Striking while the iron is hot, Michelin-recommended restaurant Asado Life is looking to bring its authentic Argentinian-style live-fire cuisine to Nocatee next, after its recent opening in downtown Jacksonville.
Husband-and-wife founders and owners Nick and Christie Carrera are planning a third Asado Life restaurant at 100 Marketside Ave., No. 301 at Nocatee Town Center, Carrera confirmed to the Times-Union.
"We are about a year out," Nick Carrera said in a text message Aug. 28, noting plans are in the preliminary stage.
It was just a week ago that the Carreras and business partner Paul Thompson debuted their second Asado Life upscale-casual, experience-focused restaurant at 5 Tower Court in the Shipyards redevelopment, where Jacksonville Jaguars
owner Shad Khan is building the Four Seasons Hotel and Residences.
Initially, the 140-seat riverfront restaurant is only open for lunch, but dinner service is expected to launch Sept. 8.
In Ponte Vedra Beach, Asado Life will take over and renovate a 3,415-square-foot space vacated by Dick's Wings & Grill, which closed in February after 13 years in the Publix-anchored restaurant and retail center.
Regency Centers, headquartered in Jacksonville, owns and manages Nocatee Town Center, which is in Ponte Vedra Beach. The PARC Group, also based in Jacksonville, is the developer of the overall master-planned Nocatee community.
The PARC Group online blog cited Eric Apple, senior leasing agent at Regency Centers, in announcing that Asado Life would be the next new restaurant at Nocatee Town Center.
"Nocatee Town Center was built to serve a community that values great local businesses, and Asado Life fits that vision perfectly. We're excited to give Nocatee and Ponte Vedra residents another reason to shop and dine close to home," Apple is quoted in the PARC Group blog.
Michelin Guide national recognition
![The Asado Bowl can be enjoyed at Asado Life, an Argentinian inspired live fire grilling restaurant at 5 Tower Court in the Jacksonville Shipyards across from EverBank Stadium. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union]](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/authoring-images/2026/08/27/NFTU/91498056007-asado-life-019.JPG)
The restaurant celebrates the Argentinian-inspired traditional social art of open-flame cooking, wood grilling and ember roasting.
The Carreras opened the original Asado Life in 2022 at 173 Asado Way at the St. Augustine Shipyard on the San Sebastian River. Since then, the restaurant — which evolved from a very successful pop-up — has garnered nationwide recognition.
On May 28, Asado Life in St. Augustine was recommended in the 2026 Michelin Guide Florida. It was amongeight Northeast Florida restaurants, including three in Jacksonville, recognized in the prominent dining guide.
"While this recognition means a lot, what matters most is what it represents: A place centered on time, passion, and appreciation, where people gather, connect, and share in the experience of live-fire cooking," the Carreras said.
In July 2025, Asado Life was among three Florida restaurants highlighted by Food & Wine magazine in an article, "These Sunshine State Chefs Are Igniting Asado, From St. Augustine to Miami."
Teresa Stepzinski is the dining reporter for the Times-Union. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @TeresaStepz or reach her via email at tstepzinski@jacksonville.com.
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Michelin-recommended Asado Life plans third restaurant in Nocatee
