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Category: Spotlight2023
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Vida & Estilo Restaurant Group | V&E Hospitality Group (V&E), which translates to Life and Style in Spanish, is a culinary industry pioneer behind some of the most recognizable and finest restaurant concepts. The brand exudes lifestyle concepts that blend gastronomy, mixology, entertainment and unique vibes into their locations.
V&Eโs award-winning portfolio includes Cafe Americano, PaperFish, Barsecco, Oh! Mexico, La Cerveceria de Barrio, Havana 1957, Cortadito Coffee House, Marabรบ and Mercato Della Pescheria. A second PaperFish recently opened on Espanola Way, and the team revamped the iconic Ocean Drive News Cafe and Oh! Mexico Taco Shop. The July ED Business Newsletter spotlights Jamil Dib, co-founder and owner of V&E Restaurant Group.
- Please share the history of your restaurant concepts and what inspired you to open in Miami Beach?
Vida & Estilo opened its first restaurant in 1997. Our inspiration, for moving from Mexico to Miami Beach, was about changing our lifestyle. We were spurred by the magic of Miami Beach and I am now proud to call the city my home.
- How would you describe the atmosphere and ambiance of your restaurant concepts?
Our concepts are about having a memorable experience. We curate our locations with absolute dedication to the theme and restaurant concept. The relaunched News Cafe, an operation in partnership with Goldman Properties, and dedicated a great amount of effort to recreating the essence and spirit, past, present and future, of Ocean Drive and South Beach.
- Please share some of your popular culinary offerings, and what makes them stand out?
We are proud to highlight Cuban cuisine at Havana 1957, which was the second restaurant for Vida & Estilo. We now have five Havana 1957 locations, the first opened over a decade ago on Espaรฑola Way, and was recently included in the Best Cuban Foods in Miami listing, specifically highlighting our vaca frita (fried shredded beef). Havana 1957 is also known for our signature chicken, Pollo Havana, a family recipe, which is oven cooked for 3 1/2 hours and marinated for 72 hours. Additionally, our Japanese food lovers enjoy our signature sushi roll, the Acevichada, at PaperFish, which is wildly popular in Miami Beach and Miami.
- What unique ingredients or cooking techniques do you use in your dishes?
We use a Josper oven at Mercato Della Pescheria. It is a charcoal oven that allows us to combine tradition elements with modern and innovative cookery. We also enjoy cooking with seafood and fish, such as our celebrated branzino, and preparing savory meats with this coal grilling technique.
- How do you source your ingredients, and do you prioritize using locally sourced or organic products?
Our purchasing department is constantly improving our selection of quality products, produce and vendors. We strive to source local, where possible, and keep a close eye on availability and value. We purposely work to keep our food cost reasonable to preserve a menu that is cost-friendly to our clientele.
- What kind of dining experience can customers expect when they come to your restaurants, and how do you ensure high-quality service?
Excellence and honesty are on the menu. Our food is what attracts patrons, and our customer service, reputation, cleanliness, safety, decor are the added essentials that complete the dining atmosphere. We pay close attention to the entire diner experience and make it memorable.
7. What steps do you take to accommodate dietary restrictions and personal preferences?
Being able to accommodate dietary restrictions and personal preferences, such as vegetarian and gluten free options, is key to our dining delivery and our customer service. For example, Cortadito Coffee House offers a variety of non-dairy options, such as a cafรฉ con leche with an assortment of milk choices, which has been widely indulged and appreciated by our patrons.
- What are your future plans and goals, and how do you plan to continue growing and evolving?
Adapting, transforming, and understanding the needs of our consumers and cultivating the next generation of patrons is our plat du jour.
We are working to understand and foster our younger culinary consumers, nurture our existing Miami Beach diners, making our restaurants โmust experienceโ destinations, and continuing to grow our culinary offering in the ever expanding hospitality and gastronomy world.
