The hour was approaching 11 p.m. at the Vintro Hotel
& Kitchen as I sat in the Mediterranean-styled dining room, staring at the
remnants of a gluttonous 12-course meal. From my perch I looked down on the lobby
bar, where a wedding party had made their way downstairs from the rooftop
terrace on the third floor of the boutique Miami Beach hotel to continue their revelry.
Some of the partygoers moved beyond the bar to the adjacent library,
where they danced to the Latin rhythms of a live musical act.
Sounds likes a typical Thursday night on Miami's South
Beach, right?
Only Vintro Hotel & Kitchen isn't quite on South Beach.
And it's definitely not typical. Indeed, if anything defines this 50-room
property that opened last July it is its contrasts: it simultaneously manages to be so
very South Beach and yet not South Beach at all.
“We're in Miami Beach, yet out of the scene. But you can
dips your toes in,” said Vintro General Manager Adnan Jafarov. “The
experience we sell is intimate, unpretentious, friendly and sexy.”
Indeed, even that description hints of Vintro's eclectic
nature.
A guestroom at the Vintro Hotel & Kitchen.
Sexy. What could be more South Beach? And Vintro backs it up
with, among other touches, “voyeur showers” in most guestrooms, their clear
glass outer wall positioned perfectly for viewing from the nearby beds. Above
the lobby bar, the large mural of a nude woman with a strategically placed
scorpion tattoo is also a reminder that Vintro doesn't seek to be a place for
families. Indeed, children under 18 are not allowed.
But as Jafarov spoke, we sat on the Vintro back porch
overlooking the narrow, mangrove-lined Collins Canal. It was the type of
out-of-the-way setting that made me feel I wasn't especially close to one of
the world's most celebrated party spots.
That duality is ever present at Vintro Hotel & Kitchen.
The name is a play on the words “vintage” and “retro,” and indeed, those words
apply to the showpiece lobby and restaurant, where a huge brown leather couch,
the wood-accented library and the Spanish tiling of the eatery make for a dark,
European look. Meanwhile, an original mural painting depicts 1930s-era Miami
Beach.
In contrast, my terrace-level suite was playfully adorned in
a striped pattern of bright yellow and white. A dart board hung from the living
area wall. A modern pop-art painting of Audrey Hepburn, which depicts the 1950s diva tweeting about the value of human companionship, hung over the bed. Modern furniture completed
what was very much a South Beach look.
Vintro lies in Miami Beach's Collins Park neighborhood, a
few blocks north of South Beach, where it occupies a remodeled 1930s-era
building that was once the Park Avenue Hotel. It is across the street from the
Miami City Ballet and the Bass Art Museum. Guests can walk, bicycle or travel
by a free Mercedes shuttle to the famed Lincoln Road pedestrian mall and to the
hopping nightclubs of South Beach. They can similarly make the sojourn to
Vintro's reserved spot on the beach a few blocks away.
At present, the hotel is somewhat light on amenities, at
least compared with many larger properties. The third-floor terrace has a small
plunge pool, a ping pong table and plenty of stylish lounge chairs in which to
relax beneath the South Florida sun. Construction of a second building, which
will enlarge the property to 95 rooms, is scheduled to begin in June. A spa and
exercise room are part of the plans.
Still, the present configuration has worked. In March,
Vintro secured a spot in TripAdvisor's top 25 hotels in the U.S., as
ranked by users of the website.
The hotel's dining room.
As the property's name implies, dining is a major emphasis.
Indeed, Jafarov told me that Vintro Hotel & Kitchen was conceived as a
restaurant with rooms. At dinner that Thursday night, I indulged in a feast of
mainly Mediterranean-inspired dishes conceived by Greek-born chef/entrepreneur
Giorgios Nikolas Bakatsias. The signature grilled octopus, which is
slow-prepared over the course of seven hours, was outstanding. So were the orzo
macaroni and cheese, the Brussels sprouts brushed with pistachio and honey and
the tuna tataki. In addition to lunch and dinner, the Vintro Kitchen offers an
expansive Mediterranean brunch each Sunday for $64.
During the summer, rooms at the Vintro Hotel & Kitchen start
at $199; suites start at $399. Guests who book over the phone by May 31 will
get their third night free from June 1
to 30. Use the promo code 3For2.
The hotel is also offering 10% off the best available rate and free valet
parking for Florida residents throughout the summer. Use promo code FLR.
For more information, visit www.vintrohotels.com.