CURIOCITY | Miami Beach with Susan Knof
Miami Beach
Florida
Meet Susan
Susan is the Creative Director and Owner of KNOF design
Curiocity Guides celebrates cities, travel, friendships and the joy of the journey. We’ve been around the globe, so you can travel like a local.
“The best part of any journey are the friends you make along the way”
Hi Susan, Tell us a little bit about yourself?
I’m the founder of KNOF design and Knof Design Club. I am a Miami based interior designer. I have spent the past 20 years in the architecture industry working on projects for Fortune 500 companies to designing luxury residences around the world.
My International design experience has granted me the opportunity to travel to many different locations from Bali to Baku. I love sharing the places and people I have met along the way. I am just as comfortable in hard hats as I am in high heels.
Let’s get started!
Since we are talking to a Miami Beach local we would love your expertise on all the best local spots!
There is a lot more to Miami Beach than party-goers and Spring Breakers.
The thing I fell in love with most when I decided to move here is the light. Miami Beach has the Atlantic Ocean on one side and Biscayne Bay on the other. You are always guaranteed a remarkable sunrise or sunset and water views!
From So-Fi to Sunset Harbor and South Beach to Mid Beach there are plenty of places to enjoy culture, exercise and amazing food!
Top 10 places to stay in Miami Beach
1. ESMÉ Hotel
This hotel is new and the design is phenomenal. Once a colony for artists and outcasts, now re-imagined for a new cultural age.
More than a hotel, Esmé is a portal to another world, a window onto the halcyon days of hustlers that played ‘em as they laid, artists that dared to break the mold, and It girls that left their beauty mark on the styles of the times.
The Village is a multi-faceted gem alongside the buzz of Española Way, yet hidden among hushed historic paseos, and extends to the character-rich Casa Matanza.
With a nod to the Spanish-Mediterranean influence on Esmé’s architecture, the thrilling tastes of Spain dance with the magically diverse Latin flavors of Miami.
2. The Surf Club at the Four Seasons
If you are after a quieter and more relaxed stay, then hands down it is at the Four Seasons Hotel at The Surf Club. Located in Surfside. Surfside is a pure oasis with wonderful food and cocktails.
Four Seasons Hotel at The Surf Club is an oceanfront destination bringing a new era of glamour elevated with chic Italian dining and a world-class spa.
Lido Restaurant at The Surf Club celebrates its place as the best oceanfront dining experience in the Miami Beaches.
Here, Michael White, the chef behind Michelin-starred spots in New York City, brings his stylized and sophisticated coastal Italian cuisine to a Miami icon.
Set amongst peaceful tropical gardens and Biscayne Bay, lies The Standard. is it’s own little oasis away from everything and It’s the perfect spot for sunset dinner and drinks.
The Lido Bayside Grill
Sun-kissed, global-inspired dining on the bay.
Monterrey Bar
Unique twists on classic cocktails and elevated bites in a decadent space.
Café Standard
Specialty coffee drinks, cold-pressed juices, smoothie, healthy bites and indulgent treats.
4. Urbanica
Urbanica’s newly built masterpiece stands above Miami Beach’s main thoroughfare.
Either chill out at the lobby level café or enjoy a cocktail at MINIBAR a quaint and casual bar which is as the name suggests small and cosy.
Soho Beach House is a Member’s Club in South Florida.
Overlooking Miami Beach, Soho Beach House is set in a 15-story tower at the northernmost point of the Art Deco district.
To book a room you must be a member or friend’s of a member. Hotel stays grant full access to the club ammenities.
6. One Hotel
1 Hotel South Beach is a sustainable luxury hotel inspired by 600-feet of beach along the Atlantic Ocean and is designed for comfort using reclaimed and thoughtful touches to bring nature into your expansive room with reclaimed woods and ocean views.
BONUS - This Hotel is completely Charlie approved!
7. Faena
If you are craving an utterly unique experience. This 5 star luxury hotel is THE place!
Experience Faena Miami Beach, an award-winning luxury hotel featuring stunning Art Deco-inspired suites, world-class dining, private beach club and more. It is a hotel and an experience bursting with spirit. For those that agree more is more the decadent interiors will not disappoint!
Don’t miss the Tree of Life for an intimate gathering space with outdoor seating, imaginative cocktails, small plates and a broad array of wines with spectacular views of the pool area and ocean.
8. Casa Faena
In the heart of Miami Beach's colorful Faena District, Casa Faena is an elegant and charming throwback to 1900s Spanish art and design. This historic beachside hotel, just steps from the ocean, blends modern Art Deco style with colonial Mediterranean influences and tropical nightlife fun.
9. Lifehouse
A new-comer to the South of Fifth neighbourhood! In the 1920s, Miami Beach’s first commercial strip, Española Way, became an artists’ colony. Creative types seeking life by the sea moved to the city in droves, including an artist who discovered a unique Tudor home in the South of the Fifth neighborhood.
