Viva la Pasta Fresh Pasta Shop, North Beach: $7.80 Ravioli

Viva la Pasta, at 7311 Collins Avenue in North Beach, is a true fresh pasta shop: a small factory and deli on Miami Beach that rolls, cuts and fills pasta, then sells it by the pound and by the tray to anyone who walks in. The same kitchen supplies more than 50 restaurants in South Florida, according to the shop's own site, so the ravioli in its freezer may be the ones you have already eaten at a restaurant table. Come here when you want to cook dinner at home and make it taste like someone else did the hard part.

The shop opened in 1991 and has been delivering fresh pasta to restaurants and hotels ever since. For most of that time it was called Mr. Pasta, and some map listings still show the old name. The about page explains that the business changed its name to Viva la Pasta USA in 2023. A new chapter began in 2021, when Sebastian Rodriguez, described on the site as a 40-year veteran pasta maker, joined the team. The food site Miabites, in a 2025 profile, named the partners as Sebastian and Joshua and credited them with keeping the shop's Italian spirit alive.

The menu also shows the Argentine side of Miami Beach's Italian food. Sorrentinos, the oversized round ravioli loved in Argentina, sit next to classic Italian shapes, and the shop keeps an old Argentine custom of eating gnocchi on the 29th of every month for luck. The site boasts 1,727 possible combinations of shape, filling and sauce, which is a fair warning that you should arrive with an idea of what you want.

The long pastas are the backbone of the shop. Fettuccine, spaghetti, linguini, angel hair and pappardelle start at $7.75 a pound, and the caserito, a thick homemade-style cut, is $8 a pound. The fettuccine comes in egg, spinach, red pepper, tricolor, whole wheat, garlic and herbs, and squid ink flavors. The shop's own rule of thumb is that one pound serves three people, so a family of four needs a pound and a half. Squid ink fettuccine with the house lobster sauce is the most Miami plate you can make from this counter.

Filled pasta is sold by the tray. Ricotta and Parmesan ravioli are $7.80 a tray, beef ravioli are $8.80, and prosciutto ravioli are $10.95. Sorrentinos with spinach and ricotta are $8.95 a tray, while the lobster and the pear and Gorgonzola versions are $11.95 each. The pear and Gorgonzola sorrentinos are the order that surprises first-time visitors: sweet, sharp and rich enough to need only melted butter. Potato gnocchi are $7.75 a pound, and the ricotta and pumpkin gnocchi are $8.70.

The fillings go well beyond the priced basics. The Miabites profile describes handmade ravioli and tortellini with combinations such as mushroom and truffle, lamb, prosciutto, goat cheese, brie and pear, and the freezer case changes with what the kitchen has made that week. Ask at the counter what was filled most recently, and buy one familiar tray and one unusual one so the table can compare.

On the 29th of each month, the shop runs its Gnocchi Day: pre-order online and pick up on the 29th only, with 29 percent off. It is the cheapest night of the month to try the gnocchi, and it ties a Miami Beach shopping trip to an Argentine tradition.

Every pasta needs a sauce, and Viva la Pasta sells its own in 16-ounce tubs. Bolognesa is $8.50, Alfredo is $8.95 and the lobster sauce is $9.45. The site pairs a pound of fettuccine with one 16-ounce sauce as a good measure for three servings. If you would rather not cook at all, there are ready dishes to heat at home: a small beef or ricotta lasagna is $9.95 and a medium one is $23.90, cannelloni are $16.50 and agnolotti are $15.75. Argentine-style empanadas are $10.95 for four, soups are $6.95, and the tiramisu is $13.50.

Viva la Pasta is open Monday through Saturday from 9 am to 7:30 pm and on Sunday from 10 am to 2 pm. Sunday is the short day, so if you are planning a Sunday lunch, arrive soon after the 10 am opening rather than near the 2 pm close. Online orders are for pickup, and the shop asks for at least four hours to prepare them, so place a lunchtime order for an evening pickup.

The pasta is sold frozen, and the shop's advice is simple: keep it frozen, and when you are ready to cook, take it straight from the freezer to the pot. Fresh pasta cooks faster than dried, so start tasting long cuts after two or three minutes, and lift ravioli and sorrentinos out with a slotted spoon once they float. Bring an insulated bag if you have a long drive, because Collins Avenue traffic is slow in season.

North Beach is the quieter, more residential end of Miami Beach, and the shop sits close to its best public spaces. The North Beach Bandshell, an open-air concert stage, is a short walk south on Collins Avenue. Head west on 71st Street to Normandy Isle to see the Normandy Fountain, the centerpiece of a small plaza on the island. To the north, North Shore Open Space Park lines the dunes with shaded paths and a beach walk. If you decide to eat pasta out instead of cooking it, Café Prima Pasta, an Argentine-Italian restaurant open since 1993, is a few blocks away on 71st Street.

Viva la Pasta is at 7311 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33141, in North Beach, and the phone number is (305) 866-8020. The shop is open Monday to Saturday from 9 am to 7:30 pm and Sunday from 10 am to 2 pm. Prices quoted here are from the official online shop at vivalapastausa.com. It is a takeaway shop rather than a sit-down restaurant, so plan to cook at home. A simple first order is a pound of squid ink fettuccine, a tub of lobster sauce and a tray of pear and Gorgonzola sorrentinos.

Ask Karpo in the Karpo APP to pair this stop with a wine shop or a bakery on the way home, and it will plan a route that keeps the pasta frozen until it reaches the pot.