Weekend In Miami: An Overview

by Willy Volk on

Due to the anti-chronological nature of blog posts, we wanted to provide an easy way to go back and review the various locations Gadling visited. To that end, we created an interactive map of the weekend. Clicking on any of the blue placemarks or the blue shaded areas will take you to the blog post that discusses it.

Alternatively, here’s a chronological presentation of the weekend:

If you have any ideas for hot-spots Gadling overlooked, please let us know!

Weekend In Miami: Next Weekend

by Willy Volk on

Before embarking on this Miami trip, I spent a lot of time doing pre-departure research, deciding what I wanted to do and see, and even plotting the best way to get to destinations. Some travelers may think I over-planned the trip, but without some planning, there was no way I was going to see everything I wanted to. If you’re curious, here’s how I scheduled our weekend, Saturday on the left, Sunday on the right:

Yes, those are removable stickies, which make rescheduling easy. No, I didn’t get to everything I wanted.

By the way… a special thanks to my accommodating wife for letting me drag her around Miami all weekend. And for the record: she claims she had a great time and was fine with our hectic schedule.

Now that we know so much about Miami, we can’t wait to get back. So what are we going to do? As you might imagine, I’ve got the whole weekend planned out already…

We’re going to head up on a Thursday afternoon, and check into one of these hotels:

On Thursday night, we’ll grab dinner at Tap Tap and then head to the funky Pawn Shop Lounge. (Our waiter at Afterglo claimed this was the best night to go.)

On Friday, we’ll have breakfast at the (oceanfront) Front Porch Cafe. Then, we’ll head to Kampong and explore the beautiful gardens (appointments required!). We’ll grab lunch at Scotty’s Landing (overlooking the water), and swing by M-80 for some edgy, hipster clothes. We’ll relax on the beach for a while, and head to the Delano Poolside Bar for late afternoon cocktails (mmm… mojitos). After dinner at Madiba’s, we’ll have a few drinks at Ted’s Hideaway (hope it isn’t too smoky), and then catch some live music at either the Slak Lounge or Jazid. Sleep.

On Saturday, we’ll wake up and go on a Stiltsville & Key Biscayne Boat Tour. (If the tour isn’t running that day, we’ll either do some (free) Yoga in the Park, or go sea kayaking around Key Biscayne.) We’ll grab a late, healthy lunch at Pasha’s, and then take a nap on the beach — or in the room, if we’ve already spent too much time in the hot, Miami sun. We’ll play dinner by ear (See? I don’t plan everything!), and then head to Aqua Booty, for a relatively laid-back club scene. (If we’re just too tired, then maybe we’ll catch a Ghosts of Miami City Cemetery Night Walking Tour.)

On Sunday, we’ll have brunch at the chilled-out Ice Box Cafe, swing by either the World Erotic Art Museum or the Flying Trapeze School, and then buzz by Romanico’s Chocolate as we head out of town — so we have a small treat back home to remember our weekend by.

Now, let’s see… What have I forgotten…

Weekend In Miami: Jimbo’s Place

by Willy Volk on

After leaving the lighthouse at Bill Bagg Park, we traveled north — back through the Village of Key Biscayne, back through Crandon Park, and off the island. Before hitting mainland Miami, we approached a small key on our right. This is Virginia Key, a wonderfully underdeveloped barrier island that boasts several nice beaches. However, we weren’t interested in seeing the beaches. We were interested in seeing Jimbo.

Jimbo’s Place isn’t really a bar, but you can get cold drinks there.

Jimbo’s isn’t really a restaurant, either, though you can get smoked fish there. (That’s what the sign on that wall says… trust me.)


Jimbo’s isn’t really a music venue, but you can hear live music there.

However, Jimbo’s is among the best bar/ restaurant/ music venues around.

Be warned that if you’re high maintenance, you might not feel too comfortable at Jimbo’s.

But if you go, Jimbo Luznar — the self-proclaimed “Friendliest Man on Earth” — will make you feel very welcome.

I’d heard about Jimbo’s Place while researching Miami. I was looking for an unusual, off-the-beaten path sort of destination for us to enjoy. A sprawling, ramshackle, ad-hoc-sort-of bar, ultra-casual Jimbo’s fit the bill.

Fifty years ago, Jimbo lived on the mainland. However, since the Miami Herald wanted the real estate Jimbo legally owned, the city cut a deal with him: move to Virginia Key, and you can stay out there the rest of your life. Jimbo didn’t care about the land. After all, he was a shrimp fisherman, and the location they offered him was better for his boats. He accepted.