For more information, please visit: https://www.verestaurants.com
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Pride Month is an annual celebration of the many contributions made by the LGBTQ+ community to history, society and cultures worldwide. In Miami Beach, we celebrate the โPrideโ community every day, as well as annually during the month of June in commemoration of its roots in the Stonewall Riots of June 1969.
AxelBeach Miami, located at 1500 Collins Avenue, is the first adult-only hotel brand focused exclusively on the LGBTQ+ community. Though the hotel opened prior to the pandemic, they are reconnecting with the Miami Beach community and promoting the hotel as a safe space for the Pride community to socialize, relax, have fun, and be authentic . The AxelBeach motto is focused on staying true to the local culture.
As summer begins and temperatures rise, the AxelBeach Miami Art Deco-style interior celebrates the original bohemian spirit of 1940s Miami Beach. AxelBeach Miami is excited to honor the contributions of the LGBTQ+ community, engage with residents, visitors and tourist, welcome all to have fun with their exclusive paradise facilities and encourage the community to participate in their planned events.
โThe Axel Hotels [business] model is to engage locally in the communities where their properties are located. That impact is being felt in Miami Beach where AxelBeach is doing business. From hosting events and pop-ups to providing space for community groups to engage and meet, the property has become a magnet,โ states Steve Adkins, President of the Miami-Dade Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. โThe new General Manager, Efrain Castro, has made it his priority to be visible and connect with the community, while adhering to the Axel Hotels standard of providing a cosmopolitan and tolerant environment where atmosphere, diversity, and respect are valuedโ.
Recognized with the 2020 Merit Award of Excellence for Historic Preservation & Restoration by American Institute of Architects (AIA) Florida, due to the sensitivity to the original design and preserving original elements such as eyebrow windows, neon facade lighting, an ornamental entry fountain and incorporating new features, AxelBeach Miami is another welcoming jewel in the Miami Beach business community.
For more information, please visit https://www.axelhotels.com/en/axelbeach-miami/hotel.html
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In the current technology-driven world, the role of a Chief Information Officer (CIO) has never been more important. This is particularly true for the City of Miami Beach as we strive to be efficient, sustainable, and innovative. A determined, resourceful, and successful CIO can impact whether Miami Beach is a thriving, modern community versus a struggling community trying to keep pace. Miami Beach is fortunate to have, Frank Quintana, a passionate, inventive, and creative leader at the forefront of information technology.
Frank joined the City of Miami Beach in August 2014 and served as Division Director of IT Operations for five years prior to being promoted to CIO. Frank is responsible for driving innovation, strategic planning and overseeing the design, release, and maintenance of all technology services and systems. With more than 23 years of diverse senior level IT experience, in the private and public sector, including small and large corporations, professional sports (Miami Dolphins), and entertainment (Hard Rock Stadium), Frank is keenly prepared to manage and oversee the 55 member IT team.
As technology increasingly becomes a crucial part of our daily lives, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic, which forced us to adapt to a new normal, virtual technology is now front and center, connecting teams and stakeholders, advancing operations, and enhancing productivity. Accordingly, the role of the CIO is more integral to the effectiveness, strategy, and responsiveness of municipal government.
A testament to Frankโs leadership and ability to keep Miami Beach dynamic and modern, the IT Department received the Florida Local Government Information System Association (FLGISA) 2022 Innovative Leadership in Management of Information Technology Award for creating an original platform open-data resource tool for the community. The tool allows the General Obligation Bond (G.O. Bond) Program to transparently provide an interactive public website, www.GOMBlnfo.com, that reports all stages and elements of 57 โquality of lifeโ projects in real time. The tool is transforming how Miami Beach illustrates project progress and engages with members of the community.
Creating new tools is only one facet of how IT elevates how the City of Miami Beach delivers for the community. Communicating and promoting the City of Miami Beach as a best in class destination to do business, live, work and play is also an important deliverable. To do so, the IT Department partners with departments to share the benefits of Miami Beach, including partnering with the Economic Development Department at eMerge Americas 2023, held at the Miami Beach Convention Center from April 20-21, 2023. The teams debuted a Make A Bold Move exhibition booth and worked to attract technology and fintech companies and entrepreneurs to open, move and/or relocate to Miami Beach and the IT Department shared analytic data explaining, in real time, the cleanliness of the city and other quality of life matters.
