Sweet 16 (and not to be missed)
1: Ulysses Prime Steakhouse
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2: Café Margaux
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3: The Fat Snook
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5: Café Coconut Cove
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11: Heidelberg
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12: Djon’s Chop House
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13: Scott's on Fifth
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16: Silvestro's
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234 Brevard Ave., Cocoa, (321) 639-3922 – Wagyu and Kobe A5 beef make for not merely the best steaks in Brevard, but possibly the best in Florida, and the sides and non-beef dishes are remarkable too. Try the Patates Psites: 
220 Brevard Ave., Cocoa, (321) 639-8343 – The stylish, modern touches are there, but the food never lets you forget this is elegant Continental cuisine at its best. It’s also a multiple award-winner among Florida restaurants with the best wines in the area, and tremendously knowledgeable staff. The desserts are superior too. 
2464 South Atlantic Ave., Cocoa Beach, (321) 784-1190 -- Small, stylish and creative, the Fat Snook incorporates touches of classic cooking (Seafood Newburg over puff pastry) with contemporary eye-catchers (lemongrass-skewered hangar steak marinated in Barbados molasses and fresh mint), all put together by really fussy owner-chefs. If it ain’t fresh, they won’t have it (and they know what an amuse bouche is too) 
905 U.S. Highway 1, Malabar, (321) 956-3334 – Everything about this restaurant screams “Brevard,” from its part-elegant-part-funky riverfront setting to the friendly, low-key manner of its proprietors, Stuart and Nancy Borton. They serve all sorts of food, beautifully, including Pecan Crusted Mahi accented with a vanilla bean infused praline sauce and some terrific salads. It won’t break the bank either. 
4210 S. Highway A1A, Melbourne Beach, (321) 727-3133 – Wunderbar! If you love real German food, this is your place, and frankly, it puts most Orlando restaurants of its kind to shame. The schnitzel is excellent; the pork shank, marvelous; and the steaks and chicken dishes are terrific too. It’s all done in a cozy, riverside setting that truly does justice to Melbourne Beach. 
2 N. Atlantic Ave., Cocoa Beach (321) 783-9512 – Stylish Asian fare served in a spacious dining room by well-informed, formally-dressed men and women, Yen Yen has been a Space Coast standby for years. It’s not quite classic Chinese – although its chefs are quite capable of delivering that – but it’s not over-the-top modish either. Dishes like Snow White Prawn and Murray’s Choice have become staples. 
2515 Roberts Road, Melbourne, (321) 259-7760 (near junction of Pineda causeway and U.S. Highway 1) – Years ago, the owners transformed a rather nasty biker bar into one of Brevard’s favorite, informal lunch-and-dinner spots, with an funky atmosphere, eclectic menu and lots of charm. Chef Rand Morgan loves to cook up great variations on themes, such as his recent char-grilled porterhouse pork chop with portabello mushroom demi-glace, savory gorgonzola bread pudding and wilted arugula with garlic. 
923 E. New Haven Ave., Melbourne, (321) 327-7919. Just what Melbourne needs: a top-rate, high-end, classic steakhouse, and this one has the ambience of an old firehouse. The 56-ounce porterhouse is the star of the show in a carnivore’s paradise. 
200 Barton Blvd., Rockledge, (321) 639-4048 – Think tapas with Italian flair: This chic restaurant has transformed a shopping center in Rockledge into a social center of sorts, thanks to its inventive cuisine and long list of martinis and other mixed drinks. The Duck Breast with Jezebel Sauce is a must-try. 
936 East New Haven Ave., Melbourne, (321) 768-2445 – Melbourne’s food-lovers have crowded this French-inspired restaurant, inside and on the sidewalk, for lunch and dinner for years. The salads are good, the crepes are classic and the entrees interesting, like chicken breast and shrimp in coconut curry sauce, served with couscous. 
7 North Orlando Ave. Cocoa Beach, (321) 783-6806 – Somewhere in the midst of all that jazz, Heidi’s proprietors Heidi and Eddie Deleuil do a great job with European food too. If you like Austrian Palatschinken (crepes du jour); jaegerschnitzel (cutlet of pork loin sautéed in hunter’s sauce) or your grandmother’s frikadelles (the continental version of the burger), this is your place. 
522 Ocean Ave., Melbourne Beach, (321) 722-2737. Djon’s is another of those Space Coast standbys having graced the south beaches for years. It still does some of the better steaks (and burgers) in the area, and the setting is magnificent: an old beach house. 
141 Fifth Ave., Indialantic, (321) 729-9779 – Restaurants along Indialantic’s lovely Fifth Avenue may come and go, but Scott’s has become a fixture: a tiny, tasteful (12-seat) bistro with a small (read: “manageable) menu that includes delights such as the 14-ounce Tuscan rib-eye. 
7640 N. Wickham Road, Melbourne, (321) 757-7220. Unassuming but popular, Tuscany Grill serves tapas as well as a lovely, Italian-inspired menu. Its osso bucco may be the best in the area, its salads are terrific and its penne alla vodka is vanilla-tinged unique. 
801 East New Haven Ave., Melbourne, (321) 574-1099 – Matt Nugnes is a world traveler and it shows in his restaurant, which is highly regarded among aficionados for sushi and beloved by the after-work crowd in booming downtown Melbourne. It’s possibly Brevard’s most hip venue. 
2039 N. Atlantic Ave., Cocoa Beach (321) 783-4853 – Fine Italian cuisine prepared by a fine Italian chef, Silvestro Antonioli, in a little, Publix-anchored shopping center in Cocoa Beach. Silvestro’s has some of the area’s better menus for holidays and special events, and easily the best saltimbocca in the region.
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