Summer 2025 Icons Issue

No.

28

500 FLAV ORS

FLORI DA’S ICE CREAM TRAIL

THE ICONS ISSUE

DOG DAYS

Where Floridians Flock

SUMMER KITSCHY MOTELS,

DISCO GOLF & ROOSTER TALES IN YBOR CITY

E X CLU S IVE

ALIX EARLE

SPILLS THE TEQUILA

MIAMI CHEAT SHEET ,

SALSA SOIREES &

BOSSA NOVA BEATS

&

DINN�R

&

A SHOW

In St. Pete-Clearwater, you can pair any meal with a stunning view of the Gulf. Come treat yourself to incomparable culinary experiences & wonder at brilliant orange sunsets.

Eco Traveler’s Guide to:

the FLorida Keys & Key West In the Florida Keys & Key West, sun-soaked vacations meet impactful purpose as sustainability becomes part of every stay—from luxe resorts to laid-back beach bars.

S

ince becoming one of America’s most beloved tropical escapes nearly a century ago, The Florida Keys & Key West have encouraged visitors to look beyond the turquoise waters and sun-drenched sands to discover a 125-mile-long island chain teeming with life—and a call to care for it.

Home to the third-largest barrier reef on Earth, the Keys host thousands of marine species, each a vital link in a vast, kaleidoscopic ecosystem.

A single snorkel or dive reveals the astonishing biodiversity below the surface—an unforgettable reminder of what’s at stake.

And with wonder comes responsibility. The Florida Keys face mounting threats from sea-level rise, climate change and human impact. But there is good news: Travelers can be part of the solution.

Guardians of The Keys Just ask John Mirabella, owner of Castaway Waterfront Restaurant & Sushi Bar in Marathon.

Dubbed the “Lionfish King of the Florida Keys,” Mirabella has made it his mission to hunt and remove this invasive species from local waters … one spear at a time.

“My passion is directly related to my profession,” Mirabella said. “Since I own a sushi-seafood restaurant, the justification to go diving and spearfishing is there on a daily basis.

We need to act now to affect positive change.

When chatting with our guests at Castaway, the conversation almost always drifts to seafood, and then to sustainability. Educating people is part of the process, especially when it comes to protecting our fragile ecosystem.”

He’s not the only one turning the tide. The Keys relies on various hotels and activity providers to protect and sustain the local environment, allowing travelers the chance to explore the Florida Keys in an environmentally responsible manner.

The intimate and luxurious Little Palm Island Resort & Spa has long supported and partnered with MOTE Marine Laboratory in its reef restoration efforts, working to discover ways to grow and transplant coral. Visitors to Little Palm Island can help in that effort to restore the reefs by booking a Paradise with a Purpose package, with $500 from every package donated to MOTE. Meanwhile, Isla Bella Beach Resort & Spa partners with various local organizations to ensure the safety of the Keys’ environment is

ADVERTORIAL

taken care of for years to come. Partners include Conch Republic Marine Army, which pulls trap lines and other marine debris from mangrove estuaries, and Save-A-Turtle, which protects sea turtle habitats and plants seagrass to help endangered flora and fauna thrive.

At Grassy Flats Resort & Beach Club, a familyowned eco-hideaway in Marathon, sustainability runs deep. Since 2023, the 38-room resort has recycled an average of 76 pounds of materials each day. Its restaurant, The Rhum House, sources wines from small-batch, family-run vineyards that focus on organic ingredients and biodynamic practices.

The Conscious Traveler For Kara Franker, JD, President and CEO of the Florida Keys tourism council, these efforts are redefining what it means to vacation here.

“By learning about and actively participating in efforts to sustain the Keys environment, visitors can not only enjoy recreating in it—but also feel a sense of pride and even ownership in helping to sustain and even build new habitat,” she said. “Eco tours that teach people about the importance of preserving natural habitats often ignite passions in visitors, many of whom become repeat guests eager to help the unique natural world in the Keys.”

That sense of purpose shines through at places like The Turtle Hospital, a one-of-a-kind rescue and rehab center for sea turtles. A 90-minute tour provides guests with an inside look at the lifesaving work, and helps fund it through admission.

In Marathon and Key West, grassroots group Conch Republic Marine Army invites visitors to hop aboard one of their marine debris cleanup cruises. Since launching in 2017, the group has

hauled more than 549,000 pounds of trash from local waters.

The recreational fishing, diving and boating industries have also taken note of ways to be more environmentally conscious. Franker says that the island chain has traditionally thrived on these practices, all of which contribute to tourism. Keys fishing guide organizations, including the Florida Keys Fishing Guides Association and the Lower Keys Guides Association, have taken leadership roles to encourage catch-and-release policies for recreational fishing, with exceptions for nonendangered popular game fish such as mahi mahi.

Franker believes these small but mighty acts are part of a bigger shift. “By showcasing a real commitment to sustainability at hotels, restaurants and attractions,” she said, “our partners are turning everyday travel into something more meaningful.”

THE FLORIDA KE YS & KE Y WEST, LIT TLE PALM ISL AND RESORT & SPA

Learn more about protecting The Florida Keys & Key West at fla-keys.com.

Only in The Florida Keys & Key West can travelers dive into sustainability efforts and adventure while still enjoying that saltair sense of escape that comes from a vacation.

— s ummer 2025 —

CONTENTS F E AT U R E S

56

66

76

NEON DREAMS: A ROADSIDE MOTEL RENAISSANCE

A SURE-SHOT ESCAPE FOR THE NEXT GEN OF GOLF

FOWL PLAY

BY ERIC BARTON

B Y D AV E S E M I N A R A

From retro decor to neon signs, discover how these onceforgotten motels are getting a second chance—and why it matters for some of the state’s most iconic neighborhoods.

A father and son bond over tee shots and bird shot at Cabot Citrus Farms, the first U.S. location in a luxury golf brand’s collection and a modernist take on a classic sporting resort.

B Y H E L E N B R A D S H AW

Streetwise, scrappy and surprisingly vital, Florida’s feral chicken flocks are more than quirky locals strutting around the streets of Key West and Ybor City—they just might hold the genetic keys to curing avian diseases.

Cover Photography by MARY BETH KOETH On the cover: Model Zaria Dennis is channeling retro vibes outside The Vagabond Hotel in Miami’s MiMo District, with pals Pongo, Allie and Ash. Clothing: Styling by Lindsay White of Goldyn Hour Style Hair and makeup: Silvana Avignoni

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D E PA R T M E N TS

12

53

91

WADING IN

COLUMNS

ON THE FLY

16 /// STONE’S THROW: Fireflies and front porch moments at Palmetto Bluff

53 /// C APITAL DAME: Diane Roberts reflects on a memorable afternoon with folklorist Stetson Kennedy, the man who took down the Klan.

92 /// G ROVE STAND: Chef Raheem Sealey stirs soul, spice and stories into Shiso, his new Wynwood restaurant.

23 /// THE SPREAD: Crack open summer in a can with TikTok star Alix Earle.

26 /// M ADE IN FLA: These eight ice cream spots serve community in a cone.

33 /// T HE STUDIO: A Sarasota artist turns wild clay into functional art.

37 /// M Y FLORIDA: A monarch butterfly gets a second chance at flight.

43 /// DIVE BAR: Kicking back with the bossa nova-inspired band Buko Boys

RYAN GAMMA PHOTOGR APHY

47 /// JUST HATCHED: New restaurants, resorts and reclaimed spaces

87 /// PANHANDLING: Prissy Elrod looks for the secret to a long life.

Hint: It’s not bourbon.

102 /// F LORIDA WILD: The oncedrained Kissimmee River flows wild again in Florida’s greatest restoration story.

98 /// DESIGN DISTRICT: Seibert Architects celebrates 70 years of designing homes that are anything but basic.

104 /// BIRD’S-EYE VIEW: Iconic Cuban eats, stylish streets and architectural feats in the Magic City 106 /// T HE TIDE: Dive for scallops, devour some BBQ and break out your dancing shoes at these 21 events.

112 /// F LORIDIANA: A storied swath of land in North Florida starts on a new path.

On this spread: The Arguedas House, located in Lido Shores, was designed

by Seibert Architects.

@T H E FLAMI NG O M AG

S U M M E R 2 0 2 5 /// FLAMINGOMAG.COM

5

EDITOR’S NOTE

M

y editor’s notes generally recount fun little stories, usually about something that happened along the route of making the magazine you are holding, something to entice you to keep reading. This time, I’m struggling to find the lighthearted words I need to paint a bright and sunny picture of our state. In the final days of producing our Summer 2025 Icons Issue, a mass shooting unfolded on the campus of my alma mater, Florida State University, in Tallahassee leaving two people dead, six injured, and thousands of students and staff traumatized.

It was just another Thursday afternoon when my phone started blowing up with texts.

“Luke is on lockdown next to the student union. Active shooter,” my best friend messaged me about her oldest son, a freshman.

Seconds later, my daughter, who is a high school senior here in Ponte Vedra, texted me. “Did you hear about the FSU active shooter? It’s really bad.” Almost in real time, videos were circulating on social media of victims lying shot on the ground before the breaking news had even made its way to the homepage of CNN. “Idk if you want to watch those, Mom,” she wrote.

Frantic status reports and Facebook posts from friends and neighbors letting the world know that their people were OK flooded my phone and my social media feed all afternoon.

Right: Westcott

Fountain at Florida State University

Flamingo had our own people to think about. Our intern was on campus—safe but hunkered down at her sorority house.

One of our Flamingo columnists, an FSU English professor, was on lockdown in her classroom for three hours.

This isn’t the first time I’ve watched helplessly from the Flamingo offices as one of the institutions of my youth was ravaged by a gunman. I graduated from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 1995, 23 years before the tiny South Florida town of Parkland would become a household name and David Hogg and X González (born Emma González) would emerge as national voices in the March for Our Lives movement.

At the time, Governor Rick Scott responded by signing the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act into law.

It brought about positive legislative changes, like raising the minimum age to purchase a firearm and enacting red flag laws meant to keep guns out of the hands of those deemed a danger to themselves or others.

But some of those protections are now being reconsidered or rolled back.

Meanwhile, horrible things keep happening.

In fact, some of the current students at FSU also lived through the Douglas attack in 2018, when 17 people lost their lives. It’s hard for me to talk about this topic with people because it’s so politically polarizing.

It’s hard to find words more meaningful to say than, “it’s awful” or “it’s sad.” It’s like living in a state of numbness, not allowing myself to fully emote. After all, I wasn’t at the shootings. I didn’t hear the gunshots or barricade inside a classroom, but I still carry the emotional weight of them in my own way.

Every parent’s worst fear is losing a child—mine is losing a child in a school shooting. I’m not the kind of person to let fear rule my life, but I’m constantly badgered by the question: What should I do? I want something to change so we can all feel safer. Over the years, I’ve marched, written letters, donated—and tried to prepare my own children. They now carry Kevlar shields in their backpacks. I know other friends have taken different paths toward the same goal: wanting to feel like we’ve done something. Yet it never feels like enough.