Lifehouse transformed their eclectic beach cottage, now a landmark, into a House that’s only steps from the ocean, yet far enough away from the noise of South Beach tourists.
Lifehouse - South of Fifth
10. Palihouse
The original Greenbrier Hotel (est. 1940) has been reimagined as Palihouse Miami Beach, offering 71 oversized residential-style rooms and studios. The hotel is located on the Indian Creek Waterway in a restored Art Deco building set in the most prime area of Miami Beach.
Palihouse Miami Beach also features Greenbrier Swim & Social, a lobby lounge, cocktail bar, front patio and outdoor pool area serving an all-day food and drinks menu that will bring hotel guests and neighbors together for sun, cocktails, dining and more!
5 Best places for a coffee
Delicious food in a relaxing and charming atmosphere – A La Folie is a hidden gem in South Beach. Located on beautiful Española Way, A La Folie offers a small slice of Europe in a unique South Beach setting.
Panther’s Sunset Harbour location is pretty big, with indoor and outdoor seating. They have a long, communal table inside that’s good for getting some work done - but you can also come here on a pretty day, sit outside, and chat with a friend over some very strong cold brew. They have a small selection of pastries as well, and there’s a lovely waterfront park right across the street where you can have a little picnic.
This Danish import can be found in several spots on Miami Beach. There is one on 16th and Collins and another smaller option next to the Bass Art Museum. We also suggest you get one of their sandwiches, which come on very thin rye bread and are a fine snack.
Bebito’s is a cafe just off Alton Road in South Beach with a ton of seating, some good coffee, and a small menu of mostly Cuban breakfast items.
Bettant is a bakery first and foremost - and one of Miami’s best. So if you’re looking for food as well as coffee, this is a good choice. However, you can still come to this South Beach spot even if your sole objective is coffee. They do the basics here - espressos, lattes, coladas - with beans from local roaster Great Circle Coffee.
Top Restaurants in Miami Beach
Call Me Gaby is the neighborhood hotspot for romantic al fresco dining, garden apertivos, family dinners, birthday parties, and everything in between. Something magical happens when you marry simplicity and style – and Call Me Gaby has it.
Blue Ribbon at The Plymouth Hotel
Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill is nestled in the historic and newly restored Plymouth Hotel near the Miami Beach Convention Center across from the Bass Museum. They offer seating at the lobby bar, a sushi bar, two indoor dining areas and poolside seating alfresco, under our covered canopy.
Blue Ribbon offers classic Sushi & Sashimi as well as entrees from their hot kitchen, including Grilled Skirt Steak, Oxtail Fried Rice, Steamed Lobster, Salmon Teriyaki, and our famous Blue Ribbon Fried Chicken.
Founded by Mario Carbone, Rich Torrisi, and Jeff Zalaznick, Carbone is one of the most celebrated Italian restaurants of the last decade. The New York Times probably put it best: “It is a fancy red-sauce joint as directed by Quentin Tarantino, bringing back the punch-in-the-guts thrills of a genre that everybody else sees as uncultured and a little embarrassing, while exposing the sophistication that was always lurking there. The restaurant has a technical prowess that can make you giddy and an instinct for sheer entertainment that makes a lot of other restaurants seem like earnest, unimaginative drones.”
Led by executive chef Pawan Pinisetti, Hotel Greystone’s food and drink menus reflect his innovative approach. French rotisserie traditions meet Japanese izakaya. Executive Chef Pawan Pinisetti (formerly of Golden Entertainment, MGM) presents a harmonious menu that explores Japanese ingredients and French technique, embracing the precision and discipline of both schools. Pinisetti’s dishes are experiential (such as suckling pig carved tableside) and his menu celebrates fresh, locally sourced ingredients.
The Drexel is a casual elegant restaurant reminiscent of the coastal towns of the Mediterranean serving elevated yet simplistic dishes.
Known as the eclectic neighborhood gastropub, Pubbelly Sushi brings a hyper-creative fusion of Japanese and Latin-inspired dishes by chef José Mendín. When Mendín founded the first Pubbelly, his intention was singular: Create a place where chefs could eat high-quality, affordable dishes in a cool atmosphere.
Pubbelly became an instant locals' favorite when it opened in 2010. A decade later, it continues to be embraced by the market, winning the 2020 Miami New Times Readers' Choice Award for "Best Sushi", and maintaining a spot on every tourist's "must" list.
Jaya Meaning ‘victory’ in Sanskrit, Jaya was conceived as a celebration of culinary diversity that exalts regional specialties from Southeast and Northern Asia. Dine in Jaya's indoor dining room or al fresco in the courtyard.
and Ocean Grill Showcasing the artfully delicate flavors of southern Europe, classic American dishes, and specialty seafood selections, Ocean Grill makes for the perfect spot for locals and visitors alike to relax and dine before the beach or to gather.
