Chef Giorgio Rapicavoli is taking his celebrated Luca Osteria concept across the causeway, opening a new Italian restaurant called Luca Trattoria at 933 Normandy Drive in Miami Beach's Normandy Isles neighborhood this fall. The spot will follow the same playbook as his Coral Gables flagship, with a menu built around Italian cooking tweaked for its new neighborhood.
The news was first reported by Miami Herald writer Connie Ogle, who confirmed that Rapicavoli, the restaurateur behind Luca Osteria and Eating House, is opening the new venture with a beverage program directed by mixologist Eddie Fuentes. Fuentes is a co-founder of the beverage consulting firm Cocktail Cartel and co-owner of Wynwood's Spanglish Craft Cocktail Bar & Kitchen, according to Miami New Times, and he has previously built beverage programs for venues including Finka Table & Tap and Fontainebleau's Bleau Bar.
Luca Trattoria's wine list will lean into a focused roster of European and Argentine producers alongside traditional Italian vintages, per Spike on Golf & Travel. That Argentine thread fits Rapicavoli's own mixed Italian and Argentine family heritage, which has shaped his cooking style across his restaurants.
A Return to Where His Career Took Off
The Normandy Isles location carries some personal history for Rapicavoli. Before launching Eating House, he spent three years as executive chef at 660 at The Angler's on Miami Beach, making Luca Trattoria something of a homecoming to the coastal neighborhood where his head-chef career first gained traction, according to The Adventurist Magazine. He became an executive chef at age 21 at Chispa Doral before moving to The Angler's.
The commercial space at 933 Normandy Drive has its own culinary history. It previously housed the Argentine live-fire restaurant Muchaaachos and, before that, the long-running Argentine steakhouse Las Vacas Gordas, according to Shanea Savours. The Normandy Drive corridor has long been home to a diverse mix of neighborhood dining spots in North Beach.
From Chopped Winner to Multi-Concept Restaurateur
Rapicavoli built his reputation in 2011 as the first Miami contestant to win Food Network's Chopped, and he used part of his prize money to open Eating House first as a pop-up, later converting it into a permanent fixture in Coral Gables, per SOBEWFF. That early success led to a string of national honors: he was named to Forbes' 30 Under 30 list in 2012 and earned James Beard Award semifinalist honors for Rising Star Chef in 2013 and for Best Chef: South in both 2015 and 2016, according to Pebble Beach Food & Wine.
Luca Osteria itself opened on Giralda Avenue in 2021, named after Rapicavoli's son, and it earned a Michelin Recommendation from the inaugural Florida Michelin Guide when that guide launched in 2022, according to the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association. The guide covered restaurants in Miami, Orlando, and Tampa in its first year. Luca Osteria's signature dish, patate fritte, layers crispy potatoes with Parmigiano fonduta, egg yolk, and black truffle, a dish The Adventurist Magazine describes as blending Piedmontese culinary tradition with a nod to Eating House's signature carbonara.
Part of a Bigger Miami Expansion
Luca Trattoria is only the latest piece of Rapicavoli's growing footprint across Greater Miami. In 2024, he took over the culinary direction at Mayfair Grill inside Coconut Grove's Mayfair House Hotel & Garden, building an open-flame menu inspired by his Argentine roots, according to Forbes. He is also planning Luca Steak, a 4,500-square-foot Italian-style steakhouse set for the Wynwood Plaza mixed-use complex, according to WhatNow.
Rapicavoli's name has also popped up locally in other ways: Hoodline previously reported on his Modena-inspired ice cream flavors at Cry Baby Creamery in Kendall, and he has a history of appearances at Miami food events dating back years. For now, though, the focus is on getting Luca Trattoria open in Normandy Isles this fall, bringing his Italian cooking to a Miami Beach storefront with deep Argentine steakhouse roots.
