Deals in South Beach?

[jim07044]

I'm planning a trip to South Beach in March '09 for my 40th birthday, but I am holding back for any possible deals on hotel, air, and restaurants for that timeframe. I am reading about some Miami restaurants that are seeing a drop in revenue, but then others that report they are up (the uber wealthy keep spending, it seems). What can I expect for March '09 ... do the ultra wealthy really keep all the high-end hotels and restaurants busy, or is there room for negotiation and discounts? I'm thinking about staying at the Raleigh and dining at places like Prime 112.

[robyn]

March is still high season in south Florida. You are more likely to get deals in shoulder or low season. And who knows what will be going on with the economy 6 months from now? Certainly not me. Robyn

[jim07044]

It seems much of the action has moved over to the downtown design district. I will only be on the beach for three days and two nights and prefer to find dining within walking distance of the south beach area. What new restaurants are worthy of a visit? I see OLA just received a Golden Spoon award, 8 oz Burger and Meat Market got good reviews, and Loftin's 1116 Ocean gets you access into the Versace home. How are older places, such as Prime One Twelve (ate there in '05), Barton G (ate there in '05), Blue Door (ate there in '05), Nemo, and Sushi Samba (ate there in '05) doing? I've never been to Big Pink and feel as though I should. I think I also saw a good review for the bar food at The Setai. Any suggestions?

[drosendorf]

It seems much of the action has moved over to the downtown design district. I will only be on the beach for three days and two nights and prefer to find dining within walking distance of the south beach area. What new restaurants are worthy of a visit? I see OLA just received a Golden Spoon award, 8 oz Burger and Meat Market got good reviews, and Loftin's 1116 Ocean gets you access into the Versace home. How are older places, such as Prime One Twelve (ate there in '05), Barton G (ate there in '05), Blue Door (ate there in '05), Nemo, and Sushi Samba (ate there in '05) doing? I've never been to Big Pink and feel as though I should. I think I also saw a good review for the bar food at The Setai. Any suggestions?

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Just to clarify, the Design District is not downtown Miami. It's actually about 30 blocks north.

Best place on South Beach IMO, hands down, is Talula. Husband-wife chef team (Andrea Curto and Frank Randazzo), both well-established individually before opening the restaurant together. Many of the dishes have some creative ingredient pairings (I really enjoyed the scallops w/ curried cashews, bacon-corn emulsion & root beer gastrique), while Frank does great steaks (some say the Tomahawk Chop is the best steak on the Beach). For higher end dining, this is my one "don't miss" in South Beach.

http://www.talulaonline.com/

Sardinia is also very good, Italian but with a focus on Sardinian regional foods. Lots of dishes with seafood, fregola, roasted meats, also very good selection of antipasti.

For somewhat lower budget, I like the Dutch-Indonesian food at Indomania.

http://www.indomaniarestaurant.com

Of the places you've mentioned -

OLA - haven't been since they've been in the new location. Thought it was excellent when I used to go a couple years ago to a prior location on Biscayne Blvd., but it seemed like something got lost when they moved to the beach. But I haven't been in some time.

8 Oz Burger Bar - very new, haven't tried yet. Early reports seem to be that it has promise but is not quite firing on all cylinders yet.

Meat Market - only been once, somewhat hit-or-miss but overall pretty good.

Loftin's - haven't been. The location is special.

P112 - never been. No desire. Even those who like it say the steaks are nothing special, though they like the sides.

Barton G - much more about the presentation than the food. Went once, will not go back.

Blue Door - haven't been.

Nemo - has been treading water for years since Chef Michael Schwartz left. Has gone through a couple chefs since then but they haven't really updated the menu. Most recent chef, Larry Lavalley, is a former chef de cuisine for Mark Militello and I liked his food at the now-closed Mark's South Beach, but from what I've read, his hands remain tied and the menu still hasn't changed. Coasting on reputation these days.

Sushi Samba - I've always been underwhelmed by the quality of the sushi, particularly compared to the price. Have never tried much of the Brazilian fusion menu.

Big Pink - mediocre. Sometimes good for breakfast but quality is very hit-or-miss.

Setai - there are two restaurants at the Setai, the "Restaurant" and the "Grill". The Restaurant has a very interesting, very pricy menu that traverses much of the far east. <s>The Grill has a simple, almost steak-house style menu with a focus on simple, high-quality ingredients, and also pretty pricy though I think they have a nice $55 prix fixe dinner with several different choices</s>. Strike that, according to the website, which I just checked, the Grill is available for private events, must be closed. I've long been curious about the Setai but have never been.

[jim07044]

I'll throw out a few more places I found:

Plat Bleu at the Delano

Sandwich-Wise

Maison D'Azure at the Astor

Hed Kandi Lounge (features molecular gastro menu)

Apple Restaurant & Lounge (Miami outpost of Los Angeles restaurant)

BLT Steak at the Betsy

If anyone has been, please post your review/thoughts.

BTW: I'm from Jersey, home of Italian restaurants, so the last thing I want on vacation is more Italian food!

[drosendorf]

I'll throw out a few more places I found:

Plat Bleu at the Delano

Sandwich-Wise

Maison D'Azure at the Astor

Hed Kandi Lounge (features molecular gastro menu)

Apple Restaurant & Lounge (Miami outpost of Los Angeles restaurant)

BLT Steak at the Betsy

If anyone has been, please post your review/thoughts.

BTW: I'm from Jersey, home of Italian restaurants, so the last thing I want on vacation is more Italian food!

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Of the places you've mentioned, I've only been to Maison d'Azur and that was at the prior location at the Angler's Resort before they moved to the Astor Hotel. The concept is a seafood brasserie, French style with a fish & seafood focus. I thought it was pretty good, somewhat expensive for what it was, with some hits and some misses. The location at the Angler's was pretty nice, particularly the outdoor seating, but the Astor has always been a nice space too.

I'm not sure that either Apple or BLT Steak are open yet. Also not entirely sure that Hed Kandi is a real sit-down dinner type place, more of a lounge that has some food.

[robyn]

I'll throw out a few more places I found:

Plat Bleu at the Delano

Sandwich-Wise

Maison D'Azure at the Astor

Hed Kandi Lounge (features molecular gastro menu)

Apple Restaurant & Lounge (Miami outpost of Los Angeles restaurant)

BLT Steak at the Betsy

If anyone has been, please post your review/thoughts.

BTW: I'm from Jersey, home of Italian restaurants, so the last thing I want on vacation is more Italian food!

←

There is actually a rather excellent (albeit pricey) Italian restaurant on Miami Beach - Casa Tua (at least it was excellent the couple of times we dined there - last time was about 2-3 years ago). It is a cut or two or three above the average South Beach restaurant - and no offense - more than a couple of cuts above the average strip shopping center Italian restaurant you'll find in New Jersey and elsewhere. Closest thing to a meal in Italy that I have found in the US. Robyn

[Steve R.]

I"m going to add a loud second for Talula. We were in South Beach a couple of weeks ago and wound up eating there twice, as it was that good. It's a very quick cab ride from the center of South Beach or a nice 20 minute walk. Either way, well worth it.