A favorite since 2006 when it opened nearby in a strip mall just south of the Fort Lauderdale tunnel, Valinto Cucina Italiana has grown bigger and glitzier with an open kitchen, chef-side seating, unbeatable cocktails and soothing ambiance, but it hasn't sacrificed its innovative cuisine in the move. Zagat calls chef-owner Giovanni Rocchio "a genius." It runs in the family. His dad opened an Italian restaurant in nearby Plantation in 1974, naming it after the silent screen star.

valentinocucinaitaliana.com