Coral Gables Magazine February 2022

CORAL GABLES

The

Most Romantic Restaurants in The Gables

One look and you know it’s The Palace.

What creates the perfect moment? It’s pristine white-sand beaches enveloped by the bluest waters, where couples can play, or chill. It’s luxurious sanctuaries made for romance at water’s edge, or directly over the water. It’s a mouthwatering gourmet creation and a creatively crafted cocktail. But, most of all, the perfect moment is found in the details, an art that we’ve perfected with our Luxury Included® Vacation. Sandals® Resorts has been turning moments into memories for 40 years—and we couldn’t have done it without you.

“ THERE IS A BIG CONCERN ABOUT OVER DEVELOPMENT, THERE IS A BIG CONCERN ABOUT TRAFFIC, AND THERE IS A BIG CONCERN THAT I THINK ISN’T DISCUSSED – TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR RESIDENTS ARE NOT PRICED OUT OF CORAL GABLES. ”

Interview: City Commissioner Kirk Menendez. Page 18

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Why I Give: Sofia and Ryan Holtzman

For Sofia Holtzman, it was the four grueling months she spent at the Baptist Hospital NICU with her twins Luke and Gabrielle that led her to support Baptist Health.

Born at 24 weeks, the infants were not expected to survive. Sofia and her husband Ryan practically lived in the NICU Level 3, where the most critical preemies are treated. She credits the staff with caring not only for the newborns, but also for the couple. “They would walk in and see it in your face: ‘Are you okay? Do you need to talk? Is there anything you need?’” she recalls. “Things like that, they were very cognizant of.”

With the help of Baptist Health’s neonatal physicians, Luke and Gabrielle pulled through, and today are healthy, active kids. Thankful for her family, Sofia now leads South Miami Hospital’s Foundation council, comforts NICU parents and encourages her kids to show their gratitude. “I think that everybody should get involved in some way,” she says. “Whether it’s volunteering your time, making a financial commitment or just a kind gesture — it all makes a difference.”

“Baptist has so much to offer to this community.”

Photo by Lynn Parks

A TIME FOR ROMANCE

What exactly makes for a romantic evening? A restaurant with great ambiance and food? Or a night spent in your favorite Coral Gables hotel? With these ideas in mind, we traversed the city in search of those select restaurants and hotels that capture the intimate charm we call romance.

ON THE WATERFRONT

In a time marked by isolation and social distancing, boating is booming. The demand for boats has manufacturers and brokers scrambling to keep up. Boating can, of course, be expensive. Registration fees, insurance, fuel, maintenance and what can seem like endless repairs take a toll. Dock space – if you can find it – is increasingly pricey. But for those fortunate enough to afford the cost, boating is a passion, a hobby, and joy that seeps into the blood.

The Winds of Change

BOB

IS GONE, WAWA IS HALTED

January proved to be a momentous month in the Gables. Most notably, the citizens who rallied to save Burger Bob’s sadly watched as the iconic 1950-style diner on the Granada Golf Course closed. At the same time, citizens who rallied to block the Wawa gas station/ convenience store across the street from Carver Elementary scored a decisive legal victory.

The balance between what the citizens of Coral Gables want, and what the government delivers, is always a matter of give and take. There are arguments on both sides of any issue, conflicts between individual rights and the common good, between doing what is right versus what is pragmatic or even legal.

In the case of Burger Bob’s, opposition to a plan to expand and upscale the aging burger joint after its lease expired in August was so strong that the city repeatedly extended the lease for Bob and opened the process to attract additional proposals. In the end Bob McGuire himself, at age 85, had had enough, and threw in his apron. The city now plans to renovate the space and look for a new private operator who will keep the spirit of the small, neighborhood eatery intact.

As for Wawa, rarely has there been such a case where doing what’s right has slammed squarely into the face of what is legal. On the one hand, it’s hard to think of anything worse to put across the street from an elementary school than a busy gas station. It’s simply wrong. And

cutting down the oak trees on Grand Avenue across from the school was an outrageous disregard by Wawa of community feelings. You never cut down trees in Coral Gables, period.

And yet, the property had been designated commercial, allowing a gas station to go there under zoning regulations then in effect. Nonetheless, a judge hearing the motion by the city to dismiss the citizen’s lawsuit to stop construction not only allowed it to go forward, but went way beyond his purview, declaring the city’s actions to be illegal. An emotional overreach, to be sure.

Since the same judge would most likely hear the final case, however, he did the city a favor by letting them know his decision way ahead of time, regardless of the law. The city wisely decided to go back to the drawing board, to see if there was anything that citizens would not oppose for the property across from the school – land that belongs to a black neighborhood association that’s been dreaming for two decades of using it produce income to fund community projects.

The city will undoubtedly have to pay a heavy price for violating the property rights of Wawa, by finding them another piece of land or forking over millions of dollars in compensation. But what price the clean lungs and safety of children? Lesson here: Never incur the wrath of Gables parents. And never cut down our trees.

CEO & PUBLISHER

Richard Roffman

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

J.P.Faber

EVP / PUBLISHER

Gail Scott

ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER

Amy Donner

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Monica Del Carpio-Raucci

ART DIRECTOR

Jon Braeley

PRODUCTION MANAGER

Toni Kirkland

VP SALES

Sherry Adams

STAFF WRITER & SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER

Carmen Sofia Fraga

EDITOR-AT-LARGE

Grace Carricarte

SENIOR WRITERS

Mike Clary

Doreen Hemlock

WRITERS

Andrew Gayle

Parker Gimbel

Mallory Evans Jacobson

Katelin Stecz

FILM AND VIDEO CRITIC

Michael Roffman

PHOTOGRAPHERS

Rodolfo Benitez

Jonathan Dann

Emily Fakhoury

CIRCULATION & DISTRIBUTION

CircIntel

OFFICIAL FRAMER

Adam Brand / Frames USA

Coral Gables Magazine is published monthly by City Regional Media, 1200 Anastasis Ave. Suite 115, Coral Gables FL 33134. Telephone: (305) 995-0995. Copyright 2022 by City Regional Media. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part of any text, photograph or illustration without prior written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Send address changes to subscriptions@ coralgablesmagazine.com. General mailbox email and letters to editor@coralgablesmagazine.com. BPA International Membership applied for March 2019.

Cover: Night dining at Zucca’s outdoor “Garden.” Photo by Rodolfo Benitez.

NEVER CUT DOWN A GABLES’ TREE: THE OAKS NOW GONE

Beatrice Row IS THE PROUD RECIPIENT OF THE PALLADIO

AWARD

The annual Palladio Awards honor outstanding achievement in traditional design. They are the first and only national awards program for residential, commercial, and industrial projects which demonstrate excellence in traditional design.

Beatrice Row won the residential multi-family category.

Each month we print letters we receive from our readers. We encourage all commentary, included criticism as well as compliments, and of course any commentary about our community. If you are interested in writing to us with your opinions, thoughts, or suggestions, please send them to letters@coralgablesmagazine.com. Letters are edited for brevity.

Better Water Access for Canoes & Kayaks

Improving accessibility to the waterway is why I want to serve on the Waterway Advisory Board. My hope is that the ideas the Waterway Board have proposed to the Mayor and Commissioners will be considered and implemented. I love seeing kayakers and canoeists enjoying the waterway, and there are many opportunities for the city to improve public access. Cocoplum circle, for example, is now just an unsightly, rocky trail created by people who fish there. It could be improved to include not only a proper canoe/ kayak launch, but also a scenic overlook and boardwalk that could also serve as an underpass for pedestrians to finally have a safe way to cross LeJeune Road. The launch site under the Metrorail [at Riviera Drive] has been an “unofficial” launch site for at least fifty years. The city needs to work with the County to finally make it official. The city is also currently working on plans to create a park at the Blue at Blue Road and Biltmore Drive, which should also include a dock. Finally, the

launch site at Ruth Bryan Owen Park (Bird and Grenada) which has been there for many years needs to be improved.

John Swain/Waterway Advisory Board

Don’t Count Your Chickens Too Soon

I noticed on page 56 of your January Issue – your “The Year That Was 2021” feature –that you wrote that the parents of children at GW Carver Elementary who opposed the construction of a Wawa gas station across the street had “ultimately” been unable to stop it. Clearly you went to press before the January ruling that their lawsuit could move forward.

Dolores Abreu

Editor’s Note: You are correct in your observation. We did go to press before the ruling, and in retrospect we should have written “as of press time” rather than “ultimately.” Clearly, we underestimated the power of a small, but determined, group of parents to protect the health of their children.

Family is the heart of the home.

Go Cavaliers!

Students returning to the campus in person this fall got to see the exciting renovations happening at Gables High. Miami Dade County School Board’s commitment to the school’s physical campus is historic with $44 million well on its way to renovate and build a new state-of-the-art facility. You can see the promising signs of transformation in almost every direction.

Friends of Gables High is helping to see the renovation through to completion, and also providing financial assistance to the students, teachers, and school organizations for both academics and extra-curricular activities. By maintaining and strengthening the deep connections between Gables High, its stellar alumni and the community, we can keep the momentum going. We will soon donate more than $30,000 to the student activity patio area, and to the music and athletic programs. Please do not hesitate to contribute to our effort and become a Friend of Gables High.

Tom Parker, Chair, Friends of Gables High

JJ Snow Hansen Real Estate Advisor 305.608.8750 jj@jjsnowhansen.com

Life is Calling

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The integrity of our experienced advice and our commitment to quality client experiences is what sets us apart from the crowd and enables us to help our clients reach their financial goals, regardless of what those might look like.

From City Hall

AT ITS FIRST MEETING IN JANUARY, THE CORAL GABLES CITY COMMISSION:

VOTED 5-0 TO SET UP SUNSHINE MEETINGS in late March to discuss the future of Biltmore Way. Vice Mayor Mena requested that the boards of each building on Biltmore Way present a consensus of their priorities, “To make sure that we are getting an accurate read on what the average people in the neighborhood want,” said Mena.

LISTENED TO AN UPDATE ON THE TRAFFIC CALMING program that reduced residential speed limits from 30 to 25 mph in 2018. Over the next five years, the city will spend $1.5 million annually installing 123 traffic calming devices, including speed bumps, raised traffic crosswalks, raised pedestrian crossings and roundabouts. The first of five zones to be “calmed” will be the Alhambra area north of Coral Way; the entire project will finish by 2027. “We are never going to stop people driving through the city,” said Mayor Vince Lago. “But we can at least have people respect our streets.”

VOTED 5-0 TO GRANT TAX RELIEF TO THE owners of a home at 800 Coral Way to help defray seven years of expenses to restore the property (recommended 8-0 by the Historic Preservation Board).

VOTED 5-0 TO ALLOW RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS in the Central Business District to rise from 190.5 feet to 205 feet if they limit units to 100 per acre. Currently, buildings in the CBD have unlimited density if they are capped at 190.5 feet. The height bonus also requires additional open space at the ground level. “We are sending a strong message that we want to see a green downtown,” said Mayor Lago.

CONGRATULATED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Director Julian Perez, shown above, for receiving the Oliver Kerr Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Planning Association. New Urbanist (and Gables resident) Andres Duany was the previous recipient of this prestigious award.

LISTENED TO A PRESENTATION ON FUNDING the Community Recreation Master Plan. This decade-long project to upgrade the park system, including rebuilding the War Memorial Youth Center, will cost $160 million. To pay for it, bonds could be issued, funded by a slight increase in property taxes. Example: A homeowner who currently pays $5,559 a year will pay an additional $185 a year in 2023, $419 more in 2026, $481 more in 2029, and $561 more in 2033.

LISTENED TO A PRESENTATION on the Coral Gables Garden Club/ Keep Coral Gables Beautiful Red Mangrove Propagation Project, which planted 1,300 mangroves in 20 “pools” of dirt behind Boy Scout Troop 7’s clubhouse on the Granada Golf Course. Shoutouts to Solange Lopez from the city and Grace Carricarte from the Garden Club. Sponsored by Commissioner Rhonda Anderson, who helped shovel the dirt.

VOTED 5-0 TO EXTEND OUTDOOR STREET-SIDE dining for all restaurants in Coral Gables until May 2022 – noting that if this becomes permanent, the city will have to address disability access. (Sponsored by Mayor Lago and Commissioner Anderson).

VOTED 5-0 TO MOVE FORWARD WITH public hearings to address a zoning error that would allow buildings as high as 190 feet rise on the south side of Biltmore Way. Currently they are limited to 150 feet. City commissioners agreed that the change in zoning was accidental. (Sponsored by Commissioner Anderson).

LISTENED TO A PROPOSAL FROM FPL to partially “underground” power lines for city residences, by burying minor lines that feed power to homes. This would underground 40 percent of the city’s power grid within 10 years, funded entirely by FPL. The other option would be to bury all the main feeder lines, which would cost the city $350 to $400 million. A full report on the proposal is expected by March.

RESOLVED TO WORK WITH UM TO SET UP a high school “coding competition” in February 2023 for young programmers. (Sponsored by Commissioner Kirk Menendez).

RESOLVED TO PROCEED WITH CREATING designated Youth Zones around the city where there is a lot of outdoor activity by children and teens. (Sponsored by Commissioner Jorge Fors).

VOTED 5-0 TO CONTINUE FUNDING THE downtown FreeBee for $483,000 annually. ■

Interview with City Commissioner Kirk Menendez

Prior to being elected to the City Commission last April, Kirk Menendez had a long track record of volunteer service in the city. A self-proclaimed “soccer dad,” he coached at the War Memorial Youth Center for almost 30 years. He is currently president of the non-profit Youth Center Association and chaired the city’s Parks and Recreational Advisory Board from 2013 until his election. Since joining the commission he has advocated for neighborhood issues such as preserving Burger Bob’s, creating Coral Gables Senior High student internships, more private sponsorships of community events, and more orderly discourse at commission meetings.

Q: WHY DID YOU WANT TO BE A CITY COMMISSIONER?

A: Folks in the community have been asking me to run for elected office since I was in my twenties… A lot of people know me from the years I spent in the Coral Gables Youth Center, which I describe as the heart and soul of our community, since so many kids went there, and so many parents raised their kids there.

Q: HAS THE EXPERIENCE DIFFERED FROM WHAT YOU EXPECTED?

A: It’s exactly what I thought it would be because it starts with the people. That’s what makes Coral Gables what it is, the people we have, their kindness, their generosity, always helping and volunteering. And that’s what I found here [as a Commissioner]

Q: WHAT DO YOU SEE AS YOUR MISSION?

A: My focus is to leave a legacy for the city that puts family, children, and seniors first, and not on the backburner…. I think because of my experience and background I am a good person to shine light on those folks in the community that need the most help.

Q: WHAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT ISSUES FOR THE CITY TODAY?

A: There is a big concern about over development, there is a big concern about traffic, and there is a big concern that I think isn’t discussed – to make sure that our residents are not priced out of Coral Gables. There are folks that have lived their entire lives here, folks now in their 80s and 90s that helped build the city, and they are at the point where they have to move out of the city because they can no longer afford to live here.

