This year saw the opening of many significant event and meeting venues in Miami/South Florida. Here's a look at the best restaurants, party rooms, hotels, corporate event venues, conference centers, and private rooms to open in 2014. These new and renovated Miami/South Florida venues suit groups large or small for private and corporate events, business dinners, cocktail parties, conferences, weddings, and more.
The luxury beachfront hotel Thompson Miami Beach from Commune Hotels & Resorts opened in November. The 380-room hotel has 47,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space tailored for groups looking for stylish, out-of-the-box gatherings—think theater-style setups using sofas instead of rows of chairs. A unique space is the 1930s House, a 1,700-square-foot cottage in the property's backyard that serves light bites and cocktails inside and on its two terraces. Another highlight is chef Michelle Bernstein's Seagrape restaurant, which seats 267.
One of the hottest hotel openings was the Miami Beach Edition, a new hotel brand from legendary boutique hotelier Ian Schrager. A part of Marriott International, the property is only the third Edition to open globally and the first in the United States. Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten opened a pan-Latin restaurant, Matador Room, at the hotel and offers indoor and outdoor dining. For events, there is a dedicated entrance to the largest space, which measures 8,300 square feet and holds 550 guests for banquets or 920 theater-style. Three meeting studios on the fourth floor are ideal for small events and can be combined to hold 120 guests for banquets or 136 guests theater-style. A 2,400-square-foot landscaped terrace overlooking the Atlantic Ocean holds 240 guests for receptions, and a 2,000-square-foot penthouse also is available for events.
The 7,100-square-foot rooftop venue Touché Rooftop Lounge & Restaurant opened in downtown Miami in April, offering 360-degree views of the skyline. The concept is from chef Carla Pellegrino of Top Chef fame and includes a 50-seat indoor dining room with an open kitchen as well as a 225-seat outdoor lounge with a waterfall wall, fire pits, and a communal table and bar. The space is set up to accommodate DJs and live music and has audiovisual equipment including LED screens.
After becoming part of the Trump Hotel Collection in 2012, Trump National Doral Miami embarked on a $250 million gut renovation, reopening in October. The property built its reputation as a golf resort—it has five courses, all renovated, as well as an expanded driving range with lighting—but it also has significant meeting space. The property has 100,000 square feet of indoor function space as well as 75,000 square feet of outdoor space. The Donald J. Trump Grand Ballroom is the largest space at 24,079 square feet and holds 3,400 theater-style, 2,400 for receptions, or 1,700 for banquets. It also includes new event space such as the Crystal Ballroom and Terrace, which were built atop the resort clubhouse. The circular 7,200-square-foot ballroom features floor-to-ceiling windows and attaches to the 8,000-square-foot terrace. Used together, the space holds nearly 1,000 people. Restaurant options at the resort include the newly opened BLT Prime steak house.
In North Palm Beach County, the 179-room Wyndham Grand Jupiter at Harbourside Place opened in October. The Wyndham Grand brand is an upper-tier segment of the company, and the Jupiter property offers elegant decor and views of the Intracoastal Waterway. The hotel has 15,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting and event space, including a 5,000-square-foot ballroom that seats 400 for banquets or holds 490 for receptions. A rooftop pool area on the third floor also can be used for events. The hotel is the anchor to the Harbourside Place retail and dining development, which includes an amphitheater that planners can use in conjunction with the hotel. There also are 31 boat slips for guests who prefer to arrive by boat.
E11even, a 24-hour nightclub and adult cabaret, debuted in February in downtown Miami. The 20,000-square-foot club offers a variety of performances—think contortionists, runway models, and acrobats—on multiple stages. The $40 million venue also includes audiovisual features such as more than 600 square feet of LED video walls, a Funktion One sound system, and a 13-foot retractable pole. It opened in February and holds 600 people for receptions. There is also a V.I.P. entrance and private rooms that hold 20 people each.
The signature restaurant at the newly renovated Shelborne Wyndham Grand South Beach is Morimoto South Beach from chef Masaharu Morimoto. The 180-seat restaurant was designed by the Glamorous Group of Tokyo and features a central sushi bar, warm decor, and 180 seats spread both indoors and outdoors. The menu includes playful dishes like a yellowtail pastrami appetizer, along with sushi, steaks, and a omakase chef's tasting menu. The restaurant opened in September.
New York City's Lure Fishbar opened a Miami outpost at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel. Opened in December, the seafood restaurant is designed in a stylish nautical theme meant to evoke the Queen Mary (its private dining room displays a replica of the famed ocean liner). The restaurant offers ocean views as well as a terrace and patio with their own bars. For private events, Lure seats 20 people in the main dining room or 28 in the wine vault. Buyouts are available for seated events of as many as 200 guests or receptions for 300 guests.
Siena Tavern, a new Italian restaurant from Top Chef favorite Fabio Viviani, opened in November in Miami Beach. The restaurant offers full buyouts for 420 seated guests or 600 for receptions or partial buyouts of its main bar, terrace, and a private dining room that seats 50 and has a private bar. Viviani's hospitality partner, DineAmic Group, also offers catering. The 10,000-square-foot space formerly housed the China Grill.
The Korean barbecue restaurant Drunken Dragon debuted in South Beach in June. Designed by Los Angeles-based Studio Collective Design, the space features several seating options from banquettes to tables with embedded grills where guests can roast their own food. For groups, one option is a communal table made from a 300-pound slab of reclaimed Douglas fir that is suspended from the ceiling. Other design elements include dim lighting, walls covered with heavy rope, and provocative photos of Japanese bondage. The restaurant seats 74 in the dining room as well as 12 at the bar.
