1674-5 Tony Goldman Real estate analyst Charles Kimball said the building department's
report is the most telling indication of South Beach's appeal.
"I think this is a reflection of the new optimism of investors that the
resurrection of South Beach will come to pass," Kimball said. "Speculation on
the south of Lincoln Road has never been greater than it currently is."
City Commissioner Stanley Arkin said investors are finally realizing that
the Beach is on an upswing.
"The area is changing," he said. "The negative element -- the drugs, the
low-income people -- won't be staying. '
Most of the money is being spent to rehabilitate buildings, as opposed to
creating new ones, because it is less expensive, Arkin said.
"The mom and pops aren't in a position of tearing buildings down, " he
said. "But I think developers in the future will start to take down
buildings."
KEYWORDS: MB
TAG: 8803120087
3 of 7, 3 Terms
X88 LUCKY'S RESTAURANT OPENS 08/07/1988
THE MIAMI HERALD
Copyright (c) 1988, The Miami Herald
DATE: Sunday, August 7, 1988 EDITION: FINAL
SECTION: NEIGHBORS MB PAGE: 3 LENGTH: 65 lines
ILLUSTRATION: photo: Allen Susser with Stuart Littlefield
(RESTAURANT*)
SOURCE/CREDIT LINE: DAN FROOMKIN Herald Staff Writer
LUCKY'S RESTAURANT OPENS
Tony Goldman is finally a Lucky's man.
"I've seen a dream come true tonight," Goldman said Thursday, a few hours
after the doors of his new restaurant opened.
It is a fanciful, luxurious and impressive dream, consisting of three
parts -- all under the roof of the Park Central Hotel, 640 Ocean Dr. , and past
the pianist in the lobby.
In the back is Lucky's, a 120-seat restaurant with a dazzling menu,
hordes of eager waiters, dozens of carefully chosen wines, a Florida room and
sinuous, custom-made three- legged chairs.
In the front is Rose's Cafe. And upstairs on the mezzanine, with windows
facing the ocean and large framed pictures of the Hurricane of 1926, is the
Hurricane Bar.
The restaurant's opening has long been waited by Beach boosters eager to
see a top-flight restaurant in the area. Goldman owns and operates two highly
acclaimed restaurants in New York City: the Greene Street Cafe and the Soho
Bar and Grill.
Goldman previously said Lucky's would open in late winter. Then in early
summer. Now, in early August, it is in "previews, " with a grand opening set
for Aug. 29.
Goldman said the delays and worries are behind him. "When you open a
great restaurant, it doesn't matter what time of the year you open it."
Said Allen Susser, co-owner of Lucky's and owner of Chef Allen's in North
Miami Beach: "It takes a while to get everything that you want in detail. It's
worth it."
Lucky's certainly is full of details, from etched glass to napkin rings
bearing a drawing of the 1937 Nash sedan that is parked in the restaurant's
courtyard and dates to the same year the Park Central was built.
There is a staff of about 30 outside the kitchen, including waiters and
bartenders, and about 25 inside, including 10 chefs.
The kitchen sports a French mesquite grill. The bar stretches about 20
feet, not including a first-floor wine cellar.
Some 24 wines are available by the glass, thanks to a cruvanit -- a
machine that injects nitrogen rather than taste- destroying oxygen into wine
bottles as glasses are poured. It also keeps the whites at 46 degrees, the
reds at 60. And there are more than 40 kinds of brandy.
There also are five computer terminals spread throughout to take orders,
sending print-outs to the bar and kitchen for faster service.
The menu is "American regional, with a Florida flurry," said restaurant
director Tony Puche.
Appetizers and salads range from $4 to $8, pastas from $9 to $15, and
entrees from $13 to $24.
Thursday night's visitors, including many of the restaurant's
distributors, seemed delighted. "It's really going to be a great addition to
South Beach, " said Shai Froelich, a wine consultant finishing up his smoked
salmon salad.
Pam Oppenheim said her dinner was superb. And she was amused by the
hard-working staff. "You can tell that they're trying to get their act
together service-wise, " she said. "They were bumping into each other."
Goldman likened the restaurant's preview to that of a Broadway show --
there may be a few changes to come, but it's already a great product. "Let
everyone come, just no reviewers," he said.
Should people wait until September if they want absolute perfection? Yes,
Goldman said. But keep in mind: "If they really want the absolute perfection,
they can be the second to see the show."
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