Q: HOW CAN YOU PROTECT THE ELDERLY FROM BEING PRICED OUT?

A: We should look at the fees we charge and maybe create programming that is geared towards our seniors and find ways to provide discounts… just to bring down their monthly expenses to the point that they are manageable. Because they are on fixed incomes. And when prices rise sometimes your head is no longer above water…

Q: WHAT OTHER ISSUES CONCERN YOU?

A: The biggest issue that we are dealing with… is that little by little we are becoming a divided community. Everything is becoming a battle, neighbors against neighbors, residents against the city. We spend so much energy and time putting out fires… that it robs us of the opportunity to do programs that bring joy to the lives of others… Unfortunately, we live in a world where small minorities – political arsonists – enjoy starting fires to keep people from doing what they should be doing.

Q: HOW DO WE SOLVE THIS DIVISIVENESS?

A: My personal experience is that whenever a difficult decision comes up there is a way to accommodate each other… If we have a situation, an issue, where one side has a complete victory and the other a complete defeat, that’s a loss for the community. If we can walk away with a partial victory here and a partial victory there, that’s a win for the community.

Q: WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE NEW MODERN MOBILITY HUB? MANY RESIDENTS ARE UPSET BY BEING GIVEN JUST ONE DESIGN OPTION.

A: This parking garage [idea] goes back way before my election [but] going forward, any project, any development that is city owned and city run, should ask that two options, a minimum of two different versions of the same project, be presented instead of just one.

Q: YOU HAVE SUGGESTED CREATING LIMITS FOR CITIZEN INPUT AT COMMISSION MEETINGS. WHY?

A: What I do not want to see is the city’s hands tied so tightly that it cannot function. I would like to see government work responsibly [but] efficiently and effectively. It’s a balancing act, which is why I tend to end up in the middle of discussions. I find myself there because I want a government that responds, but not so bogged down that it cannot act.

Q: WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT REFERENDUM BEFORE THE COMMISSION?

A: We are working on preparing, and it’s going to go to the community with public meetings, a referendum on a plan to fund the parks. It’s a master plan that would basically rethink and upgrade our entire park system to perhaps the finest park system in Florida – something that will impact lives for generations – where you can have activities for older and younger residents. I would like that to be my legacy, so that when kids are playing soccer or playing baseball or just hanging out with their grandparents, a little piece of me will be there. ■

Illustration by Carlos Garcia-Barbon

The Wawa Saga Continues An Ode to Nino

A SURPRISE RULING STOPS THE CONTROVERSIAL GAS STATION

BY MIKE CLARY

For nearly 30 years, the fine dining sanctuary known as Café Abbracci has been presided over by maestro Nino Pernetti. With an almost eidetic memory, he has greeted and charmed the power elite of the Gables and beyond. In its long history, Café Abbracci has hosted US presidents like Clinton and Obama, and celebrities ranging from Frank Sinatra to Matt Damon.

In January the Miami Herald ran a frontpage story about

Pernetti’s 12-month struggle to survive Covid. Those who frequent Abbracci, or who know Pernetti personally, have been aware of his absence and his personal struggle. In deference to his privacy, we have until now declined to cover Pernetti’s illness. But now that the Herald has seen fit to make it public, we simply wish to add our heartfelt wishes that this beloved pillar of the community finally and fully recover. Buona fortuna e auguri, Nino. ■

The site for construction of a Wawa gas station and convenience store on Grand Avenue and US1 was prepared, an adjacent community center was built, and a homeowners’ group in the historically black section of Coral Gables was dreaming of the neighborhood housing renovation and history museum that money from the long-term lease would provide.

Then, during a Jan. 6 Zoom hearing on a lawsuit brought by a group of Carver Elementary School parents and residents trying to stop the project, Circuit Court Judge Michael Hanzman stepped all over what had once seemed a done deal. Referring to the city’s interpretation of a resolution governing decisions on what could be built on the 1.7-acre Grand Avenue site, Hanzman called the city’s actions “blatantly illegal.”

Hanzman’s comments sent city officials scrambling. Within days City Attorney Miriam Ramos issued a statement saying, “the city wishes to seek a stay of the litigation in order to allow

for time to explore a resolution to this matter.”

“The writing is on the wall,” said Mayor Vince Lago. “You’ve seen the judge’s comments. We need to look beyond Wawa to find a resolution. If not Wawa, what is it? Multifamily housing, a shopping center? Everything is on the table.” Everything, that is, except a six-pump gas station and convenience store which opponents declared would cause harm to the students of Carver Elementary and Middle Schools across the street.

Lago emphasized that he wants neighborhood residents, including members of the Lola B. Walker Homeowners’ Association (which owns the property), to be a part of the conversation. “They deserve a financial vehicle to properly fund” local projects, he said.

As to what will become of the Wawa project, that is to be determined. The city will most likely find another location or could be faced with a multi-million-dollar lawsuit from Wawa for rescinding permission to build. ■

Real Estate Prices

As anyone trying to buy a home in the Gables knows, housing prices are soaring. Homes originally purchased for under $1 million are now selling for at least $1 million; the average price tag is now about $2 million. We can thank the pandemic – and The Great Migration of New Yorkers (followed by Californians) to South Florida – for that. For sellers, however, it’s been a bonanza. Here are some examples of recent sales vs. what the owners originally paid.

8010 OLD CUTLER ROAD

Sold Oct. 2021 $1,725,000

Bought July 2000 $448,000

1232 MANATI AVE.

Sold Oct. 2021 $2,000,000

Bought June 2015 $660,000

7233 LOS PINOS BLVD.

Sold Oct.. 2021 $5,970,000

Bought May 2017 $4,100,000

190 ISLA DORADA BLVD.

Sold Oct. 2021 $4,350,000

Bought March 2015 $2,400,000

7900 OLD CUTLER ROAD

Sold Sept. 2021 $2,220,000

Bought July 2020 $969,250

1100 ASTURIA AVE.

Sold Sept. 2021 $1,350,000

Bought Feb. 2017 $625,000

3925 DURANGO STREET

Sold Sept. 2021 $1,320,000

Bought Sept. 2003 $640,000

3871 S. LE JEUNE ROAD

Sold Sept. 2021 $1,250,000

Bought Sept. 2009 $350,000

NOT HERE: AN EXISTING WAWA GAS STATION

CAFÉ ABBRACCI OWNER NINO PERNETTI

Goodbye to Burger Bob’s

BOB MAGUIRE HANGS UP HIS APRON FOR GOOD

Add Burger Bob’s to the book of Coral Gables memories. After almost 30 years of serving up cheeseburgers, chili, and breakfast eggs and sausage at the Granada Golf Course, the much-loved throw-back diner is no more. It’s last day, busy with loyal customers, was Friday, Jan. 21, followed by a farewell party the ensuing Sunday.

“I am honored and privileged to have had this restaurant and the experience in the space and I must tell you this truly breaks my heart to be closing these doors,” said Bob Maguire in a Facebook post announcing his decision. Maguire, 85, added, “I feel the time has come for me to stand down.”

The restaurant, which is part of the building that houses the pro shop at the first tee of the golf course, has been under siege since the pandemic hit, followed by the expiration of Maguire’s lease with the city last August. A crowd-funding effort last summer on a GoFundMe page, entitled Helping Burger Bob’s, raised more than $15,000 to help pay the bills, and the city lowered rent to $1,000 a month and extended the lease several times – the latest extension taking it through March.

But the difficulty of running a restaurant with a monthto-month lease took its toll, along with pressure that came from an unsolicited bid by the Barreto Hospitality Group (now withdrawn), which sought to assume the lease and upscale the premises with an investment of $800,000. “It is just impossible to run a business on a month-tomonth basis,” said Rita Tennyson, the restaurant manager and Bob’s right-hand-woman for most of the last three decades. “I am sad about this, and Bob even more so.”

Tennyson herself put in a bid to assume the lease with a $60,000 investment offer. After considering both options, the city put out another request for bids. A third was submitted by Australia native Nick Sharp, the Gables entrepreneur who launched and runs Threefold Café on Giralda Plaza and Bay 13 Brewery and Kitchen on Alhambra Circle.

Sharp says he would offer “breakfast, lunch and a simple dinner, nothing high-end or too fancy, in line with what we have at Threefold.” Sharp did not say how much he was prepared to spend but noted “the space has been heavily neglected for a long time and needs major capital investment.”

So, could Down Understyle smashed avocado, Pope Benedict eggs and lamb burgers be next on the menu of the restaurant that succeeds Burger Bob’s? City manager Peter Iglesias is to review the bids and make a recommendation to the commission, while the City moves forward with renovations.

In the meantime, a cherished part of the community’s fabric has been closed, at least for now. “The sad thing is the people we see here, we’ll never see anywhere else,” said Mari Arnold, a longtime customer, at the Sunday goodbye party. “This is a piece of history disapearing before our eyes.”

That sentiment was shared by dozens of customers who loved the $5 hamburgers and the $4 chili, and who joined Bob and Rita for the bittersweet farewell. “Going to Burger Bob’s is like coming home,” says Hank Langston, a customer for 20 years, who visited about 3 times a week. But in this case, you can’t go home again – though you can order from Rita’s new catering business. ■ -Mike

Clary

TOP: THE LAST MEAL WITH LONG-TIME CUSTOMERS SAYING GOODBYE TO BURGER BOB’S.

MIDDLE: A LAST DITCH EFFORT BY THE COMMUNITY TO SAVE BURGER BOB’S FROM CLOSING.

ABOVE: BOB MAGUIRE IN HAPPIER DAYS BEHIND THE COUNTER.

TheSolutionOyster

WANT TO CLEAN UP OUR WATERS? BOTTOM FEEDERS MAY BE THE ANSWER

BY MIKE CLARY

On a recent Wednesday morning, Alberto “Tico”

Aran glided west on the Coral Gables Waterway in a bright blue kayak, zigzagging from side to side and looking closely at sea walls, dock pilings, marine lines, and mangrove roots. Many were encrusted with sharp-edged shells. And he liked what he saw.

“What this tells me is that when the right materials are present, oysters are growing,” Aran said. “And when healthy clusters of oysters take hold, that provides benefits for the waterway.”

Over the past year the 35-year-old Gables native has spent countless hours touting the power of the humble oyster as a key to restoring the health of the waterway and Biscayne Bay. Oysters build reefs, stabilize the shoreline and, most importantly, boost water quality as filters.

Aran adopted his mollusk mission – to createa habitat for native eastern, flat tree and mangrove oysters – after a massive August 2020 fish kill in the bay that was blamed on pollution, low oxygen levels and algae blooms. “I realized I couldn’t explain how this happened in my own backyard, and I needed to understand it,” says Aran, who grew up on the water in The Gables, went camping as a Boy Scout, and spent many hours snorkeling, spear fishing and boating. “When the fish kill happened, I looked around and was surprised to see how little attention was given to generating solutions.”

Aran, who has a master’s degree in public health, earns a living in partnership with his wife Susan making kombucha under the brand name Radiate Kombucha. But he threw himself into learning all he could about ways to address the environmental damage being done. He founded the Watershed Action Lab, garnered $25,000 in donations, and drew up plans to improve water quality with oyster beds – a project that won the endorsement of Mayor Vince Lago and the city commission.

Ana Zangroniz, a Florida Sea Grant Extension Agent in Miami-Dade County and a specialist in marine ecosystems, lauds Aran for calling attention to the benefits of restoring oyster reef habitats in southeast Florida, which according to a 2012 study has decreased by 99 percent from historic levels. Studies have shown that in ideal conditions, an eastern oyster –the kind commonly served in restaurants – can filter up to 50 gallons of water a day. “Each mollusk is eating, sucking in water, filtering out different pathogens,” says Zangroniz.

“WHAT

This year Aran has plans to launch an oyster shell recycling program modeled on a pilot project by Miami-Dade at the 2018 Deering Estate Seafood Festival. Oyster shells collected from local restaurants can be cured in the sun, then strung like necklaces and attached to docks to provide habitats that live oysters will colonize. The hope is that Gables waterfront residents will hang the strings on their docks. “You don’t need to be a scientist or politician to direct change in your own backyard,” says Aran.

Yet Zangroniz cautions that while restoring healthy oyster beds may be a part of the solution, the environmental battle will be lost without measures to limit pesticides and fertilizer washing into waterways, and the pollution caused by failing septic tanks. “What Tico is doing is positive, and a big benefit for public education,” says Zangroniz. “But I want to manage expectations. The big thing here is that we’re fighting a long-term battle.” ■

ALBERTO “TICO” ARAN ATTACHING OYSTER SHELLS TO DOCKS TO PROVIDE HABITATS THAT OYSTERS WILL COLONIZE

THIS TELLS ME IS THAT WHEN THE RIGHT MATERIALS ARE PRESENT, OYSTERS ARE GROWING, AND WHEN HEALTHY CLUSTERS OF OYSTERS TAKE HOLD, THAT PROVIDES BENEFITS FOR THE WATERWAY.”

ALBERTO “TICO” ARAN

Living Biking the Trail Page 32

THE OLD CUTLER BIKE TRAIL ALLOWS RIDERS TO ADMIRE THE BEAUTY – AND RECHARGE

Best Bets

FOR FEBRUARY

“A Tribute to Taylor Swift’’ Feb. 24, and one more “Tribute to Queen” Feb.25 in case you missed the first one. Purchase your tickets at feverup.com. Prices are $37-$57.

ACTORS’ PLAYHOUSE: ON YOUR FEET!

After being postponed, we can finally look forward to seeing “On Your Feet!” – the inspiring story of Gloria and Emilio Estefan, running at the Actors’ Playhouse from Feb. 9 to March 6. This original production about heart, heritage, and two people who believed in each other features iconic songs such as “Rhythm Is Gonna Get You” “Get on Your Feet” “Don’t Want to Lose You Now” and more. You’ll want to be “on your feet” for the entire show. Visit www.ctorsplayhouse.com for tickets. Prices are $85-$100.

FAIRCHILD: THE ART AND SCIENCE OF GROWING ORCHIDS

Begin – or perfect – your orchid growing skills at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in three class sessions taught by Dr. Sandy Schultz, an experienced orchid grower for over 30 years and former president of the Orchid Society of Coral Gables. You’ll learn the best growing locations, repotting techniques, how to mount orchids on landscapes, and more. The class will meet Thursdays, Feb.10, 17, and 24, 10:30am to 12:30pm. $100 for members and $120 for non-members. Visit fairchildgarden.org for more information.

FROST LIVE!

Frost Live has an exciting lineup of live music performances all month long. Some of these include “Celebrating Gary Kelly” by Frost Concert Jazz & Frost Studio Jazz Band on Feb. 8, “Strauss, Ravel, and Debussy” by Frost Symphony Orchestra on Feb. 12, a classical “Italian Valentine” on Feb. 14, “Doctoral Piano Jazz Recital” by Beau Cornelius on Feb. 18, and JACK Quartet on Feb 19. Check out the schedule and ticket prices at www.frost-music-live.miami.edu

CANDLELIGHT CONCERTS AT HOTEL COLONNADE

Experience candlelit classical tributes to your favorite modern artists at Hotel Colonnade. On Feb. 10, Listeso String Quartet will perform “A Tribute to Queen,” featuring the iconic band’s hit songs. For a unique, romantic date check out the “Valentine’s Day Special featuring Romero & Juliet” on Feb.13 and 14. They will also perform

Venture out to the Adrienne Arsht Center from Feb. 7 to Feb.27 for Area Stage Company’s production of “Be More Chill” – a sci-fi musical about an unpopular high school student who takes a pill to radically elevate his social status. Find out the consequences. Check out the detailed schedule of performances and purchase your tickets online at arshtcenter.org.