By the time this print magazine lands in subscribers’ homes, a month will have passed since the FSU shooting, and the news cycle will have moved on.

Unfortunately, it’s only a matter of time before it happens again somewhere else.

Today, what I’m doing is simply sharing— sharing my thoughts as an alumna of FSU and MSD, sharing my fears as a mom and sharing my heartbreak as a Floridian. To that end, I’d love to hear from you. Tell me how these events are impacting you and your loved ones and what you are doing to bring about positive change. We all need the space to connect as human beings.

Editor in Chief & Publisher

let us know what you think. Email me at jamie@flamingomag.com.

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Where Floridians Flock

AUTHORS, ARTISTS ARCHITECTS

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Where Floridians Flock

• FOUNDED IN 2016 •

Just returned from the Keys and found two “new to us” Old Florida-style restaurants in Marathon.

Check out Burdines Waterfront Bar & Grill and Castaway Waterfront Restaurant & Sushi Bar.

Mrs. Mac’s Kitchen’s Key lime pie in Key Largo ❤ —Beth Hart

The Big Pine Key National Key Deer Refuge is a fantastic opportunity to learn about the Keys environment and what is so darn special about the native inhabitants. Those little Key deer are so cute!

—Cindy Reid

—Ingrid Kennemer

Boat to the sandbar off Islamorada on the Atlantic side. Or boat to Alligator Reef Lighthouse and hang out. —Robbie Johansson

Ziggie & Mad Dogs is an iconic restaurant in Islamorada. Not only rich in history, but the food is fantastic! —Luanne Dourney When Pongo the dalmatian isn’t flashing his smile at a Flamingo cover shoot, you can find him influencing on Instagram in all kinds of adorable situations. Follow this pampered pooch on his Miami adventures @pongo.the.dalmatian_. Oh, and we think his siblings Ash, the heeler, and Allie, the rottweiler, are pretty cute too!

“FRESH SQUEEZED” FEEDBACK LE TTERS TO THE EDITOR

These Floridians Share Their Secret Spots I am a Florida gal, born in Gainesville I learn about so many hidden gems (graduated from GHS in 1962) and grew throughout Florida. My husband and I have up in Inverness. I moved lived in the Coral Springs area to grad school at Emory for almost 15 years. Every spring, University (in Atlanta) our daughter and her family in 1966, and taught high come to visit. A stunning photo school English in Georgia of Hutchinson Island in the last for 30 years—now issue caught my eye, so we did retired. My first loves some research and decided are St. George Island to plan a family getaway to and Apalachicola. My Stuart for a few days. We loved grandparents were early exploring the cute downtown settlers in the Sopchoppyshops and restaurants. We Wakulla area, mid-1800s. I stayed at the Hutchinson Shores, have stayed at most Florida located right on the beach. beaches: Amelia, Jax, We even saw dolphins in the Daytona (went to college morning. And of course, the at nearby Stetson), New grandbabies loved the children’s Flamingo’s Spring 2025 Smyrna, Miami, Key West, museum, waterpark and Florida Travel Issue took readers Sanibel, Homosassa, Cedar Oceanographic Coastal Center. to Mexico City.

Key, Panama and Perdido Such a charming part of the Key! Just have to keep in Sunshine State, just 90 minutes touch with your news to away! Please don’t ever stop keep my original home, Florida, on my mind. publishing your fabulous magazine!

—Gwen Lancaster

—Jessica Holmes

EDITORIAL Editor in Chief and Founder JAMIE RICH jamie@flamingomag.com Deputy Editor Emilee Garber emilee@flamingomag.com Creative Director Holly Keeperman art@flamingomag.com Contributing Designer Ed Melnitsky edit@flamingomag.com Art Production Manager Kerri Rak Editorial & Marketing Assistant Helen Bradshaw helen@flamingomag.com Contributing Editor Eric Barton Cont ributin g Writers Maria Ximena Aragon, Evan S. Benn, Steve Dollar, Prissy Elrod, Alyssa Morlacci, Melissa Puppo, Diane Roberts, Maddy Zollo Rusbosin, Dave Seminara, Nila Do Simon, Carlton Ward Jr., Cynthia Zimmermann Contributing Photographers & Illustrators Leslie Chalfont, Beth Gilbert, Mary Beth Koeth, Stephen Lomazzo, Jules Ozaeta, Kristen Penoyer, Carlton Ward Jr. C op y E d it o rs & Fa c t-C h e c k e rs Patty Carroll, Mya Copeland, Stacy Cortigiano, Amanda Price, Nick Song Editorial Interns Ava Deegan, Isabella Scoma

SALES & MARKETING Publisher JAMIE RICH jamie@flamingomag.com Advertising Sales Director Janis Kern janis@flamingomag.com Advertising Sales Megan Zebouni megan@flamingomag.com Newsstand Distribution Tom Ferruggia tferruggia@msn.com Contact Us JSR Media LLC 13000 Sawgrass Village Circle Bldg. 3, Suite 12 Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082 P: (904) 395-3272 // E: info@flamingomag.com All content in this publication, including but not limited to text, photos and graphics, is the sole property of and copyrighted by JSR Media and Flamingo.

Reproduction without permission from the publisher is prohibited. We take no responsibility for images or content provided by our advertisers.

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MARY BEHT KOETH, ISTOCK /SHERSOR

Readers’ Favorite Florida Keys Pies & Parks Plus, Meet Pongo!

— S U M M E R 20 2 5 —

NICK GARCIA PHOTOGR APHY, THE CONTRIBUTORS

CONTRIBUTORS MARIA XIMENA ARAGON is a

DAVE SEMINARA was born in

South Florida native always ready

Buffalo, N.Y., and lived in seven other

for her next sidequest. Whether it’s

states and four countries before

kayaking down the Intracoastal or

discovering St. Petersburg, where he

trying new eateries across Broward

hopes to die—though not anytime

County, she carries her enthusiasm

soon. A former member of the

for her hometown of Miami

Foreign Service, Seminara is a tennis

everywhere she goes. Her work has

player and mad traveler who has

led her to photographing bands in

visited 82 countries. He’s the author

Chicago, interviewing the composer

of four books and lives with his wife

for the children’s show “The Backyardigans” and producing podcasts

of 23 years, Jen; his sons, Leo and James; and Josh Allen, a German

at Foreign Policy. In her Flamingo debut, Aragon sits down for a

shorthaired pointer who is named after the Bills’ quarterback.

latte with the Buko Boys, a bossa nova-inspired band taking over the

Seminara practices his putting game (more accurately duffing

Miami music scene and a corner of the internet, on page 43.

game) on page 66 while he visits Cabot Citrus Farms.

MARY BETH KOETH launched her

LESLIE CHALFONT is a third-

career as a designer for Hallmark,

generation Floridian, designer, artist

where she spent her weekends

and founder of Giddy Paperie, a

snapping photos—a hobby that

mother-daughter run stationery and

eventually led to a career change.

home goods brand bringing a touch

She studied photography and

of whimsy to the Sunshine State.

apprenticed in Norway and Los

Chalfont and her husband spend

Angeles before branching out on

their time exploring the mountains,

her own. Today the award-winning

lounging beachside or perfecting

photographer’s work has appeared

their drives on the golf course. Skilled

on the cover of Time. Koeth lives in Miami and has photographed for

with watercolors, Chalfont has been a Flamingo contributor since

Flamingo since 2016. She’s captured every corner of our state, from

2017, illustrating different Florida cities and their must-see places in

lawn mower races to the halls of the Versace Mansion. Find Koeth’s

our Bird’s-Eye View department. Find her work on page 104, where

work on page 56 for our cover story on kitschy Florida motels.

she paints the iconic landmarks, stays and eateries of the Magic City.

CYNTHIA ZIMMERMANN grew up in

EVAN S. BENN is a seasoned

Neptune Beach at a time when a visit

journalist whose writing on food,

to Silver’s Drug Store meant a Pat’s

restaurants and travel has been

Special, and the Sea Turtle Inn meant

published in The New York Times,

weekend buffets and summer beach

Bon Appétit, Esquire and Travel +

days. After spending the past 25 years

Leisure, to name a few. He is a senior

as a St. Augustine Realtor, she decided

editorial director at The Philadelphia

to turn her dream of professionally

Inquirer and the former food editor

writing into reality by pursuing her

and restaurant critic for the Miami

MFA in narrative nonfiction at the

Herald. In this issue, Benn introduces

University of Georgia. Zimmermann loves to write about the vibrancy

readers on page 92 to chef Raheem Sealey, a St. Croix native who

and endearing quirkiness of living on the First Coast. In her Flamingo

is reinventing Miami’s KYU, where he began his career, and most

debut on page 37, Zimmermann shares the story of a monarch

recently opened Shiso, an Asian smokehouse. Warning: Benn’s

butterfly’s unexpected flight and her fight with Mother Nature.

writing might make you book a Miami resy or try cooking octopus.

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THE SLICE P R O DUC D UC TS + EVENTS + PROMOTIONS

LUXE LOOKS, COOL BOOKS & FUN FLORIDA FINDS FOR YOUR SUMMER HIT LIST FLORI-DUH! What happens when you combine a resident hippo, duplicitous developers and sulfuric smells? You get the latest Craig Pittman book, “Welcome to Florida: True Tales from America’s Most Interesting State.” Read some of the state’s most farfetched tales across more than 40 short chapters. Buy now!

GOT A SECOND? It’s hard to miss the Tiffany-blue facade of Miami’s Peachtree Revival, a secondhand shop dreamed up by designer Dani Klarić and stylist Sara Fedz. Inside, checkered floors and fun wallpaper set the scene for pink racks overflowing with vintage-inspired clothes and accessories just as unique as the store. Shop apparel and more in-store or online at peachtreerevival.com.

BEST-KEPT FASHION SECRET: GOLDYN HOUR STYLE Last year, stylist Lindsay White launched Jacksonville Beach-based Goldyn Hour Style—a chic consignment boutique offering a tightly edited selection of clothing, shoes and accessories. Browse gently loved treasures from high-end labels like Balenciaga, Golden Goose and Chanel, mingling alongside Floridabased designers such as DanniJo and Karina Grimaldi. The rotating collection of rare gems makes this beachside shop a must-visit. White also lends her styling talents to Flamingo’s Summer 2025 Icons Issue cover shoot and our feature story on iconic motels on pg. 56. Explore new arrivals at goldynhourstyle.com.

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GOLDYN HOUR, MARY BETH KOETH, PEACHTREE REVIVAL, CR AIG PIT TMAN

POTTERY PICKS Most days in a historic Indialantic beach cottage, nine pottery wheels hum with coastal-inspired creations at Seagrass Pottery. A second studio in nearby Palm Shores offers 3,000 square feet for artists of all levels to throw, glaze and create. Prefer to browse? Seagrass’s handmade vases and kitchenware make perfect Florida-made gifts. seagrasspottery.com

We will never act our age.

