Miami South Beach - March 13-14, 2010

Friday, Mar 12 2010

It was smooth sailing, driving from home to the other side of the Niagara Falls border in about 2 hrs. We killed some time at the Outlet Mall, then had an early pizza supper at Buzzy’s (yummy), before heading for the airport.

Our trip to Florida’s South Beach and Key West would predictably be challenged by having a limited period of time in which to pursue our interests in what was available. Our trip began with a 6:15 pm Friday flight departure on Direct Air from Niagara Falls International Airport to Charlotte County Airport in Punta Gorda, with a mid-afternoon return the following Friday. Upon scheduled arrival at 9:00 pm and picking up our rental car, we would drive across to Miami Beach (~ 3 hrs). Monday morning, we would drive to Key West (~ 3 hrs), taking in some spots along the way, so as to arrive in Key West ~ 5:00 pm. Thursday, we’d drive partially back to Islamorada (~ 1.5 hrs) and proceed the next day to our flight (~ 4 hrs).

At check-in, our single piece of luggage was 3.5 lbs over its 50 lb limit (otherwise penalty of an extra bag = $25), despite weighing in at 38 lbs at home. Between the allowed 2 carry-ons each, we were able to redeploy 2 beach towels to remedy the situation.

As it turned out, whereas I had thought for some reason that the airport was Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers, our landing was a further 45 min drive N! Arrival was pretty much on the scheduled 9:00 pm arrival time. It was only after queuing to pick up the rental that I learned that the reservation wasn’t for the airport! Fortunately, Hertz had the same vehicle and price, so disaster averted, other than the additional 45 min drive.

After several circlings of the block, we finally found the Clay Hotel at Washington Ave and Espanola Way (S of 15th) (1438 Washington Ave) (http://www.clayhotel.com) in South Beach, arriving at maybe 00:45 am. Part of our uncertainty was that, even after checking in, we hadn’t anticipated that our entrance would be through a card-swiped wrought iron gate at street level, where the signed entrance appeared to read “Gay Villa”, when it was actually a stylized “Clay Villa”.



Anyway, I then wasted an hour in trying to find what I had been told was 24-hr parking for $8 (it’s $16), as we weren’t going to use it. Because the rooms are older, we were disappointed in its spare appearance; however, over the span of time, its fundamental cleanliness and good location on the quieter and colourful Espanola Way won us over. The Clay was the site of the 1st and last show of Miami Vice, as well as something like 15 shows in between.

Saturday, Mar 13

It was kinda overcast this morn, so, even though we had a 6:00 am wake-up for the 6:30 beach sunrise, it was futile. Ocean Drive and the beach is only 4 blocks away. After a short walk on the beach, we went for breakfast at the Penguin Hotel’s Front Porch Café (1418 Ocean Drive) (http://www.penguinhotel.com), highly rated by its customers for its casual ambiance and views from the porch and sidewalk, as well as its delicious healthy, home-style fare and reasonable prices. Front Porch Café has been voted the “best breakfast in town” for many years. French toast with bananas and walnuts, omelets, fresh fruit salads…


One of the nice things about getting around Miami Beach’s streets is that there is a logical order to addresses. For example, beginning with the Atlantic Ocean side, the major streets that run N-S the length of the beach are Ocean Drive, Collins Ave and Washington Ave. From the S end, beginning with 1st St, the streets running E-W are numbered sequentially. The numbers on the streets running N-S match the street sequences i.e. 1411 Washington Ave would be just above 14th St.

During the morning, we saw a good part of South Beach, walking from 14th to 6th along Ocean Drive, Collins and Washington Ave, following a self-guided Art Deco tour of the area’s significant architecture from the period, which is synonymous with South Beach. This tour and that of some of Miami Beach’s most beautiful hotels and pools are posted separately. The tour portion alone is probably a very leisurely 45 min - 1 hr. Retail therapy in this area runs between 6th and 9th on Collins. For example, here is the stairway of the Banana Republic at 800 Collins Ave (not to be confused with that on Lincoln Road, where the much larger men’s space on the main floor is one of the few instances where the men’s trade dwarfs that of the women):


During the morning, we took a tea break on a sidewalk table at the News Café (800 Ocean Dr) (http://www.newscafe.com), famous for its people viewing and for its not-so-good food.



