MIAMI BEACH - Known for its all-night dance clubs and anything-goes atmosphere, freewheeling South Beach is more famous for hedonism than haute cuisine.

But with a host of recent openings, club owners and restaurateurs are proving that good food needn't be sacrificed on South Beach's party-hearty altar. There's a new emphasis on dining, as distinct from fueling for the next round of clubs.

The art deco isle once notorious for overpriced fare and indifferent service finally seems to have turned a culinary corner.

"In so much of South Beach, people just like to sit outside and have a drink. They don't always care about the food. Since we opened, more and more are coming for the food. I think things are getting better," says chef Christophe Gerard, whose French fare is drawing droves to Twelve Twenty, the restaurant in the newly renovated Tides hotel.

Seeking out the best eateries and hottest new clubs on Miami Beach's southern tip can be tough on the wallet.But neither diners nor drinkers seem deterred: They dropped $246 million on Miami Beach last year - a staggering 76% rise over the food and drink tab just five years ago.

Some new spots where the food draws as many raves as the fun:

On famed Ocean Drive, overrun by tourists and inedible hotel fare, the 8-month-old Twelve Twenty is an oasis of civility. Gerard's creations are lighter and more fruit-infused than classic-style French. He says spices should be like perfume: Just a hint, not a hammer to the head. Those used to the nasal-clearing aspects of hotter cuisines may miss that fire in the more delicate dishes - steamed sea bass in sweet red pepper sauce, or an appetizer of mellow parsley risotto. But the flavors meld superbly, and there's plenty of spice in heartier fare: Gerard recently substituted fresh huckleberries for orange sauce on roast duck and gave the bird a Szechuan pepper crust.

Owned by actor Michael Caine, South Beach Brasserie is one of the hottest spots along Lincoln Road, a pedestrian lane whose $17 million face lift has made it the beach's hippest street. Just named a best new restaurant by Bon Appetit, the Brasserie's menu is highly eclectic, from escargot to bangers and mash (England's classic sausage and mashed-potato dish). Cockney mates from Caine's Alfie days would surely chuckle at the highfalutin price of $14.50 for a fish and chips dinner.

Patio seating is popular. But an interior bar and dramatic decor also are a draw for the 1929 Mediterranean Revival building that once served as a Jehovah's Witness meeting hall. Mosaic tile, towering white columns and potted palms and orchids fill the large space.

The 2-year-old Delano Hotel's surreal setting has earned raves, but Madonna's Blue Door restaurant there was another story: Food was spotty, and the service nearly surly until a makeover in June by the management team behind the well-known China Grill. With a menu overhaul by French whiz Claude Troisgros, Blue Door now features dishes such as ravioli stuffed with taro root and drizzled with white truffle oil, and crisp snapper with eggplant in honey and sherry vinegar.

If high prices and rich food prove daunting, do what South Beach locals do: Repair to Big Pink, a year-old diner that packs them in with open-till-dawn hours and the motto "Real Food for Real People." From down-home chili and chicken wings to upscale salads and pastas, the cafe also stocks a full bar and killer desserts. Portions are huge. French fries come by the pound, and one slice of red velvet cake, rich with cream cheese and walnuts, could feed an entire fashion-shoot entourage.

Anticipation is high for Jonathan Eismann's new Pacific Time Cafe, set to open by month's end in a space next door to his acclaimed 4-year-old eatery Pacific Time. The cafe will feature satays, steamed dumplings and a broad sampling of the Pacific Rim cuisine that has made Eismann famous, at prices about 40% lower than its upscale counterpart.

By Deborah Sharp, USA TODAY