By: Maryanne Salvat

maryannesalvat@aol.com 

Peter of London Celebrates 40 years of Beautiful Styling

May marks the 40^th anniversary of local South Florida beauty icon, Peter of London. The salon has been running successfully for decades. As part of this year’s anniversary celebration, Peter of London has organized a “40 Years of Beauty” event on Thursday, May 22, for their most valued customers and friends. A night dedicated to beauty and fashion. During the event, attendees will enjoy a Royal Fashion Show showcasing the evolution of fashion over the past four decades. Peter of London’s stylists will select a model and give them a complete transformation featuring the look of a particular era. Guests will also enjoy live music and exciting prizes; For more information visit: http://www.peteroflondon.com.

Fried & True at PAMM

On Tuesday, May 27, join PAMM for an exclusive dinner event on the waterfront terrace celebrating “Fried & True“, a new culinary adventure from Lee Brian Schrager with Adeena Sussman, featuring a foreword by Whoopi Goldberg with more than 50 recipes for America’s best fried chicken and sides.Preview recipes, showcased by Stephen STARR Events from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. On-site parking as available ($2/hour) / Metromover: Museum Park station / pamm.org/parking; members $175, non-members: $200 per ticket – includes tax & gratuity. Price includes dinner, sangria, live music and a signed copy of “Fried & True”Space is limited, reservations required events@pamm.org or call 305.375.1704.

The Restaurant at the Setai with Veuve Clicquot Champagne

The Restaurant at the Setai presents an exclusive dining experience with a four-course gourmet menu designed by Executive Chef Mathias Gervais with Veuve Clicquot Champagne pairings, hand-chosen by Chef Sommelier Dwayne Savoie. The special evening will be honoring top vintages of Veuve Clicquot Champagnes. This prestigious Champagne house, founded in 1772, is a leading innovator in the industry and continues its time-honored tradition of making “only one quality, the finest.” THE RESTAURANT – Thursday, May 29, Reception 7:30 p.m.; Dinner begins at 8:00 p.m. priced at $150 per person. Seating is limited. Reserve your wine dinner experience today by contacting 305.520.6400 or dining@thesetaihotel.com.

Summer Savings Pass: Lion Country Safari, Miami Seaquarium, Museum of Discovery and Science, Zoo Miami

Lion Country Safari, Miami Seaquarium, Museum of Discovery and Science and Zoo Miami will be offering a ‘Summer Savings Pass’ for the sixth year in a row.  The Summer Savings Pass will give buyers unlimited admission to all four attractions throughout the summer!   4 attractions…4 months of fun…1 low price.The Summer Savings Pass will be available for purchase at each of the participating parks beginning on May 19, and will be valid for admission to each of the attractions until September 30, 2014. Lion Country Safari, Miami Seaquarium, and Zoo Miami will also have the passes for sale online at their respective websites www.LionCountrySafari.com, www.miamiseaquarium.com and www.zoomiami.org. Museum of Discovery and Science will have the passes available by phone at 954.713.0930. At $56 plus tax, per adult and $46 plus tax, per child (ages 3-12), this pass grants unlimited admission through September 30, at Lion Country Safari, Miami Seaquarium, Museum of Discovery and Science and Zoo Miami. Annual Pass holders of these attractions will be eligible to purchase this pass for only $31 plus tax, per adult, and $21 plus tax, per child. For more information on the Summer Savings Pass visit www.summersavingspass.com.

EVITA at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts

The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County and Broadway Across America are pleased to present the national tour of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s passionate and elegant masterpiece EVITA. The Tony Award-winning musical will play at the Arsht Center’s Ziff Ballet Opera House for a limited engagement from May 27 – June 1. EVITA closes the Broadway in Miami 2013-2014 subscription season presented by Bank of America. Tickets for EVITA are on sale now and start at $26.00*. For tickets, visit www.arshtcenter.org or call the Box Office at 305.949.6722. Groups of 10 or more should call 786.468.2326. 

Cher performed to a sold-out crowd on Saturday night at the BB&T center.  According to a fan, the diva “may or may not have suffered a mini-stroke during ‘If I could turn back time’- it was hard to tell.” 

Jennifer Anniston was recently a guest speaker on a beauty panel at the Breakers Hotel in West Palm Beach. Will Smith dined at Zuma last week.

