Miami Real Estate

Miami usually boasts a number of stars, but one of my personal favorites was in town yesterday…

David Archuleta was at Y100 studios on February 4 2008 for a private concert. The Season 7 American Idol runner up was featured as part of the Y100 Underground Concert, a secret concert exclusive for members of the Underground. Lucky to be part of the afternoon, I listened to him sing “A Little Too Not Over You” and his hit single “Crush.”  He’s just as good as he is on TV….take a look and judge on your own. Not only did he sing, but he participated in a Q&A with the audience. With questions about how many songs he wrote on the album (6), whether or not he’s single (he is), and if he will be playing his guitar while on tour, to which he humbly replied “I’m not that good,” we saw an ordinary 18-year old with extraorinary talent.

Victoria Martucci and Alexandra Restivo with David Archuleta

After his intimate performance, he signed autographs and took pictures with the approximately 40 fans that were invited, while singing along to every song that played on the radio as he signed things. I stuck around after the fans left, and saw just how down to earth David is. He hung out with me and the staff and even helped clean up! Idol fans may not have been able to vote him the winner of American Idol, as the margin between him and winner David Cook was so minimal(12 million votes), but he certainly is a star and a great one at that.

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The Fontainebleau Hotel just recently UNVEILED itself… under the scrutiny of ABC and CBS ….national television… and a packed house.  A miriad of stunning Victoria’s Secret lingerie models flaunted their stuff on the runway… Heidi Klum, Adriana Lima, Alessandra Ambrosio and 32 other supermodels.  Miami Beach was host city for the  2008 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show… With Usher performing, and lingerie the theme at the Fontainebleau….electricity was palpable.  The message was clear :  Less can be WAY more.  Granted, you definitely need the basics, but that, along with a hood of mystery, a touch of intrigue,  and some eye-catching ’pop’ makes for phenomenal success. 

What made Miami’s Fontainebleau Unveiling the super  hot ticket that it was?   And how can you capture that magic, and use it to sell your house (or any house for that matter)?  Well, Victoria’s Secret helps!  Start with the basics… good bones and  bare essentials.  Strip away the extraneous. Get rid of any unnecessary outer layers (the ones no one wants to see anyway).   Scrub, polish and buff.   Captivate the senses… and create a sense of excitement.  A fresh coat of paint is great… but get rid of the clutter. 

So, you ask:  ”How exactly can Victoria’s Secret sell My house?”   Remove everything that can hinder a buyer’s creative juices.   Leave wiggle room for imagination:  Your buyer’s imagination.  Without stripping the house bare naked,  strip away a lot.  (Get rid of more than you’d be inclined to… without going totally overboard!)   A vacant house does absolutely nothing for the imagination and will actually put the brakes on creative juices.  Show off the curves and angles.  Clearly define areas you want  highlighted.  Make the experience memorable and make it fun.  Make it appeal to the masses.  Add some flashy eye-candy and set your buyer’s imagination free.  Your buyer needs freedom to visualize…  and to create.  Provide the canvass.  Provide the palette.  Give your buyer the brush…  and some room to dream.    

Written by Vicki Restivo,  Luxury Real Estate Consultant with EWM Realtors,Inc.

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I guessed they must be GIVING AWAY the farm…  given the line of people all the way through the parking lot, and out onto the street… at Knaus Berry Farm on SW 248th Street Saturday afternoon!  The seasonal fruit and vegetable “stand” and berry-picking field known as a ‘u-pick’ is a fabulous local tourist attraction in South Florida.  It’s open from 8:00 am until 5:30pm daily (except on Sundays… when it’s closed)…  mid-November through April.  Knaus Berry Farm is operated by German Baptist Dunkers, attired in traditional clothing: conservative wide brimmed hats, long-sleeved shirts, trousers and suspenders (… long skirts for the ladies) …  with warm countenances and cordial dispositions.

Never in a million years would I  have ever imagined the waiting lines could compete with those in Disneyworld, but on this particular Saturday they did!  The line for milkshakes  was a 40 minute wait … And, there was a second line (triple in size to the first) stretching the entire bredth of the paking lot, just to enter the farm store.  Daunting! ( No…. It’s not usually that busy!)

Smiling faces (sipping milkshakes from the first line) waited to weigh-in their hand-picked strawberries, peppers and tomatoes, procure fresh vegetables, select fresh bakery items.  I rarely drive down there.  Granted, it was a holiday weekend. Balmy Florida weather that our snow-bound northern friends would trade for  in a heartbeat, made it fun… everyone seemingly happy to wait,  chat, and enjoy the warm sunshine… in line together….bemused and content to  pass the time.

