteen, followed by another in Uruguay, Mallmann became the first non-European Chef to win the Grand Prix de l’ Art de la Science de la Cuisine, starred in a gourmet television series called “Fires of the South,” appeared in an episode of the documentary Netflix series “Chef’s Table,” and co-wrote Seven Fires with famed cookbook author Peter Kaminsky. He currently has five standout restaurants, all of which feature his signature live-fire style of cooking: 1884 Francis Mallmann in Mendoza, Patagonia Sur in Buenos Aires, Siete Fuegos in Mendoza, Hotel & Restaurant Garzon in Uruguay, and here in Miami, his first and only restaurant outside South America—Los Fuegos by Francis Mallmann {3201 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 786.655.5610}.

Michael Mina
StripSteak by Michael Mina + Pizza & Burger by Michael Mina
With more than 30 restaurants under his namesake restaurant group, Mina Group (which he opened with Andre Agassi in 2002), celebrity chef and restaurateur Michael Mina is one of the most well-known chefs in the nation. Here in South Florida, he has two steakhouses, Bourbon Steak at Turnberry Isle and StripSteak by Michael Mina {4441 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 877.326.7412} at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach. Most recently, he opened a more casual concept at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach called Pizza & Burger by Michael Mina {4441 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 305.674.4636}, which serves up gourmet burgers, salads you can design yourself, handcrafted cocktails and punches, craveworthy snacks, and wonderfully-weird, made-from-scratch pizzas in a fun, lively atmosphere.

Scott Conant
Scarpetta by Scott Conant
When it comes to Italian food, celebrity chef, restaurateur, cookbook author, and TV personality Scott Conant is the master. He first put himself on the map when he opened L’Impero in NYC in 2002, and since went on to open a slew of Italian restaurants in major cities throughout the U.S., including: Fusco in New York’s Flatiron District, Mora Italian in Phoenix, The Ponte in Los Angeles, D.O.C.G. Enoteca in The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas, and here in Miami, Scarpetta by Scott Conant {4441 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 877.326.7412}. Scott has appeared on the Today Show, The Chew, CBS’ The Talk, Live with Kelly & Michael, and Good Morning America, and he is a regular judge on Food Network’s Chopped. He has also published three cookbooks: New Italian Cooking, Bold Italian and The Scarpetta Cookbook.
Happy dining!
By Jennifer Agress | Miami Editor