Florida Grand Opera 2018 and 2019 Season Preview

NO. 4

APRIL 2018

MAY 2018 In this issue:

Pinneaple Jam Lamborghini Champagne Luxury Cruise Options Wine & Design 2018 Lake Worth Little Dreams Foundation @ 3.1 Phillip Lim

Sugar Plum & Grumbling Growler Vegan Fine Foods - Grand Opening Luxury Chamber Expands

FOUNDER | Jay Shapiro: jay@southflorida.in

Assistant to the Editor | Kolleen Poirier kolleen@southflorida.in

Fashion Editor | Juliana LaBonte juliana@southflorida.in

Travel Editor |Â Frankie Blankenship

Business Editor | Cindy Ragan

Real Estate Editor | Rik Jonna

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Allen Kopelman, Frank LoRe Jr., Christopher Ramey, Alex Daoud, Roger Stone, Ross Mandell, Eirini Kalaitzopoulou

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Susan Smith

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Pineapple Jam Raises $31,000 The Historic Stranahan House Museum’s annual Pineapple Jam generated more than $31,000 for Stranahan House, Broward County’s oldest home and the birthplace of Fort Lauderdale. Reimagined this year as a “Party in Paradise for Preservation,” Pineapple Jam raised funds crucial to supporting the House’s preservation and education programs all year long.

The event was chaired by Maggie Gunther of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance and Stranahan House Executive Director April Kirk, who welcomed approximately 200 guests dressed in their finest tropical attire for the signature fundraiser and celebration of the community’s past and future.

Presented by TrippScott, the exciting evening included delectable Floribbean cuisine from Chef Hector of Sidecar Kitchen, a premium open bar with featured spirits Broker’s Gin and 360 Vodka, a wine bar provided by Ocean Wine & Spirits, live music by Jimmy Stowe and the Stowaways, and a silent auction offering exclusive items, experiences, and jewelry courtesy of Carroll’s Jewelers. Each guest also took home a sweet treat provided by Hoffman’s Chocolates.

“We are incredibly thankful to all of our sponsors, supporters, guests and the community for contributing to the success of this year’s Pineapple Jam,” Kirk said. “We couldn’t have asked for a better turnout and response to the ‘new’ Pineapple Jam. It was definitely a one-of-a-kind ‘Party in Paradise for Preservation!’”

Sponsors include EDSA, Wells Fargo, C. Davis Electric, the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance, Northern Trust, Hotwire Communications, Realtors of the Palm Beaches and Greater Fort Lauderdale, 360 Vodka, Sidecar Kitchen, Broker’s London Dry Gin, Hoffman’s Chocolates, Carroll’s Jewelers, Ocean Wine & Spirits, Xtreme Action Park, Lilly Pulitzer, J. McLaughlin and Atlantic Litho.

Additional support was provided by Ashley Boxer and Mike Lessne, Sandy and Wynne Casteel, Doris Cotnoir, Fertig & Gramling, Alyse and Mike Gossman, Maggie Gunther, Pat and Norm Kublin and the entire Stranahan House Board of Directors. Fort Lauderdale Media Associates and its magazines, Las Olas Boulevard & Isles, Rio Vista & Fort Lauderdale Harbors and Harbor Beach, served as the media sponsor.

Kamini Lalwani, Pinneaple Jam Chair Maggie Gunther, Executive Director April Kirk and Stranahan House Board President Doug Smith

Maggie Gunther, Kara Perkins, Elaine

Greg & Chae Haile, Ashley Boxer &

Wheatley, Lais Pontes Greene & Nicole

Michael Lessne

Almeida

Renee Bellini, Jeremy Chancey, Lynette Dutton & Stranahan Board Member Gene Harvey

ABOVE - Ken and Barb Burnette BOTTOM LEFT - Alysse Gossman and Incoming Stranahan House President Mr. Mike Gossman

All Vegan Luxury Fine Foods Market Opens Near Las Olas Vegan Fine Foods, America’s All-Vegan Market™, invites the press and public to its Grand Opening celebration festivities April 20-22, starting with a carrot ribbon-cutting ceremony at 2:30 pm Friday the 20th. Mayor Dean Trantalis and Vice Mayor Ben Sorensen, along with other City Council members, will join Founder and CEO Steven Smith for some brief remarks to kick off a weekend of activities including prizes, product promotions and food sampling.

Vegan Fine Foods is the brainchild of Florida Atlantic University professor Dr. Steven Smith. He came to be a vegan to improve his health after seven years of hard work and stress getting two post graduate degrees.

“I didn’t start out deciding to become a life-long vegan,” says Smith. “I started a plant-based diet just to get my health back and lose weight. After a few weeks on a healthy plant-based diet I felt great and had so much more energy.” After 20 years, he is still a committed vegan!!!

