What we love about Brickell
It’s no secret that we’re crushing on Brickell, big time.
Although it’s smack dab in the middle of Miami, Brickell gives off serious New York City vibes — but with 10x better weather. In Brickell, you’ll find the perfect marriage between New York-ish skyscrapers and beach-like rooftop bars and a place to dock your yacht. At a time when we value immediacy, proximity, and convenience, it’s no wonder young professionals and international expats (from all over the world including Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Italy and Spain) are moving here in droves. Everything a person needs to live, work, and enjoy life can be found within walking distance.
Arguably, the center of Brickell is the new, cleverly named, Brickell City Centre, which opened in November 2016. This enormous mixed-use development, built by Hong Kong-based Swire Properties, includes two condo towers, office buildings, the 352-room hotel East Miami and a giant shopping center. Apple, Drybar, Intermix, MAC, Maje, Chanel, Chopard, Vilebrequen, Agent Provacateur and Saks Fifth Avenue are just a few of the shops located there. Let’s just say if you got locked inside, you’d have no trouble surviving — and dressing impeccably.
For the past 15 years, the staid Mandarin Oriental hotel has had a lock on business travelers overnighting in the Brickell area. But recently, a new wave of hip hotels have opened in Brickell. These hotels, including EAST Miami, SLS Lux Brickell and W Miami, have enough cachet and cool-factor to lure visitors seeking a younger and more celebratory vibe away from the beach hotels.
Rooftop bar, Sugar, atop the East Hotel and draws both after-work and late night crowds with panoramic city views and sea breezes.
The neighborhood is also awash with fantastic restaurants. One example, latin cabaret, El Tucan, attracts both a local and a celebrity clientele. (For example, Karolina Kurkova celebrated her birthday there, and Will Smith has been spotted there. We’ll refrain from making a “welcome to Miami” joke here.) Another, Komodo Miami, attracts celebs looking for authentic Asian cuisine including the likes of Ashley Benson, Lil Jon, and Kourtney and Kim Kardashian to name a few.
Punta del Este in Uruguay, best known as South America’s playground of the rich (kind of like their version of the Hamptons or the Cote d’Azur) has some notable, sceney restaurants that draw diners from all around the world. One such hotspot, La Huella (which is actually located in the low-key, more Montauk-like, fishing hamlet of Jose Ignacio) opened a Miami outpost, Quinto la Huella, right in Brickell. It’s this kind of cultural richness and fusion that lends Brickell such an authentic and multilayered feeling.
A wise woman once said, “Any great city is only as good as its best pizza.” (Ok, nobody actually said this ever, but you get the gist.) Brickell locals can finally snag some of Brooklyn’s best pizza in the newest outpost of the Lucali empire, called DC Pizza.
For a generation that has eschewed the need for cars, Brickell also has fantastic public transportation. The Metrorail and Metromover station complex at Brickell sees roughly 8,430 boardings each weekday, making it the system’s second-busiest station.
You know you’re in a hip neighborhood when you find amazing street art. A 10-story mural by Markus Linnenbrink adorns one side of the SLS hotel with his signature drip painting.
Not only are we excited about Brickell today, but we’re excited about what’s coming next.
A staple of every great neighborhood is a jawdropping public park, and Brickell will soon get its very own. The Underline will transform the land below Miami’s Metrorail into a 10-mile linear park, urban trail and living art destination, much like NYC’s Highline park transformed west Chelsea.
Richard Branson’s Virgin hotel brand will be opening a hotel and coliving project in Brickell, set to open in 2023. They will be joined by a 252-room Citizen M hotel down the street.
But perhaps the best part of Brickell is the amazing views. A walk around the neighborhood feels like the perfect mix of big city living with open waterfront views of the river and the port of Miami against the backdrop of high-rise architectural marvels. Brickell is the kind of neighborhood that makes you feel fashionable and sophisticated just because you’re smart enough to be there.
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