City Life >>

• BEST TOLLBOOTH
  Broad Causeway
  Go ahead, take your time, you tollbooth operator in your Jimmy Buffett Hawaiian-print shirt. I'll just be over here in my car, idling away, daydreaming of white sand and warm breezes, surrounded by these swaying palms and this manicured landscape, watching the glassy blue waters of Biscayne Bay... More >>
• BEST NEW TREND
  Pugs in public
  BEST NEW TREND Pugs in public Most people realize they are mere servants to their dogs and follow their every canine command. What many civilians fail to acknowledge is that dogs collectively have a larger mission -- to eventually rule the entire world. Purebreds like schnauzers and Cirnecos... More >>
• BEST SPECTACLE
  Demolition of the Everglades Hotel
  BEST SPECTACLE Demolition of the Everglades Hotel What goes up must come down. It may take a hundred years, maybe a thousand, but even the new condo towers rising in the first decade of this new millennium will one day crumble, perhaps into a rising sea. As for the sixteen-story Everglades... More >>
• BEST WEEKEND GETAWAY
  Hollywood
  BEST WEEKEND GETAWAY Hollywood No, we don't mean Hollywood, California. And no, this is not a joke. Hollywood, Florida, may be only minutes away by car, but the town's two-and-a-half-mile beachfront Broadwalk is about as close to the South Beach experience as a rodeo is to a velvet-rope... More >>
• BEST RENOVATION
  Hotel Victor
  BEST RENOVATION Hotel Victor 1144 Ocean Drive Miami Beach 305-428-1234 www.hotelvictorsouthbeach.com His name is Victor. He'd been big on the scene for a number of years but then fell on hard times. The last anybody saw of him, he was no more than a gutter punk, a bum surrounded by... More >>
• BEST FIFTEEN MINUTES OF FAME
  Katrina Campins
  BEST FIFTEEN MINUTES OF FAME Katrina Campins Even though she was fired as a contestant during the first season of Donald Trump's The Apprentice reality TV show, Campins has mastered the art of the fame game. A Google search found Campins in People magazine, on Access Hollywood and E!, and in the... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO MEET INTELLIGENT MEN
  Books & Books
  BEST PLACE TO MEET INTELLIGENT MEN Books & Books 265 Aragon Avenue Coral Gables 305-442-4408 www.booksandbooks.com Reading is sexy. And men who read books are really sexy. And no, Maxim and Stuff magazines don't count as books. Spend a Thursday evening or a Saturday afternoon... More >>
• BEST SANCTUARY FROM THE FAST TRACK
  Jimbo's
  BEST SANCTUARY FROM THE FAST TRACK Jimbo's Virginia Key 305-361-7026 If you know Jimbo's, you know why. If you don't know Jimbo's, you have a treat in store. Pay the modest entry fee to gain access to Virginia Key, drive beyond the main beach parking lot, around the bend by the sewage... More >>
• BEST POLITICAL COMEBACK
  Justice Leslie Rothenberg
  BEST POLITICAL COMEBACK Justice Leslie Rothenberg Third District Court of Appeal Talk about comebacks! Rothenberg keeps popping up in the most influential places, defying all expectations and, some would say, reason. First she quit her job as a circuit court judge to run for state attorney. (Her... More >>
• BEST MILE OF MIAMI
  The Venetian Causeway
  BEST MILE OF MIAMI The Venetian Causeway Yes, we know it's 2.75 miles long. It also crosses eleven islands by means of twelve bridges, two of which open for boats. It's also South Florida's oldest causeway (in continuous operation since 1926) and is listed in the National Register of Historic... More >>
• BEST DISPLAY OF WEALTH
  Leonard M. Miller family
  BEST DISPLAY OF WEALTH Leonard M. Miller family The current building and real-estate boom has been very good to Miami-based Lennar Corporation, the nation's premier home-construction company, which is now pulling in more than six billion dollars in annual revenues. This past December the family... More >>