“I saw an opportunity for an all-vegan market because I knew that shopping was a lot of work and very timeconsuming for those wanting to maintain a vegan healthy lifestyle. I went to super markets, green markets, local health food stores, all kinds of places just to get the foods I needed. Then, I had to read all the labels because meat and dairy products get slipped into a lot of foods, even wine! Preservatives too! I knew the ones that would do no harm versus the ones you should not ingest, but what about people who don’t know? My rule of thumb is the fewer ingredients the better, especially the ones that are hard to pronounce. I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice to go to a place where someone else did all the work, where you knew it was 100 percent plant-based and care was taken to select a broad array of super healthy products with some vegan indulgences mixed in?’ So I wrote my business plan. It took several years of planning to get to this point.”

Vegan Fine Foods will highlight local vendors as well as national and international purveyors. The Inika Café, based right in the store, will also serve some great comfort foods that anyone would enjoy, along with a broad selection from Acai bowls to wraps to juices to deserts. With 31 percent of Americans now practicing meat-free days, Inika Café is a great place to go for a plant-based meal.

“We like to say we are ‘strictly vegan — but not just for vegans,’ ” says Smith. “Vegetarians, flexitarians, paleos, carnivores, anyone looking to enjoy some plant-based foods are welcome and will find foods that they will really enjoy from more than a thousand items we have in stock.

“I chose our 4,000-square-foot location in Fort Lauderdale because it's a wonderful community that is cosmopolitan, very vegan-friendly, with favorable demographics and proximity to tourist and visitor attractions.

We intend to be a destination that people will visit when they come to South Florida. We are going to make Vegan Fine Foods and fun place to eat, shop, have coffee, a glass of wine, beer, or to just hang out. We have a great staff that is devoted to first-class customer service. Please come and see for yourself!”

il Circolo - 42nd Annual Gala at The Breakers

il Circolo - 42nd Annual Gala at The Breakers

ilcircoloflorida.org

A New Concept Art Bar, The Sugar Plum & Grumbling Growler, is Now Open in Downtown Lake Worth 709 Lucerne Ave. Lake Worth, FL, Spring, 2018. Now open, a new concept bar in the heart of downtown Lake Worth, The Sugar Plum and the Grumbling Growler was created out of the founders shared love of Art, Wine and Craft Beer. S.P.&G.G., the nickname for their first joint venture, is an attempt to combine their distinct personalities into a space that can bring art to new eyes, rare wine to new palettes and craft beer to eager beer enthusiasts. The east side of the building, Sugar Plum, patrons will find art from local, national, and international artists, selected to externally and subconsciously tantalize the senses. The west side of the building, Grumbling Growler, will be home to over 100 craft beers by 2019, along with rare international wines. A beautiful beer garden sits out back allowing patrons to lounge and relax to upbeat music.

“The aim for our bar is to foster growth, sustainability and upliftment within the local community, with the hopes that this concept to combine art, wine and craft beer in one space will be the first of many.”

Said co-founder of S.P.&G.G. “We chose the downtown area of Lake Worth, FL because there is aresurgence of art and a deep feeling of community that we gravitate towards.”

Carnival Celebrates Opening of St. Maarten Shore Excursion The world's largest leisure travel company, celebrated the official grand opening of Rainforest Adventure's Rockland Estate eco-park attraction April 11 in St. Maarten. To mark the occasion, a ceremony was attended by esteemed government officials, including Prime Minister Leona Romeo-Marlin and Governor Dr. Eugene Holiday, as well as Rainforest Adventures president Josef Preschel and key Carnival Corporation officials, including David Candib, vice president of development and operations for the global port and destination development group.

Prime Minister Leona Romeo-Marlin, Governor Dr. Eugene Holiday & R.A. President Josef Preschel

With financing from Carnival Corporation and built by Rainforest Adventures, Rockland Estate is a one-of-a-kind attraction expected to quickly become one of the most popular in the Caribbean. It has something for everyone – thrill-seeking adventures, including the world's steepest zip line and a mountain chair lift with breathtaking views and a heart-racing tube ride, as well as a museum that showcases the rich history and culture of St. Maarten and its people. Guests from eight of Carnival Corporation's brands with itineraries visiting the island will have the opportunity to experience the new shore excursion, recently named by USA Today 10Best as a top Caribbean attraction. Rockland Estate is considered an eco-adventure park committed to preserving native eco-systems while ensuring the sustainability of the estate's physical and intangible attributes. The overall goal of the Rainforest Adventures team in building the attraction was to enhance and preserve St. Maarten's natural and built environments and endorse its cultural and historical significance, while also promoting education through adventure.