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Downtown is Now a Bonafide Destination

With all the comings and goings and doings that dominate our day-to-day lives, we often forget that we live in paradise. Sure, we hit the beach, by day or by night. And yeah, sometimes we’ll even sit still long enough between cocktails to appreciate our good fortune. But how often do we really appreciate all that our town has to offer? Well, I’m here to tell you that the best way to answer that question is to book a room and take a vacation — right here at home.
Naturally, you can’t just book any room. No, if you’re looking for a truly epic night out, look no further than downtown Miami’s Epic Hotel. Located at the mouth of the Miami River, within excellent sighting distance of both the Tequesta’s spiritual Circle and the condo canyons of Brickell, the Epic marks the inner Magic City’s return to the swank that made it such a destination to begin with. Like Henry Flagler’s fabled 1897 Royal Palm Hotel (upon whose site it sits), The Epic pushes the envelope luxury-wise. Okay, so it’s not the first hotel in the city to use electric lights, elevators and a swimming pool, but it does work wonders with all three of Flagler’s pioneering introductions and adds more galore to boot.
Furthermore, like the old Dupont Plaza, which was built on the same site in 1957, the Epic has already set itself up as a favorite for domestic travelers, bringing in the better class of visitors from all four corners of our country. And hey, aren’t we part of America too?
Of course we are, despite — or because of — the fact that Miami is made up of disparate millions. And that’s all the more reason to get with Epic’s utter grandeur.
Just pulling up to the 54-story, Jetsons-ready tower, it already transports you out of the mundane and into something spectacular. And entering the massive marbled lobby, which is at once warm and futuristic, tells you that this definitely isn’t Kansas anymore. Hell, it’s almost not even Miami, not in the way downtown’s been considered over the past decade or so.
See this is the New Miami and Epic is one of its primary representatives. The rooms range from single to suite, and each are sublime, no matter the size. I took one overlooking the 16th floor, 15,000-square-foot pool and cabana complex, where by day I could imagine being a V.I.P. feted by the Tequesta’s (or that blonde bombshell who happened to be shooting that day), and by night I could watch the city light up with all its newfound spectacularity.
But kickass rooms and killer views and a fondness for our future are only parts of the Epic experience. To go even further, you must ride one of those speedy elevators down to the hotel’s 16th floor and hit the delicious Area 31. Named for the major fishing region of the Atlantic from which we get our freshest seafood, Area 31 is a study in Miami-meets-Mediterranean cool. Crudos range from Key West pink shrimp to seared Spanish mackerel, while grilled fish comes in six varieties with a choice of four different sauces. And Secondis include a brown butter lobster that left my tongue tingling with delight.
If you’re more of a land-food lover, fret not, for the folks here have you covered there too, be it via something as simple as the Mediterranean Mezze or something as surprising as the spice-rubbed flat iron steak.
Of course, you could be purely of a mind for cocktails, but if that’s the case, you’ve got a problem, because now you’ve gotta choose between Area 31 and the recently-opened River Lounge. Located on the ground floor but offering views even sky high hangouts would give their left cloud to offer, this joint is at the apex of all our real waterfront action. And if peering through 30-foot windows across to the canyon-cradled Miami Circle doesn’t do it for you, the elegant whimsy of the interior most certainly will. So too those drinks, which come long, tall and very varied.
Brought to light by San Francisco-based Kimpton group, who seem heaven-bent on re-imagining the way we consider boutique hotels, The Epic is both a dynamite addition to our skyline and a worthy destination in its own right. Don’t believe me? Book yourself into the joint this weekend and then tell me otherwise. If you haven’t had an Epic night out, I’ll eat my hat!