Fast forward 50 years. Now, Miami is a boom town, and Jimbo is sitting on prime real estate. Of course, the city wants it back. However, they’ve wanted it back for years. When I was at Jimbo’s Place, Jimbo told me that the mayor has informed him personally that he can keep his place as long as he’s alive — even though he doesn’t have a license to sell beer, or have a license to smoke fish, or even hold a lease to the place. This past weekend, Jimbo — a great-grandpa — celebrated his 80th birthday. Who knows how long Jimbo’s will remain.

Anyway, Jimbo’s is like no other bar/restaurant I’ve ever been to. It was a fun, eclectic, wide-ranging group of people — — from hipsters to bikers; from hippies to retirees — and everyone got along fine.

There’s bocce ball, if you want to get competitive.

There’s a dock, if you want to hang out and chat.

Jimbo has a great view of the city. This lagoon was the film site for several Sixties-era television shows, including Flipper and Gentle Ben.

There are plenty of places to sit and relax and chat with friends.

Jimbo is so popular, he even has groupies on site, selling stickers of him…

…and singing his praises…

If you think I’m crazy for liking Jimbo’s, consider that I’m not the only fan.

Out of the entire weekend, I think visiting Jimbo’s Place was the highlight. It was the most relaxed. It was the most casual. It was the most fun. And Jimbo made me feel so welcome. I’m really sorry I missed your 80th birthday, Jimbo. I hope I get to attend next year!

Jimbo’s Fast Facts:

  • Jimbo’s movie credits include scenes from True Lies, a 1994 film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger; and Blood and Wine, a 1997 film starring Jack Nicholson. The film crew for 1983s Porky’s II built a riverboat in the lagoon behind Jimbo’s.
  • Jimbo’s has been the site of numerous fashion and music video shoots. Mariah Carey shot her first album cover there.

Weekend In Miami: Calle Ocho & The Hunt For The Perfect Cafe Con Leche

by Willy Volk on

After cruising through Star Island, we headed to Calle Ocho, which translates as “8th Street.” This 23-block-long section of Miami is also known as “Little Havana,” as it houses the largest population of Cubans outside Cuba.

I wanted some cafe con leche, and what better place to try it, outside Castro’s homeland?

Calle Ocho is a beautiful, vibrant community. Each February/March, the area stages a huge block party — the Calle Ocho festival — a colorful, frenzied celebration of Cuban heritage that includes a beauty contest, a cooking contest, and a domino tourney.

That said, although you see bursts of Cuban energy and art throughout the area, don’t expect to head to 8th Street and feel like you’ve been transported to another dimension. Though there are plenty of Cubans in the area engaging in Cuban activities…

…it’s still *just* a residential neighborhood.

That said, I think they’ve done a great job making the area their own.

They even have their own Walk of Fame.

Many of the local shops feature hand-rolled cigars, guayberas, plastic roosters (?), and Cuban music: but I was there for Cuban Coffee. We had heard that the Versailles was *the* place to eat in Little Havana, so we headed there. However, on the way, we saw the El Cristo and agreed that we had to stop.

At the walk-up window, we ordered two cafe con leches, one empanada, and a bag of plantain chips. This woman made our drinks in front of us. I can only assume that the two-by-four in the window was there to beat unruly customers.

The coffees and plantain chips arrived first…

… followed closely by the empanada.

Hot, sweet, and strong, the cafe con leche provided just the right pick-me-up to power us through the rest of the day. Maybe it was because of the feel of Calle Ocho, but this was probably the best cafe con leche I’d ever had. Moreover, both the plantain chips and the empanada were fresh and steaming, and I loved their bold flavors. If you’ve never had plantain chips dunked in mojo sauce, you’ve not truly lived. In short, El Cristo turned out to be an excellent spot to stop. Muy bien!

After eating, we swung by a small gift shop down the street, and saw the Latin American Motorcycle Association roll in. Though they looked threatening (especially the guy in the middle!), they were a bunch of kittens. Hi, guys!
Okay, enough shopping. Let’s go have some fun!

Previously: Weekend In Miami: Star Island, Palm Island, & Hibiscus Island

South Pacific Wine?!?!?

by Neil Woodburn on

Wine tourism is a very popular and lucrative industry. And, it can be enjoyed in wonderful locations around the globe such as France, California, Spain and the South Pacific.

Huh?!?!? The South Pacific?

Yep. According to an article in the Independent, a lone winemaker is practicing his craft on the remote island of Rangiroa in French Polynesia.

Writer Roderick Gilchrist recently made the journey to tour the vineyards, located just past the coconut trees and white sandy beach, and try out the wine.

The vineyard was the brainchild of a Frenchman who shipped 200 tons of Tahitian earth to the island and then planted red grapes from France and white grapes from Italy. The fruits of his labor now produce 50,000 bottles of Vin de Tahiti annually–a wine that Gilchrist describes as delicious, but with a slight coral aftertaste.