• BEST CRIMINAL CONVICTION IN THE PAST TWELVE MONTHS
  Philip Gratz
  BEST CRIMINAL CONVICTION IN THE PAST TWELVE MONTHS Philip Gratz Hey, dummy, stop shaking your head in wonder at how wise guys end up with million-dollar homes, luxury cars, and extravagant vacations. Here's how: They spend other people's money. Feel stupid? At least you weren't among the... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO MEET SINGLE MEN
  Marlins games
  BEST PLACE TO MEET SINGLE MEN Marlins games Dolphins Stadium 2267 Dan Marino Boulevard Miami 305-623-6100 www.floridamarlins.com If you're looking to meet men, you need to go to them (they're not knocking on your door, right?), even if it means watching sports. Put on a sassy aqua... More >>
• BEST PUBLIC-WORKS PROJECT
  Bicentennial Park seawall
  BEST PUBLIC-WORKS PROJECT Bicentennial Park seawall This ten-million-dollar state-of-the-art bulwark is the first sign of real progress toward a future bayfront walkway for downtown Miami. The construction itself is notable for its quality. The seawall's steel casing is a high-grade, coated... More >>
• BEST PLACE FOR A FIRST DATE
  Miami Improv
  BEST PLACE FOR A FIRST DATE Miami Improv Streets of Mayfair 3390 Mary Street Coconut Grove 305-441-8200 www.miamiimprov.com What do you do? Where are you from? Where were you born? Small talk can be downright tedious, no matter how good-looking that stranger sitting across the... More >>
• BEST PROMOTER OF CULTURAL DIVERSITY
  Mary Luft
  BEST PROMOTER OF CULTURAL DIVERSITY Mary Luft Tigertail Productions 842 NW Ninth Court Miami 305-324-4337 www.tigertail.org Mary Luft is Tigertail Productions, and this year Tigertail is celebrating 25 years of continuous operation. In this town, that's epochal. As if mere survival... More >>
• BEST HOMELESS HANGOUT
  Margaret Pace Park
  BEST HOMELESS HANGOUT Margaret Pace Park 1745 N. Bayshore Drive Miami 305-575-5256 With its panoramic view of Biscayne Bay, its relatively new sod and working public restrooms, Margaret Pace Park is a bum's paradise. You can hop on the nearby Metromover for a quick excursion to Camillus... More >>
• BEST LOCAL GIRLS MADE GOOD
  Kerry Gruson and Karen Mitchell
  BEST LOCAL GIRLS MADE GOOD Kerry Gruson and Karen Mitchell National sailing champions. Two years running. Both disabled. The event was the U.S. Independence Cup/North American Challenge Cup, an official US SAILING championship regatta hosted this past August by the Chicago Yacht Club. Competing... More >>
• BEST NOT-SO-CHEAP THRILL
  Weightlessness
  BEST NOT-SO-CHEAP THRILL Weightlessness Zero Gravity Corp. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport 1-888-NO-GRAVITY (1-888-664-7284) www.nogravity.com If $3750 seems like a lot of money to spend on roughly one minute of weightlessness, well, that's why this gets the... More >>
• BEST ARCHITECTURAL INCONGRUITY
  Sears Tower vs. Miami Performing Arts Center
  BEST ARCHITECTURAL INCONGRUITY Sears Tower vs. Miami Performing Arts Center Biscayne Boulevard at Thirteenth Street Miami Amid the grandiose high-rise redevelopment of Miami's downtown, the proud old Sears Tower stands nested within the new performing arts center. The 1929 Art Deco... More >>
• BEST CITIZEN
  Kimberly Green
  BEST CITIZEN Kimberly Green www.greenff.org Kimberly Green is what Miami desperately needs: a native daughter who has applied all of her intelligence and ambition to make this a better place. She is the thirtysomething daughter of former Samsonite CEO Steven Green, who created the Green Family... More >>
• BEST-KEPT SECRET
  mia Gallery
  BEST-KEPT SECRET mia Gallery Miami International Airport Concourse E, second level 305-876-0749; 305-869-1219; 305-876-7017 "It can hardly be a coincidence that no language on earth has ever produced the expression öAs pretty as an airport.'" British sci-fi/comedy writer Douglas... More >>
