If you’re having trouble deciding on plans this weekend, we’ve made it easy for you! Here are the tops things to do this Labor Day 2021 weekend.
STAYCATION
Enjoy a nice long staycation this weekend at these unique Miami Hotels.
Goodtime Hotel-This 7-story hotel is located at 601 Washington Avenue in Miami Beach and features 266 rooms spanning a full block with 100,000 square feet of indoor space. Enjoy the art deco pool deck all day before your reservations at their signature restaurant Strawberry Moon.
Fontainebleau-This luxury hotel is located in Miami Beach and it is considered the #1 Hotel in Miami Beach according to Travel + Leisure magazine. With current specials, Fontainebleau has package options available for all. It also has a number of lounges, bars, nightlife, and restaurants.
Photo Credit: www.fontainebleau.com
RESTAURANTS
Make your Labor Day weekend reservations now at these new Miami restaurants.
Winker’s Diner-This day to night Miami Beach restaurant features an Art Deco-inspired style with classic leather booths, a 3D layered wall dedicated to the perfect Instagram photo, and a peninsula liquor bar. Enjoy breakfast all-day to deli sandwiches as well as traditional dishes including crispy chicken sandwich, lobster salads, Prime Rib, and their famous Cinnamon Roll French toast.
SFC Sushi Fly Chicken– This Toyko inspired restaurant, bar, and lounge brings the underground nightlife and diverse Asian cuisines. Specialty sushi rolls and fried chicken plates but let’s not forget the bespoke beverages including yuzu margaritas, lychee martinis, and Japanese whiskey cocktails.
Toothfairy bakery– Not quite a restaurant but if you have a sweet tooth, this retro-modern bakery is the place to be. Enjoy Cake Pop Candy Bars, Snickerdoodle cookies, or cotton-candy cones! This bakery is located in Miami Beach and it does offer reservations.
Photo Credit: Groot Hospitality
CRUISE, DANCE, & MORE
Booze Cruise– Join the party for a Hip Hop Club Booze Cruise on September 4, 2021. The 3 hour Miami Party cruise will kick off on Biscayne Bay with drink and food specials. Unlimited drink specials and a DJ will get you ready for the ultimate dance competition. There are 4 cruise times available.
SHOTS Miami– SHOTS first opened in 2012 because of the need for a different nightlife scene. The 7,000 square feet venue features unique drinks prepared by trained experts. This is an excellent late-night place to visit after dinner or your booze cruise!
WWE Monday Night Raw-Get up close and personal ringside on Monday,m September 6th at Monday Night Raw hosted by FTX Arena. Show begins at 7:30pm.
Photo Credit: discotech
COTE – the Michelin-Starred Steakhouse – has Arrived to the Miami Design District
Welcome to COTE!
Welcome to the brand new Michelin-starred restaurant in downtown Miami, COTE. Located at 3900 NE 2nd Avenue in Miami’s Design District, this 5,892 square foot Korean Steakhouse will merge the energy of a big city vibe and the fun night-life of Miami. Mixing the flavor of Korean barbeque as well as the style of a classic American steakhouse, COTE definitely creates a world-class atmosphere and cuisine experience.
Introducing Executive Chef, David Shim
Creating the one-of-a kind masterpieces is Executive Chef, David Shim, native of Seoul, South Korea. Shim has gained experience and fame at Gramercy Tavern, Veritas, and L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon in New York City. He was originally approached by Chef, Simon Kim to create and launch COTE in New York City. In 2018, COTE was awarded a Michelin star and is deemed by New York Times, “The Absolute Best Steakhouse in New York City” and “One of the Best New Restaurants in America,” by GQ.
COTE Miami features 100+ seat dining area with interactive smokeless state-of-the-art tabletop grills at every dining table, dry-aging room, and two private dining rooms. Not only is the ambiance intimate and inviting, but their menus are truly creative and awe-inspiring!
The bar at Cote Miami
Menu
One of Chef Shim’s signature creations include a 45-day USDA dry-aged beef, delicious side dishes, impressive cuts of Korean beef, and a Steak Omakase™ experience. Other menu items include:
COTE’s Grand Opening is Friday, February 12th, 2021, with reservation only days of February 10th and 11th. With Valentine’s Day around the corner, they are also providing a V-Day menu but don’t wait too long to book a reservation, they are filling up fast!
One Bay Residences Closings to Begin This Month
The developer of One Bay Residences, G&L Real Estate Development LLC, announced earlier this week that the development received its Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) from Miami-Dade County and that closings will begin this month.
