Orilla Bar & Grill

There is a version of South Beach that lives in most people’s heads. It’s wearing a silky shirt and casually balancing a martini between its fingers. It arrived in a very expensive car and will leave in a different but equally expensive car to go to some party on a yacht. It is, for lack of a better word, sexy.

Unfortunately, the real South Beach is a minefield of tourist traps, sceney clubstaurants, and overpriced spots that survive off the momentum of a Drake visit that happened four years ago. The South Beach most people know has a shiny shirt. It’s just also stained with Corona and smells like bad mall kiosk cologne.

photo credit: Cleveland Jennings

But Orilla is that rare version of sexy South Beach. The Argentinian restaurant is a place where you can dress up a little, sip martinis, and cut into a perfectly medium rare steak. It’s where to go out in South Beach when you’re sick of South Beach.

The restaurant is located on the always-busy 5th St., but thanks to some clever landscape architecture, you hardly realize it. Orilla feels like a private little steak jungle. When it’s nice out, the northern wall opens like a garage door, which makes every table feel like an outdoor table. Palm fronds extend into the edges of the restaurant and a big mural of a tropical bird covers the wall. The space is dark, but not in a way that’ll make you use your phone flashlight to read the menu. It’s the sort of perfectly dim lighting that makes you feel like the coolest version of yourself.

photo credit: Cleveland Jennings

When it comes time to order, focus on red meat and cocktails, because that’s what Orilla does best. Steak options include a New York strip, rib eye, bone-in prime rib, and the occasional special, like a huge tomahawk. They won’t cover them in edible gold like some other South Beach restaurants. The meat hits the table presented simply, with an edge-to-edge pink interior and a great chimichurri for dipping. Toss on a few sides like french fries provençal, mashed potatoes, or tender roasted Brussels sprouts. Or, if you come on a Sunday, get the parrillada special. It’s a shareable platter and shrine to protein that comes with flank steak, New York strip, lamb chops, chorizo, and chicken.

But you’re not just coming here for the food and drinks. That’s certainly part of the experience—and it’s good—but you’re coming because you deserve to meet that grown up version of South Beach that lives in your head. And Orilla is one of the best places to do that.

Food Rundown

photo credit: Cleveland Jennings

Empanadas

The empanadas are a great way to start the meal. There are only two versions (hand cut beef and spinach) and they come two per order, so get one of each. Both have a bubbly crust with leoparding that’d make a Neapolitan pizza proud.

Prime Rib Eye

If you want to go all out with the $132 bone-in prime rib, we won’t stop you. But the prime rib eye is a great choice too, and big enough to split if you throw in a couple sides.

photo credit: Cleveland Jennings

Wagyu Cheeseburger

We've had mixed experiences with this burger. On one occasion, it was a rich, fatty delight. On the other, it was a little too wagyu-y and the bottom half of the bun got soggy on us. Steak is a safer move.