SOUTH MIAMI-DADE CULTURAL ARTS CENTER

Not in the Gables, but definitely worth the short trip. SMDCAC has an excellent variety of shows this month for you to enjoy. Some of these include “The Queen of Soul: A Tribute to Aretha Franklin Featuring Damien Sneed” on Feb. 5, the opera “The Elixir of Love” on Feb. 19 and 20, the dance performance “Pilobolus: Big Five-OH!” on Feb 26, musician “Kaki King: Modern Yesterdays” on Feb. 26, and musical performance “Collision of Rhythm” on Feb 27. Go to www.smdcac.org for information and tickets. ■

AREA STAGE COMPANY: “BE MORE CHILL” AT THE ADRIENNE ARSHT CENTER

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Coral Gables Farmers Market

Each year it reappears for 11 weeks then vanishes, like some sort of fruit fly with a short life span. So, take advantage now of the Coral Gables Farmers Market, which returned January 15 for its limited run. It’s located directly in front of City Hall at 405 Merrick Way, with three dozen vendors selling their goods.

While it’s called a Farmers Market, the fresh produce is limited to a couple of stands, albeit laden with fruits and veggies. It should be called “Artisans Market,” since most of the stands are selling things like cheeses, Italian ice, baked goods, spices, honey, flavored nuts, candles, acai bowls, and coffee. One stand even sells avocado toast, another bonsai plants and another calzones. Not that there is anything wrong with that. We had a great strawberry-flavored Italian ice, followed by an iced Vietnamese coffee. Necessary, because there is a lack of shade – so just be sure to bring hats and sunblock. But not to worry if you don’t; there are plenty of tables in between the vendor tents shaded with umbrellas to enjoy your tasty purchases. Saturdays until March 26, from 8am to 2pm.—Carmen

A Meet and Greet with “Feet”

It was postponed for two weeks thanks to the Omicron variant sweeping the nation, but ON YOUR FEET! is, well, back on its feet, and ready for its local premier Feb. 9. The musical, a hit on Broadway, is the rags-to-riches story of our very own Gloria and Emilio Estefan. The Actors’ Playhouse production (see Best Bets) will feature members of the original Broadway production, local professionals, and musicians from the original Miami Sound Machine. Pictured here is Gloria Estefan, who paid a surprise visit to the cast during rehearsals. She’s posing with Jason Canela and Claudia Yanez, who will star as Emilio and Gloria, in front of the Miracle Theater. She may have sold 100 million records, and with husband Emilio won 26 GRAMMY awards, but she’s still our hometown girl. ■

Fraga

A Little Night Music

We’ll probably never be a street-music-crazed city like New Orleans, but kudos to the downtown BID (Business Improvement District) for trying to get us just a little bit closer. Two years ago (pre-pandemic) the BID tried putting musicians on street corners. Just too random, with no place to sit and listen. Now comes the downtown “Encore!” music series on Thursday evenings at McBride Plaza, the grassy lot adjacent to Barnes and Noble (150 Miracle Mile). On the evenings of Feb 10 & 24, March 10 & 24, and April 7th, the music starts at 5:30 pm and goes ‘till 7:30 pm. The young musicians are all from UM’s Frost School of Music, and will play classical, jazz, or rock, depending on the night.

Photo by Alberto Romeu

Biking the Trail

A BIKE TRAIL TO ADMIRE THE BEAUTY AND RECHARGE

One of the great luxuries of living in The Gables (or the South Gables at least), is proximity to the Old Cutler Bike Trail. Even if you don’t live nearby, you can take your bike in your car, park at Cocoplum Circle and ride south, or park at the Matheson Hammock Nature Trail and ride north.

As a South Gables resident, biking this trail is a favorite part of my weekly routine. The experience of such abundant natural beauty -- Old Cutler’s shaded path with its luscious canopies – perfectly counterbalances the bustle of city life. Nothing clears the mind more than the wind in your face, the fragrance of tropical flowers, and a plethora of scenic views.

On my route due north, I detour for a pit stop into Mathe-

son Hammock Park, pedaling through its tunnel of mangroves to reach the vista of Biscayne Bay. Here you get ocean breezes, the sounds of rolling waves, and views of stunning homes in Gables Estates, sailboats off Coconut Grove, and the distant skyscrapers on Brickell. Continuing north on the trail, under oaks and ficus, you reach Ingraham Park, just across the Coral Gables Waterway from Cartagena Plaza – aka Cocoplum Circle – where you can rest in the shade of native trees. I usually make my way back south towards Fairchild Botanic Tropical Garden, but you can continue into Coconut Grove if you have the endurance. Either way, you’ll be recharged and ready for more. ■

– Carmen Fraga

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Bites Quick Bites Page 36

DELIVERING BOTH SPICE AND SWEETNESS, THE MANGO CURRY AT NAMASTE ON NAVARRE AVENUE

Quick Bites

Make it Spicy

If you are a fan of curry there is no better use of that Asian spice than the mango curry at Namaste on Navarre Avenue. While their menu has a wide selection of traditional Indian dishes, from Tandoori to Tikka to Biryani, the mango curry ($16) delivers both spice and sweetness in a dish appropriate for South Florida. Namaste (“I bow to you” in Sanskrit) is also the last Indian restaurant in the Gables; both Mint and Taste Buds of India closed last year.

Jawohl

Like Germany itself, Fritz & Franz Bierhaus on Merrick Way is not known for fine cuisine. What it is known for is their amazing selection of great German beer. But, yes, they do serve traditional German dishes, like chicken schnitzel, sauerkraut, and apple strudel. For our money, the thing to try is their currywurst, a popular fast food in Berlin – basically sausage with tomato curry sauce. Good for soaking up the suds. $14, with fries.

Fly Me to the Moon

Duck is a dish typically associated with French cuisine, perhaps Chinese. But nobody does it better than Moon Thai & Japanese restaurant on US1 across from UM. Their “Spring Break” duck ($23) is roasted and then fried to make it crispy. It’s served on a bed of vegetables (including pineapple) with a special house sauce. If you don’t want the whole bird, you can also order a smaller lunch special ($13).

Courtyard Feast

Of all the lunch specials available in the Gables, none beats those at La Taberna Giralda (on Giralda Avenue). For just $13, you get two courses, with a choice of two in each category. Every weekday is different, with excellent soup, fish, and meat dishes. We went on a Thursday and ordered the calamares fritos and the grilled salmon in light lemon sauce with crisp potatoes, which we consumed in their delightful courtyard.

A Salad with Substance

Hillstone on Miracle Mile needs no boost from us. It remains one of the only restaurants in The Gables where diners will actually line up outside to wait for a seat. One reason is their consistently good food, served in a tony setting with lots of cozy booths. One of our favorite dishes is their grilled chicken salad, with mixed greens, honey-lime vinaigrette, and peanut sauce. Pricey for a salad at $22, but oh so good. ■

FROM THE TOP: MANGO CURRY AT NAMASTE CURRYWURST AT FRITZ & FRANZ BIERHAUS DUCK AT MOON THAI & JAPANESE RESTAURANT SALMON AT LA TABERNA GIRALDA GRILLED CHICKEN SALAD AT HILLSTONE

Liquid Diet

A QUICK GUIDE TO JUICES IN THE GABLES

Health is in. Luckily, The City Beautiful keeps up with the trend, with an abundance of healthy lunch spots that include smoothies and juices. To help you find cool refreshment that comes with nutritional benefits, we compiled a survey of our favorite fresh, coldpressed juices around town.

GreenLife Organic Bistro

GreenLife has a small selection of cold pressed juices to compliment their breakfast and lunch menu. The juices come in a bottle to go, but you can enjoy them sitting outside on Giralda Plaza. We chose the Heart Beets juice, a bright pink mix of beets, granny smith apples, pineapple, and lime. We were skeptical about how beets would taste in a juice, but the pineapple and apple take over with a perfect combo of sweet and sour.

Dr. Smood

Want an upscale setting for your juice fix? Dr. Smood (271 Giralda Ave.) has a spacious seating area with booths and comfy armchairs. It also has a fridge stocked with freshly made juices, cold pressed each day to retain enzymes and vitamins. We went with Cold Press Juice No.9 described as “Love with a Kick” (lemon, lime, raw honey, ginger, turmeric, orange, oregano leaf, cayenne, and echinacea), a great morning kick-start for your metabolism.

Biltmore Hotel Juice Bar

Bet you didn’t know there was a juice bar at the Biltmore Hotel. It’s right by their fitness center, a small room with a chalkboard wall –and anything you need to pre-energize or re-energize before or after your workout. The menu is split between smoothie and juice options, all made fresh. We tried the Apple Ginger Juice (apples, ginger, lemon, and cinnamon), a go-to for anyone who loves sour flavors. Fairly priced, tasty, and good for you!

Raw Juce

Aside from acai bowls and smoothies, Raw Juce (112 Madruga Ave.) offers great organic cold pressed juices. A bit pricey, but they are also gluten free, GMO free, BPA free, and come pre-packaged. Our favorites are the thick, fruity, and sweet Green Protein (banana, pineapple, almond milk, cucumber, chard, spirulina, and protein) followed by chocolate milk-like ChocoLIT (cashews, almond milk, coconut nectar, cacao, and sea salt). Both delicious.

Banana Berry

A block west of Le Jeune at 305 Alcazar Ave., Banana Berry is a cozy lunch spot with wood paneling and plants, tables outside, and upbeat pop music. Here you can recharge with all-natural, fairly priced, made-on-the-spot juices. You can even make your own from scratch. We went with Sunrise in Miami (oranges, carrots, and ginger), feeling our energy levels rise as we sipped this tasty, tarte treat. Who needs caffeine? Although they do serve coffee…

Gables Juice Bar

Disguised as a pizza joint covered with vintage posters of classic rockers like The Beatles and Jimmy Hendrix, Gables Juice Bar & Muscle Pizza (230 Almeria Ave.) also has a freshly pressed juice menu. We went with the Lemonade with Ginger, made simply from lemon, ginger, and apples. Tasty and naturally sweet, but not too sweet. Although Gables Juice Bar is not currently allowing dine-in due to the Omicron variant, you can still order takeout. ■

FROM THE TOP: GREENLIFE ORGANIC BISTRO DR. SMOOD BILTMORE HOTEL JUICE BAR RAW JUCE

New Bites on the Block

THE CORAL GABLES CULINARY SCENE IS EVER CHANGING

GET ME TO THE GREEK

Anyone familiar with the erstwhile eatery The Local on Giralda Plaza will be pleasantly surprised to see that is has been transformed into Calista Greek Seafood Tavern, which is as bright and cheerful as a sunny day in the Aegean. Now just a month old, Calista is already a favorite; on a recent Saturday night we walked in at 7:30 pm and were informed that the wait time for an outside table would be an hour and a half. The reason: Seafood of all stripes, from sardines, scallops, shrimps, and mullets to the daily fresh fish on ice (grouper, dover sole, dorado, etc.). They also serve Greek classics, such as moussaka (a layered meat, eggplant, and fluffy potato dish), chicken kebabs, and spinach and feta phyllo pie. 150 Giralda Plaza. 786.310.7660.

A WORLD OF HAM

Okay, so ours is not their first location – that honor goes to Dadeland. But La Jamoteca is still a welcome addition to the Mile. While they carry other sundries from Spain (like aged Manchego cheese, anchovies, and sauce for potatoes “brava”), fine ham is the star here. As in a wall full of trophy ham legs, and three ham legs in braces behind the glass counter for slicing. And this is no ordinary ham. This is Fermín brand 100 percent Iberico grain- and acorn-fed ham. The jamón serrano, aged 24 months, is $4.95 an ounce; the jamón cebo de campo, at 36 months, is $7.28 an ounce; and the jamón de bellota, at 48 months, is $11.11 an ounce. They will slice it to-go with surgical precision or serve it in a sandwich of fresh Gallego bread for eating on the spot. 359 Miracle Mile, 786.360.4376

THE SWEET LIFE

The craze has already swept the state of California. Now The Gables has its own “bubble tea” shop – Say Tea & Smile. Proprietor Agustin Bertone, recently relocated from Argentina, says he wanted to “do something truly trendy. And I liked the style of life here.” The bright store, with felt-covered couch-and-chair seating at marble tabletops, serves a vast range of the teas which contain flavorful bubbles of things like passionfruit, blueberry, or tapioca (the current customer favorite). The bubbles pop in your mouth, and come in a huge array of emulsifications, from coffee milk to thai tea. Prices range from $5.50 to $7.25, depending on size and type. Be prepared for something sweet. 86 Miracle Mile, 305.960.7815

AND COMING SOON…

OPEN STAGE REDUX

The shuttered Open Stage on Galiano Street is slated to become the latest creation of local celebrity chef Michelle Bernstein. A reprise of her Sra. Martinez restaurant, which came and went in the Design District, this toothsome variation will have live music, in a nod to the former music-oriented Stage.

THE OPERA

The Opera Restaurant is getting ready to open at 101 Miracle Mile, in the former haunt of Burger Fi. Another Italian eatery in the Gables you say? Good luck.

LA PALOMINA

Meanwhile, replacing the ill-fated Seasy seafood restaurant at 136 Miracle Mile, La Palomina is getting ready to open. It will fill the shoes left by two Argentine restaurants on the Mile (both felled by the pandemic) with a focus on parrilla (iron-grill barbecue). ■

TOP: CALISTA GREEK SEAFOOD TAVERN MIDDLE: LA JAMOTECA BOTTOM: SAY TEA & SMILE

Weeknights at the B

After a brief hiatus due to COVID-19 restrictions and complications, Doc B’s Fresh Kitchen on the corner of Salzedo and Miracle Mile is again offering a weeknight happy hour with cocktail options and a calm atmosphere for drinkers looking to escape the work-day clamor. “We’re happy to be able to start offering this again for our neighborhood regulars and people who work and live in the area,” says spokesperson Lindsey Wuenker.While this new-wave American restaurant and bar may feel like a Gables mainstay, it’s a Chicago transplant that opened just a year before the pandemic began. Its leather booths, open kitchen and black-marble bar provide an atmosphere somewhere between classic American diner and high-end gastropub. With the return of it’s Tuesday-through-Friday 5-7 p.m. happy hour, Doc B’s offers

all beer, wine and spirits (those under $16) at half price. The well-rounded menu offers 15 white wines, 14 reds, a local rotation of tap beers, 10 brands of bottled beer and seven signature cocktails. Our drink of the night: their smooth and strong “Cherry Old Fashioned,” the classic bourbon cocktail with simple syrup, dashes of Angostura bitter, a slice of orange and, in this case, Traverse City American Cherry Whiskey. A Mad Men go-to.