T WO CLASSIC RESORTS. ONE STEP FROM THE BEACH. Whether you’re visiting for the very first time, or continuing a longstanding family tradition, Ponte Vedra Beach Resorts have been finding the magic in every moment since 1928. And with world-class golf & tennis, extraordinary dining, an epic spa, and oceanfront accommodations steps from North Florida’s finest beach, a stay with us will stay with you forever.

PonteVedra.com 844.648.8833

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WHERE THE LAND LEADS,

Life Follows.

At Palmetto Bluff in the South Carolina Lowcountry, life begins with the land—a place where nature’s contrasts create harmony. Steadfast maritime forests rise tall with quiet strength while the Inland Waterway weaves a fluid trail, connecting you to the community of this extraordinary place.

Paths cross often, turning neighbors into friends and fleeting moments into memories. Thoughtfully designed homes exist alongside nature’s wild beauty, and life takes shape.

Glide along the waterways, relax by the pool, lose yourself in wellness pursuits, or golf beneath the live oaks—Palmetto Bluff offers an ownership experience unlike anywhere in the Southeast, bringing you closer to nature and community every day.

palmettobluff.com/flamingo | 843.305.6353

Obtain the Property Report required by federal law and read it before signing anything. No federal agency has judged the merits or value, if any, of this property. This does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of any offer to buy where prohibited by law. The complete offering terms are in an offering plan available from sponsor. File no. H-110005

Kids free all summer— June through September

ADVERTORIAL

Into the Tropics Step into Naples Botanical Garden for vibrant colors, sunshine-filled strolls and plenty of summer fun.

W

Waterlily Weekend

hile jet-setting to a lush island locale is always a welcome way to spend a weekend, you don’t have to skip town to hit the tropics. Instead, head to Naples Botanical Garden for an idyllic daycation destination—no suitcase or passport required. The 170-acre property is a fete in horticultural design and is one of the few tropical gardens in the United States featuring plants from around the world.

Now that summer is officially upon us, the garden is embracing its colorful roots with a jam-packed events calendar that brings a tropic twist to the Naples community.

Signature staples like the Birding in the Garden series still top the lineup, but there’s a lot more for green thumbs and gardening gurus alike to dig into, f rom seasonal festivals to kids’ programming.

There’s no shortage of waterlilies in Florida, and on Aug. 30 and 31, Naples Botanical Garden is celebrating these aquatic beauties. Beyond learning about the different types as you peruse the various floating gardens (there are over 500 specimens!), there are also specialty demonstrations on how to plant a waterlily container garden and the fascinating features of the Victoria waterlily—one of the largest in the world—gigantic and strong enough for a small human to sit on (although garden staff asks that guests please do not try this out).

Free Children’s Admission

NAPLES BOTANICAL GARDEN

Tasting the Tropics Beyond a kaleidoscope of colorful leaves and petals, many tropical and subtropical plants also produce some of our favorite f ruits. Thanks to Southwest Florida’s climate, many of these juicy delights are grown on-property. While there are plenty of your typical finds like mangoes and bananas, the grounds are also home to other exotic varieties, like Barbados cherries that have more vitamin C than an entire orange. On June 28 and 29, the garden is celebrating these palate-pleasing plants with samples of f ruity bites, live demonstrations of cutting open jackfruit, cracking a coconut and vining vanilla, plus ticketed fruit-themed tours.

Naples Botanical Garden blooms with events and new nature play areas for garden-lovers of all ages.

Just because school is out doesn’t mean the learning has to stop. From June through September, entry to Naples Botanical Garden is free for all kids 17 and under. While there are plenty of adventures to be had in the cultivated gardens, elementary-aged children will especially enjoy checking out an air-conditioned W.O.N.D.E.R. learning session that encourages them to walk, observe, navigate, draw, explore and read.

There’s also the Nature Play initiative, where interactive play spaces are woven into the garden to encourage kids to run, climb, play and romp around. Take the Palm Hop in the Kapnick Caribbean Garden that has craggy rocks, stair-like stumps and a felled ficus for littles to scale. Check out Jungle Hollow, a shade-soaked clearing within the palms that boasts a curio cabinet filled with botanical treasures, a fairy door and more imagination-boosting nooks.

For more summer inspiration, visit naplesgarden.org.

WADING IN: STONE’S THROW BByy Er Jamie ic B ar Rich ton

on the bluff At Palmetto Bluff, a South Carolina wildlife sanctuary and luxury resort, every day holds the possibility of a once-in-a-lifetime moment.

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MONTAGE PALMETTO BLUFF

It’s a Wild, Wild World

This spread: An

aerial view of Montage Palmetto Bluff’s main inn; there are multiple docks and a boathouse at Palmetto Bluff.

PALMETTO BLUFF — LOCATION — 477 MT. PELIA ROAD BLUFFTON, SC 29910 — PHONE — 866-706-6565 palmettobluff.com

IT

was a scene straight out of a nature documentary: a bald eagle came screaming out of the sky, talons extended, right toward the boat carrying about a dozen sightseers. For a second, it seemed like the bird might slam into the windshield. But at the last moment, it shot up into the sky, locking onto an osprey holding a fresh fish. The osprey dropped its catch into the saltwater below in a panic, and the two birds of prey twisted and clawed at each other midair before finally peeling off in opposite directions.

“I literally thought the eagle was coming through the glass,” said naturalist Cassie Critchlow, still breathless from the memory.

“We were supposed to be on that tour!”

I said, disappointed at missing the big show.

“Well, it will probably never ever happen again,” she laughed. Despite the rareness of the encounter, it was just another day at Palmetto Bluff—a place where the extraordinary is always fluttering just above the surface.

No ordinary bluff Palmetto Bluff is a 20,000-acre nature preserve teeming with wildlife and anchored by a luxury Montage resort plus two upscale residential villages dotted with custom homes—available for rent or sale—in the heart of South Carolina’s Lowcountry. My

husband, Brian, and I visited Palmetto Bluff once before, nearly 20 years ago, with friends who live on nearby Hilton Head Island, S.C. We came by way of our friends’ 20-foot center console boat, buzzing down the May River and disembarking on the dock for an evening of dark ’n stormy cocktails and shrimp and grits at the River House, which at the time served as the resort’s original inn. Back then, the destination was in its infancy, with only the River House and a cluster of small cottages for accommodations. Today, visitors and residents still arrive by boat (although this time we drove in on the private 4-mile tree-lined road), and while Palmetto Bluff maintains its laidback charm, the vessels tied up at the dock are

THE SCOOP TOWN

POPULATION

FOUNDED

KEY ATTRACTION

PEAK SEASON

BIOME

Bluffton

35,243

1852

Old Town Bluffton

Summer

Coastal Plains

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WADING IN: STONE’S THROW a lot bigger these days. The Lowcountry-luxe vibe has only leveled up, alongside the resort’s growing reputation as a coveted vacation escape and celebrity-wedding backdrop.

This time around, we came for a quick getaway from our daily routine in Jacksonville, just three hours away, as well as a low-key celebration of Brian’s birthday. We stayed in cottage 17, a white clapboard bungalow framed by a stately camellia and a screenedin porch overlooking a quiet pond. When we arrived, Brian—ever the creature of habit—headed straight for the gym, while I took one of the soft blue bikes parked in front of our cottage to check out the place.

I followed the winding brick path through the cottage community over a small bridge leading to the River House restaurant and into Wilson Village. There, I pedaled past rows of modern-farmhouse-style residences and down a quiet main street, which was dotted with independent boutiques and restaurants and bookended by a full-service boathouse and a village green. During our three-day stay, I watched a huge wedding tent go up on the

green, evolving from a rudimentary structure to a botanical jewel draped in navy fabric and adorned with live trees and crystal chandeliers.

As I circled this tent on my bike, I couldn’t help but wonder who would be dancing inside this gorgeous display on Saturday night, and I dreamed of our own daughters getting married in such style one day.

wild by Design Palmetto Bluff’s history is punctuated by a string of fanciful dreams, reinventions and never-going-to-happen-again moments.

For thousands of years, Native Americans recognized its beauty, fishing in the waters off the coast and hunting and gathering in the forests. Then in the 1800s, plantation farming took root, followed by turmoil and turnover during the Civil War. Freedmen later returned to live and tend the land where they had once suffered as slaves. In the 1900s, New York banker Richard T. Wilson Jr., who gave Palmetto Bluff its name, consolidated and expanded the acreage. After a fire destroyed his grand mansion—ruins of

This page, from top: The Shooting Club offers archery, sporting clays and more; boat ecotours are led by naturalist Cassie Critchlow. Opposite page, clockwise: The docks on the May River; the library at the

main inn; Buffalos restaurant and the chapel at Wilson Village; the Carolina Room at the main inn

PERKS & PURSUITS — THROWN IN — (What’s Included In Your Stay) Iced tea and warm chocolate chip cookies Access to five-story treehouse Bicycles for exploring the property

— BUCKET LIST — (Can’t-Miss Moments) Dine at River House Pick a target at the Shooting Club Tee off at the Crossroads 9-hole course Take a nature walk or boat ecotour Explore Wilson Ruins

— DETOUR — (Stops Along The Scenic Route) Harbour Town on Hilton Head Island Georgia Sea Turtle Center

The Smallest Church in America Bonaventure Cemetery Savannah National Wildlife Refuge

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MONTAGE PALMET TO BLUFF

Fort Frederica National Monument

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WADING IN: STONE’S THROW

This spread, clockwise: Before the main inn was built in 2016, guests stayed in cottages; the cottages include soaking tubs, four-poster beds and porches; a

water view from the cottage porch; other accommodations include guest houses, the main inn and 3- and 4-bedroom village houses.

which lie in the village square today—Wilson sold the property to a paper company, which surprisingly ushered in an era of preservation and used the land as a hunting camp to entertain clients. The modern iteration of Palmetto Bluff was established in 2001, shortly before my first voyage here. Today it is part of the South Street Partners portfolio of luxury resorts and residential communities.

Even though the property has transformed and transferred hands many times over several centuries, conservation has remained a constant drumbeat in Palmetto Bluff lore that lives on through voices like Critchlow’s. On our nature walk—one of dozens of daily planned activities guests can book at the resort—Critchlow detailed Palmetto Bluff’s natural history. While

walking backward for the full hour, she spoke of 200-year-old oak trees and how the resurrection fern growing on their limbs blooms when it rains, how a single Eastern oyster in the May River can filter 25 gallons of water a day, how the unsuspecting cockroach is a pollinator of magnolia trees and how

Shotguns and Showdowns Brian and I had missed the dramatic fight between the eagle and the osprey because we had opted instead to shoot some birds at the Palmetto Bluff Shooting Club—not real ones, of course, but the sporting clays kind. This game of golf-like marksmanship involved 12 stations and 100 rounds. Orange saucers flew from every angle imaginable, some even bouncing off trampolines, with instructor Bill Lamb sharing his pro tips.

