JETSETREPORT

Faena, EAST define peak in Miami hotel development

August 03, 2015 10.21 PM

Just because you opened 6 months ago doesn't mean you're the cool new hotel in Miami. In the fickle world of hotel development, staying on top of the game means staying ahead of the competition. This year that includes pedigree architects like Rem Koolhaas, director-turned-designers like Baz Luhrmann and some of the most famous chefs in the world vying to be the next it-destination in Miami - even if for a passing moment. To get into these hotels you'll want to book now, like today, at least in the ones we think will prove as much style as substance for the upcoming season in Miami.

This year it's all about Mid-Beach, that area of Miami Beach along Collins Avenue from 26th to 50th Streets. It's here that you'll find the still-booming Soho Beach House with its new outpost of Mandolin Beach occupying the former tiki rooftop. You'll also find the waining W South Beach with its metallic facade and now WOW-less guest rooms that feel far more dated than a new-build hotel should that opened in 2009. Still-new Thompson Miami Beach never got the kudos it deserved with its Martin Brudnizki interiors and Seagrape restaurant by Michele Berstein. Last year's it-kid EDITION Miami Beach, after all, proved the chicest Instagram for Art-Basel with its Basement play-land of skating rink, bowling alley and nightclub coupled with a trio of Jean-Georges Vongerichten eateries all curated by Ian Schrager who knows how to set the scene. But how well will that compare to this year's Faena District and its talent trifecta that includes hotel and arts development by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Rem Koolhaas and iconic residential tower by Foster + Partners?

While there are other hotel openings this year in Miami, most notably downtown's Langford Hotel and EAST Miami at forthcoming Brickell City Center by Hong Kong's Swire Hotels that includes an output of Jose Ignacio beach club Qunito La Huella - it's at Faena Miami Beach that you'll want to be. With reservations accepted from November 1st, guests will arrive to truly cinematic interiors penned by Moulin Rouge director Baz Luhrmann and his designer wife Catherine Martin offering an immersive guest experience based on owner Alan Faena's Buenos Aries hotel. Faena managed to recruit Francis Mallmann for his Miami property, Argentina's version of Thomas Keller, for La Fuega eatery and outdoor barbecue that will duplicate his parilla wood-fired cuisine in one of the most anticipated restaurant openings currently in the US. And for those looking for Miami's next hotspot opening, alas there is a reprieve with the advent of Faena.

Written by:

Michael Martin
Editorial Review Author
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