Tropical Toasts Around Town

Lucky enough to ring in 2006 in the Magic City? Here’s a short list of where to go depending on the mood you’re in…


Free & Easy New Year:

Bayfront Park's New Year's Eve – Downtown Miami’s annual big bash features a free concert with legendary disco acts Rose Royce (of Car Wash fame) and France Joli. Watch the Big Orange climb towards the sky at midnight, then enjoy the free fireworks display. Gates open at 7 p.m., the show starts at 8 p.m., and the fireworks are at midnight. Bayfront Park Amphitheater, 301 N. Biscayne Blvd., Downtown Miami; 305/358-7550; www.BayfrontParkMiami.com.


Española Way New Year’s Eve – Dine and drink at an outdoor café and celebrate the arrival of the New Year watching the “Ball” drop in New York’s Times Square on a giant outdoor screen. This is one of Miami Beach’s most charming pedestrian streets. And best of all, the festivities are FREE. Along Espanola Way between Washington and Pennsylvania avenues. For more information, call 786/586-4286.


Big Spenders:

Four Seasons Miami – Celebrate in high style at the hotel’s elegant Acqua restaurant. All the fun money can buy includes a champagne reception at 8:30 p.m., a gourmet seven-course dinner with pairing wines at 9:15 p.m. and live jazz until 1 a.m. $290 per person. Four Seasons Miami, 1435 Brickell Ave,, Miami; 305/358-3535; http://www.fourseasons.com/.

Mandarin Oriental Miami – At the acclaimed Azul, you can savor a gourmet six-course dinner and a toast with Dom Perignon. Cost: $295 per person. Mandarin Oriental Miami, 500 Brickell Key Dr., Miami; 305/913-8254; http://www.mandarinoriental.com/.


Really Big Spenders:

The Setai – At this super chic South Beach hotel and condo, $500 (yes, that’s per person) buys all the hors d’oeuvres you can eat plus an open bar till the wee hours. That’s a lot of cheese puffs for the money. Setai Hotel, 101 20th St., Miami Beach; 305/520-6500; www.setai.com.


Blue New Year:

Tobacco Road – Miami’s oldest drinking establishment is a blues and jazz destination. Funk bands Raw B Jae and the Liquid Funk and Eymarel will be jamming and tipping their hats to Baby New Year. Enjoy a free champagne toast and party favors. Dine on yummy bar snacks or a full dinner menu. Admission is $5. Tobacco Road, 626 S. Miami Ave., Miami; 305/374-1198.


Brady Bunch New Year:

Crobar Miami – You heard right. Ring in 2006 with Peter Brady. VH1's My Fair Brady stars Adrianne Curry and Christopher Knight (that’s Peter) play host to a club full of revelers, along with (cheesecake alert!) Hawaiian Tropic Finalist and upcoming Playboy model May 2006 Oona O'Connell. The Miami Firefighters (beefcake alert!) will be promoting their 2006 Calendar. General admission is $60 per person. Crobar Miami, 1445 Washington Ave., Miami Beach. For tickets, call 305/672-8084 or visit www.crobarmiami.com.


Club Kids:

South Beach, U.S.A. – Shine, Snatch, Opium, Mansion and more will be ringing in 2006 with champagne jams, VIP rooms and all the beautiful people that can fit behind their velvet ropes. Get the inside scoop (and buy tickets) to New Year’s Eve events on South Beach by visiting http://www.cooljunkie.com/.


A Hessian New Year:

Fritz & Franz Bierhaus – No, it’s not some tacky oompah band playing Auld Lang Syne. This Coral Gables beer hall will transform itself into an elegant dining room and entertain guests with live jazz and a gourmet menu. Chef Harald presents a menu featuring smoked trout, sherry consommé and a choice of veal Cordon Bleu, steak au poivre or grilled salmon. Admission includes one bottle of Schlumberger for each table of four. Cost: $65 rsvp, $75 door. Call for reservations. Fritz & Franz Bierhaus, 60 Merrick Way, Coral Gables; 305/774-1883; http://www.bierhaus.cc/


Upcoming Events:

72nd FedEx Orange Bowl Football Game
January 3
http://www.OrangeBowl.org/

Art Miami 2006
January 6 - 9
http://www.Art-Miami.com/

Redland Natural Arts Festival
January 7 – 8
http://www.FruitandSpicepark.org/

Art Deco Weekend
January 13 – 15
http://www.MDPL.org

Beaux Arts Festival
January 14 - 15
http://www.LoweMuseum.org/

South Beach Comedy Festival
January 18 – 21
http://www.SouthBeachComedyFestival.com/.

The Original Miami Beach Antique Show
January 19 – 23
http://www.DMGAntiqueshows.com/

Miami Modernism
January 20 – 22
http://www.DolphinFairs.com/

Cirque du Soleil: VAREKAI
January 20 – February 28
http://www.CirqueduSoleil.com

Miami Jewish Film Festival
January 21 - 29
http://CAJE-Miami.org/filmfestival/

The Mayor’s Cup Billfish Tournament
January 26 - 29
http://www.MayorsCupTournament.com/

D.S. Clarke Antique Show & Sale
January 26 – 30
http://www.DSClarkeShows.com/

Homestead Championship Rodeo
January 27 – 29
www.HomesteadRodeo.com

ING Miami Marathon and Half Marathon
January 29
http://www.INGMiamiMarathon.com/


More events:
http://www.MiamiandBeaches.com/cityguide/events.asp

Frugal Miami

Okay, so you’re down to your last few dollars but your vacation isn’t over for two more days. What’s a free-wheeling (but broke) fun seeker to do? Not to worry. You can have an absolutely fabulous time in Miami for mere peanuts. In Miami and Miami Beach, good places to eat, fun things to do and getting from Point A to Point B don’t have to break the bank.