“Jamie, keep a hard focus at 6 o’clock,” Lamb said, explaining that once the sporting clay flies into the air, I should think of it like a clock and keep a hard visual focus on a tiny spot at the center bottom.

“This time, your focus should be on 1 o’clock on the first bird, then six on the second!” he said.

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—ANDREW BALDINO Indigenous people used wax myrtle as a natural insect repellent. At the tour’s end, we stood rolling wax myrtle leaves in our hands and sniffing the minty scent at the back door to Montage’s grand inn.

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MONTAGE PALMET TO BLUFF

It’s one of the only places you can still see fireflies in the Lowcountry.

let the art of porchin’ work its Southern magic.

So many creature comforts abound that it’s impossible to list them—or do them all in one weekend. But if you can think of it, Palmetto Bluff has it covered.

Finding Fireflies More than a resort, the Bluff is a sprawling community. On our trip, I also connected with Palmetto Bluff marketing coordinator Andrew Baldino. He showed me around the Montage hotel, with a stop by a floor-to-ceiling map that put the property’s size into perspective. Pointing to different clusters on the illustration, Baldino explained plans for development of two more villages—while ensuring that thousands of acres would remain permanently protected preserve.

Afterward, we hopped into a golf cart for a drive, quickly passing by the chapel where the Biebers said “I do” back in 2019 and talking more about the Bluff’s conservation ethos.

Along the route, Baldino pointed to an intricate treehouse surrounding the trunk of a giant live oak. “It’s built around the tree, not into

it,” he said. “We don’t want to harm the tree.”

As the sun set on our evening drive, we parked for a few moments in front of the May River Golf Club, chatting not about the technical aspects of the Jack Nicklausdesigned course, but about how the grounds are maintained using no harmful chemicals and only natural pest control methods.

“It’s one of the only places you can still see fireflies in the Lowcountry,” he said.

“I can’t remember the last time I saw a firefly—probably as a kid growing up in North Carolina,” I said.

With that, Baldino scooted toward the River House to drop me for dinner, the last of our quick trip. As we drove away from the golf club, the lyrics to a favorite JJ Grey & Mofro song floated into my head: “Where did all the fireflies go?/I heard someone say/ They ain’t never coming back.”

It was still March—too early to test Baldino’s claim. But if seeing is believing, then spotting those tiny blinks on a warm summer night is reason enough to come back.

Two targets flew out. Two misses.

I was bummed, but Brian was killing it.

Besides, it was his birthday, so I wanted him to have fun.

By station 11, I finally shot my two birds in one round—a once-in-a-lifetime achievement, to be sure.

Beyond the Shooting Club, there’s plenty more action, or none at all depending on your mood. There’s a racquet club with tennis and pickleball, a golf course, horse stables, multiple swimming pools, fitness centers, boutique shopping, chapels and even two whimsical treehouses. A world-class spa, a secret speakeasy, culinary classes and rotating art exhibits round out the experience.

For the explorer, there’s boating, kayaking, hiking, and even a Cadillac to borrow for daytrips to Bluffton, Hilton Head or Savannah, Ga. Or you can simply settle into a rocking chair with a spiked peach lemonade tea and

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ALRE A DY

With 17 miles of sun-bathed beach, bountiful coastal cuisine, and relaxing places to stay, this is where people with too much going on go to forget about it all. So, if you’ve been looking for your happy place, Relax, you’ve found it.

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WADING IN :THE SPREAD FLORIDA-FRESH BITES & BEVS B y H el en B ra d sh a w

SIPPIN’ ON MARGS

with ALIX EARLE The media phenom and Miami It-Girl is revolutionizing the 305’s drink scene.

KEVIN OH

W

hen influencer Alix Earle came to Miami in 2019 as a hopeful University of Miami freshman, she was chasing more than sunshine and salty (albeit humid) air.

Like so many other students, she came to experience the city as not just a vacationer but as a local—complete with weekend yacht parties and wild nights that stretched into mornings that she captured for her rapidly growing TikTok following. The social-media-savvy Earle entered UM as a bright-eyed teenager from New Jersey; she graduated four years later as a millionaire, media magnate and full-fledged Floridian.

Now, after her latest venture, she can add margarita mogul to that list, too.

Earle recently became the single largest individual investor in the ready-to-drink cocktail brand SipMargs, which she

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This page: With

over 7 million followers on TikTok, Alix Earle is a bona fide social media superstar.

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PALM TREE CLUB MIAMI COCKTAIL RECIPES Classic Cadillac Spritz

The Spicy Grapefruit

MAKES ONE COCKTAIL

MAKES ONE COCKTAIL

1 ounce blanco tequila

2 ounces grapefruit juice

1 ounce orange juice

1 ounce blanco tequila

1/2

can Classic SipMargs

1/2

ounce triple sec floater

1 Key lime for garnish

1 orange wedge for garnish

Salt and Tajín for rim

1/2

can Spicy SipMargs

Salt PREPARATION: Combine tequila, orange juice, SipMargs and a pinch of salt in shaker. Shake well. Run orange slice on rim of a wine glass and dip in salt. Add ice to glass and pour drink from shaker. Add triple sec floater on top. Garnish with orange wedge.

PREPARATION: Combine grapefruit juice, tequila and SipMargs in shaker.

Shake well. Run Key lime slice on rim of a tall (Collins) glass and dip in salt and Tajín. Add ice to glass and pour drink from shaker. Garnish with Key lime wedge.

discovered at one of her favorite Magic City hangouts, the Palm Tree Club.

“SipMargs embodies everything I love about Florida and why I wanted to move here in the first place,” Earle says.

SipMargs was originally a concept born of four founders based in the Tri-State Area, but just like some of the best New Yorkers, and Earle herself, the brand has swapped cabs and cold fronts for pool parties and palm trees. And, after a relaunch in early 2025, following a $3 million investment spearheaded by Earle and Miami-based hospitality brand Palm Tree Crew, the SipMargs team is hoping to make Florida the canned cocktail's forever home.

“There’s no better state than Florida for a margarita,” says SipMargs CEO Justin Nabozna. “Twelve months a year, you’re drinking margaritas down there. And from the North, it’s where everybody wants to go on vacation. When Palm Tree (Crew) was interested, it was like, ‘OK, this is a perfect partner to take us there.’ And then Alix, being from Miami, it was like a perfect storm. Bringing her on was probably one of the easier decisions I’ve had in my day.”

The result of the partnership is a South Florida vacation in a can. Vibrant Miamiinspired hues of sunset orange and country club green make the aluminum cylinders

Above: SipMargs' lineup of flavors includes

Mezcal, Classic, Coconut, Spicy and Mango.

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WADING IN :THE SPREAD FLORIDA-FRESH BITES & BEVS

SipMargs embodies everything I love about Florida.

—ALIX EARLE

This page: From the branding to

HELEN BR ADSHAW, SIPMARGS, KEVIN OH

the flavors, SipMargs' relaunch is inspired by life in South Florida.

pop on shelves, but it’s what’s inside that really sets the product apart.

For starters, SipMargs is not a tequila seltzer, which can often taste a bit like a slightly boozy Perrier. This is a full-fledged sparkling margarita in a convenient 12-ounce can. The taste is light and natural, but flavors like Mango and Coconut still pack a striking, So-Flo-inspired punch among the blanco tequila and lime. Meanwhile, other options like Mezcal, Classic or Spicy offer tried-andtrue tastes for the margarita purists among us. The margs are ready-to-go cocktails on

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their own but can also be kicked up a notch with added floaters, mixers or a classic salt or Tajín rim.

Since the relaunch, the colorful cans can be easily (and frequently) spotted dotting the rooftops of Palm Tree Crew’s two Floridabased properties alongside local celebs (including Earle’s boyfriend, NFL player Braxton Berrios, and his former teammate Tua Tagovailoa). But they’re also available in stores around the country, bringing a bit of Sunshine State flavor and fun to our neighbors in the North with every sip.

The canned cocktail market has become especially saturated in recent years, but the SipMargs team thinks they offer something different. The drinks are tequila-based and full-bodied, and, most importantly, distinctly Floridian. That’s something Nabozna says Earle brought from the jump. “She’s like, ‘I want this to feel like a Florida brand,’” he recalls.

And now, it’s a mission both he and Earle refuse to lose.

“I can’t wait to keep highlighting the joys of a Florida lifestyle,” Earle says.

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WADING IN :MADE IN FLA

By H e l en B ra d sh a w a n d E m i l ee G a rb er Il l u st ra t i o n s by Ju l es O z a et a

The Latest Scoop

Cosmic Brownie

>

>

>

Florida’s Ice Cream Scene

>

>

Guava & Cheese

Unicorn Tracks

Breakfast Buddies

Kit Kat

Because in Florida, ice cream isn’t just a way to cool off—it’s a way to come together, one banana split at a time.

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SOUTHERN CRAFT CREAMERY MARIANNA

M AY D AY I C E CREAM ST. AUGUSTINE

NEIGHBORS ICE CREAM PA R L O R PORT ORANGE

I

n Florida, where the heat demands something cool and sweet, ice cream becomes more than a treat—it’s a way of life. From small-town creameries to modern scoop shops with a mission, each cone tells a story, often rooted in place, heritage and heart. “People go out for ice cream because they want to feel community,” says Marie Mercado of Orlando ice cream parlor Sampaguita.

Florida’s ice cream scene is full of delight and delicious storytelling, whether it’s a cup from a pastel pink ice cream truck or a cone from a local family-owned dairy farm. As Kelly Seidl of Kelly’s Homemade Ice Cream says, “Florida is truly a paradise for ice cream lovers—because every single day of the year is a good day for a scoop—or two!” To test her theory, we hit the road to taste our way through eight of the Sunshine State’s most beloved, independently owned ice cream spots—here’s the skinny.

SOUTHERN CRAFT CREAMERY KELLY'S HOMEMADE ICE CREAM

MARIANNA

Downtown Marianna looks like many Southern towns of a bygone era—until you turn onto Jefferson Street. That’s the home of Southern Craft Creamery, an ice cream shop that has transformed a quiet corner

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into a bustling block for diehard dairy fans. For founders Cindy and Dale Eade, it’s been a learning experience from start to finish. “I had never seen a dairy cow until I was 19 years old," says Cindy. But the high school sweethearts quickly learned when Dale decided to pursue dairy science at the University of Florida after being inspired by his uncle’s farm in the Midwest. After decades of successfully running their dairy farm, appropriately named Cindale Farms, the family found a sweet spot to open Southern Craft Creamery’s retail location in 2018. Most of the store’s flavors are made from the same base, a signature sweet cream churned from the dairy produced by the family’s Jersey cows.

But local ingredients like satsumas and pecans kick it up a notch and deliver a tang of Floridian flavor. A requisite for all first-time visitors? Their Tupelo honey ice cream is a sweet and buttery concoction of dairy and the Sunshine State’s take on ambrosia.

