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BEST SECONDHAND STORE

Bargain Shop, Inc.

BEST SECONDHAND STORE Bargain Shop, Inc. 17 North Flagler Avenue

Homestead

305-246-2504 What makes a good thrift shop -- the number of items it carries or the amount of good stuff you can find at affordable prices? Tucked away in Homestead's warehouse district, Bargain Shop, Inc. is a small store with aisles full of DVDs, VHS tapes, collectible dolls, glassware, books, vinyl records, rare and out-of-print CDs, clothes, et cetera, et cetera, and so on. At three dollars, the used CDs are cheap, and at one dollar, the used records are even cheaper. Unlike all the overpriced thrift shops strewn along North Krome Avenue, most of the items at Bargain Shop, Inc. are true bargains. It's a nice place to browse, as well.

BEST SEX TOYS SHOP

Déjà Vu Love Boutique

BEST SEX TOYS SHOP Déjà Vu Love Boutique 1011 Fifth Street

Miami Beach

305-534-9669

http://commerce.dejavu.com Saturday night, and you've got an itch that needs scratching. If you need the kind of friend that's waterproof, remote controlled, and battery operated, head over to the Déjà Vu Love Boutique, an upscale joint featuring tastefully sensual items like Kamasutra lotions, candles, edible Peter Butter, feathers, and skimpy lingerie. The really good stuff is stashed behind a velvet rope, where you'll find a long, curved wall of toys from the Phallix collection, blown (no pun intended) glass dildos that look like works of art, porn-star approved gadgets, and lower-priced devices that keep your pocket (and other parts) happy. Boasting a range from the Mini Love Bullet to life-size replicas of Ron Jeremy's infamous ten-incher, this novelty shop has a selection that's bigger, better, faster, and fancier. Shy types need not worry, Déjà Vu also has some of its products available online for surreptitious purchase.

BEST SHOE-REPAIR SHOP

Marquez Shoe Repair

BEST SHOE-REPAIR SHOP Marquez Shoe Repair 2281 NW Seventh Street

Allapattah

305-643-9962 Amuary Marquez has been cobbling shoes in his quaint little parlor since 1987, heeling luminaries like Xavier Suarez and Tito Puente. The raw smell of treated leather and shoe glue fills the air as he works away six days a week (Monday to Friday 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Saturday 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.). Prices for standard repairs of leather dress shoes range from $26 to $36. Marquez also fixes leather belts, purses, and anything else made from animal skin. You'll find his repair shop on NW 22nd Avenue between a Salvadoran restaurant and a pharmacy.

BEST SKATE SHOP

M.I.A. Skate Shop

BEST SKATE SHOP M.I.A. Skate Shop 229 Ninth Street

Miami Beach

786-621-3511

www.miaskateshop.com After less than two years, M.I.A. Skate Shop proprietors Chris Williams and professional skater Ed Selego (who also has his own shoe line with Adio) have already established their store as the place for famous skaters to meet when in town. It's also the only store in Miami that carries the Nike SB line of skater footwear. You'll find the coolest decks, clothes, and gear from Zoo York, Organika, Earth Products, and Habitat Skateboards, or you can just chill and watch DVDs (also for sale) of other skaters ripping, grinding, and getting racked. The shop also hosts autograph signings and skating demos with Control Skatepark, and Williams doesn't mind the thrasher kids hanging out in his shop after school.

BEST SPANISH-LANGUAGE BOOKSTORE

La Moderna Poesía

BEST SPANISH-LANGUAGE BOOKSTORE La Moderna Poesía 5739 NW Seventh Street

Miami

305-262-1975

and

3870 E. Fourth Avenue

Hialeah

305-556-7717 The sentimental favorite of many a Cuban immigrant who remembers the original publishing house back home, La Moderna Poesía is a one-stop for Spanish tomes and Cuban memorabilia. Spanish literature, translations from English, technical manuals, and religious texts cram the aisles. There's also an impressive section dedicated to multilingual dictionaries and study tools beyond the obvious Spanish-English variety. Where do you find a Finnish-English dictionary? La Moderna Poesía, of course!