The perfect spot for a sunset drink or outdoor dinner! Situated at the southernmost point of Miami Beach it is the perfect place to catch sunset. The neighbouring park area sets it aside in a quiet oasis away from the hustle and bustle of Miami Beach.
We are proud to announce that Watr has been voted in the OpenTable Diner's Choice Awards: Best Sushi, Best Scenic View and Best Late Night Find. Thank you to our guests who reviewed their experience and voted for Watr.
Situated in the Ground Floor Courtyard of Soho Beach House, Cecconi’s Miami Beach is a modern day classic Italian restaurant currently open for breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week. A weekend brunch feast is served on Saturdays and Sundays.
Originating in Venice and with outposts in London, West Hollywood, Berlin, Barcelona, Istanbul and Brooklyn, Cecconi’s has become a critically acclaimed dining destination featuring simply prepared Venetian inspired food. Cecconi’s offers an elegant and relaxed dining experience to enjoy the cuisine of celebrated executive chef Sergio Sigala.
Sketch of Casa Tua by Susan Knof
Whether inside our villa or outdoors in thier lush garden, indulge in sensuous sights, sounds, smells, textures, and tastes. Whether it’s the cozy feeling of the library, the glow of the lantern-lit trees in the garden, or the festive atmosphere of the 20-seat Chef’s Table where one can enjoy the artistry and energy of the kitchen,
Casa Tua feels like the home of a very close friend. Pairing organic, ethically-sourced ingredients with an extensive yet familiar wine list, fine art, welcoming service, and most of all, the best company.
In 1913, Joe Weiss opened up a small lunch counter on Miami Beach. This was before Miami Beach was even a city. Folks stopped in to chat and for a top-notch fish sandwich and fries. This, of course, was only the beginning, and what happened next is a story worth telling.
Joseph Weiss-the "Joe" of Joe's Stone Crab-came to Miami in 1913, when his doctors told him that the only help for his asthma would be a change of climate. Joe and his wife, Jennie, both Hungarian-born, were living in New York, where their son Jesse was born in 1907. Joe was a waiter, and Jennie cooked in small restaurants. Some seventy years later, Jesse recalled the move: "My dad borrowed fifty dollars on his life insurance policy, left my mother and me in New York, and came to Florida. He stayed in Miami one night, and he couldn't breathe. So he took the ferry boat that used to go to Miami Beach.
Oddly enough, he could breathe there." So, he stayed and started running a lunch stand at Smith's bathing casino. That was the beginning of the restaurant that was the seed for Joe’s. According to JoAnn, Joe’s granddaughter, "You'd come over and rent lockers to change your clothes to use the ocean or use the pool. The women used to have the long bathing suits with the stockings that was 1913.
In 1918, Joe and Jennie bought a bungalow near the casino, on Biscayne Street. They moved into the back, set up seven or eight tables on the front porch, cooked in the kitchen, and called it Joe's Restaurant."
Led by Founder and CEO Steven Salm and Co-founder and Executive Chef David Lee, PLANTA was born in 2016 to expand the accessibility and acceptability of plant based dining; dining as it should be — an unguilty pleasure. Creating a premier hospitality collective of 100% plant-based restaurants, PLANTA reimagines, reinvents, and revitalizes, providing flavorful proof that the power of plants can change the world.
The kitchen led by Chef Helmy Saadon under the helm of Chef Michael Michaelidis, draws influence from the shores of the Mediterranean and Japan, a visionary expression of flavorful MediterrAsian cuisine. The distinctively curated rooftop space pays homage to the simple spirit of Cycladic design, fused with Wabi-Sabi inspired details.
Lucali is Miami’s beloved Brooklyn brick-oven pizza made with only the freshest ingredients. We maintain our commitment to quality and authenticity through daily preparation and our ingredients coming from locally grown purveyors.
Steps from South Beach, where the waters of the Atlantic and the Caribbean merge, in the vibrant and often dramatized South of Fifth District, Milos offers seafood in an unequalled seaside setting. The indoor space is gorgeously rustic, boasting marble floors and a beamed ceiling of blond wood. Diaphanous white curtains divide the main dining room, and a private room filled with wooden bookshelves evokes a candlelit library.
Still, this is Florida, where dining outdoors is impossibly alluring. The energy of Miami combined with the rhythm of the tropics results in an ambience unlike any other, amplified by seafood unlike any other: chef Costas Spiliadis has found local fishermen to supply the glorious stone crabs of the Florida Keys.
Named one of Ocean Drive’s Best Seafood Restaurants in Miami in 2021; featured in the Absolute Best of South Beach by Purewow in 2020.