Driving a successful IT Department is challenging and Frank and his team are prepared and ready โ leveraging resources, exploring new opportunities and tools, and embedding a customer focus in every element of their service delivery.
For more information on the IT Department, please visit: https://www.miamibeachfl.gov/city-hall/information-technology/
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In honor of Earth Month, learn about how the Miami Beach Convention Center is investing in our venue and planet with the latest sustainability efforts. Earth Month takes place during April every year to raise environmental awareness and create consciousness around the issues that affect mother nature.
The first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22, 1970. The event was organized by Gaylord Nelson, a United States Senator from Wisconsin. He was inspired to action after witnessing the damage caused by an oil spill in Santa Barbara, California in 1969. Nelson realized that there was a need for everyone to become more environmentally aware and active in preserving our planet. He hoped that Earth Day would be a way to educate people about the importance of environmental protection.
The theme for Earth Day, Earth Week and Earth Month 2023 is , โInvest in Our Planet.โ The focus is on engaging governments, institutions, businesses and the community to do their part because everyone is accountable. The theme calls on people around the world to recognize our collective responsibility to protect and preserve the planet and help accelerate the transition to an equitable, prosperous green economy for all.
The Miami Beach Convention Center and Campus is Miami Beachโs re-imagined centerpiece for meetings, conventions, exhibitions, and tradeshows. The newly $640-million-dollar renovated 1.4 million square feet venue includes a 60,000 square-foot Grand Ballroom with a 18,000 square-foot pre-function space, approximately 500,000 square feet of exhibition space, a 99,000 square-foot Grand Lobby, 84 breakout rooms, approximately 800 roof deck parking spaces and 9 acres of public green space with curated public art. Famed Fentress Architects and Architectonica collaborated to create a state-of-the-art sustainable design and eco-conscious operational procedures. Recycled materials are embedded throughout the building, with more than 20 percent of materials sourced locally in South Florida. Ninety six percent of construction waste was recycled, diverting more than 38,000 tons of waste recycling for this Silver LEED-certified facility.
In March 2023, the Convention Center team launched an Herb & Vegetable Garden, in partnership with Compost for Life Miami. The program takes leftover organics from the venueโs conventions and events and converts the waste into compost. This compost is then used in the herb and vegetable garden, creating a sustainable food system that reduces waste and provides real garden-to table dining. The goal is to create a calm environment for the culinarians and convention center team to tend, nurture and educate the community on gardening and sustainable practices. The vegetables currently planted include carrots, lettuce, onions, tomatoes, and peppers, and the foliage is used for table garnishes and decorations. Moreover, solar powered lights illuminate the wooden fence surrounding the garden, which is made from recycled wood pallets from food shipments.
โWeโre thrilled to bring this garden to life at Rum Room and Venu (and Convention Center Campus) to not only have access to fresh vegetables for our dishes, but to also extend our sustainability program at the convention center into these two new spaces in an exciting way,โ said Danny Medina, Regional Vice President, Sodexo Live! โ Miami Beach Convention Center food and beverage management.
The Convention Center is continuously working on how to make the venue more accountable. To that end, the team is working on building a robust sustainability plan that meets, supports and encourages meeting planners and show organizers expectations, including, rainwater harvesting, and solar tube installations.
Earth Day is held on Saturday, April 22, 2023, and Earth Week is held from Sunday, April 16 to Saturday, April 22, 2023.
For more information, including a free Earth Day 2023 Business Sustainability Toolkit โ please visit https://www.earthday.org/
For more information, please visit http://www.miamibeachconvention.com/sustainability
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Womenโs History Month, which dates back to the first Womenโs Day in 1909, is one of the many moments in the year when the City of Miami Beach celebrates and highlights the contributions of women to our community and beyond.