S A M PA G U I TA O R LA N D O

K E L LY ’ S HOMEMADE ICE CREAM O R LA N D O

BRIGHT ICE SCOOP SHOP

ST. PETERSBURG

L O V E B O AT ICE CREAM FORT MYERS

DASHER & CRANK MIAMI

MAYDAY ICE CREAM ST. AUGUSTINE

In an homage to American World War II pilots, Mayday Ice Cream’s mission is to bring a scoop of comfort to the community. In WWII, pilots bringing rations to soldiers overseas

Previous page: A waffle cone with five

scoops of Kelly’s Homemade Ice Cream Above: An illustrated map of Florida’s favorite independently-owned ice cream spots

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WADING IN : MADE IN FLA realized they could sweeten up the pot with some homemade ice cream. They attached a bucket of sugar and cream to the gunner’s pod and, using the colder temperatures at high altitude, created a frozen treat to bring to the front lines.

Mayday encompasses that same outlook by offering flavors like the Aviator, which includes a chocolate and Nutella base with Biscoff cookies and chopped hazelnuts. The North Florida-based ice cream parlor offers sweet, nostalgic addons like homemade waffle cones, sprinkles and galettes—all of which are made daily in-store at their 15 locations. Director of Marketing Jessi Streator says it best: “When people need something that’s comforting and they need their day turned around, what better than ice cream?”

NEIGHBORS ICE CREAM PARLOR PORT ORANGE

Neighbors Ice Cream Parlor may seem like a quintessential ice cream shop of

When people need something that's comforting ... what better than ice cream?

—JESSI STREATOR yore, with its checkered floors and a buttery yellow exterior, but its extensive homemade flavors put a modern twist on old classics.

Try the Purple Cow, a blend of blackberries and house-made white chocolate hard-shell ripples on a cone. Or, for a more portable option, order a butterbeer ice cream float.

Every component, from ice cream bases to brownie bites, is made in-house, a feat that allows the Neighbors team to experiment with new flavors while retaining the quality their patrons know and love. The little yellow bungalow is the only commercial entity situated in the heart of a residential area. In a move inspired by the store’s name, the team at Neighbors is making the whole experience sweeter for every member of the community. Starting this summer,

Above: Ube macapuno ice cream from Miami’s

Dasher & Crank

Neighbors will stop using artificial dyes in all of their ice cream. All of the hues of the flavors, ranging from cantaloupe and Key lime pie to the typically vibrant options like Cookie Monster, will come from organic ingredients.

KELLY’S HOMEMADE ICE CREAM O R LA N D O

Above: A Bananacue from Sampaguita, which includes two bruleed bananas and three scoops of ice cream

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While working as a full-time nurse, Kelly Seidl found her true calling in her family’s small kitchen, where she churned the first batch of product for Kelly’s Homemade Ice Cream in 2013. Now Seidl oversees six brick-and-mortar locations of Kelly’s in Central Florida, plus an additional two dozen Kelly’s counters at coffee shops and eateries across the state. “As we grow, we stay committed to crafting our ice cream with the same love, creativity

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and attention to detail that started it all,” Seidl says. Her personal favorite?

Chocolate peanut butter brownie: an OG option with a decadent chocolate base, Ghirardelli brownie bits and Reese’s Peanut Butter Sauce. For an authentic Florida flavor, try Alligator Tracks, which is made with an orange zest ice cream, toasted almonds and dark chocolate chunks. Kelly’s also offers an exclusive Pint Club, where members pick up a pint of a retired flavor, a limited release or a brand-new recipe once a month.

SAMPAGUITA

DAVID L AWRENCE, DASHER & CR ANK , NEIGHBORS ICE CREAM PARLOR

O R LA N D O

Before she became a standout in Central Florida’s ice cream scene, Marie Mercado trained to be a professional opera singer in New York. Now she hits all the right notes in frozen desserts. It all started in the prelude of her life: picture a young Mercado taking extra mangoes from her South Florida neighborhood and churning them in a small Walmart ice cream machine. Backyard churning led to homemade custards, which led to flavor experimentation and eventually three acclaimed ice cream shops. One of them is Sampaguita, a location Mercado opened in 2023 as a tribute to her childhood and her Filipino heritage. “Every single flavor tells a different story,” she says. Take soy sauce butterscotch—Mercado’s version of a classic salted caramel. The flavor combines the Filipino pantry staple with her signature custard base for an unexpectedly addictive combination. Sampaguita’s ingredients—which range from ube to jackfruit to, of course, mango—help foster a sense of community grounded in the sweet nostalgia of a Filipino-Floridian upbringing. “Ice cream is just a blank canvas for sharing and communicating and connecting,” Mercado says.

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Above: Neighbors Ice Cream

Parlor has 36 rotating flavors.

Wynwood inspires us to take risks ... and to turn every scoop into a piece of edible art.

—MAGALI LOMBARDO BRIGHT ICE SCOOP SHOP ST. PETERSBURG

When engineer Steven Garrahan and architect Kurt Drake teamed up in 2019, they didn’t start a design firm—they opened

an ice cream shop. Bright Ice Scoop Shop was their wonderfully unexpected venture into entrepreneurship, inspired by a shared love of frozen treats and a desire to build something with minimal barriers to entry. “I also like ice cream a lot,” Garrahan says, “so it was an

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WADING IN :MADE IN FLA easy sell.” Inspired by the Michelin star-awarded culinary community in Tampa Bay, the St. Petersburg-based ice cream joint serves flavor-forward scoops like roasted strawberries with brown sugar and balsamic and Deepest Darkest Chocolate Secret, a blend of four different chocolates. Bright Ice is quickly expanding across Florida with five locations, the latest of which is in Lakeland, and each shop has its own personality. There are 19 classic flavors to choose from, plus a handful of seasonal picks—look for peach crisp this June. As for Garrahan’s favorite flavor? He laughs: “Um, what day of the week is it?”

LOVE BOAT ICE CREAM FORT MYERS

Above: Bright Ice’s summer flavors

include strawberry pretzel pie (left) and peach crisp (right).

Founded in 1967 as a humble ice cream shop in Fort Myers, Love Boat Ice Cream has grown into a beloved spot by locals and vacationers alike. What started as a simple stop for hand-scooped treats has blossomed into a multigenerational business with five locations across Southwest Florida. Each store still evokes old-school charm, complete with a vintage soda shop vibe and more than 50 homemade rotating flavors.

Community favorites include Dirty Turtle—a mix of chocolate ice cream,

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WADING IN :MADE IN FLA

BRIGHT ICE SCOOP SHOP, SOUTHERN CR AFT CREAMERY

caramel swirls and crushed pecans—and Elvis—a banana ice cream with peanut butter and chocolate swirls. Whether it’s a first date or a 50th anniversary, sliding into a booth to split a brownie sundae is still one of the sweetest ways to share the love at Love Boat.

DASHER & CRANK MIAMI

Wynwood-based Dasher & Crank takes all the vibrancy and artistry of the neighborhood’s signature murals and carefully mixes them into batches of ice cream before adding sprinkles on

Above: Southern Craft Creamery sources milk from

their Jersey dairy cows for its sweet cream base.

top. Since the shop opened in 2017, its display counters have offered over 450 flavors of house-made ice cream. Bold standouts like ube macapuno and matcha could blend seamlessly into Wynwood’s colorful murals, but their nutty and sweet flavors make them customer favorites. Other menu items are even less predictable, part of a rotating assortment that changes weekly. In the pink walls of Dasher & Crank, patrons can choose between classics or snag experimental picks before they disappear. “Wynwood inspires us to take risks, to experiment with unexpected ingredients and to turn every scoop into a piece of edible art,” says owner Magali Lombardo.

F , d n a l s I a Ameli

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ESCAPE TO ROMANCE & CHARM Wrap your stay in historic architecture, refined furnishings and charming hospitality in downtown Fernandina Beach at The Fairbanks House, The Addison on Amelia Island, or The Blue Heron Inn. With $50 restaurant offers and romance packages, these elegant inns put you steps away from everything you need for an unforgettable getaway.

AmeliaIsland.com/Charm

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The Blue Heron Inn

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On location at Montage Palmetto Bluff

Not all fine dining requires linen.

The best meal you’ve ever enjoyed probably had as much to do with the place and the people as the food. Some of our grandest affairs have no crystal, silver or white gloves. But there are oyster knives, hot sauce and views like this. Here in the Lowcountry, luxury isn’t always defined by starched cotton and silver.

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B I G S K Y | D E E R VA L L E Y | H E A L D S B U R G | K A P A L UA B AY | L A G U N A B E A C H L O S CA B O S | PA L M E T TO B L U F F | BA H A M A S ( O p e n i n g i n 2 0 2 6 )

WADING IN :THE STUDIO FLORIDA ARTIST PROFILES B y S t eve D o l l a r

This page: Osa Atoe’s

pottery is inspired by punk music, Florida’s waters and indigenous sculpting methods.

Wheel of Revival A Sarasota-based potter seeks to reunite with nature and shine a light on lost traditions through her work.

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WADING IN :THE STUDIO FLORIDA ARTIST PROFILES

P

op art sculptor Claes Oldenburg once declared, “I am for an art that helps old ladies across the street,” in a famous 1961 essay. The sculptor wanted to honor “the possibilities of using anything in one’s surroundings … as a starting point for art.” That easily applies to Osa Atoe, who makes functional art used to drink coffee, pour iced tea, display flowers and serve ice cream while also radiating a visually distinctive quality. Her ceramics are designed for everyday use yet transcend that purpose in their embrace of tradition and the fundamental resonance of the common red clay she shapes.

“I mostly make functional pottery—but I’m constantly inspired by historical pottery forms,” says Atoe, who launched a career in New Orleans 10 years ago before resettling in Sarasota in 2020. It was a major transition in a creative life largely invested in music and organizing for activist groups.

Atoe spent her formative years involved in the punk scene, publishing the zine “Shotgun Seamstress,” touring in bands and promoting shows with a focus on Black, nonbinary and LGBTQ+ artists.

“My parents are from Nigeria. My dad loves music. I was exposed to all kinds of things,” explains the artist, who grew up playing violin, “but I think that punk rock really spoke to me because it emphasized individual expression and urgency of expression … whether you’re being a musician or a potter or whatever it is.”

Coming of age in the 1990s, with everything from skate culture to the riot grrrl movement going full tilt, Atoe was drawn to punk as her entry point as an artist. It met her where she was.

“In the ‘90s, it felt like everything had been done. Until today, people tell you that the best guitarist was Jimi Hendrix.

If Picasso has already existed, if Basquiat has already existed, if Hendrix has already existed, what would be the point of

34

Above: Atoe forages wild Florida clay to make

her earth-toned pieces.

making art today?” she asks. “I feel like the emphasis on what you as an individual can offer, your individual expression in punk—that was what was exciting to me, that it didn’t have to be technically perfect.

Technical perfection in every medium has already been achieved. I think that’s the mentality that I was able to bring with me into clay.”

