posted
I'll be there next week from Monday to Thursday. I believe I recall that a jatraquero(sp?) or two may live in the area, and if anyone wants to get dinner and drinks, that'd be super cool. This could be my big chance to be realized!
And, if anyone knows of cool stuff to do in the area other than meet fellow forum fodder, I would be very interested in hearing that too.
Posts: 2596 | Registered: Jan 2006
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I'm exceedingly busy these few weeks with a special project; working from 7am to 10pm pretty much.
What to do... well it depends what you like to do. Of course, I'm no expect in what to do as a tourist; I've lived here 30 years and I don't know what "cool stuff" there is. That or the "cool stuff" isn't for me.Posts: 3486 | Registered: Sep 2002
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Oh, I dunno, anything from funky decor restaurants or bars and hole-in-the-wall dives with can't miss indigenous food stuffs to hidden nooks of nature or beaches with more attractively topless ladies per sq. inch. Maybe a walking tour of colorful doors or interesting stained glass windows. Hotels where famous people killed their adulterous lovers, galleries with rare original art, foyer's with antique cast molding. Cool is a state of mind. And apparently a pretty lame one when it comes to me.
Sorry to hear you'll be busy though, maybe next time.
Posts: 2596 | Registered: Jan 2006
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quote:...beaches with more attractively topless ladies per sq. inch. Maybe a walking tour of colorful doors or interesting stained glass windows. Hotels where famous people killed their adulterous lovers, galleries with rare original art, foyer's with antique cast molding...
Well, that covers about twenty square blocks of southern Miami Beach.
You mention stuff that I know is around here, but I've never done. As stated, I don't see this place as a tourist.
It depends how mobile you are. Miami is not a "walkable" town; everything to do is too far apart. Sure, you can walk from South Beach to Lincoln Road, but when you're done with that you're stuck on an island and the mainland's literally a mile away. If you have a car there's lots of options; if not, stick to South Beach.
As far as indigenous cuisine, here "indigenous" pretty much means "not South Beach." You leave the touristy areas and there's a Cuban/Mexican/Colombian/etc... hole in the wall restaurant every hundred yards.
It also depends on your budget. I could recommend Joes Stone Crabs (which I consider required viewing for any tourist, and it's in the aforementioned southern Miami Beach area), The Chart House, the Rusty Pelican or Casa Juancho (my personal favorite), but they're not for the economy eaters. And South Beach is not a bastion of economy, either; I've paid five dollars for a Coke there once (sometimes you *really* need one).
Whenever I ask people what there's two do in Miami, I usually get one of two answers:
- Drive four hours north to Disney World. - Drive four hours south to Key West.
Sorry I can't be that much help. I'm sure there are numerous online resources you can see as a tourist.
Posts: 3486 | Registered: Sep 2002
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Yeah, I don't trust tourist sites too much, 'cause all they do is tell you which businesses have enough money to place advertisements, or which need adverts to garnish business.
Good restaurant recomendations, I will use them.
I think I'm staying in South Beach, so I'll probably stick around there. Money's not a problem for meals at least. Business expenses and whatnot.
Edit:
quote:You leave the touristy areas and there's a Cuban/Mexican/Colombian/etc... hole in the wall restaurant every hundred yards.
Any particular one you recomend? Living in Houston I love going to taquerias, and would enjoy the opportunity to check out Miami's offering.
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Joes Stone Crabs is pretty much at the southern end of Miami Beach. If you go, be ready to make yourself comfortable while you wait for a table, and I'm not sure if they take phone reservations still.
I was only able to get decent, quick seating because I was one of the people that created their website.
Let me put it this way: the doorman at Joes drives a Porsche. He makes a better living than I do from the greasing he gets from celebrities nad big shots at the door.
Celebrities abound at Joes, and there's usually a semi-sealed off room (glass door) in the back where they go but, if that's too crowded, they'll just sit amongst the "commoners".
I "met" Shaq at Joes once. He used the urinal next to me. We're both standing there, and he's two feet taller than I am.
"Your Shaquille O'neal, aren't you?"
"Yeah."
And that was the end of the conversation. What more is there to say or do standing at a urinal?
Posts: 3486 | Registered: Sep 2002
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Latin American Cafeteria is pretty decent for Cuban food; so is Las Delicias. Neither is on South Beach, of course. I don't know of a good Cuban restaurant on the beach.
Posts: 13680 | Registered: Mar 2002
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I'll probably try to cab somewhere that has good local food. How are the cabs in Miami? Hard to get? Likely to lie about fares? Legal to hail from the curb?
Thanks for the tips guys, I'll try to check out the restaurants you suggested.
This isn't terribly relevant, but I'm pretty excited, and want to share. The reason I'm going to Miami is for the Event Solution Idea Factory convention. I've never been on a business trip, or to an industry convention, so this is gonna be all new for me. I worked for a while at a convention hotel, so I know it from that side, and am excited to see it as an attendee.
My boss is paying for all the meals and stuff, so I'm a little worried about staying as cheap as possible, but I still want to have fun, and he said I didn't have to live like a popper while I'm there, so I dunno. I'm also gonna leave the office entirely in his hands the whole time, so he may be going through all my stuff, which isn't bad in and of itself. The problem is that he may end up ruining a system I have in place (my organization systems are precarious at best), but I can't really tell him not to do it. He is the boss after all.
Man, I am hyped. It better be a blast, or I'll knock some event planner heads over there in Miami.
Posts: 2596 | Registered: Jan 2006
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When I am traveling for my company and not the government where I get a flat per diem, I usually go cheap, cheap, decent to nice on the meals. I'll grab the continental breakfast or McD's sausage biscuit for breakfast and a burger joint or inexpensive restaurant for lunch. Then I go out to a nice dinner. This is where I like to find the local flavor. Usually if you keep the total around $60/day people will not complain. Of course I don't know about your boss, but from my experience, that is a good target number.
Posts: 1766 | Registered: Feb 2006
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Okay, cool. That is definitely good to keep in mind. If I cheap it up for the beginning of the day, I can spend a little more for dinner.
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Cabs in Miami don't just drive around town like in New York, picking up people who raise their hand. They might be available in specific areas (airport, specifically, and some of the higher end hotels), but otherwise you can't just hail one; you usually have to call one and wait.
Posts: 3486 | Registered: Sep 2002
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Cafe Tu Tu Tango was pretty cool. Basically a menu of appetizers, artistic Bohemian atmosphere. Really yummy and unique. It is by Coconut Grove/ Key Biscane area.
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