By: Mary Jo Almeida-Shore 

FedEx/St. Jude Angels & Stars Gala 

More than 600 guests, including celebrities, attended the 12th annual FedEx/St. Jude Angels & Stars Gala, co-founded by Daisy Fuentes, at the JW Marriott Marquis in Miami on May 17.  Guests enjoyed a cocktail reception, feasted on a four-course dinner and bid on auction items such as the Miami Heat Experience – autographed Shane Battier shoes along with 4, suite tickets in the FedEx Suite (center court) during a 2014-2015 regular season game. Celebrities in attendance included well-known television and radio personalities and musicians:  Ana Maria Canseco, Raul Gonzalez, Alberto Sardiñas, Pamela Silva Conde, Jon Secada, Charytin Goyco, among others.  Read the rest here »

By:  Mary Jo Almeida-Shore 

“Beautiful things don’t ask for attention,” was one of our favorite quotes from The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.  The quote was whispered by Sean Penn’s character in the movie, with reference to an elusive snow leopard which he had been waiting to photograph for days. As it turns out, the snow leopard was one of 45 wild creatures who gathered at the Feast of Species on Saturday night at Primary Projects, for a dinner designed to bring attention to the needs of animals. The wild event was hosted by Nicole Davis, founder and senior editor of Red Flag magazine, who was disguised as her favorite bird, the hummingbird and artist, Christina Pettersson in celebration of the eighth edition of Red Flag, which is centered on the theme of animals. The five-year old, nonprofit publication, seeks to “raise awareness about important environmental and social issues as well as gathering a community together around activism both locally and globally.”  Read the rest here »

Rob Brown and Todd Davis

Rapper, Flo Rida performed at LIV at the Fontainebleau as part of the BleauLive series on Friday night. Flo jumped into the audience and also invited fans on-stage with him.  

David Beckham and Simon Fuller, both dined at Seasalt & Pepper last week. Eva Longoria also dined at the Miami River eatery with a crew of ten, including her boyfriend.

Jamie Foxx partied at Hyde AA Arena to watch the Heat vs. Brooklyn Nets match-up.  Seen dining at Zuma: actor, Hank Azaria, Will Smith and Jessica Lowndes on separate occasions. On Tuesday night at Wall Nighclub at the W Hotel South Beach, Jamie Foxx and Simon Rex were spotted ogling contestants of a wet t-shirt party at the club.  

Miami’s own Gloria and Emilio Estefan recently attended the 100th White House Correspondents’ Dinner, and a Vanity Fair party which took place after the dinner.  

World renowned Miami designers, Rob Brown and Todd Davis, who count The Clintons among their stellar list of clients, recently hosted a design luncheon with The Lincoln Motor Company at Long View Gallery in Washington D.C.  Brown, Davis and Lincoln MKC designers, Dillon Blanski and Antonio Molinari discussed the similarities in the creative processes of auto design and interior home design.  All four experts talked about designing for a younger luxury consumer and how often, the result is progressive, classic design with a modern twist.

By: Maryanne Salvat

Larios on the Beach Unveiling 

Larios on the Beach has been known as Miami Beach’s go-to destination for authentic, award-winning Cuban cuisine, world famous mojitos and a stunning view of South Beach’s Ocean Drive. Having undergone a complete renovation to its interiors, Larios on the Beach will to re-open to the public this Friday, May 16. In collaboration with the restaurant’s Executive Chef, Odell Torres, the Estefans have created a tempting new menu featuring traditional favorites as well as Cuban-inspired specialties including a “Calorie Conscious Cuban” – a selection of delicious, guilt-free Cuban staples created by Gloria herself; Valet parking available. For reservations or more information call 305.532.9577 or go to www.lariosonthebeach.com.

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital 12th Annual FedEx/St. Jude Angels & Stars Gala  

On May 17, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital^® will celebrate its 12^th annual FedEx/St. Jude Angels & Stars gala, co-founded by Daisy Fuentes at the JW Marriott Marquis in downtown Miami. The Angels & Stars Gala sheds light on how the hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other deadly diseases; creating a positive environment for families to care for their children without financial burden. The dinner program will include a cocktail hour, fine dining, a silent auction and live performances by recording artists Willy Chirino and Jencarlos Canela. Also attending the star-studded event, which celebrates diversity, will be well-known presenters for their broadcast work in television and radio, including: Ana Maria Canseco, Raul Gonzalez, Alberto Sardiñas, Pamela Silva Conde, Jon Secada, Charytin Goyco, among others; For more information about tickets, sponsorships and auction items, visit stjude.org/miamigala or contact Carolina Masri at (800) 278-3383 or carolina.masri@stjude.org.  