A spur-of-the-moment decision to take a wheel-throwing class eventually led to enrolling in a ceramics program at Louisiana State University. By 2015, Atoe was running a pottery business out of her New Orleans kitchen. “It was kind of a sharp turn,” she says.

Atoe’s work evokes an organic beauty grounded in an unfussy simplicity and the irresistible appeal of texture. Familiar patterns, like diamonds or rows of dots, recur in different ways, while earthy tones are contrasted by shades of turquoise, lime green and yellow. The pieces, listed for sale on her website, go for anywhere from $45 to $650.

Among other inspirations, Atoe’s work honors the Abuja Pottery Training Centre in Nigeria, where in the 1950s, “Western, Eastern and African influences all came together,” Atoe says. “I think that historical moment could be extrapolated.”

One of the artist’s goals is to bring light

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to what contemporary American pottery training has ignored.

“People are aware that Native Americans have a long and rich cultural legacy in clay, but we rarely learn what those methods are,” she says. “We admire the end results, but we don’t learn about indigenous coil building methods or firing methods or anything like that.” The same can be said for African ceramics, which have been cast in a distant, historical context. Atoe takes this as a jumping-off point, adapting those influences into a contemporary context.

Atoe chooses symmetrical geometric patterns for much of her work, which is comprised of pitchers, vases, mugs, bowls, pots and platters. It pleases the eye, she says, but it also transcends culture— speaking to a universality she likes to evoke.

Above: Atoe started making ceramics at

Louisiana State University.

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Above: When fired, many of Atoe’s vessels turn a rich rust color from iron in wild clay, while blue-green glazes emphasize the geometric designs she etches.

individual expression in punk— that was what was exciting to me.

OSA ATOE, SAGE ART PHOTO & VIDEO/ EVE YLN ENGL AND

—OSA ATOE It’s elemental, too, that the artist forages for her clay, which is abundant. “It’s dirt; it’s everywhere,” she says. “It’s just that we have lost touch with that. So that’s why it’s important to me to use these materials and talk about it, because it’s one way to show people how disconnected we’ve become from nature.”

Social media helped Atoe, who is in her mid-40s, grow her business. But after over a decade, she recently ditched Instagram, where she had 50,000 followers. “The algorithm is not letting me connect with these people,” she says. “Instead, it’s showing people AI and showing people sponsored content and showing people ads.” Atoe moved onto the Fediverse, the online sphere

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of open-source and advertising-free social networks like PeerTube, Friendica and Mastodon, where she posts images of her pieces and explores her process as user @potterybyosa. Although she’s building up from a fraction of her former base, “I’ve already gained the same level of interaction,” she says, “but there’s no algorithm standing between me and my audience.”

Florida has long beckoned Atoe.

Pensacola was a frequented destination even before she moved to the state.

“Because Louisiana doesn’t really have the same kind of beaches that Florida has,” she says. Being near the water is itself a creative boon. “There’s a lot of historical connection between clay and water in

terms of just the way that pots were used to transport and collect water.” Louisiana, of course, is distinguished by its wetlands, but, as Atoe notes, “that blue, magical water that we have either in the Gulf or the springs is definitely inspiring to my artwork. And then in terms of the scene down here, Sarasota has a ton of artists and art resources, especially for a town of just (under) 60,000 people.”

Those aspects of nature and nurture help foster the sense of harmony and wellbeing Atoe hopes to imbue in both her pottery pieces and her practice.

“I have to embody those qualities in order for them to be present in the work,” she says. “I think that’s something that’s a little less tangible, but I think it has an effect. And I think it has an effect just because of the feedback about the work.

There is something about the energy that goes into the work that is apparent to people who collect my pieces.”

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Whether or not you catch the perfect wave, you’re sure to have the perfect day.

In between clear blue skies and frothy blue waves, the pure joy of being outdoors and in the moment awaits. Back on land, diverse accommodations, delicious food and 24/7 fun do, too. Plan your trip at DaytonaBeach.com.

My Florida — SUNSHINE STATE STOR IES —

B y C y n t h i a Z i m m erm a n n

This page:

Monarch butterflies stop in Florida during their nearly 3,000mile migration.

a Gardener's Confession

A backyard hobbyist's good intentions change a monarch's life and possibly the entire species.

ISTOCK /PAT T Y_C

W

hen a butterfly emerges from its chrysalis during a process called eclosion, it dangles upside down and ripples its abdomen like a showoff at the gym, pumping stored fluid into its wings to straighten and harden them. This is the butterfly version of being born.

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Every now and then, the butterfly will struggle to break free from its cocoon and emerge with curled and twisted wings that dry out, making flight impossible. I’ve raised and released monarch butterflies for 10 years, and in the past few years I’ve noticed an increasing number that are permanently grounded because their wings cannot unfurl

into their orange and black glory. The more this happened, the more often a question nudged me: Could I transplant healthy wings onto a butterfly born with crumpled wings? Could I help them fly?

Of course, I turned to the internet, and after three pages of scrolling, I found what I was after: a YouTube video with

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My Florida

SUNSHINE STATE STOR IES

38

Above: Diane, a monarch butterfly, emerged from her chrysalis with crumpled wings.

of being hazardous to butterfly health up and down the Eastern flyway. Asclepias curassavica, sold in garden centers as Silky Deep Red or tropical milkweed, is an inexpensive, easy-to-grow plant with showy, red-orange blooms that monarchs love.

It is native to Mexico and South America and is considered an invasive plant in our neck of the woods. Milkweed plants shelter a parasite known as ophryocystis elektroscirrha, or OE, that can be deadly to monarchs. Infested monarchs shed OE spores when they lay eggs on the plants. In colder climates, tropical milkweed dies back entirely in winter, killing off the parasite. In

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temperate zones like Florida, where I live, some of the plant’s foliage lives through the winter, allowing OE to accumulate over time. As a result, when those eggs hatch into caterpillars, they eat even more spores. Signs of disease are a bloated body, an inability to completely leave the chrysalis and crumpled or tiny wings.

Other experts maintain that tropical milkweed isn’t the only culprit behind the monarch’s population decline, pointing to climate change, urban development and harmful pesticides.

Bring up the subject of monarchs to scientists who’ve spent decades studying

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CYNTHIA ZIMMERMANN, R AINE Y ZIMMERMANN

step-by-step instructions for replacing a butterfly’s defective wings. Posted by a group called Live Monarch, I figured the process had to be humane. I watched intently and took notes.

Encouraged, I visited nearby nurseries that sold milkweed, knowing that monarchs sometimes stick around there until their life cycle ends, and told the staff of my plan.

With raised eyebrows and sideways glances, some employees agreed to set aside dead butterflies for me so that I could harvest intact wings. I was ready now; it was just a matter of waiting.

Soon, the day of reckoning arrived. I watched as a butterfly emerged from its chrysalis, struggling, her wings drying twisted and curled. This was my chance.

I named her Diane after my feisty mother.

For almost a week, I fed her orange marmalade from a spoon, her proboscis darting into the little fruit pieces and her body quivering with a sugar rush. I was prepping my patient for transplant surgery, and she had to be strong. The donor wings from the nursery were ready to go.

Monarch butterflies are an extraordinary species, and in the fall, thousands of them migrate from the United States to shrinking stands of oyamel firs in Central Mexico. They fly up to 3,000 miles to reach their wintering grounds, hibernate and then return to the United States once it warms up, usually in mid-March. In recent decades, the overall number of these large, healthy butterflies making the trek has declined, and there’s an ongoing—often fervent—disagreement among scientists as to why.

The orange-winged insects depend on milkweed plants for their survival. The females lay eggs solely on this plant, and the eggs hatch into caterpillars that eat only this plant. Without it, the species would quickly become extinct. Milkweed comes in many varieties, and one is suspected

them, and you’ll quickly realize that this is an emotionally charged issue. Some biologists point to human interference as the biggest culprit in monarch decline, and at least one research scientist in particular blames backyard gardeners in Florida.

University of Georgia research scientist and ecologist Andy Davis, who has spent nearly 30 years studying monarch migration since the late ’90s and publishing his observations, believes the overall decline in the number of migrating monarchs can be traced to the Eastern flight corridor in general and Floridians in particular. His scholarly publications, social media posts and articles on the University of Georgia website all say the same thing: Florida residents need to rip out all milkweed from their backyards—tropical and native.

Monarch butterflies flit from one variety of milkweed to the next, he says, creating a cycle of OE infection that never goes away and spreads to other monarchs.

In an “Open Letter to Florida MonarchLovers, from a Monarch Scientist” posted online in April 2024, Dr. Davis wrote, “I’m going to get right to the point—you Floridians are not helping the monarchs as much as you think you are, and in fact you are probably causing considerable harm. Nowadays, all of Florida’s monarchs are heavily infected (with OE), largely thanks to people in the state just like you who plant lots of non-native milkweed.”

I contacted him to learn more. “A lot of people in Florida hear exactly what they want to hear—keep their milkweed,” he said. “Most of you won’t stop to actually look at the evidence because you simply go with what you want to hear. It’s irresponsible, but no one wants to listen to the facts.” He also inveighed against the practice of hand-rearing butterflies—in any state—because he said that cageraised specimens are smaller, weaker and less capable of making the annual

@T H E FLAM I NG O M AG

I'm going to get right to the point —You Floridians are not helping the monarchs as much as you think.

—ANDY DAVIS migration. “I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news here,” he continues, “because what I’m basically saying here is that people in Florida need to give up their love affair with monarchs.” There was no way I was going to tell this man about my at-home butterfly surgery center.

After days of dining on marmalade in captivity, Diane was getting restless. It was time. I quickly dropped her into a small plastic container and snapped the lid on.

Promising I’d see her again, I shut the freezer door and set the timer for three minutes.

The goal was to temporarily stun her so that I could perform the transplant with more ease, but the timing was tricky. Too little time in my makeshift cryonics chamber would mean she’d wake up in the middle of surgery

This page: A caterpillar has transformed

into a butterfly, leaving an empty chrysalis.

and move around too much. Too much time, and she’d die in there. I organized my tools while I waited: contact glue, wire coat hanger, baby powder, scissors, toothpicks and tiny cardboard stints to repair any creases.

I waited for the clock to count down, and when I finally took her out of the freezer, my hands were shaking. Even though many scientists maintain that butterflies lack the complex nervous system that feels pain, I felt like I was racing against time.

I worked fast, and my fingers flew. I positioned a curved piece of wire hanger around her abdomen to hold her steady, cut off her crumpled wings, aligned new ones to each side and smeared a little contact cement with a toothpick along those edges. A few taps of baby powder over the glue to dry it, and then I waited.

Her wings started to flutter after a few minutes, fully opening and closing. I stared at this transformed little butterfly; it was as if she was born all over again. I took her outside and put her in the palm of my hand, and after a week of being flightless in a cage, Diane soared. She flew high and she flew strong, doing what she was meant to do, gliding on the air like a little kid’s paper airplane. Within minutes, a male butterfly from high in the trees took a dive for her, no doubt enthralled with this unorthodox monarch lady. Jack had found his Diane, and within the hour, she was laying eggs all over any milkweed leaf she could find. They took off, flying together out of sight.

