With a weekend-long celebration, Nikki Beach officially turned ten years old at the end of January. The festive two-day event included an extensive dinner and huge blow-out bash on the beach on Saturday night and a much smaller brunch the next afternoon. Several celebrities came out to celebrate, as well.
"No expense was spared," admitted Shirin Kooros, Nikki's associate director of international marketing. "Nikki Beach is a Miami institution and we wanted the 10-year anniversary to convey that it is still the most luxurious and sought-after beach destination."
Saturday's festivities began as 250 invitees dined on four courses and a dessert—each prepared by a different Nikki Beach international chef—at the facility's Pearl Restaurant & Champagne Lounge. Chef Tommy Nyugen of Hollywood's Satine Restaurant & Grill handled the first course: a mix of sesame poached wild king salmon with Serrano, pickled grated galangal, and crunchy salmon skin; and jumbo lump crab and brandade croquettes with grainy mustard dynamite sauce. The second course was created by Nikki Beach St. Tropez, Cannes, and St. Barth's chef Emmanuel Guillemet, who made a pan-seared breast of duck with braised endive and fresh mission figs. From there, chef Brian Molloy of Nikki Beach Marbella, Puerto Vallarta, and Portugal took over, making a pan-roasted Mediterranean sea bass and roasted vegetable medley, sun-dried tomato, and goat cheese basil potato puree. Chef Timothy Hughes of Nikki Beach Miami, New York, and Hollywood served a braised kobe short rib with lobster potato tower and black truffle for the fourth course. Finally, a dessert presentation and Piper Heidsieck vintage champagne rare, put together by chef Catherine Baselice of Nikki Beach Miami, New York, and Hollywood, satisfied guests' appetites.
Guests were thrilled by a fireworks display on the beach roughly two hours after they had begun eating. There, business picked up as 2,000 more guests joined the once-elite party to commemorate the occasion. Nikki Beach owners Jack and Lucia Penrod hosted celebrities ranging from Cuba Gooding Jr., Sofia Vergara, Brooke Hogan, and Star Jones Reynolds, to Chris Noth, "A-Rod" Alex Rodriguez, and Miami Heat center Alonzo Mourning's wife, Tracy Mourning. Even 1980's pop idol and current Broadway star Deborah Gibson was there with her man Ricky Paull Goldin. At midnight, she and a sax player took the stage to sing a version of "Happy Birthday to You" to Nikki Beach. As she performed, a huge tent cake—representative of the logo and type of decor at the facility—was brought out. Guests, most of whom were dressed in white and gold, began shaking their booties.
Gift bags distributed to all the dinner attendees included: a sample pack of 10Cane Rum, a cupcake from Stella's Sweet Shoppe, a hat from RCRS (Related Cervera), the latest copy of Nikki Style magazine, an array of makeup from Urban Decay, a satin gift bag from Sephora with product samples, products from Simply Organic, the 10th anniversary book on Nikki properties from around the world, volume two of the Nikki Music CD, and finally, a Nikki Beach T-shirt.
"Luxury and jet-setting style is what Nikki Beach is all about, and this event was no exception," added Kooros.
After guests went home, they didn't stay there for very long, because from noon to 4 PM the next day, the party continued with a Nikki Beach brunch.
—Albert del Toral
Photos: Gustavo Caballero of Getty Images Photo Assignments
