By Jana Soeldner Danger and Simone Zamati Diament

There aren’t many restaurants like Aria. The oceanfront restaurant, at the lavishly appointed and recently opened Ritz Carlton Hotel on Key Biscayne, is posh, trendy, yet genteel and harmonious, with delicious food pouring out of a theater kitchen, where guests can watch a lively team of cooks at work.

A classical guitarist plays in the background, and from time to time a tenor belts out operatic happy birthday arias. The softly lit, old-world dining room has a clubby feeling with its woods and muted tropical pastel colors, but anyone who comes in feels as though he or she is a member.

The restaurant owes its creative energy to the talented chef Jordi Valles, a native of Barcelona, who worked with three-Michelin Stars in Europe, and interned for an entire season with the celebrated chef Ferran Adriá at El Bullí in Barcelona.

Vibrant appetizers
One could make a meal out of a tiered tray of antipasti bearing olives, caperberries,cheeses, mortadella, salami, and glazed shrimp, brought in to open your appetite. However, you would be doing yourself an injustice to stop there. Every dish in the short, yet creative menu is highly flavorful and rich with artfully combined very fresh ingredients.

The citrusy ceviche-like lobster salpicón martini ($12) is a refreshing serving of delicately flavored, moist and tender shredded lobster meat, green pepper and cabbage, colorfully set over a velvety avocado cream, fragrant with chives and cilantro. On the side, a spoonful of pico de gallo gazpacho, vibrant with peppers, cilantro and fennel, brings a robust edge to the dish.

Swordfish carpaccio ($10) is a revelation. Dehydrated black olive and pistachio crumbs are fireworks of flavor which bring out the taste of the paper-thin fish. A bed of baby lettuce gets a jolt from a touch of beet confit and a drizzle of basil-infused vinaigrette.

Mr. Valles is a master at contrasts of hot and cold, soft and crunchy, sweet and salty. As its name indicates, foie gras crème brûlée ($12) is an unctuous, deeply earthy, seared foie gras cream with hints of cinnamon and orange zest, shallots and garlic, under a thin crust of caramelized sugar. Served with toasted brioche, the luscious richness of both foie gras and crème brûlée is offset by a bitter arugula salad with Cabernet Sauvignon vinaigrette.

Escargots and roasted herbed potatoes ($11) in a classic parsley, shallot, garlic and white wine sauce were plump, soft, aromatic. The best we’d had in years.

Outstanding soups
A take on the rustic melon and prosciutto, the clean, intense-tasting chilled melon soup ($7.50) with Sauterne gelée and a slice of bresaola, was outstanding. The essence of summer was concentrated in the tropical flavor of an intensely orange pureed cantaloupe laced with melon liquor and lightly sweetened with syrup, invigorated by a slice of salty bresaola. Asparagus cappuccino ($9.75) was another creative juxtaposition of textures and flavors: green, fresh and crunchy asparagus and sweet, velvety king crab meat in a creamy base accented with nutmeg. Mushroom soup ($9.75) was deliciously earthy; the rich, creamy broth, laced with the zing of basil olive oil, was a backdrop for a hearty ragoût of chanterelles with onion, tarragon, dill, and fresh pepper.


Superb, succulent entrees
Even carnivores would love the vegetarian risotto ($15). The firm, flavorful Carnarolli rice absorbs asparagus broth, white wine, and plenty of fresh, crispy asparagus stalks and green peas, without losing its bite. You could inhale its fragrance before even tasting the blissful creaminess of the mascarpone, pecorino and butter slowly whisked in.

The succulent flavors of the Mediterranean arrived in an impressive square bowl brimming with a sea of homemade black squid ink fettucine ($24) in which swam pink crunchy shrimp, tender baby squid, and scallops, first sautéed in olive oil, garlic, parsley and shallots, and cooked in white wine and lobster bisque. Seared Provençal herbed scallops ($23), large and succulent, their delicate flavor enhanced by bits of bacon and mâche salad accented with goat cheese and lobster oil, paled next to the seafood fettucine.

Mr. Valles excels at cooking meat as well. A Mediterranean-style surf-and-turf became a dish of pure soothing comfort food with delightful flair. Braised veal cheeks ($26) seasoned with tarragon and slowly simmered to a tender heartiness, are topped with crunchy and seafaring langoustines, and set on an earthy bed of lentil stew, enhanced with shaved truffles. Sirloin ($27), a large, thick steak of well-flavored dry-aged meat, cooked to order, is a simple, robust dish served with smooth mashed potatoes and very fresh and tasty baby vegetables ­ zucchini, chayote, carrots and pearl tomatoes, crunchy to the bite yet buttery-tender, scented with rosemary and dressed with balsamic vinegar.

Sweet and light

Desserts, the frail end of an exceptional menu, are very light and slated to change often. A study of peaches ($8) is a variation on the theme of seasonal fruit prepared in four different ways: sorbet, compote, cake and rich cream. Manjari chocolate torte ($9.50), a small molten chocolate cake, runny inside, warm, moist and dark, is enlivened with mascarpone ice cream accented with cinnamon. Tarte tatin ($9.50) is just a tart of thinly sliced puckery apples, caramelized, and served with homemade praline-lavender ice cream. The original citrus and crêpe terrine ($9.50) with anise gelée and pastis and orange sorbets is structurally striking.

You may be catching yourself shouting “Encore!” as you leave Aria.

Jana Soeldner Danger is a freelance writer and a columnist for the Miami Herald. She lives in Hollywood, Florida. Simone Zamati Diament is the editor of the South Florida Gourmet.