We then took a leisurely walk up the beach from 7th to 14th:





The plan was to get something at the highly rated La Sandwicherie (229 14th St); however the limited seating was filled and Lynda preferred other fare, so I got a yummy Bora Bora smoothie (Mango, banana, pineapple & orange), and we decided to return to The Front Porch, whose breakfast we had enjoyed so much, for a Porch club.


We then took a leisurely walk up the beach and along the very attractive curved brick walkways from 14th to 20th, which is where some of the hotels are located that have been cited for their beauty and pools.



(See separate postings of Art Deco Hotels & Pools) The furthermost hotel is about a 25 minute walk from the Clay, whereas the nearest is less than 10 minutes and about 5 minutes from the near side of Lincoln Road (between 16th and 17th) pedestrian mall that is between them.

We visited:
Setai - 2001 Collins Ave
Shore Club - 1901 Collins Ave
Raleigh Hotel - 1775 Collins Ave
Delano Hotel - 1685 Collins Ave
National Hotel - 1677 Collins Ave
Sagamore Hotel - 1671 Collins
Albion South Beach - 1650 James Ave

Among the hotels, we were quite struck with the beauty - outside and within - of the National Hotel. So much so, that, after talking to the Quebecois concierge, Claude, we decided to return the next day to take him up on his offer to waive the $25 day pass for each, so that we could use the pool. The Raleigh, where Ester Williams performed in her famous aqua movies, would also be an excellent choice. The pool is free to all visitors except Fri-Sun, when a $25 fee is applicable. It also has a Happy Hour, when I believe its drinks are reasonable (by Miami Beach and swanky hotel standards). The Sagamore had quite a modern vibe, with its interior and art. The Delano was very full of itself - guests only for pool use - pool bar available to non-guests after 5:00. It does, however, have very beautiful, extremely tall palms arranged between the outdoor, elevated dining area and the pool area. The interiors of The Shore and the Delano are a bit of a blur, possibly because they had a sameness in terms of flowing sheer fabric and columns and very high lobby ceilings.

From here we proceeded to Lincoln Road, a pedestrian mall (http://www.lincolnroad.org/) that runs west between Washington Ave and Alton Road, some 8 city blocks. It combines shopping and indoor and outdoor dining, with abundant people watching opportunities.



We walked the length of the mall, stopping at Segafredo Espresso (1040 Lincoln Road), about 6 blocks down, for a Long Island Iced Tea & sangria. Returning to our room at the Clay, we refreshed ourselves quickly before supper beneath us at A La Folie Café (516 Espanola Way) (http://www.alafoliecafe.com), small, reasonably priced but highly rated. It was quite chilly with a brisk wind in the evening by this time. The few tables inside were occupied, so we had our meal at a table outside. Onion soup for Lynda and a chicken, ham & cheese crepe pour moi.



Although I had Mango's Tropical Café (900 Ocean Dr) (http://www.mangostropicalcafe.com) on the agenda for its unique entertainment value, the old girl couldn’t keep up to me, so we packed it in.

Sunday, Mar 14

Although a 6:00 am wake-up had been entered on the Clay’s system, someone had forgotten about Daylight Saving, so we missed our intended beach walk for the 7:30 sunrise. Lynda had developed a sun rash from the prior day, but it didn’t interfere in future activities.

As we were leaving for the beach, we encountered a photographer and his model in Espanola Way. As he explained, it isn’t often that he has photographs taken of him working (very quickly), so I arranged to send him the (not very good photos, it so happens) that I took of them.

After I repeatedly told him yesterday how beautiful we thought the National Hotel was, Claude, its concierge, had said that we should then see the Fontainebleau (around 44th) and The Tides (around 12th and on our Art Deco tour yesterday). Fontainebleu was too far, but, as we were on our way to breakfast, walking down Ocean Drive to 2nd St and Big Pink for breakfast, we stopped in. It turns out that The Tides is the #1 rated hotel by my Bible, TripAdvisor. Maybe it’s something about the rooms, but our view of the lobby still left us with the view that it didn’t match the National.