Diane came back about two weeks later. I saw something flapping around in the grass, and sure enough, it was her. She looked like

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My Florida

SU NSHINE STATE STOR IES

This page: Monarchs make connections with

people that very few other species do.

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I strongly believe we should not be interfering like this .... We need to live with nature, not change it.

—JARET DANIELS That’s inappropriate. We need to live with nature, not change it.” My problem, I said, is pulling back and understanding how my small, well-intended actions may ultimately work against the survival of my favorite creatures. He said that since butterfly people tend to be “pretty intense,” the trick is to tweak our enthusiasm as backyard gardeners: let the wasps and lizards eat caterpillar eggs if they want to, and instead, join volunteer projects that strengthen habitats on a larger scale.

Not everyone feels like Andy Davis’s advice to pull all the milkweed in Florida’s backyards is warranted. “Ripping out all the milkweed in this one state is unreasonable and excessive,” Daniels said. He doesn’t even want to ban the sale of tropical milkweed. Instead, he favors planting native milkweed to diffuse the problem of OE, and to help preserve native habitats. He wants to see plant companies propagate more native milkweed and make it more accessible to the public, but feels like completely eradicating tropical milkweed in Florida is a pipedream. “It’s all about money for these big commercial growers,” he says. “Tropical milkweed propagates quickly, it’s showy, and it’s affordable.”

So what is really happening to the monarch’s migration? And why does their survival really matter? After all, butterflies aren’t the best pollinators, not coming close to the job bees do. Dr. Karen Oberhauser is a conservation biologist who’s spent over 35 years studying these insects. She, like others, feels that the monarchs are a flagship species—one that many people recognize and identify with. Monarchs

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“make connections between people and the natural world that very few other species do. When people protect monarch habitats and make educated decisions about their food sources, they assist other species they’ve probably never heard of.”

An encouraging study was just announced this March by the World Wildlife Fund in Mexico that shows the eastern monarch population nearly doubling during the 2024-2025 hibernation season. Scientists primarily attribute this increase to less severe drought along the migration route than in previous years, but the report still seems heartening. Oberhauser cautions, “While any increase is great news, this number is still below the average for the past decade. This gradual decline in their numbers led to the December 2024 recommendation by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that monarchs be designated as threatened.”

There certainly still seems to be a lot of passionate debate over our beloved monarchs. One cool fall day, I visited the garden center at our Lowe’s store and was surprised to see shelves lined with tropical milkweed. It was October in Florida—the time of year to cut down this plant, not sell it. I wanted to know why it was so prominently displayed, and sought out Christine Jordan, a master gardener familiar with the selling practices of Lowe’s and other big-box stores. She told me that it is frustrating for her to see trucks unloading shipments of plants that she knows will never make it in our climate. “Whatever the growers have, we get. It doesn’t matter

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CYNTHIA ZIMMERMANN, R AINE Y ZIMMERMANN

she’d been partying hard, her wings faded and tattered with some of the glue cracked into old-lady wrinkles. She was having some difficulty getting off the ground, so I stented a tear in her wings with a tiny piece of cardboard, and off she went. I never saw Diane again.

We’re conditioned to believe that committing small, helpful acts contributes to the greater good, and it’s hard to grasp the notion that good intentions may be harmful in the long run. Entomologist Jaret Daniels, the curator of Lepidoptera at the Florida Museum of Natural History, was one of the monarch experts I contacted for this story. I decided to tell him about the wing transplants. The University of Florida professor took a beat. “I strongly believe we should not be interfering like this, as compelled as you were to do something positive,” he said.

“Don’t try to maximize your production.

if they are appropriate for the season or store location in Florida. We just get it,” she said. “It’s all about profit, not plant selection.” That explained the milkweed in October.

I left Lowe’s and called the grower who supplies the milkweed, wanting to know how such decisions are made. After all, these plants are what commercial farmers call “edibles”—vegetation grown for animal consumption.

I got lucky and reached Justin Hancock, who leads research and development at Costa Farms, a large commercial nursery and plant supplier based in Miami. He’s been with Costa for 12 years and helps identify which plants the company will grow and distribute throughout the state. We talked about monarchs and milkweed, and I wondered if he knew the problems inherent with tropical milkweed, specifically the increased spread of OE. He did. He said that Costa Farms has

This page: Once released, Diane the monarch

butterfly was able to successfully fly with her transplanted wings.

We can only control what we can in our own little mini habitats.

—LAURA PITTS come under fire from ecologists and gardeners for selling the plant, but they haven’t found cost-effective natives to sell. What he did not know about were the shelves of milkweed just delivered to Lowe’s, and he said he’d look into it.

There are roughly 21 varieties of native milkweed in Florida and more than 100 species in the United States. There are plenty of options, according to Laura Pitts, a St. Augustine landscaper who specializes in gardening with native plants. Her company, called Native Plant Consulting, aims to educate gardeners about the benefits of substituting native plants for familiar shrubs and ornamentals

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that contribute little or nothing to the ecology of an area. This is a slow process, but it is changing how environmentallyaware hobby gardeners operate. “We can only control what we can in our own little mini habitats,” she said, “and talk to our neighbors and anyone interested and try and get them on the same page.” Education and awareness can also change behaviors that affect the monarch butterflies, but it won’t happen overnight.

I’ve long been aware of the butterfly effect, the theory that small actions can have much larger consequences over time and distance. But it got real when Justin Hancock called me a few days after our

original conversation and told me that Costa Farms would no longer grow tropical milkweed. He explained that in addition to our conversations, he’d heard from an increased number of concerned gardeners over the past year, and his team decided to quit producing this variety beginning in 2025.

I am a lot less hands-on these days with the monarch butterflies that visit my garden, and the tropical milkweed in my yard was cut down last fall. I ordered native plants and threw away all those surgery tools. I realize now that it’s not my place, fooling with Mother Nature like that, but I don’t regret helping Diane fly that day. As her quivering wings smoothed into an effortless flight, the glue that held them on shined like a warrior’s armor in the sun, and I laughed out loud, clapping and cheering her on a flight that led us both to the unexpected.

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Summer is a great time to chill in West Volusia.

From hiking and biking our trails to exploring the murals of the Wings of the West trail, adventure awaits along every path. Right now, our CoolCraft Summer Safari is on tour in downtown DeLand and other cool spots across West Volusia, serving up special animal-themed beers, coffees, smoothies, and cocktails. It’s the perfect time to spend a Coolcation and experience the best there is to do in West Volusia.

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WADING IN:DIVE BAR FLO RIDA MUSICIANS ON THE R ISE B y M a ri a X i m en a A ra g o n

Bossa Neuva

How Miami's Buko Boys are streaming their way to stardom with an Indie Twist on A Bossa Nova Sound

T

indie-pop rock flair and thrives as much online as it does on stage.

At least that’s how they described it during the morning rush at Miami’s Libertino Café in Wynwood. Between sips of cold brew and impromptu singalongs to Tame Impala, they looked more like three friends geeking out over their latest gaming triumph (building a

Sims empire) than a band with 137,000 Spotify streams and an online following.

But don’t be fooled—this Miami-based group has built something real.

Inspired by the laid-back spirit of “buko” coconut vendors in vocalist Raquel Lily’s native Philippines, the band—Lily, Andy Gil, Martin Castor

CHE YENNE RUNNER

he Buko Boys aren’t your typical band—they’re a vibe, a virtual hangout, a chaotic group chat come to life. What started as an idea thrown around on South Florida beach kick backs has turned into a genreblurring music project that combines Brazilian bossa nova-inspired beats with

@T H E FLAM I NG O M AG

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WADING IN:DIVE BAR

HOW HAS FLORIDA BEEN A BACKDROP FOR YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS?

I don’t feel like we’re trying to gather mass randos. I want (our shows) to feel like a community.

MC: What I personally like to do is troll the people who go to our merch booth. I’m kidding! I like to be playful with the people who engage with us and give out set lists, giving an authentic vibe that they usually don’t get on stage.

SC: I just like conversing with (them).

YOU HAVE OVER 70,000 FOLLOWERS ON TWITCH. HOW HAS STREAMING BROUGHT THIS PROJECT TO LIFE?

Clockwise, from left: Band members Martin

Castor, Sebastian Crow, Andy Gil and Raquel Lily

on stage, there’s a moment when you’re looking at the crowd, and then you look (back) at your team, and you’re like, “Whoa, yeah, we’re doing this.”

WHAT ARE YOUR PRE-SHOW RITUALS?

Martin Castor: It’s more so not the SC: I drink two whole Red place itself, but the community.

Bulls. I’m joking.

Sebastian Crow: Florida has a lot RL: It’s a sugar-free Monster. of talent everywhere. There’s a lot to MC: I do a safety meeting for draw inspiration from. myself and lock in mentally.

Raquel Lily: I’ll add that Florida is RL: I have to be responsible similarly tropical to the Philippines. and caffeinate myself into We have such an indie, soft-boy, sunmerch mode. Do we have kissed vibe to our music, so it helps cash? Do we have stickers? Do with the literal creation process to be we have set lists? Also getting blood surrounded by beautiful beaches flowing, doing vocal warm-ups and just and the general friendly populace not going on cold. of Miami. I know a lot of people MC: Y’all don’t go on cold? say (people from) Miami I don’t do much before.

Buko Boys’ are mean and whatnot, I wake up, get ready and but bro, I’m from New make sure I have a sub for York, and that’s not the my day job. case.

RL: You see why somebody

TOP 5

WHAT STAGE FELT LIKE THE BUKO BOYS HAD MADE IT?

RL: Revolution Live in Fort Lauderdale. It was at least 2,000 people and within our first year of being together. When you’re hanging out with your friends and just being dumb but then having to pull it together and be professional and cohesive

44

ROKE B Single, 2024

has to be responsible?

SC: He has that dog in him.

NIME INTRO A (NARCISSUS) Single, 2025

HOW DO YOU CONNECT WITH YOUR AUDIENCE AT SHOWS?

1 2

3

OUD L Single, 2025

4

HIGH TOPS Single, 2024

5

NOT YOUR SUNSHINE Single, 2024

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RL: I like to pay attention to what kind of clothes they wear and what colors they style with. I really like paying attention to details like that because if we can create something that complements (their style),

SC: Recently, we started doing fullband live streams where we just jam and lollygag. I like to embarrass myself on the stream on purpose.

We’ve been doing that to raise funds for our tour.

MC: And band funds in general! So, thank you, Twitch chat, for supplying us with our album that’s coming out.

RL: What keeps our content moving is that I find it so hard to not be genuine. We’ve used our Twitch to propel us to TwitchCon and build a following so that we actually sell tickets. That can’t happen unless you’re engaging with people and they genuinely want to come see you live.

Everything we put out is how we want to represent ourselves, and it’s something we could do 20 times because it’s us, not just some quick cash grab.

