José Andrés Opens Zaytinya in Miami Beach

Washington, D.C.-based Spanish-American chef and restaurateur José Andrés has opened his third Zaytinya location in Miami Beach. The move is part of a new venture with one of the area's most prestigious resorts.

In October, José Andrés Group (JAG) announced it would be taking the lead at the Ritz-Carlton South Beach with a plan to touch nearly every aspect of the resort's food and beverage operations, which includes the Lapidus lobby bar, DiLido Beach Club, in-room dining, banquet services, and the Ritz Club lounge.

The most exciting news, however, was the announcement that the James Beard award-winning chef would also be taking the reins at the hotel's signature restaurant — formerly Fuego y Mar — transforming it into his longtime mezze-focused Mediterranean establishment. Zaytinya officially opened to the public on November 29.

The news of the World Central Kitchen cofounder's new venture follows the September 2022 announcement that the chef would close his Miami establishment, the Bazaar by José Andrés at SLS South Beach, after a decade-long run.

When the restaurant opened in June 2012, it quickly became one of the city's most critically acclaimed. The space officially closed in March and is now home to the second Miami Elcielo location from Colombian chef Juan Manual Barrientos.
One of the longest-running restaurants in Andrés' culinary portfolio, Zaytinya marked the chef's first foray into Mediterranean fare following the success of Spanish tapas restaurant Jaleo. A play on the Turkish word for "olive oil," here Andrés offers his take on dishes representing the regional diversity of classical Turkish, Greek, and Lebanese cuisines.

The menu is best known for its regional dishes that marry traditional recipes with modern elements, from the various iterations of pide (a Turkish flatbread) served here with a runny egg topper and a staggering mezze lineup that includes the "Crispy Brussels Afelia" — a dish so popular that it has its own following.

"Zaytinya is a celebration of the honest, delicious flavors of the Eastern Mediterranean that have inspired the world for centuries," Andrés said in a press release.

The restaurant is a partnership between Andrés and Aglaia Kremezi, Zaytinya's chef partner. More than 15 years ago, the two came together to share their passion and created Zaytinya, a menu Andrés notes that owes much to Kremezi's wisdom and guidance in helping to shape the concept's authenticity.
The menu offers diners a taste of Turkey, Greece, and Lebanon, delivered by Andrés' guidance and the Zaytinya concept chef, Michael Costa. The restaurant presents a small plate-style menu highlighting mezze spreads as well as a wide range of vegetables, meat, and seafood.

The beverage menu at Zaytinya has been curated to match the culinary offerings, an eclectic selection of unique wines from the Mediterranean and beyond, while Mediterranean-inspired cocktails boast Greek gin and sweet and dry vermouths infused with lemon, lime, and thyme.

Located at 1 Lincoln Rd., the Ritz-Carlton South Beach is a 374-room property that completed a $90 million renovation in January 2020. Morris Lapidus — the hotel's original architect primarily known for his Neo-baroque "Miami Modern" hotels constructed in the 1950s and '60s, has since come to define the era's resort-hotel style now synonymous with Miami and Miami Beach.

The Zaytinya brand, an iconic culinary institution in Washington, D.C., recently expanded its footprint even further with the opening of its New York City location in 2022 at the Ritz-Carlton New York, NoMad.

Zaytinya. At the Ritz-Carlton South Beach, 1 Lincoln Rd., Miami Beach; 786-761-1700; zaytinya.com. Sunday through Thursday 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Friday and Saturday 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.