7 Best Restaurants in The Florida Keys, Florida

Take the short boat ride to lovely Sunset Key for lunch or dinner on the beach, where the magical views are matched by a stellar menu. At dinner, start with the crispy lobster-crab cakes, then move on to one of the creative entrées, such as seared scallops with spiced butternut squash. Choose a table inside looking out over the Gulf or outside beneath the palm trees.

Twinkling lights draped along the lower- and upper-level porches of a 100-year-old Victorian home set an unstuffy and comfortable stage here. If you like to sample and sip, you'll appreciate the variety of small-plate selections and wines by the glass. Starters for lunch or dinner include a cheese platter, crispy duck confit, and a grilled octopus plate. Salads and pastas and a selection of gourmet tacos round out the lunch menu. For dinner, there are also larger plates like "Soul Mama" seafood soup or crispy Florida Keys whole snapper.

The restaurant at the exclusive Little Palm Island Resort—its dining room and adjacent outdoor terrace lit by candles and warmed by live music—is one of the most romantic spots in the Keys. It's open to nonguests on a reservations-only basis, but no one under 16 is allowed on the island. If you can get a reservation, go. The oceanfront setting is one that can't be matched, except for maybe in St. Barts or Fiji. Keep that in mind as you reach for the bill, which can also make you swoon. The menu melds Latin and Caribbean flavors, with exotic little touches—think foie gras crème brûlée with mango and toasted coconut, followed by grilled Spanish octopus and corn-jalapeño pudding. The Sunday brunch, the full-moon dinners with live entertainment, and the Chef's Table Dinner are very popular.

In a contemporary setting with indoor and outdoor seating, welcoming staff serve original, eclectic dishes that stand out from those at the hordes of Key West restaurants. Key lime–stuffed French toast and yellowtail snapper Benedict make breakfast a pleasant wake-up call; the crab cake BLT commands notice on the lunch menu. Two varieties of homemade gnocchi are a dinnertime specialty along with daily fish specials and steak. Brunch is served daily 9–3.

Feast your eyes on a steal-your-breath-away view and beautifully presented dishes prepared by executive chef Doug Shook. Once you get over sticker shock on the seasonally changing menu, settle in on the outside deck and enjoy dishes like cracked conch with mango chutney, lamb chops with sun-dried-tomato relish, and tamarind-glazed duck breast. A more affordable option is upstairs at The Cafe at Louie's, which serves tapas such as shrimp fritters with coconut curry.

This bayfront restaurant wins high marks for its surprisingly stellar cuisine, tables in the sand, and tiki torches that bathe the evening in romance. Seafood takes center stage, but you can always get roasted organic chicken or prime rib. The tapas menu caters to smaller appetites with offerings like fried calamari and conch salad. Sit in a dining room outfitted with surfboards, or outdoors on a beach, where the sunset puts on a mighty show and kids (and your feet) play in the sand.

At this handsome restaurant, lovely aromas waft from the wood-fired oven in the open kitchen. Among the popular choices on the dinner menu, which has both small plates and full entrées, are lemon-crusted sea scallops, rack of Colorado lamb, and small pizzas (including a white seafood version). Bragging rights continue as it has won the Master Chef's Classic at the Key West Food and Wine Festival for three years running.