• BEST VALUE ON OCEAN DRIVE (1 Comment)
  Café Mediterraneo Deli
  BEST VALUE ON OCEAN DRIVE Café Mediterraneo Deli 1501 Collins Avenue Miami Beach 305-532-8998 While true cheapskates know to load up on food and drink before they find themselves east of Collins Avenue, there's still hope for a little cheap grub and chaser right on the strip.... More >>
• BEST LOCAL CITY IN WHICH TO LIVE
  Coral Gables
  BEST LOCAL CITY IN WHICH TO LIVE Coral Gables No doubt you've heard about the crazy regulations that plague residents of Coral Gables. (Does a fancy SUV count as a truck or a car, and can I park it in my driveway overnight?) But for many Gables citizens, it's a small price to pay (well, maybe... More >>
• SECOND-BEST ERRATUM
  April 4, 2005

  Miami Herald

  SECOND-BEST ERRATUM April 4, 2005 Miami Herald "The e-mail address on Friday's column for öYou Got A Problem' was incorrect...." More >>
• BEST SOUP KITCHEN
  Camillus House
  BEST SOUP KITCHEN Camillus House 726 NE First Avenue Miami 305-374-1065 www.camillus.org A man yelps as rabid crack dogs gnaw at his belly from the inside. The old, lost mind of another thinks he hears whispers through the rotting track marks of a filthy needle spiked in his arm.... More >>
• BEST ROAD TO AVOID
  SR 836 (Dolphin Expressway)
  BEST ROAD TO AVOID SR 836 (Dolphin Expressway) Rush hour on the 836 is the perfect time to read "Best of Miami" -- the entire edition. There's certainly not going to be any movement for as long as it takes to work your way through the City Life section. Then maybe a slow crawl for a minute or... More >>
• BEST CHUTZPAH
  Jeffrey Berkowitz
  BEST CHUTZPAH Jeffrey Berkowitz For some unfathomable reason, developer Jeffrey Berkowitz wants to inflict on South Florida more so-called art from Romero Britto, as if Britto's infantile decorations weren't already ubiquitous. Berkowitz and partner Alan Potamkin are about to begin construction... More >>
• BEST LOCAL POLITICIAN
  State Rep. Dan Gelber
  BEST LOCAL POLITICIAN State Rep. Dan Gelber Miami Beach office: 305-531-7831 Tallahassee office: 850-488-0690 gelber.dan@myfloridahouse.com It's not easy being a Democrat in Tallahassee these days. Not easy, that is, if you want to be effective. Dan Gelber, whose District 106 encompasses... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO MEET INTELLIGENT WOMEN
  Synergy Yoga Center
  BEST PLACE TO MEET INTELLIGENT WOMEN Synergy Yoga Center 435 Española Way Miami Beach 305-538-7073 www.synergyyoga.org If engaging conversation is what you desire from a potential mate, perhaps a jolt to the proper chakra will soothe that yearning heart. Bring your mat and... More >>
• BEST POLITICAL CONVICTIONS OF THE PAST TWELVE MONTHS
  Jacques Evens Thermilus and Richard Caride
  BEST POLITICAL CONVICTIONS OF THE PAST TWELVE MONTHS Jacques Evens Thermilus and Richard Caride It didn't start out as a political case. It began as an inquiry into a simple heist -- albeit a long-running one. For years employees of private companies that work at Miami International Airport were... More >>
• BEST KING MANGO STRUTTER
  Bill Dobson
  BEST KING MANGO STRUTTER Bill Dobson You must be someone special when the grand dame of Miami journalism, Edna Buchanan, comes out of retirement to write your obituary. When Dobson died October 22, 2004, at the tender age of 49, Miami lost a unique gem. Some knew him as a dedicated county... More >>
• BEST ARCHITECTURAL EYESORE
  Miami Herald Building
  BEST ARCHITECTURAL EYESORE Miami Herald Building 1 Herald Plaza Miami Plans for construction were announced in 1958, and before you could say Ugh! the views of Biscayne Bay from Overtown and the MacArthur Causeway were obliterated by this squat, hulking orange monument to stifled imagination.... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO TAKE OUT-OF-TOWNERS
