Where to Go in Miami Now
© Courtesy Etc.
After a couple of tough years, Miami is getting its groove back with hot new hotels, restaurants, and shops.
The real estate market collapse and the recession may have slowed the Miami party train, but lately the city has been showing signs of new life. Major projects started during the boom are being completed, from high-profile hotels to the New World Symphony’s fantastic Frank Gehry campus and the Miami Art Museum’s Herzog & de Meuron building downtown, which broke ground last fall. The mood in the city seems increasingly upbeat. “There’s a feeling of optimism and positive energy,” says Craig Robins, a Miami developer whose projects include the revitalization of the Design District. “We’re attracting phenomenal new tenants—there’s a sense of expansion.” All the development over the past decade has given the city an incredible supply of quality hotel rooms and residential units, presenting opportunities for visitors and buyers. And interest in Miami remains high. As Robins notes, “The city is now known as an amazing destination for art, design, fashion, great food, entertainment.” All of which continues to get more interesting.
Hotels
Since London-based Soho House opened its latest branch here in October, the part private club, part boutique hotel has been a huge hit. On the ocean just north of the South Beach strip, Soho Beach House (rooms, from $325; 4385 Collins Ave.; 786-507-7900; sohobeachhouse.com) brings understated intimacy to an area better known for glitz (the mammoth Fontainebleau is next door). The $100 million property, which was delayed by the recession, occupies the former Sovereign Hotel, a 1940s Art Deco building, and a new 16-story tower. All 50 guest rooms have their own look, with four-poster beds, colorful mosaic tiles and, unusual for Miami, an eclectic mix of antique furniture. The best rooms are in the tower and have expansive terraces and ocean views. Down below, the Venetian restaurant Cecconi’s (dinner, $65; 786-507-7902; cecconismiamibeach.com), the only part of the property open to the public, has quickly become one of the hottest dining spots in town. There’s also a casual outdoor Latin-inspired restaurant, a Cowshed spa, two pools and a private beach complete with watering can–wielding attendants who rinse guests’ feet as they come off the sand. It’s definitely not the typical Miami experience.
The same can certainly be said about The Villa By Barton G. (rooms, from $800; 1116 Ocean Dr.; 305-576-8003; villabybartong.com), the latest incarnation of the former Versace mansion in the heart of South Beach. Opened last spring, it’s ten suites of fabulousness as imagined by restaurateur and event planner Barton G. Weiss, who oversaw a complete restoration of the property after it had fallen into neglect as the failed Casa Casuarina private club. A mishmash of historical styles, the villa features stone and marble floors, stained-glass windows, frescoed ceilings, ornate ironwork and its signature Roman pool, with 14-karat-gold mosaic tiles and gently gurgling fountains. Weiss, who calls himself “a visual artist by every right,” says he “wasn’t going to fight” the Versace legacy but “pay homage to it.” Each of the themed rooms is different, but the decor is consistently opulent: gold fixtures, brocades and tassels, fur-trimmed cashmere throws and oversized beds big enough for five or six. British-certified butlers attend to their guests’ every need, including delivering evening treats such as a chocolate fountain. Afternoon tea on the poolside terrace and dinner in the restaurant are open to the public by reservation. Though not for everyone, Weiss’s vision is a refreshing (and expensive) alternative to the sleek, white, Deco-mod look that’s standard in Miami.
Just behind the villa, hotelier Vikram Chatwal’s much-delayed Dream South Beach (rooms, from $275; 1111 Collins Ave.; 305-673-4747; dreamsouthbeach.com) is taking over the former Palmer House and The Tudor, a pair of 1939 Art Deco hotels. Slated to launch in early March, the 108-room property has a youthful, nightclubby vibe that’s very Miami. The rooms, bathed in blue light, feature minimalist contemporary furnishings, crystal light fixtures, mod minibars and design elements that riff on Indo-Moroccan motifs. Most impressive are the duplex Sun Suites, which are decorated in their own gold-and-yellow color scheme and have private roof decks with views of South Beach and the ocean. After plans for a Geoffrey Zakarian restaurant fell through, Todd English stepped in and will oversee a “casual New American” menu at an as-yet-unnamed bistro.
