Spotlight Series | Brickell

 

From global cuisine to celeb-backed clubstaurants, Brickell has it all. Major Food Group unveiled Dirty French, an Art Deco-inspired steakhouse with flowing champagne and tuxedoed servers. Colombian chef Juan Manuel Barrientos’s Elcielo won a Michelin star for its molecular gastronomy. For a dose of La Dolce Vita, visit South Beach mainstay Casa Tua’s offshoot Casa Tua Cucina luxe food hall, and Cipriani, an Italian icon synonymous with glamour. Or journey to the French Riviera via LPM complete with a zinc bar. Asian fare is also well addressed with Hong Kong import Hutong’s Peking duck and dumplings, Osaka for Peruvian Nikkei that now extends to à la carte brunch, and Gekkō, a Japanese-inspired steakhouse collaboration from Grammy winner Bad Bunny and local restaurateur/VIP wrangler David Grutman. Brickell culinary pioneer River Oyster Bar excels in seafood and happy hour. Tucked away in a discreet den on Brickell Key, Naoe’s bucket-list omakase was awarded five stars by Forbes this year. Other eateries on deck are New York-born mini chain Avra Estiatorio, Arizona’s Henry Brasserie, and Sant Ambroeus's sister restaurant Felice.

 

Flanked by major cultural attractions Pérez Art Museum Miami and Vizcaya Museum & Gardens, Brickell’s important place in Miami’s timeline is also worth exploring. It claims many historic sites, since Miami was settled along the Miami River by Native Americans, including the Tequesta people, and later in the 19th century by the Brickell family. At the river’s mouth, the Miami Circle National Historic Monument is among the remains of a Tequesta village. The Brickell Avenue Bridge’s towering bronze sculpture honors them. The Dade Heritage Trust operates in the former office of James M. Jackson, M.D., Miami’s first physician and Jackson Memorial Hospital’s namesake. Its permanent and temporary exhibits and walking and biking tours provide a wealth of information.

 

Visual art lovers can pop by Avant Gallery, which represents Warhol, Anish Kapoor, and Damien Hirst. Brickell Backyard displays public artworks by local artists (Typoe, Cara Despain); it lies within a completed phase of the Underline, a 10-mile, linear park that will eventually span Brickell to Dadeland under Metrorail. Brickell has developed into an entertainment district due to the influx of residents and hotel guests. Most hotel lounges offer live music Mandarin Oriental, Miami’s MO Bar + Lounge is popular for Spanish guitar, Cuban jazz, and other genres throughout the week. For greater spectacles, Flamingo Theater Bar focuses on Latin performers, and El Tucán conjures nights at Havana’s famed Tropicana with glamorous showgirls, dinner, and dancing.

 

With its dense urban setting and abundant waterfront from the Miami River to Biscayne Bay, Brickell promotes an outdoor lifestyle. The Underline builds upon a pedestrian network including the River Walk Trail, Brickell Park Path, and Brickell Key’s widely utilized loop that fills with joggers and parents pushing strollers. More than a multi-use path, the Underline features fitness amenities. Its Brickell phase boasts a running track and flex flex-court for ball sports, and opens spaces for complimentary classes (CinderFit, yoga, dog training); Despain’s art installation doubles as a ping-pong table. Baptist Health Brickell Run Club meets on Tuesdays, and Best Buddies Cycling Club rides twice a week from Rosetta Bakery’s Brickell Avenue branch. Boaters dock at the 36-slip Vice City Marina, the sole public marina here, and tennis players take clinics and cross-training at BrickellFIT.

 

Many young dancers begin at Ayala Royal Ballet, where adult classes are also available. Gyms and studios for cardio to yoga workouts can be found on every corner, including Sweat440 and two Equinox branches. One Medical, a membership-based, primary care provider, recently opened an office for in-person patient visits and 24-7 virtual care. Spa days are a must thanks to Brickell’s booming hospitality scene. The 2023 Forbes Travel Guide awarded five stars to the Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Miami, and Hotel AKA Brickell’s new Leaf Spa specializes in mind-body balance with wellness-inspired treatments like meditative massage with guided meditation and sound bowl healing. Known for quick, results-driven facials with innovative technology and products, New York’s Silver Mirror Facial Bar opened its first Florida location in Brickell. To really get away from it all, travel back in time to the original Brickell Hammock in Simpson Park’s old-growth forest with native plants.

 

The multi-block Brickell City Centre brought designer brands and futuristic flair with its open-air, climate-controlled design. Tech amenities such as real-time parking space availability offer swift access to stores like Apple, Saks Fifth Avenue, Coach, Intermix, and Nike by Brickell combining online, in-store, and app discovery with exclusive nods to the locale such as an Argentine artist’s bold mural. Many tenants including Addict (collector sneakers), Bally, Kiton, and Santa Maria Novella cross over with sister property Bal Harbour Shops. Foot traffic, which increased nearly 17 percent from 2021 to 2022, gets another boost from newcomers Levi’s, Jo Malone London, Calzedonia (Italian hosiery, beachwear) Blue Nile (digitally native diamonds), Rhone (athleisure), and Luca Faloni (fine Italian men’s wear). Before BCC came on the scene, Mary Brickell Village pioneered Brickell’s evolution into a work/live/play neighborhood in 2008. Its curated blend of shops, services, and hospitality offers a central hub for daily life, where one can find eyewear, beauty services, dry cleaning, cigars, groceries, restaurants, nightlife, and more. Tapping into bustling Brickell, Niu opened a flagship on SW 8th Street for its large selection of mopeds, e-bikes, and kick scooters.

 

Once associated with business travel, Brickell’s hospitality sector has exploded in the leisure niche. Visitors appreciate its central location with easy access to the airport, cruise terminals, hot hoods like Wynwood, and gorgeous beaches on the barrier islands of Miami Beach and Key Biscayne. Mandarin Oriental, Miami, and Four Seasons Miami jump-started Brickell’s luxury hotel boom in the early 21st century. Awarded five and four stars respectively in the 2023 Forbes Travel Guide, the former claims La Mar by Gastón Acurio for the legendary chef’s Peruvian cuisine served waterside, while the latter’s rooms and suites received an elegant makeover by British designer Tara Bernerd. Philippe Starck-designed SLS Brickell boutique hotel and Yabu Pushelberg-designed SLS LUX Brickell all-suites hotel imported a New York meets South Beach vibe with colorful, striped facades, happening Altitude Pooldeck and Y7 Studio’s inclusive, streamed yoga classes. Perched on the tropically landscaped 40th floor with panoramic views EAST Miami’s Sugar Lounge ups the ante on buzzy rooftops. At newcomer Hotel AKA Brickell, Los Angeles Michelin-starred chef David Myers’s Ma/re is scheduled to open in spring.

 

More big players in the hospitality world with pending hotels here range from Barry Sternlicht of Starwood fame with his Treehouse Hotel’s foray Stateside to Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Hotels Miami with signature Commons Club restaurant, a communal workspace/library/game room and beer garden with live music. Brickell is clearly the place to be in the hotel biz with nearly every brand represented: JW Marriott, Novotel, Aloft, Tru by Hilton, Hotel Indigo, Hyatt Centric, AC Hotel, W, Element, citizens, and Atwell Suites are among its nearly 20 hotels with more than 3,400 rooms.