Continuing on, we stopped by again at Versace’s former residence, which had been on our Art Deco tour.


Big Pink (157 Collins Ave) (http://www.mylesrestaurantgroup.com), a deli style icon with a reputation for tasty food and huge portions, turned out to not live up to the expectations for a special experience, but we did have a nearby visitor who kept pulling out the sweetener packets.


This was our first exposure to the south tip of the beach, where the ocean liners make passage through the channel to the Port of Miami. It also has some luxe condos, The Continuum (100 South Pointe Rd) having a unit for sale for $12.5 million). The other prominent building is the colourful Portofino Towers (300 South Pointe Road).


There’s a colourful curved brick pathway that makes its way along the beach and the channel, with the condos on the other side.






Along the way, there were professional photo shoots in process, while others meditated:



From the South Pointe, we walked up the beach to have lunch at Puerto Sagua (700 Collins Ave), considered the best Cuban food in South Beach, very reasonable and large portions. On that basis, and because it was lunch, we chose to split a garlic shrimp, while Lynda thought she was ordering a small chef’s salad, but got something quite different. All told, neither the portion size nor value was as expected.


We stopped for a frozen drink at Wet Willie's (760 Ocean Dr) (http://www.wetwillies.com), which turns out to have been one of the better choices we made during our visit and one that we’d repeat. First off, we were located on its single-story roof deck, giving us a wonderful view of the street and ocean beach. Secondly, the drinks offered great relative value. 10/16/20 oz sizes were available for $8/9/10, and my 10 oz “Call A Cab” had the equivalent of 5 shots. In light of the hefty concentrations, we opted for the 10 oz., Lynda choosing the Mango Margarita.



On a lucky streak, we next stopped into the Clevelander Hotel (1020 Ocean Dr) (http://www.clevelander.com), renowned for its many pools and bars and its magnetic attraction on the young. A new security fellow, Joe, took it upon himself to escort us to its top pool deck - maybe 3-4 stories up - where we had a panoramic view of the area.






That afternoon, armed with a milles feuilles napoleon and,tarte aux fraises for Claude from Paul Bakery Café (450 Lincoln Rd) (http://www.paulusa.com), we returned to the National Hotel for a day at its pool. Claude hadn’t started his shift, so, without missing a beat, his counterpart, Sergio, escorted us to the pool, introduced us to his manager, Ronald, for his OK, and we were set. Brian arranged our towels to cover our chaise longue with a technique that garnered new respect from me, while being ever available for anything he might do to assist us to make our visit pleasant. The hotel is now owned by a French family that owns hotels on the French Riviera. Apparently, they were drawn to Miami Beach and the hotel by a love of art, but they also want any visitor to feel welcome, contrasting sharply with the practice of others. We had a couple of drinks - great mojito - for $40! I think I put a tip on top of a tip. Unlike any other place ever experienced, Miami Beach commonly has a stated practice of automatically adding a 15-18% tip, sometimes not broadcasting it when producing the bill. In any event, it was a very civilized way to spend a few hours in sunning ourselves.




When we were finished, we returned to Lincoln Road. The plan had been to go to highly rated Spris Pizzeria (731 Lincoln Rd) (http://www.spris.cc/), but Lynda didn’t fancy pizza, so we opted to return to Segafredo Espresso (1040 Lincoln Rd) for pasta, based on the take-out menu we had from yesterday. Unfortunately, after queuing for what seemed like 45 minutes, we learned after being seated that pasta was only on take-out. So, off we went to Spris, having a lovely pizza and wine.


We then returned to Paul Bakery Café (450 Lincoln Rd) (http://www.paulusa.com) where I had a crème brule tart and café au lait and Lynda a large tea. We had popped into Van Dyke Café (846 Lincoln Rd) (http://www.thevandykecafe.com) (started and/or still owned by Dick) to take in some jazz, but seating was taken, it was quite noisy and we were tired, so we passed. We returned to the Clay, expecting to be in Homestead Monday by 8:00 am, a 45 minute drive.