The only caveat to happy hour at Doc B’s is that no snacks are discounted. You must make do with a starter, like their candied bacon with cayenne ($10) or their comfort food “Iron Skillet Mac and Cheese” with a gruyere crust ($16). If you stay for dinner, most entrees are under $30, making Doc B’s one of the more reasonably priced restaurants on the Mile. ■

—Parker Gimbel

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THE CHERRY OLD FASHIONED COCKTAIL

Days of Wine and Roses

THIS VALENTINE’S DAY, GO TRADITIONAL

As Cole Porter once wrote, “these days anything goes.” That may well be. Perhaps your soul mate would like something for Valentine’s Day like acting classes from Actors’ Playhouse, or energy cleansing from the Silver Dragon, or a spinal alignment from Snap Crack. Or even a fine smoke from the Galiano Cigar Room, or some soft PJs from Eberjay.

Maybe. But you can never go wrong by going traditional. To that end, here are the local go-to places for what traditionally wins her (or his) affections.

go for the top of the line at Belle Fleur (333 Alcazar Ave.) -- Russian-cut roses that are Paris or Explorer Red, from Ecuador. “Our clients love our roses,” says proprietor Mario Fernandez. At $125 to $150 a dozen, they had better!

CHOCOLATES

What could be sweeter, or more traditional, than a box of chocolates? At French bakery and café Chocolate Fashion (248 Andalusia Ave.), proprietor Persy Berger has spent more than 17 years perfecting the art of the chocolatier. The result, for V-Day, is an array of fabulous truffled chocolate bon-bons you can pick from to give your beloved in one of two gift boxes: A half dozen for $15 or a dozen to $29. Or, in the tradition of Marie Antoinette, you can go for a two-person chocolate cake ($38).

SCENTS

The scent of romance comes in two forms at Violetas Home Design (221 Miracle Mile) – perfume and candles. Their perfumes are a line from Paris called Parfums de Marly ($280-$320), each variation named for the King’s horses stabled (in those days) outside of Paris in the town of Marly. “The smell stays with you,” says owner Patricia Himmel. “Everyone who comes here smelled it on someone else and wanted it.” Or you can purchase a candle in a designer porcelain jar with a Fornasetti face on it ($215+), for something less effervescent.

WINE

Any sort of wine, especially a nice red, makes for a lovely libation during the V-Day. But some vinos are simply better – or more appropriate – than others. Local wine merchant Jeffrey Wolfe (Wolfe’s Wine Shoppe, 124 Miracle Mile) suggests stepping up your game with a bottle of Aubry Rose Brut Premier Cru (that’s rosé champagne for the uncultured). For $68, you can ply your date with “an understated, nuanced Champagne of tremendous appeal,” says Wolfe. More simply put, “It’s festive, with a beautiful color.” Drink on!

ROSES

Does anything melt hearts more effectively than a bouquet of roses? Yes – a bouquet of “Russian” cut roses, which means ones that are allowed to grow and grow, with long stems and oversized blooms. You can buy a dozen scruffy roses from the supermarket, or you can

JEWELRY

Diamonds are a girl’s best friend. So are rubies, emeralds, and gold rings, whether its Valentine’s or Groundhog Day. Of course, Valentine’s Day makes more sense, and if you are looking for all that glitters, The Gables is a cornucopia of jewelry shops, many here for decades. Our advice is to shop local, at places like Gables Gems, Jae’s Jewelers, Montica Jewelers, Moray’s Jewelers, Snow’s Jewelers, or Santayana Fine Jewelry Store. It’s hard to miss with such a selection. ■

Going Native

FOR OWNER ELENA STELE, EVERYTHING MUST BE HANDMADE BY INDIGENOUS ARTISANS

BY KIM RODRIGUEZ

The epiphany hit her in Mexico. It was during the early days of the pandemic, and Elena Stele had spirited her two children to Tulum for a month-long escape to a simpler life. There, in the former coastal Mayan enclave, she fell in love – not just with the rustic yet sophisticated design she found there, but with the way everything was being reused, recycled, and repurposed in creative ways. “Necessity is the mother of invention at its full force,” says Stele, as is the belief that we can create beautiful things while saving precious resources.

Upon returning to Miami, Stele hoped to find similar items here to buy for her home, but found nothing. That’s when the idea of Ben & Giules was born. “I instantly knew that I wanted to bring these unique handmade products home and make them accessible to other like-minded people,” she says. Starting with a store on Lincoln Road in Miami Beach, this past December she opened her second boutique in Coral Gables, a pop-up on Miracle Mile.

I was excited to visit this new addition to The Mile, simply because we don’t have another store quite like it in The City Beautiful. Ben & Giules, named after Stele’s two sons, is filled with handmade and sustainable home décor, apparel, and textiles all sourced from artisans around the globe.

Stele, of Ukrainian descent, grew up in Germany but has called Miami home for many years. She worked in corporate America but her first love was always design and architecture. So, a few years ago she decided to pursue her dream and attend UM for Interior Design. Not sure exactly how and where to

start in the field, she continued to work in her “day job” until the pandemic hit and she headed for the Yucatan.

When you walk into B&G you will feel like you’re in a small boutique on vacation. The scents are earthy, and the natural, organic feeling is tangible, from the hammocks hanging on the walls, to the macrame in the window, to the thatched lighting fixtures throughout. Stele has a designer’s eye not just for the pieces but how they are displayed. And everything in the store is made of recycled materials or reused thrift shop finds.

Stele loves to educate her customers (if they’re interested) on the unique pieces in her store, where they came from, and what their purchase means to the artisans and towns where they were made. At Ben & Giules, customers will find carefully curated artisanal, handmade, and sustainable home décor: textiles for bed covers and runners, pareos, napkins, hammocks, pottery, apparel, jewelry, and fabulous hats. All are made by hand around the world as well as locally. Her prices range from $8 for sage to $250 for a dress or bedspread.

“Our focus is to establish ourselves among existing businesses who cater to the environmentally conscious and holistic… mindfully creating sustainable habits to support the fight against climate change,” says Stele. “I believed that an expansion into Coral Gables was going be a welcoming contribution to Miracle Mile’s shopping diversity.” ■

Kim Rodriguez is a Personal Stylist and Shopper whose clients include many Coral Gables residents. Krpersonalstyle.com

BEN & GIULES OWNER ELENA STELE OPENED HER MAYAN INSPIRED STORE AFTER VISITING THE YUCATAN. SHE SAYS “I INSTANTLY KNEW THAT I WANTED TO BRING THESE UNIQUE HANDMADE PRODUCTS HOME AND MAKE THEM ACCESSIBLE TO OTHER LIKEMINDED PEOPLE.”

BEN & GIULES 290 MIRACLE MILE

WWW.BENANDGIULES.COM

IG @BEN_AND_GIULES

The Plant Lady Is In

VERANDA ON THE MILE IS A BREATH OF FRESH FLORA

Erica des Roches did not begin her career with the idea of becoming a plant vendor. She spent 15 years as a commercial real estate broker, and another 15 with a European fashion accessory company in New York. But somewhere under that professional skin lurked a lover of all things green. “I’ve always wanted to do this – work with plants,” she says. “They just make people happy.”

With an official launch in December, des Roches opened Veranda, a small, pleasant shop in the ‘breezeway’ that feeds off Miracle Mile just west of Ponce de Leon. “I looked around in different places and there wasn’t

any store here [in the Gables] like this, selling plants,” she says.

Now des Roches is on a mission, not only to make indoor plants affordable (hers start at $10), but to help them thrive.

“Everyone who walks in here says ‘I kill plants.’ I say, ‘You won’t now.’” Part of her service is plant counseling; you can hire her to “plant scape” your home. Or you can just send a photo of your ailing plant to her, and she will advise you on how to save it. The No. 1 mistake? “Overwatering is the biggest,” says the Netherlands native. Her next green gambit: teaching classes on how to create terrariums. ■

224 Miracle Mile 305.970.1808

Grades K-8

ERICA DES ROCHES WENT FROM REALTOR TO PLANT GURU, OPENING HER STORE VERANDA WITH PLANTS FROM JUST $10

Where the Wild Things Are

WANT EXOTIC MEATS? HEAD DOWN US 1

The first impression you get walking into Wild Fork on US 1 is somewhere between a science fiction movie and the city morgue. Inside one large room are rows of freezers, each with a glass cover that can be rolled back to inspect and remove what’s inside.

What’s inside are all things frozen solid. Mostly meats of every variety – chicken, pork, beef, turkey, etc. – along with frozen vegetables. Clarence Birdseye would be proud. He was the founder of the eponymous food company that espoused flash-freezing as a way to keep things fresh, a method he learned from the Inuits in Northern Canada.

Birdseye did not freeze meat, however, and that is the specialty here. But not only do

they offer frozen meat at competitive prices ($12.98 a pound for USDA prime beef!) they also offer slices of animals not found on the farm – starting with whole rabbits, bison, and venison (deer meat). But that’s just the beginning. How about ground wild boar, elk medallions, or alligator tenderloin? Our favorites (in terms of the bizarre) are the ground ostrich and ground yak. Many dietary pundits will tell you that wild animals, as opposed to those grown in captivity, are much healthier for you. So, we tried some ground elk for burgers. Not bad for a wild beast. And they will deliver for a annual fee of $29, so you won’t have to go hunting among the forest of freezers. ■

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Our beautiful 8+ acre luxury senior living community, minutes from the prestigious Palmetto Bay, Coral Gables, and Pinecrest neighborhoods, is conveniently located just west of US-1 on 152nd Street adjacent to Jackson South Medical Center. Here is the ultimate choice for luxury senior living in South Florida. Amenities within the community include concierge service, luxury salon, fitness and wellness center, art studio, performing arts theater, restaurant-style dining room, two pools, piano lounge and bar, plus much more. The Oasis at Coral Reef is soon to be the hottest address in town, like being on a vacation every day of the year.

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A Night of Enchanted Dining

THE MOST ROMANTIC RESTAURANTS IN THE GABLES

The Garden at Zucca

At Hotel St. Michel, Zucca’s outdoor “Garden” is straight out of a fairytale, with sparkling lights and hanging grape vines that make for romantic dining.

PHOTOS BY RODOLFO BENITEZ

What exactly makes for a romantic dinner date? Is it the ambiance, the quality of the food, the music, the attention of the wait staff? It is all these things, and more – a certain quality that makes the experience just a little bit magical. It’s the feeling that you have been whisked away to a distant place, captured in a kind of spell, enchanted by the moment – and the person you are with.

With these ideas in mind, we traversed the city in search of those select few restaurants that capture the intimate charm we call romance. If we missed your favorite romantic hideaway, a place that left you captivated, let us know. In the meantime, here are our picks for the best places to woo the woman or man of your dreams.

Fontana at the Biltmore

Entering the Biltmore with a date sets the stage for a romantic night; its main, second floor lobby is a study in grandeur from another time. But it is Fontana Restaurant, in the great open courtyard beyond, where the magic takes place. Here, you can sit outside at one of the tables that surrounds their grand Venetian fountain, with a view of the open sky above. Classical music – with an occasional Italian aria – completes the sensation that you are somewhere in Europe, certainly not in pedestrian America. They do seafood well, and homemade pasta, but the food takes a second place to an ambiance that bedazzles.

The Garden at Zucca

Zucca should have received an award for the best outdoor dining option to emerge from the pandemic. Already a romantic spot in the fabled Hotel St. Michel, the street-side “Garden at Zucca” is right out of a “Mid Summer Night’s Dream,” with sparkling lights and grape vines hanging from the rafters above. One almost expects a fairy to appear at any moment. And the food by Chef Manuel Garcia is light and delicious, from his citrusy salmon carpaccio to the restaurant’s signature zucchini flower stuffed with goat cheese, gently fried and drizzled with truffle honey. Maitre D’ Lorenzo Cassano is also a charming host who makes you feel even more special.

Redfish Grill

What could be more romantic than watching the sunset over Biscayne Bay, its last golden glow silhouetting the palm trees that line

Fontana at the Biltmore

Redfish Grill

Pascal’s on Ponce

the lagoon at Matheson Hammock Park? Not much. The Redfish Grill, now enhanced by the culinary wizardry of Chef Adrianne Calvo, was reopened in 2020 after years of being shuttered by Hurricane Irma. Its new iteration lost most of its old Bohemian vibe, trading that for an expanded footprint with an outdoor bar, lots more outdoor seating, and a stellar seafood-dominated menu by Chef Adrianne. Yes, it’s a bit pricey, but that only adds to the sense of it being a very exclusive evening, a special occasion.

Pascal’s on Ponce

If music be the food of love, then food must be the music of love. Pascal’s on Ponce has for two decades been one of the go-to romantic spots in the Gables, a favorite place to celebrate romantic anniversaries – or to start new ones. It is a small establishment, with handsome oil paintings hanging on Tuscan-orange walls, a warm ambience, and attentive service. But what makes this a shrine to winning your paramour’s heart is the haute French cuisine prepared by Chef Pascal Oudin. Each dish is a work of art, from his Dijondusted rack of lamb to his crispy duck confit. And nobody can create a chocolate soufflé like Oudin.

The Globe

The caveat here is that you must go to The Globe on a Saturday night. Yes, any night will provide their Euro-café experience which feels miles from the Gables, but on Saturday night they stage three sets of Afro-Cuban jazz. The Globe on that night will leave your date in awe of your street cred, as well as engendering an out-ofbody experience that only live jazz, amplified by a couple of martinis,

can provide. Are you in The Gables or in the West Village in New York City? If you define romance as a magical trip to somewhere far away, this is the spot – and the night – to go.

Honorable Mentions

These are not the only romantic spots to dine in The Gables, of course. Fiola, based on the power of its cuisine and its grand, upscale interior, is surely in the running. So is Fogato, shown above, if romance means finding a small, quiet spot off the beaten path where you can find an intimate corner to gaze into each other’s eyes. You can even argue that grabbing the right table at Books & Books, outside by their courtyard bar, has a romantic edge to it. In the end, romance lies in the eye – and in the tastebuds – of the beholder. ■

The Globe

Sweet Hotel Suites

With dinner behind you, if you’re looking to spice it up this Valentine’s Day – or just want to surprise your special someone with an extravagant experience – nothing quite says you’re worth it than splurging on a stay at one of the grand suites at your favorite Coral Gables hotel. Here’s a look at a few of the best.

Biltmore Hotel (1200 Anastasia Ave.)

The most awe-striking suite in the city is the Everglades Suite at the Biltmore Hotel, going for $2,500 to $5,500 a night. It’s a trip back in time to classic Mediterranean architecture and antique furnishing, romantic chandeliers, and an elegant fireplace. The only room on the 13th floor, it has two stories, high ceilings, and a bird’s eye view of the city.

On the first floor is the main bedroom with king-size bed. A vanity followed by a spacious bathroom is attached, all in marble with a sizeable bathtub and adjacent shower. In the living area you have two couches, a TV, a study area, a kitchenette, and a baby grand piano if the urge to play strikes. There’s a guest bedroom on the second floor, with its own bathroom and study area. You can book a couples massage at the spa, or sun yourself by Florida’s largest pool.