Let’s start with the basics: cheap eats. In Miami, this translates into two words: Cuban food. One of the great things about living here is the hearty, soul satisfying starchiness of Cuban favorites like chicken with yellow rice (arroz con pollo), fried pork chunks with rice and black beans (masas de puerco) or savory shredded beef (ropa vieja). Cuban food is available 24/7, and every Miami neighborhood has its Latin cafetería -- a small restaurant with a little window to grab a quick cup o’ joe (un cafecito in local parlance) and a pastry or two. Tip: if you plunk down more than $7 for a heaping plate of meat with rice and beans (including a side dish of plantains or delicious, garlicky yuca), you’ve spent too much. Local favorites include two chains, La Carreta and Latin American Restaurant; the venerable (and 24-hour) Versailles on Calle Ocho; and Puerto Sagua (7th Street and Collins Avenue) in Miami Beach.

Cheap eats on South Beach include Big Pink at 157 Collins Avenue, where salads, sandwiches and breakfast are served in huge portions that make doggie bags a necessity. On Washington Avenue, Dogma Grill sells delicious hot dogs with the works for just a few bucks. Pizza Rustica has several locations (including Washington Avenue and Lincoln Road) where you can get a slice for $3.

There are lots of ways to have fun for free in this town. For cheap entertainment on South Beach, do what you did in your kiddie bathtub: watch a boat float. At South Pointe Park, on South Beach’s southern tip, you can watch cruise ships sailing out to sea. This is truly a magical site, with birds flying around, the sun about to set and these giant floating hotels gliding by effortlessly. Get there around 3:30 since most of the ships sail between 4 and 5 o’clock.

Want some culture? Take a tour of Miami’s Art in Public Places. Fabulous sculptures, murals and more can be found throughout the city, including at Miami International Airport, public parks, Metrorail stations, Miami-Dade College and the Port of Miami.

Going to the beach is still free, though parking may set you back a few quarters. Visit the historic 1825 lighthouse at Bill Baggs State Park on Key Biscayne and bring a picnic lunch. (Park admission is $5 per vehicle.) Or spread your towel on a smooth spot and check out the many different types of folks who stroll the sands of South Beach. It’s free and never boring! In Coral Gables, you can swim in a gorgeous (and historic) rock quarry with waterfalls, grottoes and caves at Venetian Pool. From November to March, adults pay $6.25 and kids (ages 3-12) cost $3.25. In North Beach, at Collins Avenue and 73rd Street, there’s a family friendly beach with shady palm trees, a public parking lot and lots of inexpensive cafes and fast food restaurants.

More cheap fun: hang out at any of the outdoor mega-malls around town. Top spots include CocoWalk in Coconut Grove, Bayside Marketplace in downtown Miami and Lincoln Road on South Beach. Weekend nights are prime for people-watching.

Gallery walks are some of the best free fun to be found in this city. The Design District, Wynwood Arts & Entertainment District, North Miami, Espanola Way and Coral Gables all have gallery nights once a month. (Some even put out free wine and cheese to gnosh on.) Viernes Culturales (Cultural Fridays) offer free fun Latin style, at this gallery open-house on Calle Ocho in the heart of Little Havana. Viernes Culturales happens on the last Friday of the month. For a complete listing of Miami-area gallery walks, visit www.ArtCircuits.com.

If you’ve got the kids in tow, there are several free museum happenings worth checking out. Among them is Free Fridays at Miami Children’s Museum, where children are invited to explore and enjoy interactive exhibits and bilingual activities with no admission charge. This happens every third Friday evening of the month from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

During Free Second Saturdays at the Miami Art Museum, MAM's gallery teachers lead fun-filled, educational, hands-on activities for families and kids of all ages on the Second Saturday of each month – with free admission all day. And the Historical Museum of Southern Florida puts a lively spin on several centuries of Florida history during Second Saturday Family Fun Days – where museum teachers offer fun-filled, hands-on activities for families and kids of all ages – with free admission.

Public transportation can be fun as well as cheap. You can visit 22 points of interest for 25 cents on the colorful South Beach Local – a handy new bus service that runs every 12 to 15 minutes and operates until 1 a.m. every day of the week. Stops include Lincoln Road Mall, Art Deco Historic District, the Holocaust Memorial and Wolfsonian-FIU -- which offers free tours of its fascinating collection of modern design and propaganda art every Friday at 6 p.m.

In Downtown Miami, life finally gives you a free ride (and a bird’s eye view of all the new condos going up) on the Metromover, which is the automated rail system that loops through downtown’s business and shopping district. Warning: Kids really love doing this, so you may find yourself circling the business district and listening to the robot voice calling out the stations until the cows come home (or buy themselves condos downtown, like everybody else is doing).

All it takes is a little know-how to work your way around this city on a budget. There are plenty of good reasons not to take out a cash advance while on vacation. You can eat well, see the sights, take a dip in the ocean and discover that some of the best things in Miami really are free!