“We are thrilled to unveil the completed One Bay Residences to our buyers and the community. With more than 35 years of development experience, we are ambitious about the continued growth of Miami’s Design District and could not be more pleased with the end result of One Bay Residences,” said Nicolas Guzman, CEO of Empresas, Guzman & Larrain. “It’s been astounding to see the surrounding transformation of the area, and we are excited to be a part of its new elevated lifestyle offerings.”
One Bay Residences is located at 455 NE 39th Street in Miami’s ever-expanding Design District. The development is comprised of 38 condominium homes, available in single and multi-story layouts, with some featuring large rooftop terraces up to 1,636 square feet. Each residence includes a private, attached garage; 20-foot high ceilings; custom cabinetry by IDEA; expansive quartz countertops; stainless steel appliances; and more.
One Bay Residences has 15 units remaining for sale with prices from $399,000. One of the most attractive aspects about this development is the unusually low condo dues. The monthly dues are just 35 cents per square foot.
Have You Seen This Design District Sculpture of Kate Moss Doing The Splits?
Photo via Miami Design District.
What would Edina Monsoon think of this? Supermodel Kate Moss has become a universal symbol of fashion and the fashion world. “Moss as an abstraction, an idealized figure who is more of a cultural hallucination than an actual person of flesh and blood,” says Opera Gallery Director Dan Benchetrit, whose gallery loaned this sculpture of Moss contorted in an exaggerated, and probably impossible yoga pose to the Miami Design District.
The piece is called Myth Fortuna and was created by British artist Marc Quinn, who Benchatrit says “chose Moss because she’s an icon of our age.” To that point, the surrealness of the sculpture could symbolize the transformation of the Design District neighborhood, and even Miami as a whole. It’s on display in the Paseo Ponti, looking into the Palm Court, between Loro Piana and Hermès.
Checking in on Construction at the Institute of Contemporary Art Miami
Photos by Sean Mccaughan.
As Miami’s artsy types were carousing and cocktailing (Vodka open bar. It does the job) at the summer exhibition opening of the Institute of Contemporary Art Miami in the Design District’s Moore Building this Friday night, construction had stopped for the day at the ICA’s future home one block to the west and another block north. Risking showing up to the party with a dusty pair of loafers, I headed over to the construction site first to see its progress.
The three floor museum, built in concrete, has reached its full height, with high ceilings, and a lobby area that will look out onto the rear sculpture garden. Out front, the street-facing facade of the main block is windowless above the first floor, and all windows on the garden side. Just like the De La Cruz Collection building next door, the ICA galleries are exposed to the north, following a very ancient practice in the art world. Northern light (at least in the northern hemisphere) is less glaring and more diffused than southern.
Design District Getting Gucci Flagship & its First Cuban Restaurant, With a Gloria Estefan Cherry on Top
Approximately thirty new luxury stores and restaurants are coming to the Miami Design District this year, developers Design District Partners announced today, including a new restaurant concept by Gloria and Emilio Estefan, and a 7,000 square foot flagship Gucci boutique, an achievement which has been a personal goal of District CEO Craig Robins. “Gucci is a big step forward for us in the luxury category,” he told the Miami Herald “It’s a real tipping point and a statement about our progress.”
The mega grammy-winning power couple, Mr. and Mrs. Estefan meanwhile will bring the Design District it’s first Cuban Cafe, err… high end Cuban restaurant, called Estefan Kitchen: “Estefan Kitchen will feature traditional, family recipes presented in a new, healthy way that will appeal to both locals and our international guests.” Think an upscale facsimile of a down-home hangout, with the small but distinct possibility of a celebrity drop-in to see if your Aroz con Pollo is cooked alright.
Even though foot traffic along the District’s new shops, plazas, and shaded paseos is still pretty sleepy, some stores showing strong sales from occasional big spenders with budgets the size of Birkin Bags, while others are feeling the squeeze. It’s only growing pains, says Robins, because the District “doesn’t compare to what you’ll see next year when you’ve got 10 more restaurants, yoga, coffee shops, bakeries and these powerful fashion brands opening up.”
Other new retail tenants will include Alexander Wang, Eres, Warby Parker, Cos, The Smile, Ahana Yoga Studio, Dolce & Gabbana, Diane Von Furstenberg, Van Clefe & Arpels, etc. “The next phase of development will add roughly 250,000 square feet of retail space, bringing the total to nearly one million square feet, as well as a 120-room hotel and a 900-space parking garage, all set for completion in 2017.” says the Herald. Not to mention the ICA Miami and its sculpture garden, and the multiple surrounding projects being done by other developers.