THE EVERGLADES SUITE AT THE BILTMORE HOTEL

Hyatt Regency Coral Gables (50 Alhambra Plaza)

Hyatt Regency Coral Gables is a popular destination for weddings with its grand Spanish architecture inspired by the Alhambra Palace. Its lobby is decorated with elegant chandeliers, the walls replete with photographs of Spain, and its stunning fountain courtyard is a beautiful place to sit and relax.

The Hyatt’s Presidential Suite is on the 14th floor, with a $700 to $1,000 per night price tag. The suite has two floors. The bed is on the second floor, with a balcony overlooking the living area. The upstairs bathroom is well-sized, decorated with marble tile and equipped with a tub on one side and a shower on the other. If you feel like going downstairs there’s a couch and armchairs for lounging, or you can sun bathe by the outdoor pool – or visit Bay 13 across the street for freshly brewed beers or Aussie pub bites.

Hotel Colonnade (180 Aragon Ave.)

The Hotel Colonnade radiates elegance, from its promenade of columns on Miracle Mile to its enormous 1920s rotunda. And on its 13th floor lies the Celebration Suite, where rates begin at $899 per night. Here, vast windows directly across from where you enter provide a splendid view of The Gables. White and black tile floors, combined with dark wood dining and coffee tables, create a crisp modern feel; brightly colored contemporary paintings add a touch of vibrancy. The suite has two floors. Downstairs, there’s a plush L-shaped couch and armchair as well as a half bathroom and kitchenette. Upstairs there’s a luscious king size bed, though the bathroom is a bit smaller than you’d expect for a suite, with the shower over the tub. If you leave the suite, there’s a 10th floor pool, a fitness center, and three restaurants in the building.

Hotel Saint Michel (162 Alcazar Ave.)

If you’re looking for a quiet, intimate Valentine’s getaway, this 28room boutique hotel is the place to go. Hotel Saint Michel, built in 1926, embodies the quaint charm of a Mediterranean Village rather than the feel of a luxury resort.

There are three Junior King Suites in the hotel, for $260 to $320 a night, and each possesses unique character, decorated with antique furniture and framed Victorian-era paintings. The impression is of a historically preserved room from the 1800s. Although it’s just one room, the suite is spacious and cozy at the same time, with a king bed to stretch out and an antique study desk should you feel the urge to get any work done. Despite the antiquity of the decor, the bathroom is newly renovated and ultra modern. And there is the perk that you’re just a short elevator ride away from Italian restaurant Zucca.

THesis Hotel (1350 S. Dixie Hwy)

We visited one of their King Suites (starting at $499 a night) of which the hotel has several. Each suite includes a kitchenette equipped with a full refrigerator, microwave, coffee machine, and dining table that fits six. The living area is separated from the kitchenette with a partition wall and is decorated with whimsical photographic art on the wall.

A major perk to staying at THesis are two restaurants spearheaded by award winning Chef Niven Patel - Orno for new American cuisine, and Mamey for haute Caribbean with South Asian and South Pacific overlays. THesis also has a rooftop pool, a spa, bike rentals, and events such as Saturday morning yoga classes and weekend markets featuring vendors, music, and drinks. You won’t need to leave the property to find plenty to do. ■

HYATT REGENCY

HOTEL SAINT MICHEL

HOTEL COLONNADE

Mark Peck + Vinny Pyle + Ryan Danoff + Helen Wozunk

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On the Waterfront

THE JOYS OF BOATING IN THE GABLES

BY MIKE CLARY PHOTOS BY RODOLFO BENITEZ

Growing up in South Florida, friends Susy Heiden and Annie Lackey each spent plenty of time on the water, sailing with family, on fishing trips with friends, or as guests on boats captained by others. But until they teamed up several months ago to buy a used 22-foot Seaswirl open fisherman, they had never owned a boat themselves.

“We’ve learned a lot, especially about all the things that can go wrong,” says Heiden, who, like Lackey, works a high-stress job in corporate information technology. “Every month it seems there is always something that has happened. But to get on the boat, go out there where it is so peaceful and beautiful, see a sunset, sip a glass of champagne – so rewarding, so worth it.”

Perched on Biscayne Bay, and ribboned with miles of the protected, navigable canals and the Coral Gables Waterway, the City Beautiful ranks as one of the most inviting places in the world to be a boater. During the past two years, with the nation in the grip of a global pandemic, many have come to appreciate the city’s 40 miles of waterfront even more.

“With COVID, the boat has been our savior,” says Gillian Gaggero, referring to the 26-foot Chaparral docked behind her house on the Gables Waterway. “While others were stuck in lockdown, we could go out, to Elliott Key, Boca Chica, or just cruise in the waterway. Isn’t that why we live here?”

In a time marked by isolation and social distancing, boating

“...to get on the boat, go out there where it is so peaceful and beautiful, see a sunset, sip a glass of champagne –so rewarding, so worth it.”

SUSY HEIDEN WITH ANNIE LACKEY (SHOWN OPPOSITE ON THEIR 22-FOOT SEASWIRL OPEN FISHERMAN THEY NAMED “SEABABY”)

MATHESON HAMMOCK MARINA

Failure to Launch?

Let’s say you don’t live on the Coral Gables Waterway, but you want to canoe or kayak its placid canals. Where to launch your boat?

There is only one city-designated entry for paddlers, just northwest of the Cocoplum Circle. The path to the water is a steep, gravelly and gullied incline, and, once on the coral rock bank, it can be a three-foot drop to the water. Not easy. Two parking spaces are marked with a sign reading “Reserved for Waterway access only.”

There are unofficial launch sites in Ruth Bryan Owen Waterway Park, on Granada Boulevard north of Bird Road, and another under the Metrorail at Riviera Drive (shown above). The latter, on county land, bristles with no parking signs, and requires driving over a sidewalk to get there.

According to its mission statement, the Waterway Advisory Board “shall seek to ensure that the waterways remain accessible for recreational use and enjoyment of all.” Says board member John Swain, “There’s a lot more the city can do. Improving accessibility is my mission.”

is booming. “It is part of a phenomenon I think hardly anyone saw coming,” says maritime attorney Michael Moore, Chairman Emeritas of the Gables-based International Seakeepers Society, which pairs yacht owners with scientists. “With COVID, people naturally look for sanctuaries and social distance, and there is no better way than boating with family, just getting out on the water.”

The demand for boats has manufacturers and brokers scrambling to keep up. “The market is on fire with people looking to get out and get away,” says Bill Cordes, vice president of sales for Invincible Boat Co., a builder of high-end watercraft based in Opa-Locka. The company’s entry-level vessel, a 33-foot center console open fisherman, is priced at $350,000. “When COVID first appeared, I would have bet on a huge downturn [in sales],” says Cordes, a former competitive water skier and tournament fisherman. “It has turned out to be the opposite. Demand is as strong as we’ve ever seen it.”

The variety of vessels that ply local waters range from paddleboards, canoes and dinghies to the 140-foot, $18 million superyacht Majesty, that comes with teak decks and a hot tub. All will be on display Feb. 16 through Feb. 20 at the Discover Boating Miami International Boat Show, held at the Miami Beach Convention Center and Pride Park, and at five area marinas.

Lifelong boater Larry Berryman, a vice president with Informa Markets, the producer of the boat show, says, “The pandemic has been terrible for health and safety, but the boating industry has benefitted tremendously from this re-energized opportunity. I have seen more boats out in the past two years than at any time in my life.”

Heiden and Lackey are often among those boaters. After a particularly taxing day in the office, they might meet up at the Seababy, docked in the Gables Waterway near THesis Hotel, and head out into the bay. Lackey says they can be anchored at a favorite sandbar near Stiltsville in 20 minutes, in time for the sunset.

THE CALL OF THE SEA

While the pandemic may be a factor in boating’s surge in popularity, the reasons for taking to the water are as varied as the fish in the sea. Ishmael, the narrator of Herman Melville’s Moby Dick, says, “Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever

ANNIE LACKEY WITH SUSY HEIDEN

RICHARD FORERO, WITH HIS WIFE LISI, ON THE WATERWAY AT EDGEWATER

“I can’t tell you how many amazing sunsets I’ve seen. But I want to see another.”

it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul…then, I account it high time to get to sea as soon as I can.”

It is not just whalers who respond to water’s allure. In “Blue Mind,” marine biologist Wallace J. Nichols suggests that being on or near water is restorative, an irresistible attraction that resides deep in our being. We are drawn to seafronts, riversides, beaches and lakes. We want to live near water, listen to it moving, be calmed by it.

Richard Forero, who travels widely as an international medical equipment salesman, recognizes the allure. Born and raised in The Gables, Forero bought his first boat right out of college, spending all the time he could fishing, snorkeling, and venturing out into the bay and the ocean. “I always wanted to go further out in the water,” he says.

Now, with his three sons grown, he and his wife Lisi are more apt to use their 28-foot Pursuit to meet up with friends on a sandbar or cruise down to Elliott Key “just to get away from the crowd.”

Eddie Snow, whose Snow’s Jewelers has been a Miracle Mile fixture for 48 years, is out with family and friends on his 53-ft Hatteras sport fisherman almost every weekend. “We cruise across the bay, drop anchor, swim, fish. We have a lot of fun,” says Snow. “I always say, we live in paradise; it rains and 15 minutes later sun’s out.”

Frank Fernandez Alfert is a veteran paddler, whose boat is a 17-foot sea kayak that he uses to explore the mangrove coasts south of Matheson Hammock Park. He eschews motors. “I can get into areas where motor boats can never get to,” he says. “I see lots of birds – egrets, blue herons – as well as spotted rays and jumping mullet. It is just wonderful to be directly connected to the environment and the water. And paddling is great exercise.”

THE CHALLENGE OF GETTING WET

Boating can, of course, be expensive. The maxim that a boat is a “hole in the water” to pour money into resonates with almost every boat owner. Registration fees, insurance, fuel, maintenance, and what can seem like endless repairs – all take a toll.

Dock space – if you can find it – is increasingly pricey. Matheson Hammock Park and Marina has 242 wet slips and 71 dry

Dock space: Pricey and hard to find

In Coral Gables, boats are plentiful. Dock space is not. Just 10 percent of Gables homeowners live on the water, enjoying the option of docking a vessel in the backyard. What do other boat owners do?

Some watercraft can be trailered and kept by the side or rear of the house. Some boaters rent space from Coral Gables Waterway residents who have an unused dock, although the city says that violates the zoning code. Some boat owners are lucky enough to have found a berth at nearby county or private marinas – such as the Matheson Hammock Marina here in the Gables, or Black Point Marina in Homestead, both of which have waiting lists of at least three years. Others join yacht clubs or rent waterfront apartments, like those on Edgewater, expressly to get dock space.

Attorney Darrell Payne, a Coral Gables resident, keeps his 31-foot Contender at the Coral Reef Yacht Club, in Coconut Grove, which he joined decades ago, in part to secure dock space. “Even then there was a waiting list of two and a half years,” he said. “It’s a strategy, but long-term.”

LISI AND RICHARD FORERO

storage spaces for boat trailers; Black Point Marina in Homestead has 185 wet slips and 37 dry storage spaces. But there is a waiting list of three to five years at both places, according to the county. The monthly fee for dock space at Matheson Hammock is $17 per foot, with a 30-foot minimum charge. That means the basic cost of keeping a boat there runs more than $6,000 a year. Private dock space typically costs more.

Many of those who live on the Gables Waterway have docks in their back yard. Juan Galan, Chico Goldsmith and John Swain all have boats tied up behind their homes, and all serve on the Waterway Advisory Board, a nine-member volunteer city panel that makes recommendations on keeping the canals healthy and accessible.

Swain recently urged the city to install a canoe and kayak launch in Ruth Bryan Owen Park, on Granada Boulevard just north of Bird Road. There is now only one designated canoe launch on the waterway, at Cocoplum Circle, although there is an oft-used unofficial site on county land under the Metrorail at Riviera Drive.

“I’m not a canoer myself, but the Waterway is a great, peaceful place to take a canoe or a kayak,” says Swain. “Everybody loves to be out on the Bay, but one of the most interesting trips you can take by water in the Gables is to go slowly up the waterway in a boat. The homes are picture postcards of the city’s history. There’s

even a little wildlife.”

Galan and Goldsmith both expressed concerns about pollution from nutrients and faulty septic tanks that end up in the waterway and the bay, as well as the number of novice boaters, often at the helm of powerful speedboats. “I’m a former Coast Guard officer,” said Galan, who began boating in Havana at the age of six. “I see on the waterway overloaded boats, unsafe practices, paddleboarders and kayakers without life vests.” Goldsmith, who has a 32-foot Contender, also worries about bigger, faster boats with inexperienced captains at the helm. “You should at least know what some of the rules are,” he says.

After buying their boat, Lackey and Heiden took an online safety course from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The course is required by law for all operators of a motorized boat born on or after Jan.1, 1988. “We didn’t have to take the course, but we took it out of a sense of responsibility,” said Lackey. “It gave us more confidence.”

For many, boating is a passion, a hobby that seeps into the blood. Forero says that when repair costs and other expenses mount, he has thoughts of getting rid of his boat. But those thoughts wash out with the tide. “Just to be on the water, anchor out, watch the sun go down, see the water meet the sky,” he says. “A good boating day is any day. I don’t care if it’s stormy, or if the sun is out. Nothing beats sitting on that boat. It’s fascinating. It’s relaxing. Mesmerizing.” ■

UP THE WATERWAY: JOHN SWAIN, A GABLES RESIDENT WHO SERVES ON THE WATERWAY ADVISORY BOARD

Donate Your Vessel. Receive Tax Bene f i ts. Support Ocean Conservation & Education.

Why Donate to SeaKeepers?

SeaKeepers pays commissions on donated vessels and will facilitate the yacht donation process from picking up the boat to preparing the donation paperwork. The vessel is accepted “as is, where is.” Donating your vessel will immediately eliminate your ownership costs and considerably reduce your income tax burden. SeaKeepers recommends that vessel owners considering making a donation first consult their tax advisor.

Vessel donations go towards scientific expeditions, citizen science, educational outreach events and community engagement.

For more information, visit seakeepers.org or contact us at donations@seakeepers.org.

Demystifing the Facelift

Q &A’s: Mini or What?

1. MINI FACE: For someone with early cheek skin relaxation but no neck concerns.

2. MINI NECK: For the patient whose mid face looks good but with early neck skin loosening and no need for muscle band tightening.

3. FACE PLUS MINI NECK: Addresses prominent cheek jowls and early neck skin relaxation but no muscle bands

4. NECK LIFT: For the patient with a saggy neck and visible muscle bands that need tightening. Usually part of the Face and Neck Lift.

5. FACE AND NECK LIFT: The gold standard and longest lasting results. For the patient with cheek jowls, neck sagging and muscle bands that need tightening. Restores tone to the cheek and neck muscles and removes all loose skin. You look yourself but refreshed and no longer tired. Skin looks young again.

