If you’ve got some time to kill on the far side of Biscayne Bay, you can occupy yourself with everything from culture and tunes to cool buildings and amazing meals.
Where to Go For Music
For modern music in stylish surrounds, hit the Fillmore Miami Beach. Upcoming shows run the gamut from A to Z (that’s Ashnikko to Zara Larsson). The more classically minded should hit up one of South Florida’s greatest cultural treasures, the New World Center. Designed by Frank Gehry, it’s home to the New World Symphony. Founded almost 40 years ago as a professional training orchestra for elite conservatory graduates, the orchestra puts on seasons of orchestral and chamber work that ranges from the traditional to the avant garde. The center also hosts other local and touring soloists and groups.
Where to Eat
Joe’s Stone Crab has been around in one form or another for more than a century, and the Miami Beach institution continues to turn out excellent meals by sticking to a few guiding principles. There’s a clue in the name as to the house specialty here — get the sea bass or the New York strip if you must, but the main attraction here are the meaty, tasty Florida stone crab claws. And don’t let the diner-esque name fool you; the place that Hungarian immigrants Joe and Jennie Weiss opened as Joe’s Restaurant in 1918 is a high-class establishment. (And some of the prices reflect that; this is an even better stop if the boss is paying.)
What to Do
Miami Beach’s architectural style is famously, outlandishly art deco. To learn its history and really get a feel for it, take the Miami Design Preservation League’s walking tour. The mid-morning tours cover a lot of ground both literally and architecturally, so wear comfortable shoes and maybe don’t go the morning after a night (and inevitable early morning) out in some of South Beach’s choice clubs. The league’s Art Deco Welcome Center sits on Ocean Drive in the heart of South Beach and offers a small, interesting museum — and inevitably, a fabulous gift shop. The league also offers an app-based self-guided tour if groups aren’t your thing.