  Hoy Como Ayer
  BEST PLACE TO TAKE OUT-OF-TOWNERS Hoy Como Ayer 2212 SW Eighth Street Miami 305-541-2631 www.hoycomoayer.net Your visitors can spend the day basking on Miami's beaches, spending cash in its shops, trekking through the Everglades, catching boat rides from Bayside, or feeding the birds... More >>
• BEST POWER FAMILY
  Los Valdes-Fauli
  BEST POWER FAMILY Los Valdes-Fauli When Raul Ernesto Valdes-Fauli died in 2003 at age 84, evidence of success in this life wasn't measured by the prominence and prosperity he had achieved as a former lawyer who represented banking and sugar interests in pre-Castro Cuba. (He was very prominent... More >>
• BEST TERROR ALERT
  October 26, 2004

  Miami International Airport

  BEST TERROR ALERT October 26, 2004 Miami International Airport Mizael Cabral and Daniel Correa, two athletic, young kite surfers from Brazil, are heading back to their homeland after spending a couple of years hanging out in Pompano Beach. They check their boards, sails, assorted other gear,... More >>
• BEST AUDIO TOUR
  Adam Curry's podcast from South Beach
  BEST AUDIO TOUR Adam Curry's podcast from South Beach http://radio.weblogs.com/0001014/ categories/dailySourceCode/2005/ 01/07.html#a6993 So you've finally set up your blog. That's sooooo 2004. Goodness, you should already be podcasting for your cyber creds. Podcasting is the new blog, but think... More >>
• BEST DISAPPEARING ACT
  Alex Penelas
  BEST DISAPPEARING ACT Alex Penelas Who would've thought I could've vanished so completely. And so quickly! Believe me, it hasn't been easy, which you'd understand if you had spent your entire adult life seeking the public spotlight. It happened so fast I didn't even have time to take an... More >>
• BEST DEFENSE AGAINST TERRORISM
  P. Diddy
  BEST DEFENSE AGAINST TERRORISM P. Diddy When Sean Combs lived in Manhattan during the Nineties, he was beset with 99 problems. P. Diddy had a tempestuous romance with J.Lo and a highly publicized feud with Death Row Records, was accused of severely beating Interscope Records executive Steve... More >>
• BEST NEW LAW
  Sidewalk bicycle ban
  BEST NEW LAW Sidewalk bicycle ban City of Miami Beginning May 12, the elderly Hispanics who clog the sidewalks of Calle Ocho can feel a little safer walking up and down Little Havana's most famous thoroughfare. That day Miami police officers will begin enforcing a new law that bans bicycles,... More >>
• BEST REAL-ESTATE APPRECIATION
  Aventura
  BEST REAL-ESTATE APPRECIATION Aventura With all the hype over the forest of condo developments sprouting in downtown Miami, the Design District, and Miami Beach, it's important not to lose sight of reality -- especially if you're one of the many hopefuls mortgaging your future in the name of... More >>
• BEST REASON TO STAY IN MIAMI FOR THE SUMMER
  Languid days, sultry nights
  BEST REASON TO STAY IN MIAMI FOR THE SUMMER Languid days, sultry nights Not all of us can afford to zip up to the Hamptons for six weeks of madras-clad croquet amid the cool climes and waterfront estates. Nor can we all shell out for a ticket to Ibiza for round-the-clock partying. But being rich... More >>
• BEST CHILDREN'S ADVOCATE (1 Comment)
  Carol Marbin Miller
  BEST CHILDREN'S ADVOCATE Carol Marbin Miller Miami Herald reporter Miller has been single-minded in her efforts to force the state's Department of Children and Families to change itself from a backward, inefficient, corrupt institution into a somewhat less backward, less inefficient, and less... More >>
• BEST POLITICAL MISCALCULATION
  José Cancela
  BEST POLITICAL MISCALCULATION José Cancela Despite a rave endorsement from the Miami Herald touting his candidacy for Miami-Dade County mayor, Cancela tanked in the August 31 first round of voting. But on the way down he pumped a lot of good money into the local political economy. The... More >>