What to Choose?

It depends on anatomical findings and a patient’s expectations.

Where are the scars?

Designed carefully around the ear to be imperceptible.

Is there a scar under the chin?

Only if the neck muscles deserve tightening which provides for the longest lasting and best neck result. One inch long and hidden.

What about anesthesia?

Everyone’s worry, yet it’s safer than driving in South Florida, Local numbing is always utilized to prevent pain. How much other anesthesia is used depends on the procedure, but most patients prefer to sleep and wake up when surgery is over.

Everyone’s worry, yet anesthesia is safer than driving in South Florida

How to get started?

Consult with an experienced plastic surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Face surgery isn’t easy, so do your research - it’s your face after all.

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HOME & GARDEN

What’s Hot for the Home

BY MALLORY EVANS JACOBSON

With the new year underway, it’s the perfect time to think about making some updates to your interiors. But you don’t have to embark on a major revamp to infuse your space with a fresh feel. This season, it’s all about neutrals in the home, and here are some pieces that we hope will inspire you to embrace soothing earthy tones.

PATTERN PLAY (TOP)

Crafted from white washed wood in a crisscross pattern resembling rattan, the Oana chandelier by Kichler Lighting would easily complement either a modern or coastal-inspired space. Retail: $795. Ferguson Bath, Kitchen & Lighting Gallery, 4119 Ponce de Leon Blvd., 305-507-6221, fergusonshowrooms.com.

RAISE THE BAR (RIGHT)

Artefacto’s Caixa Bar Pietra may feature a solid wood frame and marble handle, but the truly exciting elements lie behind the unit’s striking façade. This centerpiece from the brand’s 45th anniversary collection, designed in collaboration with the Brazilian architect and interior designer Patricia Anastassiadis, features a USB charger, an outlet, LED lighting, and a refrigerated drawer, ideal for prepping ingredients to mix up the perfect cocktail. Retail: from $20,000. Artefacto, 101 South Dixie Highway, 305-774-0004, artefacto.com.

TONY TABLE (OPPOSITE TOP)

Enveloped by woven gray leather, BoConcept’s Valencia side table conjures the quality and craftsmanship of a luxury handbag. Although it would make a statement in an entry-

37TH ANNUAL

way or living room, the table, which is available in two sizes, is also a perfect choice for the bedroom, as the top opens up to offer storage for cables, remotes, and anything else that you’d like to keep out of sight. Retail: $519 each. BoConcept, 342 San Lorenzo Ave. #1110, 305-350-1941, boconcept.com.

SOPHISTICATED SEAT (FAR RIGHT)

Inspired by the simplistic nature of 1940s Scandinavian design, Baker Furniture’s Hollywood occasional chair goes glam with soft pleated leather and brass legs. Arranged in pairs in a formal living room, or around a table in a dining area, this chair is sure to make an impact. Retail: $2,499. Fine-Line Furniture & Accessories, 4217 Ponce de Leon Blvd., 305-661-4414, finelinefurnitureandaccessories.com.

DREAM TEAM (BELOW)

Artfully envisioned to create depth and symmetry, the pieces in the esteemed American designer Thomas Pheasant’s collection for McGuire Furniture are truly evocative of sculptural elements. A particularly special offering, the featured Strand chaise would be an instant focal point. Retail: $12,458. Decor House Furniture, 4119 Ponce de Leon Blvd., 305-448-6200, decorhousefurniture.com.

A Fitting Place to Live

A HOME DESIGNED TO FIT ITS OCCUPANTS, AND ITS CITY

BY J.P. FABER

When Errez Design Studio got the commission to re-design the interior of a home on Catalonia Avenue, they approached it as they usually do, from a “biographical design” perspective. “When we design [a home interior], we identify the soul of the people who are going to live there and try to incorporate the things that bring that life,” says Ruben Guiterrez who, along with wife Katie, founded Errez Design in 2009. What that means is that rather than asking what sorts of design the clients like, they ask couples questions like: Where did you meet? What kinds of food do you

like? Where do you like to travel? “This couple love entertaining and wanted large family spaces,” says Ruben. “They also loved the Coral Gables Mediterranean look, and modern style as well.”

The outcome was a home fashioned to accommodate the biographical profile of a Coral Gables family of six that wanted a home which felt historical yet spacious, laced with modern elements. The home itself was being renovated and expanded with a new addition, which gave the Guiterrez team additional flexibility to mold the spaces inside. The results appear here. ■

FORMAL LIVING ROOM

“The living room was just the size of the vaulted ceiling; the old Coral Gables scale is a little tight,” explains Guiterrez. “So, we expanded it”— to the area beneath the flat ceiling to the right. They also replaced all the windows and doors with high impact glass framed by high impact vinyl, which does not expand, change color, or require maintenance. The furniture here and throughout the home was already owned by the family.

FAMILY ROOM

In order to the expand the home’s sense of space, Errez Design had the architects mimic the vaulted ceiling of the formal living room, only with greater height. They also kept this area open and connected to the kitchen, which also connects to the dining area. The modern chandelier overhead is from Circle Lighting in the Design District. Here, and throughout the house, the floors were newly engineered from European white oak.

Frost Opera Theater with The Frost Symphony Orchestra

Present the World Premiere of

The Leopard

Music by Michael Dellaira Libretto by J. D. McClatchy

Featuring Frost Opera Theater Students with Kim Josephson, Robynne Redmon, Frank Ragsdale, and Kevin Short

Don Fabrizio Corbera, Prince of Salina, and known as “The Leopard” for his commanding personality, is a member of an impoverished Sicilian aristocracy, soon to be obsolete. He reluctantly adjusts to the modern world to guarantee his family’s future –and in doing so, sacrifices the happiness of one of them. Based on the internationally acclaimed 1958 novel Il Gattopardo by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa (as was the award-winning 1963 film directed by Luchino Visconti).

March 5 and 6, 2022

South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center | 10950 SW 211 Street, Cutler Bay, Florida 33189

It is the policy of Miami-Dade County to comply with all of the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The facility is accessible and Assistive Listening Devices are available in the Main Stage Auditorium and the Black Box Theater space. To request materials in accessible format, and/or any accommodation to attend an event at the South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center, please contact Stephanie Aponte, 786-573-5314, saponte@miamidade.gov, at least five days in advance to initiate your request, TTY users may also call 711 (Florida Relay Service).

Tickets on sale now! smdcac.org

786-573-5300

Cameron Anderson Set Designer

Camilla Haith Costume Designer

John Cuff Lighting Designer

Rosa Mercedes Choreographer

Jeffrey Buchman Stage Director

Gerard Schwarz Conductor

Alan Johnson Music Director

“If we want things to stay as they are, things will have to change.”

KITCHEN

“The details of the kitchen are not standard” says Guiterrez. “The upper cabinets are tall and the [island] legs are chunky, with a three-inch marble slab. This was a large room, so this kept it in proportion.” The cabinets and island were designed by Errez using lacquered fiberboard so the surfaces would never warp. “The dark cabinets anchored the space, and contrasted with the walls, the ceiling, the floor and the airy feeling,” says Guiterrez. The chairs are aluminum framed with oak seats, the appliances Wolf and Sub Zero.

DINING AREA

The dining area, adjacent to the open kitchen, has an inlaid floor of hand-made tiles from Nicaragua (available through Granada Tile) “to give a Coral Gables flavor to the space,” says Guiterrez. The overhead chandelier from Circle Lighting is brass with glass beads and the vinyl framed glass doors can be opened on two sides.

BATHROOM

The bathroom was designed as a “wet room concept” says Guiterrez, meaning the shower and bath are placed inside a glassed in space, on a tile platform that drains. The Kohler tub is copper with brass fixtures, with navy blue tiles on the walls and a porcelain mosaic tile floor. The cabinetry, like the kitchen, was designed by Errez using black lacquered fiberboard so that the surfaces would not warp.

Evening Fragrances

PLANTS THAT RELEASE THEIR SCENT FOR THE NIGHT OWL

BY KENNETH SETZER

When the sun goes down and the moon rises, it’s not only the bats, racoons and opossums that come out. By some strange deal with mother nature, a slew of local flowers either bloom or release their fragrances at night. And what better way to enjoy the rewards of your garden toil after the sun sets?

Most of the following plants don’t bloom just at night, but their flowers smell more intensely after dark. One, however, opens only after dark, and can be called vespertine – a new word for your vocabulary – meaning active after dark. For the rest of them, just close your eyes and enjoy.

THE TAHITIAN GARDENIA (Gardenia taitensis) is a relatively small, bushy plant that isn’t actually native to Tahiti, but from further west, in Melanesia. It flowers in daylight, but fragrance increases at night, and the large white pinwheel flowers attract night-flying moths with their nectar. Gardenias don’t love our high pH alkaline soil, so if you notice foliage turning yellow, try a fertilizer for plants that like acidic soil, as per label directions.

FRANGIPANNI (Plumeria) are iconic of Hawaii, though the plant is native to Central and South America. Plumeria flowers are open during the day but are most fragrant at night – to lure sphinx moths to pollinate them. The poor moths are fooled, as Plumeria flowers provide no nectar. Nevertheless, the moths spread its pollen. Varieties include flowers of white, yellow, pink, red, and combinations of these. Plumeria prefers seasonally drier conditions, so don’t over-irrigate, especially before or while they are blooming.

ANGELS’ TRUMPETS (Brugmansia) are intensely fragrant at night. These aren’t strictly night-blooming, but often wilt come daytime heat. Brugmansia can be found in various shades of pink, yellow, peach, apricot, cream, and yellow, with flowers forming large, pendant trumpets.

LADY OF THE NIGHT are a member of the Brunfelsia species from tropical America. Two in particular—Brunfelsia americana and B.nitida—are both called Lady of the Night for good reason: their scent wafts with the pulses of evening warmth. The more familiar yesterday-today-tomorrow plant, Brunfelsia grandiflora, is in the same genus, and while providing evening scent is also more alkaline-soil tolerant.

NIGHT-BLOOMING JASMINE (Cestrum nocturnum) is not an actual jasmine. But its narrow, trumpet-shaped flowers tipped with star-like petals are known to perfume the night. Cestrum is also known as potentially invasive, but with such a gorgeous scent, we don’t mind that too much.

TOP: TAHITIAN GARDENIA

MIDDLE: FRANGIPANNI

BOTTOM: ANGELS’ TRUMPERS

OPPOSITE TOP: LADY OF THE NIGHT

OPPOSITE MIDDLE: NIGHT-BLOOMING JASMINE

OPPOSITE BOTTOM: DRAGONFRUIT

DRAGONFRUIT (Hylocereus undatus), aka pitaya, is a plant that blooms strictly at night. The flowers resemble fried eggs, with white petals and yellow center. They may not smell sweet, but are glorious and worth staying up late to see; by morning, they will be gone. This sprawling, climbing cactus needs a firm hand to stop it from taking over.

There are lots more plants that seem to come alive after dark. We have had to omit many, but we encourage you to research the topic when planning your garden, particularly in areas you may frequent in the magic hours after the sun goes down. ■

What Houses Can You Buy in the North Gables?

Residential real estate in Coral Gables continues to soar in value, with prices spiking and supply dwindling. Over the past year, the median value of homes in the city has risen from about $850,000 to nearly $1 million. The North Gables neighborhood, also

known as the historic Granada neighborhood, is about in the middle of the market, with a median price of $1.1 million. We asked two real estate agents to submit one of their listings for a home in the area.

Spanish Colonial 1042 SOROLLA AVE.

Listing Price

$2.59m

6 bed/3 bath/3,433 sq. ft.

Located in the historic district just north of Granada Golf Course, this 1926 house has a wood-burning fireplace, hand-cut Italian tiles and newly refinished wood floors. The main house has four bedrooms and two bathrooms; the guest house, two bedrooms and one bathroom, with a kitchenette. Upgraded kitchen and high impact windows and doors. Listing Agent: Judy Zeder (Coldwell Banker Realty), 305.613.5550.

Tickets on Sale Now!

FROST MUSIC LIVE CONCERT SERIES KICKS OFF 2022!

CLASSICAL

MONDAY, FEB. 14, 2022 7:30 PM

AN ITALIAN VALENTINE

Bettina Mussumeli, violin

Jodi Levitz, viola

Ross Harbaugh, cello Frost alumni and current students

Take your loved one on a romantic musical journey to Vivaldi’s Venice with Miami’s newest chamber ensemble –  I Solisti di Miami.

SATURDAY, FEB. 19, 7:30 PM

JACK QUARTET

Hailed by The New York Times as “our leading new music foursome!”

One of the most acclaimed, and respected groups performing contemporary classical music today.

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 7:30 PM

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 7:30 PM

MUSIC OF MASON BATES – FROST WIND ENSEMBLE

Robert Carnochan, conductor

Composer of the GRAMMY®-winning opera, The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, Mason Bates, named the most-performed composer of his generation is transforming how classical music is experienced through his symphonic music and its unique integration of electronic sounds. Bates’ Bootleggers Break makes its world premiere.

SATURDAY, MARCH 26, 7:30 PM

AMERICAN BRASS QUINTET

The New York Times says, “Positively breathtaking,” and Newsweek calls them, “The high priests of brass.” The American Brass Quintet is internationally recognized as one of the leading chamber ensembles of our time.

JAZZ

FROST CONCERT JAZZ BAND WIH TERRI LYNE CARRINGTON

John Daversa, director

Terri Lyne Carrington, guest drummer

“She is the personification of Black Girl Magic” — Associated Press

NEA Jazz Master and multi GRAMMY® winner drummer, producer, educator

Terri Lyne Carrington, who jazz icon Wayne Shorter calls “one of the finest drummers in the world,” joins forces with the Frost Concert Jazz Band, led by multi GRAMMY® winner John Daversa.

Pre-Registration & Purchase Required. All concerts take place at Gusman Hall on the University of Miami Campus (50% theatre capacity - following CDC Covid Guidelines. Masks Required Indoors.)

For a complete listing of all upcoming concerts www.FrostMusicLive.com

Mason Bates

I

Solisti di MIami

Jack Quartet

American Brass Qunitet

Terri Lyne Carrington

Beowolf Sheehan

John Watson

Matt Dine

Listing Price

$1.749m

Post War Modern

1116 CASTILE

AVE.

3 bed/2 bath/2,415 sq. ft.

The open floor plan, with beige marble floors throughout (including bedrooms and bathrooms) gives a light, open feeling to this 1956 house. Updated with top Miele appliances in the kitchen, wooden built-in bedroom closets, and bath fixtures by Grohe Germany and Kohler. Great location between Granada Golf Course and the Biltmore. Listing Agents: Libsen Rodriguez, 305.767.6506 and Ingo Viehweg, 305.342.9505 (BHHS/EWM Realty).

Success in a Unique Niche

CATALYST PHARMACEUTICALS IS A RARE BIRD IN THE GABLES

Working for decades as an investment banker in Coral Gables, Patrick J. McEnany never expected to start his own pharmaceutical company listed on Wall Street. But McEnany now leads Gables-based Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, a Nasdaq-traded venture that recently earned U.S. approval for a drug to treat a rare nerve-muscle disease. Catalyst now has sales topping $100 million a year and is licensing the drug in Japan. “Our strategy is to grow globally with this drug and to bring on other products to treat rare diseases,” says the CEO and longtime Gables resident.