BEST SPORTING GOODS STORE

Play It Again Sports

BEST SPORTING GOODS STORE Play It Again Sports 9019 SW 107th Avenue

Kendall

305-596-6380 Yes it's a chain, and yes it's a repeat Best of Miami winner, but that only reinforces the fact that most of the nonspecialized sporting goods stores in town are even bigger chains, generally employing high-school age salespeople who barely know a bowling ball from a lacrosse stick. This Kendall franchise carries the goods to perfectly reflect the range of Miamians' sporting goods needs because the gear comes from other Miamians. Buy, sell, or trade your equipment here if you like to deal with knowledgeable clerks and prefer bargain prices. Does it really matter if your shin guards have been broken in by someone else?

Readers´ Choice: Sports Authority

BEST TOILET GRAVEYARD

Bargain City

BEST TOILET GRAVEYARD Bargain City 1160 NW 79th Street

North Miami-Dade

305-691-1000 Buy Anything, Sell Everything is the motto at Bargain City. While that may be the goal at this down-home alternative to Home Depot, the inventory is dominated by sinks, stoves, refrigerators, doors, windows -- all used. Out back: the biggest collection of pre-owned toilets in town, lined up like so many tombstones in the subtropical sun. Get them while supplies last, which is likely to be a good long while. Or instead of just tossing your old toilet out, haul it to Bargain City and get a few bucks out of it. Open Monday to Saturday (8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.).

BEST TOY STORE

Animated Toys

BEST TOY STORE Animated Toys 479 Biltmore Way

Coral Gables

www.animatedtoystore.com

305-444-9383 This is the toy store for comic-book freaks, a place stocked with collectible action figures (don't call them "dolls") of your favorite heroes and villains, including Superman, the Green Lantern, Shazam!, Spider-man, the Punisher, and Dr. Doom. There's plenty for fans of the Star Wars franchise, and even NBA, WWE, and MLB figures. Others will love the plush items and Care Bears, Bratz, and Hamtaro figures. Jannette Diaz opened the store this past December because her husband's hobby had taken over their garage. Trying to find a present for your favorite collector? Visit Animated to find great gifts for those who have everything ... except that Spawn Classic Comic Book Cover figure.

BEST USED BOOKSTORE

Eutopia

BEST USED BOOKSTORE Eutopia 1627 Jefferson Avenue

Miami Beach

305-532-8680 Upon its 2000 opening, Eutopia was a tentative outpost for the Beach's bibliophiles, who -- previously accustomed to hitting the highway to root through the bounty at the Kendall Bookshelf or Fort Lauderdale's Robert Hittel Bookseller -- curiously poked their heads inside this shop's doorway. Five years on, Eutopia is thriving, and proof that Lincoln Road's quirky heart still beats in the shadow of the Gap and Victoria's Secret. Bargains abound here: A recent browse turned up a three-dollar mint hardcover copy of short-story master Donald Barthelme's collected works, as well as a spate of forgotten novels from arch WASP pundit William F. Buckley, Jr. But it's with Floridiana that this store really shines, the shelves full of odd little treasures ranging from a rare first edition of Charles Willeford's crime classic Miami Blues to back issues of the Fifties Beach glossy mag Panorama, a precursor to Ocean Drive and a reminder of this burg's colorful history -- a history found in abundance at Eutopia.

BEST USED-CD STORE

Uncle Sam's Music

BEST USED-CD STORE Uncle Sam's Music 1141 Washington Avenue

Miami Beach

305-532-0973

www.unclesamsmusic.com Uncle Sam's is beginning to become a lock for this award, but as long as it keeps its bins stocked with one of the most diverse musical assortments around, we're hardly going to begrudge it local supremacy. Indeed, any N section whose contents run from New Order to Laura Nyro, and from the New York Dolls to the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band -- all at $7.99 a pop -- gets a big thumbs up from these quarters. And sign language is the communication of choice at Uncle Sam's, with rows of listening stations allowing you to slap on a pair of headphones and preview selections to your ears' content. But not just CDs: You'll find a wide array of dance-oriented vinyl here, with a steady stream of DJs jostling past the lava lamps, vintage lunchboxes, and incense -- heck, it's like an old-fashioned head shop in here -- to nod along in time to the latest club offerings. Sure, you could go online. But will iTunes or Napster sell you Skittles, fake tattoos, and a twelve-inch record with your CDs?

Best Of Miami®

Best Of Miami®

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