ON THE TABLE
ALL IN THE FAMILY Harris Rosen draws inspiration from generations past to create some of Florida’s finest restaurants.
FAMILY CONNECTIONS and memories run through the restaurants of the hotels owned by Harris Rosen. There is a story behind every name—which he would be glad to tell you—and a family member recalled in every place. The most apparent dedication is at Jack’s Place at Rosen Plaza. To walk into the hotel’s signature restaurant and see the hundreds of autographed caricatures made by Rosen’s father during 30 years of working in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York is breathtaking. The restaurant combines his passion for food (“I love to eat,” he says) and a showcase for Jack Rosen’s unique caricature style. Harris’ childhood experience of watching his father make rapid-fire sketches (when he was not making his rounds as a safety engineer) inspired him to enter the hotel business himself. Young Harris took up the artistic passion, going to an arts high school, and he still possesses sketches and paintings made when he was 10. Tucked inside Rosen Centre is Sam & Bubbe’s, named for Rosen’s maternal grandparents, Samuel Rosenhaus, an Austrian barrel maker and his wife Rose, affectionately called “Bubbe” (grandmother). The lobby bar can be found adjacent to Harry’s Poolside Bar & Grill, named not for the famous hot spot in Venice, but for Rosen’s other grandfather, restaurant owner Harry Rosenofsky, from Belarus. The 24-hour Red’s Deli at Rosen Centre (there is a deli in every Rosen Hotel) is in honor of Harris Rosen’s mother, Lee, who his
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Cala Bella presentation bar. dad called “Red.” Rosen’s passion for food and hospitality even passed down to his children, who have attended the University of Central Florida Rosen College of Hospitality Management (which he funded), the country’s largest program of its kind. 18 Monroe Street Market at Rosen Shingle Creek comes out of Harris Rosen’s childhood address book; it is where he grew up in New York’s Bowery district. Surrounded by his family, it is no wonder Harris Rosen feels so connected to his hotels and is so welcoming to guests.
