This holiday season, event planners spent their money on entertainment and food at holiday parties, leaving a distinct lack of decor and design.
Holiday festivities began as early as November 30, when the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau held a gathering at the Falls, an upscale mall in Miami. They turned the center courtyard into a private reception area, using mall vendors such as COSI sandwiches, Mrs. Fields Cookies, and Los Ranchos Restaurant to provide food. Decor was scarce, but the networking was great.
More than 200 guests from nine organizations of the Meeting and Hospitality Industry Alliance of South Florida gathered at John U. Lloyd Park in Dania Beach on Thursday, December 2, to celebrate the holidays with the "Beaches of the World" special event.
Chaired by Stacy Stern of The Special Events Group, the party featured dozens of international entertainers, foods from several nations, nonstop music and dancing, and a variety of tropical decor, including an enormous sand castle. Guests also enjoyed beer, wine, and specialty beverages including fresh coconut juice right out of the shell. Partygoers even roasted marshmallows over a huge bonfire on the beach.
On December 7, the Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau teamed up for Holiday in Paradise at Nikki Beach. A fee of $10 or a new, unwrapped toy, to go to local charities, gave guests access to the beachside soiree. Lighting was kept to a minimum as each guest received lighted pendants in shapes like stars and martini glasses from H.S.A. Enterprises Inc., giving a colorful glow to the evening. Oria Alcantara from OMA Exchanges Inc. organized the holiday party, keeping guests entertained with a tarot reader, the Greater Miami Youth Symphony TeenStrings, a performance by the U.S. Marine Detachment Marine Color Guard, a fireworks display from Add Fire Inc., and a dance performance from Skindo Brazil Show. Dancers in skimpy, glittery costumes gyrated to the music while the male members of the company performed capoeira—a combination of martial arts and dance moves.
The Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce celebrated its eighth annual holiday party at the Biltmore on Thursday, December 9, with a "Taste of the Gables" theme. More than 25 restaurant and hospitality companies competed for best booth decor, best cuisine, and best dessert. Guests judged by sampling menus from places including Christy's, the Palm, Chispa, and Sofitel Miami. The outside terrace of the Country Club Ballroom served as an ideal place for guests to enjoy desserts such as chocolate mousse tarts, rich hot chocolate spiked with rum from Cacao, or bite-size tropical fruit-flavored cakes from Cake Designs by Edda. The savory dishes were certainly the focus of the evening, as only a few companies chose to decorate their stations with a holiday theme. The Coral Café Restaurant—located inside Coral Gables High School—made a mini-Christmas tree display out of jalapeno peppers, cherry tomatoes, and sprigs of fir and holly berries.
People aren't the only ones who benefit during the holiday season. The Humane Society of Greater Miami held a Howl-A-Day Bazaar & Presents for Pets event at the Miami Beach Golf Club on Friday, December 10. The golf club catered the casual buffet dinner with barbecue favorites like chicken and burgers, plus salads and desserts like bread pudding. Floral Times donated the centerpieces, which were filled with blue hydrangeas. The only decor was a Christmas tree bedecked with dog bones and pictures of the animals cared for by the Humane Society. Guests also strolled through a holiday shopping bazaar, to purchase handmade shawls, leather goods, and unique pet gifts by Petendipity.com for charity.
On Saturday, December 11, Tampa-based development company Taylor-Woodrow held its holiday bash in Orlando at the Royal Pacific Resort. The company spared no expense when it came to entertainment, hiring Evolution, a hard rock band that plays at Universal Studio's CityWalk, to perform and also to facilitate a raucous company-wide karaoke contest. Generous gifts were awarded to the three best acts. While ample buffet stations were placed round the room, the absence of centerpieces on the tables was distinctly noticeable. In the center of each table stood a flat, square piece of mirror, which looked almost as if the centerpiece had simply never arrived.
GL Homes' employee party at the Westin Diplomat on Thursday, December 16, had "An Evening of Illusion and Grandeur" as its theme. Sandie Cohen, president of Festivities, a special event production company in Davie, was hired by Itchko Ezratti, president of GL Homes, to transform the hotel's ballroom into an illuminated and interactive environment that looked more like a music video than a holiday bash. The tables were dressed in bright, nontraditional Christmas colors, and a myriad of lights surrounded the stage. Four aerial performers hung from the ceiling as guests entered the main dining room. A special performance by the Three Waiters, who were dressed as part of the staff, fooled guests until the singers stopped serving and broke out into a 25-minute show imitating the Three Tenors.
—Vanessa Goyanes and Shari Lynn Rothstein
Holiday festivities began as early as November 30, when the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau held a gathering at the Falls, an upscale mall in Miami. They turned the center courtyard into a private reception area, using mall vendors such as COSI sandwiches, Mrs. Fields Cookies, and Los Ranchos Restaurant to provide food. Decor was scarce, but the networking was great.
