In honor of Carbone Beach’s fifth annual supper club on the sand, Mario Carbone dished on his favorite celebrity memories from the exclusive event celebrating the Miami Grand Prix.
“I think my favorite moments are really the ones where you can tell that [stars] are in a space where they’re sort of letting their hair down and just having a great time,” the celebrated chef exclusively told Page Six of the three-night dinner series presented by American Express.
The Major Food Group co-founder reflected on “so many instances” during the Miami Beach event, which takes place this year between May 1 and 3, “where it’s just shoulder-to-shoulder with whomever’s in the building.”
He continued “Whether it’s dancing to the music or feasting at the table, I think it is a safe space where anyone can kind of rub shoulders.
“Everyone’s just there for a great night out,” Mario noted.
He went on to recall his favorite star-studded moment yet — watching surprise performer Andrea Bocelli take the stage at the first-ever Carbone Beach in 2022 — and insisted he’ll “never forget” it.
Mario recalled serving dinner to all 400 guests after the Italian tenor’s performance because Bocelli, 67, needed a quiet room.
“He would be distracted by people eating and the sounds of people eating,” the culinary heavyweight explained. “To have a performer on that level in our space and to be singing songs that I know really well and my mom loves … that whole experience was very, very emotional.”
Mario has also treated some lucky A-listers to a tour inside the pop-up kitchen in years’ past.
“The ones that I know well, I’ll bring people back,” he revealed.
This year’s edition will have several high-caliber performances, including a show by Snoop Dogg one of the nights.
“We’re lucky that the Carbone brand can kind of jive with so many different genres [of music],” Mario said before highlighting the “wide range of styles and performances” over the years — “everything from Andrea Bocelli to Jelly Roll doing country music, to hip hop, to R&B, to rock and roll.”
He continued, “We have a really wide demographic and generational demographic of customers. I think, because of that, everything from music from the ’50s and ’60s all the way up to the most contemporary seems to work for us. So there’s almost nothing that’s off limits when we’re talking about who this year’s performers could be.”
The ritzy soirée will serve up Carbone’s signature dishes, like their revered spicy rigatoni vodka, Caesar alla ZZ and veal parmesan.
“The main crux of the evening is gonna be Carbone classics and what you would expect us to be serving,” Mario said, adding that any “new riffs” would be presented in the raw bar area during cocktail hour.
As for what gives Carbone Beach that secret sauce, he gushed that the event offers attendees a unique experience that improves and evolves each year.
“There’s really nothing quite like it between the Grand Prix,” Mario said. “But I think just in general, over the last few years, it has really come into its own. It’s a really very special event between the food production, the events production, the setting, the location and then certainly entertainment — the combination of all those things.”
Carbone Beach — also hosted by Mario’s MFG co-founders Jeff Zalaznick and Rich Torrisi — will kick off Friday and run through Sunday after the final race.
A-listers who have attended the private fête in the past include Ivanka Trump, Brooklyn Beckham, David Beckham, Travis Kelce, Tom Brady, LeBron James, James Codren, Serena Williams, Jamie Foxx and Jeff Bezos, among others.
Previous surprise performers included Lauryn Hill, Kygo, The Chainsmokers, T-Pain, Diana Ross, Nas, LL Cool J, Wyclef Jean, Busta Rhymes and many more.