McEnany’s path to entrepreneurship began accidentally in 1990. The investment bank where he worked had problems with a company it had backed, Miami Lakes-based Royce Laboratories. McEnany stepped in to run the troubled generic-drug maker. In seven years, he built up Royce’s sales to more than $100 million annually, then arranged the company’s sale.

By then, McEnany knew the pharmaceutical industry well, so he looked for new projects, and saw opportunity in treatments for rare diseases that affect small numbers of patients. In 2002, he and a partner founded Catalyst. First, they sought FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approval for a drug to treat patients addicted to cocaine and other stimulants. But clinical trials flubbed.

Next, they bought rights from a California firm, Biomarin, for a drug with potential to treat LEMS (Lambert-Eaton Myasthenic

Syndrome), a disorder that afflicts some 3,000 people nationwide, prompting tumors and fatigue, often misdiagnosed as lupus or multiple sclerosis.

In 2006, Catalyst sold stock to help fund clinical studies, legal fees and other expenses for regulatory approvals. In 2018, the FDA finally authorized the drug, Firdapse, to treat LEMS in adults. In 2021, Catalyst licensed Firdapse in Japan. Now, it’s working to sign other licensing deals and expand its drug portfolio. Prospects are so bright that Andrew Fein, a senior biotech analyst at H.C. Wainwright, suggests a “buy” on Catalyst stock. He says, “every step of the way they’ve delivered on what they said they would.”

For LEMS sufferers, Catalyst’s drug offers hope. But for U.S. insurers, it’s pricey: nearly $400,000 per year, per patient. Catalyst offers programs to give the drug free to patients with little or no insurance. Otherwise, insurers cover costs, with patients paying just $25 a year out-of-pocket, says McEnany.

High prices for drugs for rare diseases – up to $2 million per year per patient – have sparked debate, as Washington seeks to curb rising health care costs. But McEnany sees a “systemic issue” in the growing costs for universities, labs, lawyers and others in the tough process for FDA approvals. “I share your concern as a consumer,” he says. “But patients that have these rare diseases want a treatment, and that costs money.” He says Biomarin and Catalyst invested more than $100 million and over a decade to secure FDA approval for Firdapse. That authorization also faced a costly court challenge from a rival drug maker, which Catalyst won.

Based in a city little known for pharmaceuticals, McEnany faces hurdles recruiting talent. Catalyst employs some 35 people at 355 Alhambra Circle, plus 50 more nationwide. Fortunately, hiring is becoming easier in today’s Zoom era. Catalyst now allows even senior staff to work from home in New Jersey or other pharma hubs, and visit Coral Gables as needed. ■ - Doreen Hemlock

“OUR STRATEGY IS TO GROW GLOBALLY WITH THIS DRUG AND TO BRING ON OTHER PRODUCTS TO TREAT RARE DISEASES”

PATRICK J. MCENANY, CEO CATALYST PHARMACEUTICALS

KEEPING IT FRESH

NOW IN ITS SEVENTH YEAR, MESAMAR CONTINUES TO SERVE SPECTACULAR SEAFOOD

BY ANDREW GAYLE

Half the battle in bringing fine seafood to the table – some would say most of the battle – is the importance of freshness. Anyone who has caught and fileted a fish for dinner knows the difference between very fresh and less than very fresh.

At MesaMar, where seafood is the headliner, the catch sits on ice in the main “fish” room, flown in hours earlier from the Caribbean or driven by truck from the Florida Keys. When you order the house special – a whole fish that is half broiled and half fried – the waiter will first bring you the fish (preferably hog snapper) so that you can attest to its freshness (clue: clear eyes good, cloudy eyes bad).

Another new treat from Chef Molina’s arsenal is her gorgonzola and pear ravioli paired with bits of filet mignon, a perfect conflation of sweet, savory, sour, and salty. “We transmit emotions through food,” she says. “That is how I get inspired to make this food. Also, I like to eat.”

I haven’t seen a lot of opaque-eyed fish at MesaMar, mostly because its proprietor and head chef Lilia “Fifi” Molina is a terror when it comes to accepting only the most recently caught. She has been known to send back whole shipments and strike items from the menu rather than sully her seafood cred.

In the best-selling book “Kitchen Confidential” by famed chef Anthony Bourdain, his advice was to never order seafood on Mondays, since most restaurants get their last shipments on Friday. For MesaMar – which is coincidentally closed on Mondays – the shipments arrive Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, so nothing is ever more than a day old. Sometimes they will run out by late Sunday evening, with customers consuming 200 pounds on weekend nights, so nothing is held over.

That freshness alone is sufficient reason to visit MesaMar, especially if you order the whole-fish house special, which is served with a meat-stripped fish skeleton propped up like a dragon, broiled pieces on one side and grilled on the other. “Regular customers love the catch of the day, half and half, with fried rice on the side. That is the local’s favorite, with tostones,” says manager Antonio Acevedo. Fried rice and tostones? Yes, that is the unique flavor proposition of MesaMar, seafood with overlays of Asian and Latin flavors.

The Asian influence is evident in another customer favorite, the rock shrimp tempura, with a “secret sauce” that includes chili garlic, mayo, mushrooms, miso paste, and yuzu, a complex Japanese citrus juice that blends orange, lemon, and tangerine. It is an addictively delicious dish, crunchy, pungent, and sweet. Their fried rice is equally full of flavor, prepared from scratch each evening with high-quality ham, free-range organic chicken and, of course, fresh shrimp.

MesaMar also does wonders with lobster – in their case the spiny langosta from the Caribbean. Their Latin-influenced lobster tacos are lip-smacking tasty, as is their lobster ravioli with its Asian

ABOVE: HEAD CHEF LILIA “FIFI” MOLINA

THE LIBRARY ROOM AT MESA MAR

OPPOSITE CLOCKWISE: THE FISH ROOM DISPLAYS THE LATEST CATCH ON ICE. LOBSTER RAVIOLI WITH ASIAN INFUSED CREAM SAUCE. THE WHOLE-FISH HOUSE SPECIAL, A CUSTOMER FAVORITE. ROCK SHRIMP TEMPURA WITH HOMEMADE ‘SECRET SAUCE.’

infused cream sauce.

While much of the menu at MesaMar remains unchanged from before COVID shut them down for six months, there are some new items on the menu. One is a salmon sashimi, with yuzu juice, truffle oil, green onions, garlic chips, dry miso and orange infused whip cream. It’s more like a salmon carpaccio, with thin slices enhanced by a citrus infusion. Light, tasty, and refreshing on the palate.

Another new treat from Chef Molina’s arsenal is her gorgonzola and pear ravioli paired with bits of filet mignon, a perfect conflation of sweet, savory, sour, and salty. “We transmit emotions through food,” she says. “That is how I get inspired to make this food. Also, I like to eat.”

The interior of MesaMar is a pleasant experience, broken into three rooms. The largest, the “fish room,” is where the latest catch is displayed on ice. The “library room” has a wall of leather-bound books (most in Swedish, strangely enough), back lit in a way that makes the room glow. Finally there is the small “happy room” which has more book shelves plus a constellation of large silver stars on one wall. The waitstaff is agreeably friendly, premised on MesaMar’s philosophy that a happy relationship with customers is more important than professional formality. “It is very difficult to make 200 people happy on a Saturday night,” says Acevedo. But MesaMar manages pretty well at it, evidenced by customer seating that is now back to pre-COVID levels. ■

THE BEST RESTAURANTS

2022

BY NEIGHBORHOOD IN CORAL GABLES

Despite the ongoing pandemic (hopefully over its latest peak), the restaurant scence in Coral Gables is thriving. Maybe it’s because so many restaurants have outdoor seating, maybe because so many residents have been vaccinated. Regardless, Coral Gables legion of quality dining establishments are busy again. To help you choose a place to dine, we have taken a look at some of the best restaurants by neighborhood, north to south. Here are 55 of the best. We dine at all locations anonymously, and we list only the places where we love to eat.

$ ............ Under $25

$$ .......... $25-$40

$$$ ........ $35-$75

$$$$ ...... $70-$100+

Prices are per person for appetizer and entrée, no tax, tip or drinks. Prices are approximate.

ALHAMBRA & NORTH

Aromas del Peru

The shrine for ceviche, with a wide range of choices – 18 ceviches at last count – for great prices. Haute Peruvian appetizers and good fish dishes, right up to the whole fried snapper. And don’t miss the pisco sour soup. Comfortable leather seats, too. $$ 1930 Ponce de León Blvd. // 305.476.5886

Bachour

Maybe it was the lure of pastries by world-renowned chef Antonio Bachour, but this airy, industrial chic spot has become the new power breakfast place in town, with amazingly good eggs benedict and challah French toast. Also open for lunch and an early dinner, with great Greek salad and roast chicken breast. $$

2020 Salzedo St. 305.203.0552

Bay 13 Brewery and Kitchen

Australian pub food – salmon

Rangoon, chicken skewers, meat pies, fish & chips – is the cuisine, an outdoor fountain makes the setting spectacular, and the beer brewed on premises is unbeatable at this newest hot spot. $$

65 Alhambra Plaza. 786.452.0935

The Globe

The Globe is a Gables icon, and

one of the coolest places to eat in the city – assuming you like a smart, Euro-style bistro. Decorated with classic paintings (and globes over their old-world bar), the menu is mostly American dishes – salads, burgers, fish, steaks, etc. – perfected over the years. Best conch fritters. $$

377 Alhambra Circle

305.445.3555

Las Tapas Gables

Intimate setting in the space previously occupied by Mynt, Las Tapas is the newest entry in the category of fine Spanish cuisine. Fish flown in from the Atlantic and Mediterranean, with a special focus on dishes from Galicia in the northwest and Barcelona on the east, run by the consummate hand of chef/manager Florian Tomas. $$$-$$$$

276 Alhambra Circle.

305.381.0636

Namaste

Hidden on a side street off of Ponce, the last standing Indian restaurant in the Gables is small and humble (“namaste” means “I bow to you”) yet superb in its rendering of classic Indian dishes, from tandoris to biryanis. Our favorite is the mango curry chicken, followed by the chef’s special black pepper shrimp. $$

221 Navarre Ave. 786.534.2161

Zitz Sum

Brought to you by Chef Pablo Zitzmann of No Name Chinese fame, this “pop up” restaurant off the huge lobby of the 396 Building feels pretty solid. The result of a year-long pandemic dive into dim sum by Zitzmann, the dumplings (dinner only), hand-rolled daily, are superb. Other menu

items are highly inventive and flavorful. $$-$$$

396 Alhambra Circle. 786.409.6920

Zucca

Located at the elegant Hotel St. Michel, this is a star in the galaxy of Italian eateries in the Gables. Distinctly northern Italian, with recipes that chef Manuel Garcia developed in a career that included the legendary Casa Tua on Miami Beach. Lovely outdoor seating, modern Italian design inside, sophisticated, with great service.

$$$-$$$$

162 Alcazar Ave. 786.580.3731

GIRALDA PLAZA & AVENUE

Cebada Rooftop & Raw Bar

It’s hard to pigeonhole this new rooftop restaurant by Chef Jorge Ramos (fresh from his acclaimed Barley restaurant in Dadeland). He calls it “contemporary American with a Latin overlay” which means roast bone marrow with salsa verde and baby back ribs with pimiento marmalade. A good raw bar, a great view. $$-$$$

124 Giralda Ave. 786.409.2287

Clutch Burger

You may have to unhinge your jaw to take in some of their burgers, but they are the best. Most of the burgers hover close $20 because they’re made with quality Wagyu beef. The “Clutch” is the cheeseburger of the house, but our favorite is “My Boy Bleu.” They also specialize in craft beers brewed here in Miami. $$

146 Giralda Ave. 305.400.8242

Divino Ceviche

Divino Ceviche is known for, well, its ceviche. From dishes like

Ceviche Tradicional to Ceviche de Mercado to Ceviche Nikkei, there’s no shortage of the stuff. The restaurant also has notable non-ceviche dishes like octopus croquetas and a tasting of three different causas (layered potatoes with chiles, avocados, tuna, boiled eggs, onion). $$

160 Giralda Ave. 786.360.3775

Graziano’s

This large, popular Gables mainstay is true Argentine. A deep selection of Argentine wines (which line several walls) go with churrasco meats slowly roasted over a quebracho wood fire, old school style. They have seafood and pasta, empanadas and salads, but come here for the meat, a carnivore’s delight. $$$

394 Giralda Ave. 305.774.3599

Khaosan Road

Formerly Bangkok, Bangkok, this Giralda Plaza mainstay – with plenty of outdoor tables – has reinvented itself as the new home for Thai street food. Think you know Thai food? Be prepared for new and delicious tastes. $$ 157 Giralda Plaza 305.444.2397

La Taberna Giralda

Routinely rated among the top tapas places in South Florida, La Taberna brings the added twist of a chef from Galicia, who puts his own regional spin on the dishes. It’s a small place with a neighborhood vibe, orange walls, string lights and live flamenco on the weekends ($5 cover), so reservations are a must. $$

254 Giralda Avenue 786.362.5677

Luca Osteria

The latest place by local celebrity chef Giorgio Rapicavoli (the Eat-

MAMEY

ing House), Luca Osteria became an overnight, reservations-only hit for dinner on Giralda Plaza. His inventive take on classic Italian food is fresh and new; the Pasta al Limone and mortadella toast with fig balsamic are just the beginning. Great Italian cocktails. $$-$$$$ 116 Giralda Ave. 305.381.5097

MesaMar

Some of the best – if not THE best – seafood in the Gables with inventive fusions between Peruvian and Japanese cuisine. Their fish is caught daily in local waters and brought to your table for inspection. Their whole fried fish is a marvel. Also, make sure to try the lobster tacos. $$$ 264 Giralda Ave. 305.640.8448

Miss Saigon

Voted the best restaurant in Coral Gables a few years back by the readers of New Times, Miss Saigon serves the kind of vegetable-rich food that makes you feel light and clean afterwards. Excellent seafood choices, and any of their crispy rolls (spring, vegetarian, shrimp) make great starters. Also, good dumplings. But their clear, hearty soups – what they call Pho – are the big winners here. $$ 148 Giralda Ave. 305.446.8006.

Talavera Cocina Mexicana

High ceilings and ceramics make this a pleasant place to dine, but it’s the authentic fare that shines. The place for Mexicans homesick for cooking that’s not Tex-Mex. The chicken mole poblano is a winner at $20, and their huarache grill – masa flatbreads that are really haute tacos – are great at $17. $$

2299 Ponce de Leon Blvd. 305.444.2955

Threefold Café

You have to love a place that is dedicated to breakfast all day long. But who needs dinner when you can get shrimp tacos for breakfast, along with salmon scrambled eggs, chicken parma, and that Millenial favorite, smashed avocado toast?

