Marcello’s La Sirena changes hands with its wine cellar intact
Marcello and Diane Fiorentino have sold the West Palm Beach restaurant to Alexandre and Amanda Gaudelet in a deal covering the business, property and wine cellar. The restaurant resumed service on Nov. 3, while Alexandre described plans to open with almost 1,500 wine references and probably add at least 500 more labels by Dec. 31.
A generational restaurant changes ownership
Marcello and Diane Fiorentino sold Marcello’s La Sirena to hospitality veterans Alexandre and Amanda Gaudelet, who have several silent partners in the transaction. The price was not disclosed. The sale included the operating business, its real estate and the wine cellar.1
Marcello’s father opened La Sirena in 1986, beginning a family history shared by generations of customers. After his father died in 1994, Marcello joined his mother and soon assumed control. He later married Diane; together they developed an Italian fine-dining menu and a corresponding wine program despite having no formal training.1
The restaurant won Wine Spectator’s Grand Award in 2015 and is 1 of 4 holders of that distinction in Florida. Its cellar was reported to contain 5,100 bottles across more than 1,220 selections. The Fiorentinos had tentatively expected to sell after their children left for college; with their daughter graduated and their son studying, they considered multiple offers before accepting this one.1
How the cellar developed
In a 2025 interview, Marcello credited a wine salesman with prompting him to apply the restaurant’s standards for food to its wine. The couple subsequently used the annual summer closure to visit European wine regions and establish relationships with leading vintners.1
The Fiorentinos said preserving their long-held vision was central to choosing a buyer. They considered the wine program an important part of the transaction and believed the Gaudelets understood both its value and the responsibility involved in continuing La Sirena’s legacy.1
The buyers’ restaurant experience
France-born Alexandre and Amanda Gaudelet moved to the area from Connecticut and met 25 years ago while working at The Breakers, another Grand Award winner nearby. Amanda has held several restaurant-management positions. Alexandre began at 17 as an apprentice at Paris’s La Tour d’Argent, spending 1 year in sommelier training around a cellar with about 9,000 references and 500,000 bottles.1
Over a 20-year period, Alexandre worked at several Grand Award-winning and Michelin-starred restaurants. He joined The Breakers in Florida in 2000 at the same time as wine director Virginia Philip and attended his 1st Wine Spectator Wine Experience with Philip and the team in 2002.1
As vice president of food and beverage at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Alexandre developed the Joël Robuchon Restaurant list into a Grand Award winner. He later served as COO of B.R. Guest and CEO of the restaurant firm Invest Hospitality. His partnership in Palm Beach’s Polo Room gave him experience in the local market and familiarity with La Sirena’s appeal.1
Reopening and the prospective wine expansion
Marcello’s La Sirena reopened for service on Nov. 3 after the new owners completed a light renovation and obtained a liquor license. The license allows the restaurant to offer cocktails for the 1st time.1
Alexandre presented the wine-list figures as plans rather than confirmed opening inventory. He said the team intended to open with almost 1,500 references after already adding 300 SKUs, and would probably add at least another 500 labels before Dec. 31. The proposed expansion placed particular emphasis on Bordeaux, Burgundy and California wines.1
Marcello said that after leaving La Sirena, he and Diane planned to relax, travel, spend time with their family and enjoy the results of their work.1
Sources
Written by the Dionysus editors from the sources above.