Open from 8:00 to 5:30 every day except Sunday…. you can hand-pick your own strawberries. Read the rest of this entry »

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Il Gabbiano, on the edge of Biscayne Bay at the mouth of the Miami River, claimed one of the absolute top water-view spots in all of Miami.  Adding to that, the ambiance, the exquisitely prepared Italian delicacies, and the flirty, attentive barrage of waiters, make it stand out.  And… the locals have taken notice.   Offshoot of Il Mulino in New York, the Masci Brothers opened Il Gabbiano here in Miami, and despite the fact that you’ll never find it if someone doesn’t tell you where it is, it is packed….   You need a reservation…. without which, you are basically up the creek without a paddle.  Waterfront, and not at all visible from the street, it’s tucked away behind the Inter Continental Hotel and One Miami’s “Prime Blue Grille”.  Drive in and leave your car with valet.

Between the floor-to-ceiling glass, open terrace, vast expanse of open water,  yachts, tugboats and an occasional dolphin, the setting is spectacular.  Go early… before twilight.  The view is to die for, and the terrace is inevitably breezy, so be prepared if you’re sitting outside.

Barely in your seat, you’ll be treated to ”tocchettini” (chunks)  of fresh parmigiano reggiano…. and  garlic-rubbed bruschetta covered with vine-ripened tomatoes, basil and olive oil… and an appetizer of fried zucchini sliced paper-thin with a spicy crushed-red-pepper zip.

Pasta is as mouthwatering as anything I’ve found (here or in Italy!).  Several versions are homemade (and the chef is amenable to ‘swapping sauces’… something I’m notorious for asking for!).  My choice … Pesto (over long homemade noodles)!  

Dover Sole is another favorite.  The wine list is good.   The Limoncello is a delight.  (And the recipe for limoncello is so “simple”:   Lemon rind, sugar, liquor… a couple of days soaking … sounds easy…  but I think you have to have just the right lemons, and just the right touch!)  Il Gabbiano is one of my favorite restaurants  to recommendation in Miami.   Great romantic place to go.  Equally wonderful for entertaining clients and business associates.   Beautiful bar.  Exceptional ambiance.  A find!  For menus and more information: www.ilgabbianomiami.com     I’d love your comments about Il Gabbiano (the “Seagull”) … or other Miami restaurants with water-views, great ambiance, or remarkable food.

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Hidden from sight behind a thick hedge of ficus (with no signage to  indicate that it even exists) Casa Tua is a gem you could literally walk right past, never realizing it was was there.  Located on Miami Beach,  at 1700 James Avenue, Casa Tua was once a private home.  Now it’s a hide-away for elegant, secluded dining (and with five guest rooms … it’s also an uber-chic bed and breakfast/hotel).  Casa Tua reminds me of another restaurant I’ve loved for eternity: The Ivy in Los Angeles, California.

Casa Tua is owned by the Grenedene family.  Micky Grenedene opened the restaurant, members club, and boutique hotel in 2004. This beautiful Spanish Style Villa  has the feel and warmth of a private home, but on a grandiose scale.  

Casa Tua has indoor and outdoor dining, both… with the patio areas well-shaded and private… open for lunch and dinner.  Unique to Casa Tua is a large chefs table (reserved for single diners … as opposed to large parties!)  set within eyeshot of the open kitchen.   Photographs by Helmut Newton adorn the walls.

Wrought iron gates open to an outdoor brick terrace, and both the outdoor patio and the interior ambiance will make you swoon… Casa Tua is one of the most romantic restaurants around.  

On the second floor of Casa Tua (which has another lovely outdoor terrace as well)  is a private member’s lounge/ club and another terrace. 

Patrons and guests come from literally around the globe. How they find it,  I really don’t know… except that word of mouth spreads like wildfire… in Miami (as well as elsewhere!)  … and local concierges taut it highly.

Make a reservation. 

While the restaurant may appear to be 1/2 full when you get there,  they will not hurry you through your meal … so the table is yours, for as long as you choose. 

My favorite:

Pasta with creme fraisch and caviar (sinfully wonderful…  Just don’t be surprised when it arrives tepid, as that’s truly how it’s to be served) …  tuna tartare …  a wine list to admire …  desserts to make you melt.   Portions are small, and exquisite!

Among my top restaurant choices in Miami is Casa Tua!  

For more information:  www.casatualifestyle.com 

Please leave your comments on this restaurant, and your other favorites anywhere in Miami Beach or South Florida.

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Miami has the largest ski club, as well as the biggest youth regatta in the nation. Miami’s ultra transient, metropolitan hub and mecca for international trade may have lured you here for business, but it’s the Miami lifestyle that pulls you in and perhaps what keeps you here.  You may long for waterfront, or water views, or the sand between your toes. You may yearn to be yachting (or living aboard one), playing tennis or the golf … Miami has it all…. (well, other than mountains.)… Yearning for snow skiing (okay… read on!) Read the rest of this entry »

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Misha

 Misha’s Cupcakes.  Who would have thought cupcakes would ever be the rage in Miami (or anywhere for that matter!)? 

And what I’m dying to know is what on earth  they put in them to

Read the rest of this entry »

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