The South Florida Traveler

If you haven’t made plans for New Year’s Eve yet, time is running out. No matter what kind of evening you’d like to partake in, there are options in every corner. Here are some possibilities to spend that magical night:

Palm Beach County:

• Join in the fun close to home at John Bull English Pub. They will be offering $5 martinis, some amazing dinner specials, a live band “24/7″ and the infamous ball drop at midnight. Call early for reservations. 561-697-2855
• Stop by Taverna Opa for a night to remember. Located at CityPlace, their first seating at 6 pm is $100/person and includes a glass of champagne. The 2nd seating is at 9 pm, is $175/person and includes 2 glasses of champagne, a lobster tail and prawns. For more info, visit opapalmbeach.com

Broward County:

• Lola’s on Harrison will be offering a 4-course dinner and champagne toast on New Year’s Eve for $65. Enjoy such culinary delights as Maryland Blue Crab Cakes, Grilled Filet with Roasted Fingerling Potato and Carmelized Onion Hash and Pan Seared Mahi Mahi with shrimp risotto and lobster butter sauce. Visit Lola’s on Harrison for more info.

Miami-Dade County:

• Elevate your senses on NYE at the Conrad Miami. Spend the night in the hotel or enjoy a gourmet dinner at Atrio. Stay for cocktails at the bar and watch the fireworks from the balcony. The chef’s dinner from 6:30 – 11:30 includes a champagen toast for $125/person. For reservations, call 305-503-6529 or visit conradmiami.com/seasonalspecials
• Area 31 at the Epic Hotel promises to be the best spot for an amazing fireworks display in the area. Executive Chef John Critchley has put together a 5 course dinner for the evening for $135 ++ and includes a welcome glass of Prosecco, an after dinner libation, a midnight Champagne toast and live music.
• NYE at LIV: Hop on down to the Fountainebleau as they will be hosting 3 soirees. Maroon 5’s Adam Levine will be hosting a poolside party with DJ Berrie. Molly Sims and DJ Ross will be at Blade and Diddy will be hosting a dance party at LIV. Tickets begin at $225. LIV

Photo credit: Dan4th @ flickr

Comments Off

If you are looking for a pocket size guide to the luxe lifestyle in Miami that is sleek, savvy and even a bit witty, check out the LUXE City Guides. This series of guidebooks, 30 in all,  just added Miami to the line-up. Written by over 20 local contributors, this lifesaver of a book lets you know about the hottest hotels, restaurants, clubs, bars and spas in the area. Additionally, you will learn about services, shops and hidden secrets that only the locals know about. Even better, the LUXE guides take in zero advertising dollars, therefore you know the recommendations …read more

1 Comment

For me up north, the snow is keeping me inside, but for those people in Florida you are a bit luckier as you can get around. But, as you are preparing to finish up your holiday shopping what is open? Here’s a quick run-down on where to sneak in and pick up those last minute touches to make your holidays a little merrier.

Publix: All stores close at 7:00 pm on Christmas Eve and are closed all day on Christmas Day
Albertson’s: open until 3:00 pm on Christmas Day, 9:00 pm on Christmas Eve
Winn-Dixie: open until 4:00 pm on Christmas Day, 7:00 …read more

Comments Off

I’m a huge fan of Open Table. This online reservation system is ideal for finding new restaurants, making reservations, and even better at this time of the year, it’s perfect to find out what restaurants are open for those days when you feel the city has shut down  — including Christmas Day. If you are one of those people who would rather go out than spend the day in the kitchen or if you are on the road for work or another reason, Open Table is the place to go to. They have nearly 60 restaurants for you to choose …read more

1 Comment

Today was one of those days — a much awaited travel day. Yes, I woke up at 5am this morning and with my eyes half opened made my way to the Fort Lauderdale airport to head up to the snowy Midwest. Only 1 day after reading about the 10 inches of snow they just received. Lovely! Right? Although, the weather can cause quite a nuisance during the long days of travel, the thing that bothers me even more is the lack of an Internet connection in the airports. OK so they do have an Internet connection, but every airport uses …read more

Comments Off

Mark you calendars now as on Tuesday, January 20, 2009, the City of West Palm Beach will be holding a special Inauguration celebration on Clematis Street. Their weekly Clematis by Night will move to Tuesday that week in order to help mark the swearing in of our nation’s 44th President, Barack Obama.
And if you don’t want to wait that long, you could always make your way down there tonight as from 6:00 – 9:00 pm, Vanilla Monk will be on stage. Vanilla Monk is a soulful, funky rock group from Fort Lauderdale. Hop on down to Centennial Square tonight on …read more

Comments Off

 When I first met Burt Rapoport nearly 2 years ago, I knew he was one to keep an eye on. I was thoroughly impressed with his genuine character and the excellent food and service you received in his restaurants. The only problem was that none of the restaurants were very close by, until now. Clematis Social, Burt’s latest endeavor, opened up recently on Clematis Street in West Palm Beach. Located at 223 Clematis Street (next to Forte and across the street from Rocco’s Tacos), this place has been buzzing since it opened its doors just a few weeks ago.
For those …read more

Comments Off

I love feel good stories. The idea of helping those who are struggling just puts a good feeling inside. Though recently, it seems like the amount of people that are struggling has become a majority rather than a rare site. As I was looking recently at some items being auctioned off for the South Beach Wine and Food Festival, I came across a company called ‘bidding for good.’ It is definitely one of those feel good companies that everyone should look into.
In addition to offering bargains on items being auctioned off and having items that are nearly impossible to get …read more

1 Comment

Every year, Travel & Leisure magazine releases their survey results of the best and worst airports in America, and I thought now, right before the holidays, would be a great time to highlight these results. For most of you, if you plan on traveling during the next couple of weeks, I hope you have bought your tickets, but if not, here’s a guide to help you know what airports to avoid. As always, some Florida airports made the list. Can you guess which ones?
First of all, here’s a list of the Top 10 worst airports:

#10 (tie): Chicago-Midway with 25% …read more

Comments Off

For those of you who have been around South Florida for awhile, you must surely remember when CityPlace used to be more of a ghetto than a tourist destination. After cleaning the area up, a huge amount of real estate development and some dedicated people devoted to change, CityPlace was transformed. OK, so I wasn’t around to see the transformation, I’ve surely heard stories, but now I feel that another area of West Palm Beach is worthy of recognition, a place called Northwood Village.
Northwood Village is located 1 mile north of Palm Beach Lakes Blvd. in West Palm Beach between …read more

2 Comments