• BEST MEMOIR
  The Summer That Changed Miami Beach by Seymour Gelber
  BEST MEMOIR The Summer That Changed Miami Beach by Seymour Gelber A day-by-day, often hour-by-hour account of the tumultuous summer of 1972, when Miami Beach played host to both the Democratic and Republican national conventions, and with them a roiling mass of politicos and protesters. Former... More >>
• BEST CHEAP THRILL
  Miami Jai-Alai
  BEST CHEAP THRILL Miami Jai-Alai 3500 NW 37th Avenue Miami 305-633-9661 www.miami-jai-alai.com Who needs slots? For the lousy buck gamblers throw away on spinning fruit, spectators can be treated to the real action: four or more hours of the fastest game on earth. Watch as these... More >>
• BEST MAGIC CITY ICON
  The moon
  BEST MAGIC CITY ICON The moon That's right, the big orb hanging supernaturally above the ocean on its twilight ascent, full and yellow and ghostly, shining brightly through a layer of hazy clouds. People stop and gawk, step out their doors and point heavenward, gather in primeval bands to bang... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO MEET SINGLE WOMEN
  www.eHarmony.com
  BEST PLACE TO MEET SINGLE WOMEN www.eHarmony.com What's the hardest part about meeting women? They're pretty much always on the defensive. Internet match sites may not eliminate feminine defensiveness, but the good ones can reduce it significantly by giving women (and men) power to accept or... More >>
• BEST MIAMI HERALD WRITER
  Glenn Garvin
  BEST MIAMI HERALD WRITER Glenn Garvin Love him or hate him, Garvin has become a formidable presence at the Miami Herald, transforming the once staid job of TV critic into a prominent platform for a crusading conservative warrior. Simple sitcom reviews become launching pads for full-blown media... More >>
• BEST PLACE FOR ENGAGEMENT PICTURES
  Downtown Miami
  BEST PLACE FOR ENGAGEMENT PICTURES Downtown Miami How many times has a hyper bride dragged you to the couch and forced you to page through pictures of her and her groom, dressed in white shirts and khakis, frolicking on the beach? Or standing under an arch at Country Club Prado? How about... More >>
• BEST PARTY OF THE YEAR
  MTV Video Music Awards
  BEST PARTY OF THE YEAR MTV Video Music Awards Dear Diary: Something's up in the MIA. I don't exactly know what it is, but all week Ferraris and Lamborghinis with out-of-state plates have been zooming past me on the highway. Damn tourists with their boku bucks and flashy cars. Dear Diary: I was... More >>
• BEST HOTEL
  Four Seasons
  BEST HOTEL Four Seasons 1435 Brickell Avenue Miami 305-358-3535 Not because it is housed in the tallest building in Florida, with hotel rooms between floors 20 and 29. Not because its staff is rigorously trained in the fine art of discreet and thoughtful service. Not because the rooms are... More >>
• BEST PUBLIC MELTDOWN
  Miami City Commissioner Jeffery Allen
  BEST PUBLIC MELTDOWN Miami City Commissioner Jeffery Allen Public service is not rocket science. Once in office, you meet with constituents, declaim on their behalf, avoid prostitutes and smoking crack with undercover cops, and chances are you'll do okay. It's also not a bad idea to speak... More >>
• BEST POLITICAL COUP
  Carlos Alvarez
  BEST POLITICAL COUP Carlos Alvarez In late July 2003, when the director of Miami-Dade's police department entered the race to become the county's second executive mayor, no one gave him a chance against the other political war dogs in the contest. Many saw Alvarez as a fifth-place finisher... More >>
• BEST ERRATUM
  August 3, 2004

  Miami Herald

  BEST ERRATUM August 3, 2004 Miami Herald "A map in Saturday's Business section mislabeled Biscayne Bay, the body of water to the east of Biscayne Boulevard...." More >>