Thor Files Plans for Sexy Touzet-Designed Retail at Design District Post Office Site
Rendering of 70 NE 39th Street
Thor Equities has filed plans for the former 1950s/60s era post office site in the Miami Design District (not the nearby Buena Vista Post Office, also in the Design District, which is historically designated ad home to the tacky AF Billionaire Italian Couture) says Real Deal. The property is located at 70 NE 39th Street. The design for the entirely new building, by homegrown Touzet Studio, though simple and rather restrained, is quite sexy. It has two floors of retail as well as a Design District-appropriate roofdeck, with room for approximately six retail tenants based on demand. “The proposal even includes details of the landscaping” says Real Deal “which will be adorned with silver buttonwood trees, gumbo limbo trees and ‘graceful bamboo.'”
Boulevard 57 Bringing Contemporary Design with MiMo Flare to Upper Eastside
Miami’s Upper Eastside neighborhood is preparing to ring in the new year with new neighbors… 107 new neighbors. Unitas Development Group is preparing to launch the sales of their MiMo-inspired midrise development at 5700 Biscayne Boulevard, appropriately named Boulevard 57.
Sieger Suarez was commissioned to design the development, bringing MiMo-inspired design with contemporary finishes and amenities. The project will be 8 stories tall with 107 residential apartments and 40,000 square feet of retail space on the ground level. It has been mentioned that the developers will be seeking a Trader Joe’s/Whole Foods type anchor for the retail space.
Despite previous reports that sales would begin in the summer/fall of 2015, the project will quietly launch in January 2016 with friends and family prices followed by a larger offering in the early spring. Residences will range from 1,100 square feet up to 4,800 square feet and penthouses will include rooftop pools looking out to the Biscayne Bay. Since the development immediately east of Biscayne is single-family residential, the upper floors will have views to the bay.
Boulevard 57 will tie together the historical MiMo District to the north with the booming retail area in the Design District to the south, offering high-end condos with high design, location and finishes. Prices are expected to range from $550,000 for one bedroom residences up to $3,800,000 for penthouses with rooftop pools.
See below for additional renderings of the design:
Miami Design District Video Tour
Over the past couple of years, there’s been a lot of chatter about an incredible transformation taking place in Miami’s Design District. I must admit, I wasn’t buying into it. I was definitely skeptical. At best, I figured it would be many, many years before such a grand vision would come to fruition. Yesterday, I became a believer.
Craig Robins, the developer, is an absolute genius! Robins’ creation is, without a doubt, a game-changer for the neighborhood and a welcomed addition to the city of Miami as a whole. His vision has become a reality, and it’s more spectacular than I could have ever imagined. I walked the site with my own two feet yesterday. The birds were chirping, the sun was glistening, and the best-of-the-best fashion and jewelry brands were in full effect. In every direction. Everywhere I turned. Bvlgari. Louis Vuitton. Valentino. Givenchy. Pucci. Harry Winston. Rolex. Cartier. Versace. Giorgio Armani. And that’s just to name a handful – okay, maybe two – with more big-time designers on the way. By the end of next year, if all goes according to plan, over 120 luxury shops will have opened.
The public art is spectacular in its own right. Buckminster Fuller’s 24-foot Fly’s Eye Dome acts as an illustrious center piece of this ultra-luxury shopping mecca. It’s beautiful. And interesting. I walked inside of it. I now know what my life would have been like as a fly. Pretty neat, except for the fact that it’s very difficult to focus on just one thing. Like having a sever case of Attention Deficit Disorder times ten. Where was I? Oh, yes, the art…
Xavier Veilhan’s Le Corbusier, which sits opposite of Fly’s Eye Dome in the Palm Court, is another noteworthy art installation. The piece is a fiberglass sculpture of celebrated architect Le Corbusier – one of the pioneers of modern architecture.
Overall, the newly redeveloped Miami Design District is fabulous. But don’t take my word for it. I highly suggest that you go check it out for yourself. At the very least, check out the video below for a quick tour. Better yet, watch the video and then go check it out in person. By the way, the area shown in the video is just a small section of the overall site plan. It’s still a work in progress. A hotel, condo tower, restaurants, and an additional 60 opulent shops are in the works.
Of course, the obvious question becomes, with such an impressive collection of luxury brands all in one place, why would a luxury flagship retailer even consider any other location, such as Brickell City Centre or The Mall at Miami Worldcenter? Will those shopping destinations be DOA and forced to fill their retail space with less-luxurious brands. And what kind of an effect will Miami Design District have on already established shopping centers such as The Shops at Bal Harbour and Village of Merrick Park? I would love to hear your thoughts.