The 2023 Womenโs History Month theme, designated by the National Womenโs History Alliance, is โCelebrating Women Who Tell Our Storiesโ โ honoring women who have devoted their lives and talents to making a difference.
This month we celebrate chef Samantha Cruz, the first chef of, the soon to be launched, Rum Room and Venu, located in the Miami Beach Convention Center campus in Collins Canal Park. Chef Cruz is a culinary dynamo and is bringing her innovative and creative style of cooking to Miami Beach Civic Center.
There is an old saying that โwomen make good cooks, but men make better chefs.โ Setting aside this statement is false, it does give us a snapshot of how the culinary community has looked at the role of men and women in professional kitchens. With over 147,434 chefs currently employed in the United States, 25.2% women and 74.8% men, there is room for growth.
Sadly, women have had to fight for equality in the kitchen. However, equality is finding a seat at the dining table and making a meaningful positive impact. Inspiring female chefs and restaurateurs are showing the world they are capable of thriving and driving creativity in the culinary community. They have been tenacious and are now prospering and exerting influence within a male dominated industry.
Chef Samantha Cruzโ twelve (12) years of experience in fine dining and sports entertainment hospitality is rooted in her determination and resolve to do the unexpected with local produce and multi-cultural flair. A South Florida native, raised in Allapattah by a single mother, Chef Cruz is the eldest of nine siblings and was introduced to cooking by making lunches and dinners for her family. Raised on family recipes that reflect her American, Cuban, Peruvian, Dominican Republic and St. Croix heritage, Chef Cruzโ distinctive flavors are unique and familiar to South Floridian palates.
Chef Cruzโ professional career started after high school, as a restaurant food runner. Thereafter, her curiosity and ambition progressed from front and back of house to working as an Executive Sous Chef at hospitality powerhouses 50 Eggs Hospitality Group (Swine, Yardbird, and Kong River House), Grove Bay Hospitality Group (Big Easy and Glass and Vine), and as Chef de Cuisine at PLANTA in Coconut Grove.
Chef Cruz is passionate about food preservation, specifically the concept of preserving and pickling food naturally. Learned in her grandparentsโ kitchen, preservation drives her old-world rustic style gastronomy. โWe are using local and regional grown ingredients to make special food to delight residents, visitors and tourists,โ says Cruz. โThe Rum Room and Venue signature dishes range from the best version of everyday comfort food to the eccentric and extraordinary.โ
Upscale menus, inspired by traditional Miami dishes and South Floridaโs Caribbean roots, are inspired by the Rum Room, a 60-seat restaurant with tropical, 1920s Florida decor. Rum Room cuisine will incorporate Spanish features, like beans and sofritos, a nod to the Spaniards passing through Miami Beach in the early 20th century. Mixing Haitian, Latin, and Central American influences, Chef Cruz and her kitchen team are creating one-of-a-kind experiences โ with authentic dishes such as โmedia nocheโ sandwiches made from sweet plantain dough, pan con bistec, croquetas, and tamales.
The Venu, formerly the 1916-built Miami Beach Municipal Golf Course Clubhouse, will give Chef Cruz opportunities to customize imaginative food and beverage menus for small gatherings, business meetings, weddings, bar mitzvahs, and more.
โEverything feels natural to me in the kitchen,โ shares Chef Cruz. โI love cooking, making people happy, and being a role-model to the next generation of female chefs.โ
The Miami Beach Convention Center (MBCC) is located at 1901 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, FL 33139. Rum Room is on the northeast corner of the MBCC Campus Center, where Washington Avenue meets Dade Boulevard. Venu is located in the 1916-built former Miami Beach Municipal Golf Course Clubhouse at 2100 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33139. Rum Room will be open for lunch and dinner and launch a Sunday brunch in early 2023.
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Simona Quispe, owner of Celmas Dry Cleaners, has been working in Miami Beach since the 80โs. A Bolivia native, Simona moved to South Florida and found her first job working at a dry cleaner located at Collins Avenue and 27th Street. With little or no experience in the dry cleaner industry, Simona found her passion and worked to develop her operational and management skills on the job. After a few years, Simonaโs boss approached her with the news that he was moving abroad and offered her an opportunity to take over the dry cleaner. The self-described risktaker and proud and determined immigrant, jumped at the proposal, borrowed the money to buy the business and didnโt look back.
