The days when Florida was the last to get wind of a trend are over. So over, in fact, that folks like Cyril Camus, fifth-generation cognac producer, chose Miami over New York and Los Angeles to launch the “new generation” product, Camus 4U. The 31-year-old marketing and development director of…

The townhouse was a novelty on South Beach. The first of its kind to be conceptualized, it was one of only five units. With three bathrooms, three bedrooms, two balconies, two covered parking spaces, and a location two blocks north of then-burgeoning Lincoln Road, the numbers made so much sense…

Under the heading of Most Incredulous Incentive, the “Eat The Vote” campaign kicks off in Fort Lauderdale November 1. Show your Florida voter’s reg card (yes, it must be valid) or proof of voting in the November 5 election, and you’ll be eligible to receive various freebies — drinks, desserts,…

For perhaps the tenth time in the last month, I opened a bottle of tainted wine a few nights ago. The 2001 Sauvion Pouilly-Fumé, a generally reliable white wine made from Sauvignon Blanc grapes grown in the Loire Valley, had clearly gone off. The cause, most likely, was either oxidation…

Julian, the waiter at Tantra, presented my husband with a bottle of 1993 Deutz Trio champagne and a large knife. We were celebrating our tenth wedding anniversary, and Julian thought it would be a charming demonstration if Jon “saber-ed” the bubbly, a technique which involves positioning the blade just underneath…

When it comes to choosing a bottle of wine, decision-making is endless. Red or white? Still or sparkling? New World (California) or Old World (France)? Cork stopper or screwcap?Come again? Naturally no serious Miami wine drinker wants a bottle of vino that’s as easy to open as a two-liter jug…

Was it the Brady Bunch who sang something like, “When it’s time to change, you’ve got to rearrange?” Well, it might as well have been the Mango Gang. Joining Norman Van Aken in sourcing new Coral Gables gastronomic projects, Robbin Haas has left Baleen. He’s going it on his own…

Where have all the Bahamians gone? The short answer: home. Seems like when I moved here a little more than a decade ago, Bahamian culture was dominant, and its influence was reflected in the epicurean scene — as in, nearly every menu, from low-end to high, boasted conch fritters and…

Skepticism, I’m told, is an unattractive trait. Well, call me homely and be done with it. My nature refuses to allow me to take things at face value and endorse them blindly, which is why I voiced initial doubts about the inaugural Miami Spice project, a month-long promotion that concluded…

It’s official: Michael Schwartz, erstwhile of Nemo, Shoji Sushi, and Big Pink, has gone corporate. If you call the Rubells a corporation, that is. Schwartz has agreed to revamp Atlantic at the Beach House Bal Harbour. I’m doubly delighted. I’ve always liked Schwartz’s laid-back culinary style, and I’m happy he’s…

As per usual, it’s been a summer of fish stories. Last year was high drama: The Season of the Shark Bites. But these past few months, the sharp-toothed predators lurking in shallow waters have been eclipsed by the ominously named red-eyed northern snakeheads, migrating to a pond near you; and…

So you’ve done your reading and decided going organic, or perhaps even attempting a raw diet, is within the realm of culinary possibility. Maybe you’ve been titillated by the specialty produce you’ve seen served in restaurants. Or like me, you’re for the most part seriously unhappy with the quality –…

We used to refer to it as anti-establishment, or the counterculture, composed of those who espoused such things as vegetarianism, communal living, recycling, and organic, sustainable farming. But in the past twenty years or so we’ve seen the edges move toward the center, especially when it comes to culinary choices…

So where does Romeo’s get cozy with Escopazzo, Baleen slip under the sheets with Bice, and the Ritz get in bed with Azul? In Paradise, of course. Make that Paradise Farm, the living-a-dream business started by owner Gabriele Marewski last October. This five-acre organic, sustainable farm, which caters only to…

This summer, my Livingston, New Jersey hometown newspaper, the venerable West Essex Tribune (yes, I have a subscription), embarked on a very important series: comparing towns, also named Livingston, from other areas of the country. How does their quality of life rate against that in our beloved suburbia? How can…

Is August really the dog days of summer? Not bloody Mary likely. In Miami the second half of August is shaping up to be more like the hair-of-the-dog days of summer. To wit: Restaurants like Café Del Mar in Miami Shores and Titanic Brewery and Restaurant have both reached seemingly…

This week, the news is big. Really, truly huge. So titanic that it is, for lack of a better word, on par with el mundo. On second thought, make that MUNDO. While the former means the world, the latter spells Norman Van Aken’s officially announced new restaurant, due to open…

“Jaboticaba.” Johnny Vinczencz says the word as if he’s chewing it, standing in what can only be described as Delray Beach’s topmost tropical Eden. “Jaboticaba.” Or, in retrospect, as if he’s getting used to uttering it. The latter’s probably the more apropos metaphor, since he’s now picking that particular fruit…

Summertime is locals’ dining time — prix-fixe menus, all-you-can-eat specials, two-for-one deals, half-priced bottles of wine. But aside from saving money (except for the bucks you’ll have to spend on a bigger bathing suit), you couldn’t be less thrilled with the culinary scene at the moment. It’s just plain boring…

I’ve been bothered ever since I read Al Martinez’s essay, “Confessions of an Ice Cream Fanatic,” published in the August 2000 issue of Gourmet magazine. At first I couldn’t pinpoint the source of my distaste, but after two years of reflecting on the article’s thesis — that the “Statue of…

Amazing what you can learn about your own town just by leaving it. For instance I doubt I would have known that the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau has both a marketing partnership with American Express and a serious promo in the works: Miami Spice Restaurant Month. During August,…

•Of food and the law: Olive’s top pit boss Todd English, who cooked for the Tribute Dinner at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival, has been sued by James Cafarelli, a business partner in the Olive Group Corp. Cafarelli claims English mismanaged funds intended for rent on their restaurants,…