• BEST LOCAL GIRL GONE BAD
  Geralyn Graham
  BEST LOCAL GIRL GONE BAD Geralyn Graham Graham has been charged with murdering a four-year-old girl placed in her care by the state. She has yet to stand trial. Still, even if what the 59-year-old Graham says is true -- that state workers came and picked up little Rilya Wilson and never returned... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO PEOPLE-WATCH
  Chili's
  BEST PLACE TO PEOPLE-WATCH Chili's 19905 Biscayne Boulevard Aventura 305-682-9898 When you've had enough of the fake tits and tans on South Beach, head north on a Saturday night to indulge yourself in a cross section of real people to watch. This joint is jumping -- there's always a crowd... More >>
• BEST LOCAL LANDMARK
  Archway at Sunshine State International Park
  BEST LOCAL LANDMARK Archway at Sunshine State International Park 1300 NW 167th Street North Miami-Dade 305-624-8585 In 1964, when Miami was still a pretty dinky town and el exilio thought they'd be returning home shortly, the newly erected concrete archway at the Sunshine State... More >>
• BEST BOONDOGGLE
  Citizens' Independent Transportation Trust
  BEST BOONDOGGLE Citizens' Independent Transportation Trust The People's Transportation Plan, approved by Miami-Dade voters in 2002, was supposed to deliver on a lot of promises in exchange for a half-penny surtax. Key to the measure's passage was the Citizens Independent Transportation Trust.... More >>
• BEST HERO
  Judge William Hoeveler
  BEST HERO Judge William Hoeveler In last year's edition of "Best of Miami," we acknowledged Hoeveler as Best Judge. In hindsight that seems a bit restrictive. Still hearing cases as an octogenarian senior federal judge, Hoeveler deserves hero status for one simple reason: He's earned it over a... More >>
• BEST CAREER MOVE
  Alberto Ibargüen
  BEST CAREER MOVE Alberto Ibargüen He may have been sincere in telling his colleagues at the Miami Herald Publishing Company -- from reporters to advertising reps to pressroom workers and anonymous midlevel managers -- that he will miss them greatly. But in fact he couldn't be happier. No... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO DONATE YOUR CLOTHES
  SoBe Thrifty
  BEST PLACE TO DONATE YOUR CLOTHES SoBe Thrifty 1435 Alton Road Miami Beach 305-672-7251 www.careresource.org Where can you pick up dominatrix gear, metal walkers, Guillermo Alvarez Guedes LPs, and free condoms in one unassuming little store? Okay, so the donated stock does vary from... More >>
• BEST PUBLIC RESTROOM
  Village of Merrick Park
  BEST PUBLIC RESTROOM Village of Merrick Park 358 San Lorenzo Avenue Coral Gables 305-529-0200 If you were to think about it, you'd expect the cleanest, least claustrophobic, most hantavirus-free public restroom to be at the Village of Merrick Park in Coral Gables, along with Nordstrom,... More >>
• BEST LOCAL PHANTASMAGORIA
  BEST LOCAL PHANTASMAGORIA Rain falls, storms threaten, winds kick up, Gulfstream Park gets torn up, tanker trucks smash up, Alex Penelas goes down, DuPont Plaza goes down, bus fares rise, Cuba visits get cut, canker crews cut, Lawrence Plummer dies, Andres Nazario Sargen dies, Caribbean... More >>
• BEST PARKING ON SOUTH BEACH
  Bay Road between Thirteenth and Sixteenth streets
  BEST PARKING ON SOUTH BEACH Bay Road between Thirteenth and Sixteenth streets After a couple of years of major construction, including the Waverly and Flamingo condominium projects, this stretch of road has emerged from the Dumpsters and bulldozers as blessedly unregulated. No parking meters in... More >>
• BEST LOCAL BOY GONE BAD
  Bill Kamal