Booze, Brunch & Boobs

Giorgio Rapicavoli of Eating House/Taperia Raca, Alberto Cabrera of Bread + Butter |pan con mantequilla and Jose Mendin of The Pubbelly Group – are joining forces with FMCancer, a public charity organization dedicated to providing financial assistance to young adults fighting cancer, to host a special charitable brunch on Saturday, May 17, 2014 at PB Steak in Sunset Harbour on South Beach. Dubbed Booze, Brunch & Boobs, Saturday’s event will directly benefit local Hilarey Reader Duarte, this quarter’s FMCancer beneficiary, who was diagnosed with Stage 3C breast cancer last October, just five weeks before her wedding. Reservations are required, as there are only two seatings – noon and 2:30 p.m. With spirits high, Reader Duarte and fellow brunchers lucky enough to snag a seat will feast on a six-course family-style tasting menu, created by all three cutting-edge chefs. The boozy brunch is priced at $50 per person, with the option of $20 Bottomless Zonin Prosecco Mimosas or $28 Bottomless Bloody Mary’s, Zonin Prosecco Mimosas, Sangria, & Micheladas.
PB Steak, located at 1787 Purdy Avenue in the Sunset Harbour area of Miami Beach, serves dinner seven days a week from 6 p.m. – midnight; lunch, via the Taco Belly pop-up Monday – Friday, from noon to 3 p.m., and Brunch Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m., Reservations are accepted and can be made through www.pbsteak.com or The Food Network’s cityeats.com; Valet and plenty of municipal parking available. Telephone: 305 695 9550. www.pbsteak.com. 

Miami PULSE

On Saturday, May 17 at 10:30 p.m. at the Mandarin Oriental, Miami’s newest group of elite, young professionals are celebrating the culmination of their annual campaign with the Miami PULSE Party – a benefit of the American Heart Association.  Miami PULSE is chaired for the second consecutive year by Danny Mendoza and Evelyn Torres. Guests will enjoy unlimited drinks and cocktails provided by the official Liquor Sponsor, Southern Wine and Spirits, and indulge in catered bites and live entertainment for only 65.00, brought to you by Anthony Dardano (aka DJ ShobuPrime).  To purchase tickets, please visit:www.miamiheartball.ahaevents.org and click on the PULSE tab.   For more information, please call: 954.364.5015.

Jazz Brunch Gala Benefitting the Footprints Foundation

Celebrated mystery novelist and longtime Miami Judge Barbara Levenson has been named among the featured authors for this year’s literary gala benefiting the Footprints Foundation. Levenson, along with New York Times best-selling author Patricia Schultz (1000 Places to See Before Your Die), Betsy Chasse (Tipping Sacred Cows), Victoria Moran (Main Street Vegan), and Elsie Augustave (The Roving Tree) will appear at the Footprints Foundation Jazz Brunch on Saturday, May 17, from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Ritz Carlton Coconut Grove. The Jazz Brunch Gala, which will feature an elegant brunch and music by the Les Haber Quintet, benefits the Footprints Foundation, an organization founded to reduce the mortality rates of mothers and infants in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Jamaica, and Somaliland. Founded by Lorna Owens, a renowned nurse, mid-wife, life coach and attorney, The Footprints Foundation works to train skilled midwives and traditional birth attendants in the essentials of maternal and newborn care. Tickets for the Jazz Brunch Literary Gala are $130 per person in advance of the event, or $190 per person at the door. For more information, visit www.footprints-foundation.org.

Chef’s Round Table  

In true royal form, Mango king and Taste of the Nation South Florida event chairman, Allen Susser, has selected some of South Florida’s most talented chefs and honored them with a metaphorical seat at this year’s Chef’s Roundtable. This elite group of culinarians is responsible for selecting over 50 of the city’s most prolific restaurants, chefs, sommeliers and mixologists to participate in this year’s Taste of the Nation South Florida and to celebrate this year’s amazing lineup and most anticipated gastronomic event, the Chef’s Roundtable will be hosting a pre-event party at Tongue & Cheek restaurant on Miami Beach on Monday, May 19 from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. The night will feature comfort dishes reminiscent of each of the chefs’ childhood. Members of the Chef’s Roundtable include: Timon Balloo of Bocce Bar and SUGARCANE raw bar grill and Taste of the Nation’s restaurant chair; Todd Erickson of HaVen and Huahua’s Taqueria; Jamie DeRosa of Tongue & Cheek; Jessica Rothschild of Rock Star Pastries; Bret Pelaggi of Uvaggio; Paula DaSilva of 3030 Ocean and Frederick Delaire of Loews Miami Beach Hotel. Cocktails provided by Tito’s Vodka. Tickets for the pre-event are priced at $100 per person; $25 only when purchased with a Taste of the Nation VIP ticket ($250). One hundred percent of the proceeds will benefit Share Our Strength; Valet and street parking available. Seating is limited and tickets must be purchased in advance via .