Our fascination, O.K., OBSESSION with dim sum began while watching Eat Drink Man and Woman, the foodie cult flick of the 90s.  And with the exception of samplings at the South Beach Wine and Food Festival (coming our way in just a few weeks), great dim sum has been tough to find.  Well happy days are here, thanks to Hakkasan’s new weekend dim sum lunch menu.  Not since the scrumptious dim sum delights we had at the award-winning Ton Kiang in San Francisco, have we enjoyed such perfectly prepared, authentic dim sum.  Hakkasan, which boasts a sleek yet cozy atmosphere serves up some of our favorite (in a seemingly endless array) delicious dishes, which include:  the prawn cheung fun, siew long bun, turnip cakes, and the French beans, to name a few.

In addition to the dumplings, you can also order several different roasted items (duck, chicken, pork), congee (rice porridge soup), and a few choices of noodle dishes, such as the pulled mushroom noodles and one of the best won-ton soups this side of Shanghai.  And the prices are not bad, ranging from $6-$22.  Hakkasan is hands down the best place to have dim sum in Miami, combining the “high class opium den” look and feel of the London original with top-notch service and dishes prepared to perfection.

Nikki Beach is known for many things: the serious Sunday afternoon-into-Monday morning parties for South Beach locals; sun kissed, bikini-clad bodies lounging about from Marbella to St. Tropez to Koh Samui; claiming the #1 spot in Travel Channel’s “World’s Sexiest Beach Bar” list…but fine dining- not so much.  Well it’s time to add exquisite dining experience to Nikki Beach’s offerings.   Executive chef, Gerry Gnassi’s gourmet menu is available for lunch and dinner, and includes sushi, including a Maine Lobster Roll with mango and tobiko caviar, wood-oven gourmet pizzas, prime steaks and fresh seafood.  Our top pick was the 2 ½ pound Australian lobster tail, which we dubbed the “Jurassic Park lobster.”  We seriously wouldn’t want to run into this thing in the ocean but it was gloriously grilled on our plate, even though we could barely eat ¼ of it.  Other favorites included the giant prawns and Chateaubriand for two (more like 4).  The menu revamp is part of a comprehensive overhaul of the entire property, and definitely worth checking out.

On January 12, Clo and Charles S. Cohen, owners of DCOTA (Design Center of the Americas), hosted a private grand opening gala to celebrate the launch of the first ever DCOTA DesignHouse.  A crowd of 400 social and design luminaries from Miami to Palm Beach gathered to view the cutting edge designs and to toast the 2010 Stars of Design:  Sam Robin, Max Strang, Carlos Betancourt, Nicholas Varney, Jeff Blakely, Robin Hill, Laura Paresky Gould and Vladimir Kagan, who were honored on the same evening.  Among those in attendance for this fabulous event: Charles S. Cohen, Erika and Vladimir Kagan, Robin Hill, Brad Ford, Brian Patrick Flynn, Sophie Donnellson, Julia Noran, Norma Quintero, Tina Carlo, James W. Murphy, Nicole Lozano, Diane and Aristotle Aris, Gary Hutton, James Wall, D. Ashlee Harrison, Jilian Sanz, Irvin Lippman, Diane Sepler, Jeff Blakely, Phoebe Howard, Bonnie Barnett and Robert Kagan, Jeff and Gina Sabean, Katie Vecellio, Iran Issa Khan, Marnie Goldberg, Michael Kirkland and Sandy Krakoff.

This gala benefited three outstanding museums, representing each of the three counties of South Florida, The Norton Museum of Art, Palm Beach; the Fort Lauderdale Museum of Art, Broward; and the Vizcaya Museum, Miami/Dade. The entire run of the DesignHouse will also benefit these outstanding cultural institutions.  DesignHouse will be open daily, Monday through Friday, from 10:00 a.m. through 4:00 p.m., through June 11, and select Saturdays throughout the run (Saturday, February 6- Saturday March 6, and April 10).

“Luxury porn” tome, Ocean Drive magazine, celebrated its 17th anniversary at the Delano on Thursday night, with a bash hosted by Niche Media CEO, Jason Binn and Kim Kardashian, who, incidentally, was in the seventh grade when the magazine ran its first issue.  The gorgeous, Mia Moretti mixed the music while A-listers and their “+10s” wandered around the pool area hoping for a brush with celebrity, for which Ocean Drive parties are well-known. Read the rest here »

Ultra-hip, trendy hotspot, Cafeina, named for its caffeine-infused liquors and specialty cocktails, is our latest, favorite hang-out, located deep in the heart of Wynwood (you won’t find it unless you are consciously looking -we typically use landmarks such as the overturned truck and funky green and red patterned building to know we’re on the right track).

Read the rest here »

Moca’s Boho Bash Kick-Off

MOCA will host a kick-off party this Thursday, January 21, at the Catalina Hotel & Beach Club’s   Maxine’s Bar & Bistro, including complimentary Grey Goose vodka cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and music from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. to kick-off the upcoming Bohemian Bash, taking place on February 20 (more on this as the date approaches). Guests at the kick-off party will enjoy live performances as well as palm and tarot card readings and have the chance to purchase specially priced tickets to the Bohemian Bash in packages of 10 for $1,250.  Tickets to the Bohemian Bash are $150 in advance, $175 after February 5. To RSVP and purchase tickets, call 305.893.6211 ext. 36. Read the rest here »