  BEST LOCAL BOY GONE BAD Bill Kamal The elegantly dressed and apparently bionic weatherman for WSVN-TV (Channel 7) seemed never to sleep during the 2004 hurricane season, so devoted was he to projecting the speed and movements of Danielle, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne. But the darkest storm was yet... More >>
• BEST NEIGHBORHOOD NEWSPAPER
  Biscayne Boulevard Times
  BEST NEIGHBORHOOD NEWSPAPER Biscayne Boulevard Times www.biscayneboulevard.com Development is rapidly altering the landscape of the Biscayne Boulevard corridor in ways both good and not so good. Residents in this area, roughly from downtown Miami to 79th Street, keep track of the changes not... More >>
• BEST FESTIVAL
  Ultra Music Festival
  BEST FESTIVAL Ultra Music Festival Bayfront Park 301 Biscayne Boulevard Miami We're sure Russell Faibisch and Alex Omes, the perpetrators behind all things Ultra, would love to hear that their little bash by Biscayne Bay is awesome because of the music lineup -- which is in fact awesome.... More >>
• BEST CAR WASH
  South Beach Finest Hand Car Wash
  BEST CAR WASH South Beach Finest Hand Car Wash 1229 Eighteenth Street Miami Beach 305-604-9282 Do you feel dirty? I mean really dirty? Then you need to have some fine young men and women scrub you down from top to bottom, inside and out, including your tires. With no monstrous machines to... More >>
• BEST FLACK
  Tara Solomon
  BEST FLACK Tara Solomon TARA, Ink. 305-864-3434 www.taraink.com An ageless former journalist gleefully packed it in and went over to the dark side with considerable verve and a very adorable fiancé who got his humble start as a clerk at Sephora. This year Tara Solomon opened an... More >>
• BEST MANIFESTO
  Seth Green
  BEST MANIFESTO Seth Green When we last heard from Mr. Seth Green, who was featured in last year's "Best of Miami" (see Best Place to Slow Dance), the Titian-haired star of cinema and television was held aloft by twin streams of bubbly champagne success, doing mainstream comedy in the syndicated... More >>
• BEST BUMPER STICKER
  "To all you virgins out there, thanks for nothing."
  BEST BUMPER STICKER "To all you virgins out there, thanks for nothing." More >>
• BEST LOCAL BOY MADE GOOD
  Blake Ross
  BEST LOCAL BOY MADE GOOD Blake Ross Kids today. If they aren't stealing cars and smoking crack, they're, they're -- why, they're building the latest, greatest Internet browser in history! While it may sound inane, make no mistake: This is the biggest browser news since Janet Reno went after... More >>
• BEST KIDS' THRILL
  Pelican Island Nature Preserve
  BEST KIDS' THRILL Pelican Island Nature Preserve Pelican Harbor Marina 1275 NE 79th Street Causeway Miami 305-754-9330 Although it sometimes seems the kids have become irrevocably attached to their computers and game consoles, there's still the lure of nature to snap them back to our... More >>
• Personal Best
  Nick D'Annunzio and Tara Solomon of TARA, Ink.
  Personal Best Nick D'Annunzio and Tara Solomon of TARA, Ink. Boutique public relations firm TARA, Ink. is the offspring of Miami Herald columnist Tara Solomon, who manages to be both journalist and, um, promoter. Solomon has long presided over Miami Beach nightlife and now, with fiancé... More >>
• BEST BUILDING LOBBY
  Miami-Dade County Courthouse
  BEST BUILDING LOBBY Miami-Dade County Courthouse 73 W. Flagler Street Miami Most folks who stumble through the metal detectors at the Miami-Dade County Courthouse probably have a lot more on their minds than reveling in the gorgeous architecture. But ignoring such beauty is practically... More >>
• BEST LAWYER
  Richard Scruggs
  BEST LAWYER Richard Scruggs In the corridors of the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office, some people are calling Scruggs the "Greatest Ass-Kicker of All Time." It may take a bit more time to see if Scruggs, special assistant to State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle for public corruption, is... More >>