The brain child of Australian Nick Sharp, Threefold is also popular for Sunday brunch – partly because of nice outdoor seating on Giralda Plaza. And the coffee is some of the best around. $$ 141 Giralda Ave. 305.704.8007

TUR Kitchen

This relative newcomer to the Gables has a wonderfully inventive menu of Mediterranean cuisine. Chef Christian Chirino plates beautiful dishes that combine the

flavors of Turkey, Greece, Lebanon, and Egypt. Amazing stuffed Turkish pide bread, stunning braised goat with gnocchi. Elegant seating under arches along Giralda. $$$-$$$$

259 Giralda Ave. 786.483.8014

CENTRAL DOWNTOWN

(Including Aragon, Miracle Mile and Andalusia)

Bellmónt

Modern décor meets traditional Spanish dishes. Their house specialty is the roast suckling pig. If you want the whole pig ($230 for 4) you need to order four hours in advance. If it’s just you ($49), you’ll need to wait just 50 minutes. As for the rest: authentic Spanish cuisine, with great seafood dishes, fantastic paella. $$$

339 Miracle Mile 786.502.4684

Bugatti

Based on Ponce for several decades, Bugatti prides itself on its pasta. And for good reason, since the restaurant started as a pasta factory. The décor is simple and contemporary, with a good number of booths, while the service is crisp and superb. The dinner menu is straightforward, with pasta dishes mostly under $20 and entrees mostly under $30. We especially like the fact that they have as many dessert listings (12) as pasta choices. $$

2504 Ponce de Leon Blvd. 305.441.2545

Bulla Gastrobar

As valued for its cocktails as for its tapas, Bulla is also something Coral Gables needs – an informal, smart neighborhood hangout with a young, boisterous vibe. Great “small plates” and refreshing sangria. Yes, it is a national chain, but it still feels local. $$

2500 Ponce de Leon Blvd. 305.441.0107

Caffe Abbracci

A Gables icon, Nino Pernetti’s Italian restaurant is both a power lunch favorite for the business elite and a cozy evening gathering place for families and couples. Closely shepherded by the welcoming Pernetti, Abbracci is quiet, elegant and flavorful. The food is so consistently good that Pernetti had to publish his own cookbook. He now has a new chef who hails from Tuscany, so the daily specials have a whole new spin. $$$ 318 Aragon Ave. 305.441.0700

Cheesecake Factory

We still don’t know how they can offer over 250 menu items, but there is something for everyone here, from Thai peanut lettuce wraps to chicken salad sandwiches on toasted white bread. Their cheesecake is still a calorie overload, but now balanced by their “SkinnyLicious” menu. Still, our favorite: Godiva chocolate cheesecake. $$ 2418 Ponce de Leon Blvd. 305.529.0703

Chocolate Fashion

The restaurant and bakery is a breakfast and lunch hotspot. Lunch is a steal with most sandwiches priced around $11 that come with a side salad and cornichons – those mini pickles the French are famous for. Although being in Miami they still serve cortaditos. Don’t forget the French pastries and desserts. $-$$ 248 Andalusia Ave. 305.461.3200

Christy’s

Touted as Coral Gables oldest steakhouse, Christy’s was long the power lunch go-to – until it stopped serving lunch except on Fridays. Still, its aged steaks are consistently excellent, as are the seafood entrees. Their classic Caesar salad is still the best in town, and the jumbo shrimp cocktail is a house specialty. $$$

3101 Ponce de Leon Blvd. 305.446.1400

Doc B’s Restaurant + Bar

Offering a no-veto menu, meaning there’s something for everyone, Doc B’s Restaurant + Bar serves craveable American fare dishes made from scratch daily, incorporating the highest quality ingredients. Offering brunch, lunch, dinner and happy hour, signature dishes include the Wok Out Bowls, The Wedge Burger and “Hot” Chicken. $$ 301 Miracle Mile 786.864.1220

Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse

Fantastic aged steaks, a seafood tower that won’t quit, and a wine cellar that appears to have no end of its depth. A place for special celebrations. Recently redecorated, but the open kitchen with its copper “sash” across the top still gives the main dining room a glow. Good menu at the bar. $$$-$$$$

2525 Ponce de Leon Blvd. 305.569.7995

Forte by Chef Adrianne

Chef Adrianne’s new restaurant, in the former Cibo Wine Bar space,

features her take on Italian food (the name comes from her Sicilian grandmother). One of the Gables’ star chefs, Adrianne punches up traditional dishes with some bold flavors. Best: Tuscan white bean soup, wagyu truffle-oil meatballs, spaghetti carbonara. $$$-$$$$

45 Miracle Mile. 305.517.6181

Fratellino

Small, family run, with a fanatically loyal fan base, brilliant Italian comfort food. The long narrow set up with tile floors, wooden chairs and tablecloths makes it feel like New York’s Little Italy. Their calamari, in any variation, is superb, and the fettuccine with prosciutto, mushrooms and green peas is to die for. $$$

264 Miracle Mile 786.452.0068

Frenchie’s Diner

It looks like an all-American diner (which it once was) but this is pure French cooking in a small but comfy setting. Frenchie himself is usually there. Some items on the menu can get pricey (filet mignon, $34) but the onion soup ($9) and escargots ($11) are great values, and the croque monsieur ($14) for lunch is a meal unto itself. $$$

2618 Galiano St. 305.442.4554

Fritz and Franz Bierhaus

Be transported from Coral Gables to Oktoberfest. Enjoy German comfort food like Weisswurst and Heringsschmaus. Naturally, you have to order a beer, but here you can have it served in a giant class boot. Proost. $$

60 Merrick Way 305.774.1883

Gustave

Launched by a couple of friends with a track record in Paris, Gustave’s a light-filled, lovely entry into the local French cuisine scene. With a good selection of baked goods, this is a Paris-style café with good coffee and solid fare. Good to know where you can get a croque monsieur for lunch and boeuf bourguignon for dinner

$$-$$$

366 Miracle Mile. 305.640.5675

Hillstone

There are very few restaurants in the Gables where clients will wait in a line outside. Hillstone is one of them. A power lunch spot, a happy hour singles anchor, and a family restaurant at night, the food and service are consistently top notch, with an elegant interior that is both comfortable and sophisticated at the same time. $$$

201 Miracle Mile 305.529.0141

DINING GUIDE

Izakaya

Located across the street from the Colonnade building, this tiny, bustling Japanese restaurant serves a great bento box – along with an impressive array of daily specials that are posted on the wall in chalk. Super popular lunch spot, for good reason. $$ 159 Aragon Ave. 305.445.2584

Malakor Thai Isaan

This eatery on Miracle Mile prides itself on delivering true, tasty Thai food. That means pork skewers with sticky rice, grilled fatty pork neck sliced and tossed with lime juice, or the Gang Aom, a Thai curry with fish sauce, dill and herb paste. $$ 90 Miracle Mile 786.558.4862

Morton’s The Steakhouse Morton’s in the Gables is not just another Morton’s. Its setting in the Colonnades gives it a unique elegance, with outdoor seating under the arches. Dependable quality, prime-aged beef, and excellent salads. Good place to take that important client. Great happy hour with filet mignon sandwiches or short rib tacos for $8. $$$ 2333 Ponce de Leon Blvd. 305.442.1662

Salumeria 104

Tratorria-style Salumeria is now two years old, with a loyal clientele, especially at lunchtime. Partly that is because the food and ambience is so authentically Northern Italian and rustic. It may also be thanks to their $10 lunch special of sandwich (with artisan cured meats) with soup or salad, always fresh and flavorful. Regardless of price or time of day, those sliced salumi meats are buono! $-$$ 117 Miracle Mile. 305.640.5547

Seasons 52

The restaurant for healthy eaters who enjoy quality as well. The menu, changing four times a year with each season, is always full of inventive treatments for fresh veggies, soups and salads. Their fish and meat dishes are great values, and the flatbread menu is really a nice touch. It’s a chain, but we forgive them. $$ 321 Miracle Mile 305.442.8552

Pascal’s on Ponce

Elegant, quaint and delicious, Pascal’s is the home and culinary canvas of owner-chef Pascal Oudin, who brings authentic French cuisine to the heart of the city. Oudin excels in seafood,

soufflés and foie gras. Try the diver sea scallops and tomato tartin. $$$-$$$$ 2611 Ponce de Leon Blvd. 305.444.2024

SHOPS AT MERRICK PARK

Brasserie Central

Secretly owned by Pascal’s on Ponce fame, the restaurant is half inside half in the courtyard of the Shops. A typical French bistro with wonderful onion soup, fresh bread and a superb paté. Everything on the menu is fresh, French, and all you would expect from Pascal. Lots of little French touches, though not cheap. $$ - $$$ Shops at Merrick Park 786.536.9388

Ecléctico

Brought to you by the folks at nearby Sawa restaurant, Eclectico is an open, airy Latin-fusion restaurant that serves “light” and inventive variations on Latin American small plates with a Mexican overlay – and a truly awesome selection of mescal and taquilla. A new and fun place for dinner. $$ 320 San Lorenzo Ave. 786.615.5735

Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille

Perry’s is a Texas chain that gets its beef from the heart of the Lone Star State. Great outdoor space with fire pit and a huge interior with its own lounge area piano bar. Excellent reduction sauces for the finer cuts and their famous five-finger giant pork chop that is carved at the table and can easily feed two. $$$$

4251 Salzedo St. (Shops at Merrick Park) 786.703.9094

Sawa

Delicious take on Japanese flavors served in parallel with Lebanese Mediterranean, Sawa offers seating inside or outside at Merrick Park. A vast selection of sushi rolls and tapas that range from chicken yakitori to octopus ceviche, along with super fresh Middle Eastern comfort food. World’s best lamb chops. Also has a doggy menu. $$$ 360 San Lorenzo Ave. (Shops at Merrick Park) 305.447.6555

Sea Grill

Sea Grill is a popular destination for lovers of Mediterranean seafood. A large, brightly lit and futuristic space with lots of energy, it serves fish that is caught in

the Aegean Sea and flown to the Gables. Their octopus, which takes two days to prepare, is simply the best. $$$

4250 Salzedo St. (Shops at Merrick Park) 305.447.3990

Villagio Ristorante

Surprisingly good prices in this cavernous restaurant with lots of outdoor seating. Even the dinner menu serves pasta entrees for less than $15, and the extensive selections of meat and fish mostly run in the mid to low twenties. Also, good soups (the fresh crabmeat is a delight) and – randomly enough – perhaps the best apple pie anywhere. $$ 358 Sand Lorenzo Ave.305.447.8144.

Yard House

A cavernous space with huge screens for sports fans, oversized paintings, classic rock in the background and large booths, all making for a comfortable space in which to pick and choose from an immense and reliable menu of American classics with Asian dishes interspersed. Literally something for everyone, lots of beer selections. $$

320 San Lorenzo Ave. 305.447.9273

SOUTH GABLES

Fiola

From the place settings to the artwork to the innovative cuisine, Fiola offers an exquisite dining experience. Brought to you by Washington, D.C. chef Fabio Trabocchi, their must-try dishes include the porcini mushroom soup, the sea scallops ceviche, and the signature lobster ravioli. Elegant presentations only add to this encounter with gustatory greatness. $$$$

1500 San Ignacio Ave. 305.912.2639

Fontana

The setting is as elegant as it comes: the Biltmore’s famed fountain courtyard. You can sit under the stars, in a covered archway, or inside to enjoy classic Italian dishes. Fresh ingredients, from the salads to the pasta that is made daily. Great octopus, pastas cooked perfectly. One of the most romantic restaurants in the Gables. $$$

1200 Anastasia Ave. (Biltmore Hotel) 305.913.3189

Gringo’s Oyster Bar

A great selection of oysters at this neighborhood favorite. And they change sources twice weekly, like

malpeques from Canada, or wellfleets from Main, or steamboats from Washington state. Also, great lobster rolls, crab cakes and conch ceviche. Specials include Lobster Tuesdays and an oyster happy hour from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. when prices drop in half.

1549 Sunset Dr. $$ 305.284.9989

Mamey

Chef Niven Patel, who is fast gaining a national reputation, hits it out of the park with this restaurant, heir to the creative Caribbean cuisine of Ortanique, but with its own unique and refreshing overlay of Polynesian, Thai and Indian gastronomy. If your taste buds seek a new adventure, this is the place. $$$

1350 S. Dixie Highway (Thēsis Hotel) 305.667.5611

Moon Thai & Japanese

Can’t decide between Japanese or Thai food? No problem. Here, you can have a Japanese house salad or miso soup as an appetizer and pad thai as an entrée. Truly the best of both worlds. Comfy booths inside and umbrella-covered outdoor tables. Across the street from UM’s campus. $ - $$

1118 S. Dixie Hwy. 305.668.9890

Orno

Located in the same building as Mamey (THesis Hotel), Orno is Chef Niven Patel’s latest creation, focusing on “New American” cuisine with a focus on farm-totable local produce. An eclectic menu lets Patel stretch his culinary imagination, using a wood-burning oven and a wood-burning grill. Be prepared for new and fascinating flavors. $$$

1350 S. Dixie Highway (Thēsis Hotel) 305.667.6766

Public Square

This popular re-configuration of the former Shula’s steakhouse still serves great steaks and burgers, but with lots of other options (seafood, pasta, sushi, salads) and plentiful outdoor seating on Red Road and San Ignacio Ave. $$$ 6915 Red Rd. 305.665.9661

Redfish by Chef Adrianne

The only waterfront restaurant in the Gables, Redfish was reborn last year after being closed for years from hurricane damage. With the addition of Chef Adrianne, the menu presents a stellar display of gourmet seafood. $$$$ 9610 Old Cutler Rd. 305.668.8788

The Club at The Biltmore offers multiple benefits, including Technogym® strength and cardio equipment, numerous weekly group classes, special savings on stays and spa services, world-class restaurants, and much more. Join today.

Membership: 305-913-3230 1200 Anastasia Ave. Coral Gables, FL 33134 www.biltmorehotel.com

Bringing Natural Smiles To

Coral Gables

There are very few dental practices with a hyper-focus on cosmetic and implant technology. Drs. Laura Davila and Cristina Osorio have an emphasis and specialization in Prosthodontics - i.e. Full Smile Restorative Dentistry (veneers & implants) with timely dental treatment. There are very few dental practices with a hyper-focus on cosmetic and implant technology. In addition to Prosthodontics, we perform all General and Family Dentistry. Coral Gables Dentistry believes in making their patients’ comfortable and o er complimentary nitrous gas sedation as an adjunct to treatment and hygiene visits. Their philosophy is to provide comprehensive dental care along with treatment options that cater to one’s specific needs. Identifying and addressing your unique desires is often the best way for patients and dentists to share a fulfilling relationship and meaningful outcomes.

Coral Gables on the Water

Sometimes we forget that Coral Gables is on the water – at least the long, southern tail of the city is, with some 40 miles of waterfront when you include the Coral Gables Waterway and the Venice-like canals

of Gables Estates, Gables by the Sea and Cocoplum. This photo depicts sunset at Matheson Hammock Park, overlooking the lagoon to Biscayne Bay beyond. Photo by Rodolfo Benitez.