Erba in Coral Gables marries classic Italian fare with vibrant Miami flavors, offering standout dishes like conch mafaldine and a mesmerizing butter candle.
"Chef Niven Patel captured Miami diners’ hearts with Ghee Indian Kitchen and has gone on to open hits like Mamey and Orno. His latest, Erba, is his take on Italian fare boasts dishes like creamy mozzarella arancini and thinly-sliced Wagyu carpaccio alongside an Iberico porchetta chop served with braised lentils and ora king salmon. Patel infuses his distinctive touch into pasta selections, which include ravioli spiced with nutmeg and filled with white truffle ricotta, agnolotti packed with Wagyu beef cheeks, and mafaldine paired with Bahamian conch, showcasing his skill for blending traditional Italian techniques with unexpected flavors." - Eater Staff
"Chef Niven Patel captured Miami diners’ hearts with Ghee Indian Kitchen. His latest, Erba, is his take on Italian fare, which boasts dishes like creamy mozzarella arancini and thinly-sliced Wagyu carpaccio alongside an Iberico porchetta chop served with braised lentils and Ora king salmon. Patel infuses his distinctive touch into pasta selections, which include ravioli spiced with nutmeg and filled with white truffle ricotta, agnolotti packed with Wagyu beef cheeks, and mafaldine paired with Bahamian conch, showcasing his skill for blending traditional Italian techniques with unexpected flavors." - Laine Doss
"Erba is a romantic restaurant that starts every dinner with a melting candle made of butter, which is our kind of icebreaker. We love this place for a double date because it’s a great blend of food and atmosphere. They make incredible fresh pasta as well as a humongous bistecca alla fiorentina that would be a very fun thing for the table to split with a bottle of wine. And the restaurant itself is a sexy blend of various shades of red, velvet, and little jolly cherubs that make appearances all over the delicious menu." - mariana trabanino, ryan pfeffer
"Maybe it’s all the trumpeting cherubs, the giant crystal chandelier that feathers out into the red dining room, the plush velvet banquettes, or the fact that the cocktail list is signed XOXO Erba—but we get the feeling this restaurant is flirting with us. Erba was designed for date night. The Italian food isn’t too heavy, there’s an ideal amount of space between tables, and servers appear from thin air to refill your wine without being intrusive. Even bread service is romantic—you can stare lovingly at each other above the glow of a fluttering butter candle (which you get to eat once it’s melted). Portions are large enough to enjoy as entrees, but we like sharing the beef cheek agnolotti for some insight into how selfish (or collaborative) your date is. " - ryan pfeffer, virginia otazo
"This isn’t the only Italian restaurant on this guide. But it’s the only one with a giant glass chandelier, a VIP table next to the kitchen, and enough velvet to make you feel like a ring in a jewelry box. In Miami, this is normally a colossal red flag. But what distinguishes Erba from the opulent spots with no substance is its deliberate use of local ingredients and the care it puts into each dish. In other words: this is a flashy restaurant where the Italian food isn’t an afterthought—it’s the main event. You’ll meet uniquely tropical pastas with Key West pink shrimp or Bahamian conch, eat produce grown from the restaurant’s own farm, and always start the meal with a (free) butter candle. " - ryan pfeffer, virginia otazo, mariana trabanino