More than 200 guests from nine organizations of the Meeting and Hospitality Industry Alliance of South Florida gathered at John U. Lloyd Park in Dania Beach on Thursday, December 2, to celebrate the holidays with the "Beaches of the World" special event.
Chaired by Stacy Stern of The Special Events Group, the party featured dozens of international entertainers, foods from several nations, nonstop music and dancing, and a variety of tropical decor, including an enormous sand castle. Guests also enjoyed beer, wine, and specialty beverages including fresh coconut juice right out of the shell. Partygoers even roasted marshmallows over a huge bonfire on the beach.
On December 7, the Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau teamed up for Holiday in Paradise at Nikki Beach. A fee of $10 or a new, unwrapped toy, to go to local charities, gave guests access to the beachside soiree. Lighting was kept to a minimum as each guest received lighted pendants in shapes like stars and martini glasses from H.S.A. Enterprises Inc., giving a colorful glow to the evening. Oria Alcantara from OMA Exchanges Inc. organized the holiday party, keeping guests entertained with a tarot reader, the Greater Miami Youth Symphony TeenStrings, a performance by the U.S. Marine Detachment Marine Color Guard, a fireworks display from Add Fire Inc., and a dance performance from Skindo Brazil Show. Dancers in skimpy, glittery costumes gyrated to the music while the male members of the company performed capoeira—a combination of martial arts and dance moves.
The Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce celebrated its eighth annual holiday party at the Biltmore on Thursday, December 9, with a "Taste of the Gables" theme. More than 25 restaurant and hospitality companies competed for best booth decor, best cuisine, and best dessert. Guests judged by sampling menus from places including Christy's, the Palm, Chispa, and Sofitel Miami. The outside terrace of the Country Club Ballroom served as an ideal place for guests to enjoy desserts such as chocolate mousse tarts, rich hot chocolate spiked with rum from Cacao, or bite-size tropical fruit-flavored cakes from Cake Designs by Edda. The savory dishes were certainly the focus of the evening, as only a few companies chose to decorate their stations with a holiday theme. The Coral Café Restaurant—located inside Coral Gables High School—made a mini-Christmas tree display out of jalapeno peppers, cherry tomatoes, and sprigs of fir and holly berries.
People aren't the only ones who benefit during the holiday season. The Humane Society of Greater Miami held a Howl-A-Day Bazaar & Presents for Pets event at the Miami Beach Golf Club on Friday, December 10. The golf club catered the casual buffet dinner with barbecue favorites like chicken and burgers, plus salads and desserts like bread pudding. Floral Times donated the centerpieces, which were filled with blue hydrangeas. The only decor was a Christmas tree bedecked with dog bones and pictures of the animals cared for by the Humane Society. Guests also strolled through a holiday shopping bazaar, to purchase handmade shawls, leather goods, and unique pet gifts by Petendipity.com for charity.
On Saturday, December 11, Tampa-based development company Taylor-Woodrow held its holiday bash in Orlando at the Royal Pacific Resort. The company spared no expense when it came to entertainment, hiring Evolution, a hard rock band that plays at Universal Studio's CityWalk, to perform and also to facilitate a raucous company-wide karaoke contest. Generous gifts were awarded to the three best acts. While ample buffet stations were placed round the room, the absence of centerpieces on the tables was distinctly noticeable. In the center of each table stood a flat, square piece of mirror, which looked almost as if the centerpiece had simply never arrived.
GL Homes' employee party at the Westin Diplomat on Thursday, December 16, had "An Evening of Illusion and Grandeur" as its theme. Sandie Cohen, president of Festivities, a special event production company in Davie, was hired by Itchko Ezratti, president of GL Homes, to transform the hotel's ballroom into an illuminated and interactive environment that looked more like a music video than a holiday bash. The tables were dressed in bright, nontraditional Christmas colors, and a myriad of lights surrounded the stage. Four aerial performers hung from the ceiling as guests entered the main dining room. A special performance by the Three Waiters, who were dressed as part of the staff, fooled guests until the singers stopped serving and broke out into a 25-minute show imitating the Three Tenors.
—Vanessa Goyanes and Shari Lynn Rothstein
Skindo Brazil Show performed capoeira for the crowd at the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau and Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce holiday soiree at Nikki Beach.
Chispa was one of the few restaurants at the Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce holiday party at the Biltmore that decorated its table with festive holiday decor.
Schakolad made a sweet New Year's treat—a wine champagne bottle and glasses out of chocolate for the Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce party.
For GL Homes' Christmas party, one of the ballrooms at the Westin was transformed with bright colors and cool lighting effects.