6 Best spots for a drink
Andalusian-style gin and tapas bar hidden in the corridors of historic Española Way.
Inspired by the Spanish village saloons where old men play afternoon cards and women converse over sips of Sherry, Tropezón means “a stumble” or when you “trip” on something.
For the weary traveler and the lively local, a refreshing escape from the typical.
If you happen to stumble in, we reccommend the Espresso Martini.
Situated in the up-and-coming Collins Park area alongside the Bass Art Museum, Sweet Liberty offers guests world-class cocktails and creative American food.
Conceived and operated by award-winning bartender John Lermayer and Dan Binkiewicz along with restaurateur David Martinez, Sweet Liberty brings an intelligent selection of food and drink from sophisticated to simple to downright delicious.
4. Barceloneta
With foundations in the trendy Miami neighborhood of Sunset Harbour, Barceloneta is Miami’s popular go-to hub for Spanish Mediterranean tapas, seafood, arroz and original gin cocktails.
5. Mini Bar
Minibar is a bar in South of Fifth’s Urbanica Hotel. Despite its tiny size, it’s one of the neighborhood’s better drinking options - especially if you’re looking for something more casual.
The atmosphere is friendly and the drinks are simple, but good. They also do a decent Happy Hour. Stop by from 5-9pm to get discounted beer and cocktails and sit in the little alley outside if it’s nice out.
6. Swizzle
Favorite Mouthwatering Craft Cocktail Late Night Bar In Miami Beach
Top places for Culture and Activities in Miami
South Pointe Pier is a popular destination in the South Beach area that offers scenic views of the water along with several concessions and attractions to enjoy. This iconic pier is the shining beacon of Miami Beach's southern tip and boasts well-maintained features and amenities.
The whole family can enjoy the pier provided that they like spending time outside. You'll find opportunities to relax and participate in some fun activities as well. Most people spend about 2 or 3 hours here, but you could easily find yourself spending the entire afternoon at this beachfront pier.
South Pointe Pier - one of the highlights of 10 Most Instagrammable Places in Miami (Read all about Miami here)
From Yoga Mornings in the Park to Wallcast Cinema, to Concerts
The Fillmore at the Jackie Gleason Theater
The Fillmore Miami Beach at the Jackie Gleason Theater is a seamless blend of Miami Beach art deco and rock and roll ambience. This classic 1950 theater has a grand entrance, complete with a porte-cochere, an expansive front lawn and 12 custom poster boxes.
Located adjacent to the Miami Beach Convention Center, the Fillmore Miami Beach accommodates 5 to 2,700 guests. With access to the world’s greatest musical entertainment, full-service event production, state-of-the-art lighting and sound, custom menus and mixology, our 41,000 square-foot venue will exceed expectations of even the most discerning guest. The historic art deco space features an elegant Main Hall, three lobbies and two smaller club rooms, all offering versatile design space for soirées of every description
The Bass, Miami Beach’s contemporary art museum, creates connections between international contemporary art and the museum’s diverse audiences. The Bass shares the power of contemporary art through experiences that excite, challenge and educate.
The Bass is Miami Beach’s contemporary art museum. Focusing on exhibitions of international contemporary art, The Bass presents mid-career and established artists reflecting the spirit and international character of Miami Beach. The Bass seeks to expand the interpretation of contemporary art by incorporating disciplines of contemporary culture, such as design, fashion and architecture, into the exhibition program. The exhibition program encompasses a wide range of media and artistic points of view that bring new thought to the diverse cultural context of Miami Beach.
The Miami Beach Botanical Garden is a lush three-acre landscape filled with 100 palm species, orchids and native plants such as the corky stem, which attracts Florida’s state butterfly, the black-and-yellow striped zebra longwing. Meander through the gardens and enjoy a tropical escape in the heart of Miami Beach. Located next to the Miami Beach Convention Center, the garden is part of the Miami Beach City Center Campus in the Miami Beach Convention Center district.
Botanical Garden Activities
Take a break from the hustle and bustle of South Beach to enjoy the beauty of stunning orchids, the tranquility of the Japanese Garden and the beautiful koi pond. Miami Beach Botanical Garden has several distinct garden areas to explore. Highlights include spotting orchids in the trees and along the ground, marveling at the garden’s largest and oldest palms in its northeast corner, and breathing in the sweet scent of the ylang-ylang tree. The garden offers yoga classes, cultural events, workshops and other activities throughout the year.
More Great Resources to get to know Miami Beach and Greater Miami:
OCEAN DRIVE Magazine
The best hotels in Miami where the interior design is as hot as a walk along South Beach
MIAMI - A Museum Lover’s Guide
THE NEW TROPIC
If you want to venture off the Beach and discover More of Miami,
Check out our CURIOCITY GUIDE Miami with Massimo Casagrande
Check out Susan’s Work