Celmas Dry Cleaners, currently located on 4111 Sheridan Avenue, has been serving the community for over 25 years. Offering several services including, but not limited to, professional dry cleaning and laundry, tailoring and alterations, and accessory and shoe repair. With a unique and creative vision and mission Celmas consciously strives for excellence, quality customer service, and delivering value to the community.
Celmas Dry Cleaner, like many, did not escape the negative impact of the global pandemic. Fortunately, Simona found relief via the City of Miami Beach Community Development Block Grant-Coronavirus Emergency Small Business Reimbursement Grant Program, an initiative designed to assist businesses affected by the pandemic. Thankfully, Celmas Dry Cleaners remained open as an essential business although sales dropped significantly. The grant enabled Simona to cover a portion of her rent and upgrade to more efficient equipment.
In addition, as a participant in the Miami Beach program, Simona received business assistance from Prospera, a non-for-profit organization focused on providing capacity building support for businesses seeking to survive and thrive by learning how to focus and prioritize their goals and operations. With customized one-on-one assistance from a Prospera business consultant, Simona discovered the importance of having a digital marketing strategy to promote her business online and attract new clients while also engaging existing patrons. Simona attended the Spanish-language webinars, presented by the City of Miami Beach and Prospera on Business Continuity, helping develop business resiliency strategies that will allow her to be better prepared for future unforeseeable surprises.
Prospera worked with Simona to navigate and identify services such as educational training sessions, business advanced consulting, and access to capital. The strategy is strengthening Celmas Dry Cleanersโ ability to grow, prosper and contribute to Miami Beachโs small business ecosystem.
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Simona Quispe, owner of Celmas Dry Cleaners, has been working in Miami Beach since the 80โs. A Bolivia native, Simona moved to South Florida and found her first job working at a dry cleaner located at Collins Avenue and 27th Street. With little or no experience in the dry cleaner industry, Simona found her passion and worked to develop her operational and management skills on the job. After a few years, Simonaโs boss approached her with the news that he was moving abroad and offered her an opportunity to take over the dry cleaner. The self-described risktaker and proud and determined immigrant, jumped at the proposal, borrowed the money to buy the business and didnโt look back.
Celmas Dry Cleaners, currently located on 4111 Sheridan Avenue, has been serving the community for over 25 years. Offering several services including, but not limited to, professional dry cleaning and laundry, tailoring and alterations, and accessory and shoe repair. With a unique and creative vision and mission Celmas consciously strives for excellence, quality customer service, and delivering value to the community.
Celmas Dry Cleaner, like many, did not escape the negative impact of the global pandemic. Fortunately, Simona found relief via the City of Miami Beach Community Development Block Grant-Coronavirus Emergency Small Business Reimbursement Grant Program, an initiative designed to assist businesses affected by the pandemic. Thankfully, Celmas Dry Cleaners remained open as an essential business although sales dropped significantly. The grant enabled Simona to cover a portion of her rent and upgrade to more efficient equipment.
In addition, as a participant in the Miami Beach program, Simona received business assistance from Prospera, a non-for-profit organization focused on providing capacity building support for businesses seeking to survive and thrive by learning how to focus and prioritize their goals and operations. With customized one-on-one assistance from a Prospera business consultant, Simona discovered the importance of having a digital marketing strategy to promote her business online and attract new clients while also engaging existing patrons. Simona attended the Spanish-language webinars, presented by the City of Miami Beach and Prospera on Business Continuity, helping develop business resiliency strategies that will allow her to be better prepared for future unforeseeable surprises.
Prospera worked with Simona to navigate and identify services such as educational training sessions, business advanced consulting, and access to capital. The strategy is strengthening Celmas Dry Cleanersโ ability to grow, prosper and contribute to Miami Beachโs small business ecosystem.