MC: We’re making money?

SC: No industry plants here.

THERE’S A STORY BEHIND EVERY SONG. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE VIBE OF THIS LP?

SC: (The LP) is going to be epic with a lot of variety.

MC: What would (our band member) Andy say? If you can, put Andy says, “It’s going to be a movie.” We’ve got to represent him somehow.

RL: It’s funny because we call each other cousins, and our music is the same. (Our single) “mactan mood” has a cousin on this album, or (our song) “high tops” has a cousin that’s coming out. And so the genres, even though they intermeld, it’s the family of the Buko-verse.

@THEF LAMINGOMAG

CHE YENNE RUNNER

and Sebastian Crow—has embraced an approach as eclectic as their influences. Their biggest stage? Twitch, a livestreaming platform best known for gaming but increasingly home to musicians performing in real time for a global audience. Whether playing songs blindfolded, dropping anime-inspired videos or playfully trolling fans at their in-person shows, the Buko Boys aren’t just making music—they’re crafting a world.

Fresh off filming the music video for their single “anime intro (NARCISSUS)” and gearing up for the release of their self-produced LP in June, we sat down with Lily, Castor and Crow to talk South Florida roots, online streaming and the cousins that made it all happen.

time for

an elevated getaway

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Over 90 independent restaurants.

A feast for all your senses.

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WADING IN :JUST HATCHED DEBUTS TO PER USE

(NORTH) SAINT

ST. AUGUSTINE

A new endeavor from the folks behind River & Post and River & Fort, Saint brings high-end Italian cuisine to St. Augustine’s historic bayfront, opening after an extensive renovation of one of the city’s oldest buildings, situated between Harry’s Seafood and The Tini Martini Bar. The space makes the place, with rooftop dining, indoor seating and a sprawling courtyard— and views onto the Matanzas River. All in all, there’s enough room for around 400 diners.

The menu is as welcoming, with indulgent dishes such as short rib bolognese, seafood bucatini and braised veal osso buco. Starters boast Old World classics like Nonno’s Meatballs and the Amalfi Coast seafood cone—a cornucopia of shrimp, calamari and scallops suitable for the mighty Neptune himself. saintsta.com

LINK SAUSAGES & BEER

SAL ADITA TAQUERIA

TA L LA H A S S E E

Every day is a dog day afternoon at Link, the Capital City’s latest concept restaurant, launched by Seven Hills Hospitality Group at the former site of popular taco spot El Cocinero. Patio dining is still a big attraction, but the menu is brand new and, as the name suggests, all about elevated hot dogs. Among the 11 varieties the menu features are familiar variations: bratwurst, kielbasa, andouille and chorizo, all dressed with the dogappropriate condiments. Diners also get more imaginative options like the buffalo chicken dog and the breakfast dog, which comes with a scrambled

@T H E FLAM I NG O M AG

Above: The pollo asado taco at Saladita Taqueria in 30A is topped with tangy pickled cabbage and a lime wedge.

egg and cheddar cheese. The handmade, artisanal array isn’t exclusive. No one will scold you if you order a smashburger or a mac-and-cheese bowl. There’s even a dog for vegans. linksausages.com

THE LOAFER’S BENCH SOPCHOPPY

Everything old is new again in Sopchoppy, like this mom-andpop grocery opened by locals Mike and Kristin McMillan. The Loafer’s Bench evokes vintage Panhandle charm as it brings back the beloved small-town market theme to an evolving downtown. The shop, the only provisioner within 20 minutes, sits adjacent to Civic Brewing

Co. as well as the Sopchoppy Depot Park, and offers an appealing selection of lunchtime sandwiches (caprese grilled cheese on sourdough, turkey tomato sprout with Havarti), desserts (homemade ice cream) and pantry provisions (can life ever be complete without JB’s Sopchoppy Sauce?). Kick back on an actual loafer’s bench on the porch or enjoy the clapboard simplicity inside, where walls are adorned with historical photographs. facebook.com/the-loafers-bench

SALADITA TAQUERIA S A N TA R O S A B E A C H

Street tacos are the vibe at this new taqueria just off

30A. Situated in the brightly decorated former home of Nanbu Noodle Bar, its cuisine is masterminded by Nikhil Abuvala, a James Beard Award semifinalist for Best Chef: South for his cooking at his showcase restaurant Roux 30A. Saladita’s bywords are bold, fresh and simple, with taco classics built around carnitas, carne asada and slow-cooked birria beef, and more coastal-friendly favorites like baja shrimp. Quesadillas and street bites—which include elote ribs and loaded nachos— round out the menu. Chase it all down with a house margarita rimmed in spicy chili powder or a Jarritos soda. saladitatacos.com

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WADING IN :JUST HATCHED DEBUTS TO PER USE (C E N T RA L ) and loungers. Pop next door to Opal Sands by taking their glass sky bridge connecting the two properties to get exclusive access to two full-service spas, four pools, 10 coastal-chic dining spots and an award-winning white sand beach. opalcollection.com

THE CHAPMAN W I N T E R PA R K

Above: At Opal Sol, every room, from the suites to the studios, has a balcony and Gulf view.

ST. PETERSBURG

If you’re familiar with St. Petersburg’s history, then the name Perry Snell likely rings a bell—or at least the Snell Isle neighborhood does. Snell was a famed developer in the early 1900s when St. Pete grew from a quaint beach town to a sprawling waterfront destination. Perry’s Porch, a new gathering spot located on the St. Pete Pier, pays homage to Snell and the city’s rich heritage through its architectural influence and coastal style.

As its name suggests, Perry’s inviting porch is one of its biggest draws. Lined with white umbrellas, al fresco dining tables and an openair bar, this elevated outdoor space serves up relaxing

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waterfront views along with dishes like Trufflekopita, snapper sandwiches and lemon tiramisu. perrysporch.com

PINK CHICKEN TA M PA

Even though this whimsical children’s clothing company hails from New York, its colorful patterns exude sunshine. After all, the brand was inspired by the founder’s love of summer beach days and vintage textiles.

It should come as no surprise that Pink Chicken debuted its first-ever Florida boutique this spring—just in time for the warm months ahead. Located in Tampa’s Hyde Park Village, the store carries the kaleidoscope of prints they’re known for, including styles for girls, boys and their mamas. It’s also a

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great way to check out the company’s latest line, Coop Kids by Pink Chicken, which is a collection of extra soft, organic cotton everyday essentials designed for littles who are always on the go. pinkchicken.com

OPAL SOL

C L E A R WAT E R B E A C H

There’s a new fixture making a splash on Clearwater Beach.

Opal Sol, the sister property of Opal Sands, has recently opened its sleek doors for guests to stay—and play— on its Gulf-front property.

All accommodations, from studios to three-bedroom suites, have a balcony with an oceanfront view, and some include wraparound patios with hot tubs, outdoor showers

Above: Tampa’s Pink Chicken carries

whimsically patterned clothes.

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OPAL SOL, ROB HARRIS

PERRY’S PORCH

While The Chapman may be the newest restaurant on the block, everything about it is rooted in the city’s history. It’s even named after one of the city’s founders, Oliver Everett Chapman, while its connecting bar, the Chase Lounge, is a nod to the other, Loring Augustus Chase. Its interior is dripping with Old Florida ambiance as well—like the mural of a Winter Park vintage cityscape, flooring adorned with historic street maps or the chain curtain separating the dining room from the bar area that’s designed to mimic the look of rainfall. The Chapman, situated prominently on the corner of Park Avenue, serves brunch, lunch and dinner with menus featuring locallysourced ingredients. Nearly every dish has a dash of citrus in it as an ode to the area’s oncebooming agricultural industry. thechapman.com

WADING IN :JUST HATCHED DEBUTS TO PER USE (SOUTH) NOVATORE MIAMI

What happens when three chefs from Michelin-starred restaurants come together to debut a modern Italian eatery?

You get Novatore, Miami’s latest offering in the always-levelingup Wynwood neighborhood.

Titans in the culinary arts thanks to their lauded NUB restaurant in the Canary Islands, Novatore founders Andrea Bernardi and Fernanda Fuentes-Cárdenas built a dining experience that Bernardi’s grandfather, Novatore, would be proud of.

Marrying heritage food with local Florida ingredients and masterful culinary innovation,

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Novatore features dishes like Gnocco—a reimagined gnocchi dish with a seafood-forward approach that features delicate potato dumplings stuffed with fish and shrimp. Rounding out the culinary team is Chef Marco Rama, formerly the head of Italy’s Andreina. Saluti and buon appetito to that. novatorecucinaebar.com

HARBOUR CLUB MIAMI BEACH

In Miami, it’s all about access and excess. With that baseline in mind, the newly opened Harbour Club does not disappoint. The private, members-only club

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at Sunset Harbour ups the ante on exclusivity within an atmosphere that merges distinguished culinary flavors with lifestyle experiences.

Modeled after London’s legendary private clubs, this exclusive spot features three dining experiences overseen

by Chef Michele Esposito: Palm Room, a chic speakeasy lounge; Nikai Lounge, which specializes in Japanese cuisine; and a’Riva, an ItalianMediterranean concept that is open to the public. Harbour Club is designed to feel like an extension of the members’ private homes—if they were designed by a globally

recognized, award-winning firm. harbourclubmia.com

SALT + ASH DUCK KEY

At Hawks Cay Resort in Duck Key, the eyes feast first at Salt + Ash—the latest dining concept from “Top Chef” winner Jeremy Ford. Housed in an octagonal space with a dramatic oven anchoring the room, the restaurant delivers bold, wood-fired dishes like jerk charred carrots and whole charred cauliflower, rooted in Ford’s passion for foraging and farming. Much of the produce is sourced from Ford’s own farm, a 5.5-acre eco-plot in South

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WADING IN :JUST HATCHED DEBUTS TO PER USE (SOUTH) Miami’s Redlands. Coastalinspired menu items like crispy local snapper and olive oilpoached swordfish highlight the bounty of fresh seafood pulled from nearby waters—fitting fare for this 60-acre tropical retreat in the heart of the Florida Keys. hawkscay.com

THE PERRY HOTEL NAPLES

HARBOUR CLUB

N AP L E S

Above: Tomato carpaccio from Harbour Club’s restaurant, a’Riva.

Naples has long been known for luxe living, and now the new Perry Hotel adds a modern take on Old Florida to its hospitality scene. Situated along the Cocohatchee River, The Perry Hotel Naples is the region’s newest boutique property, a

160-room hotel with a host of sophisticated offerings. At the top: Tigress, a Cantonese-style restaurant from celebrity chef Dale Talde, pairs bold flavors with panoramic coastal views.

Next door is cocktail lounge Easy Tiger. Led by James Beard Award-winning mixologist Lynnette Marrero, the lounge delivers inventive drinks like the Fun-tini in a chic, sky-high setting. Outdoorsy types can take advantage of the resortstyle pool, set off on kayak excursions on the Cocohatchee River, relax on sunset cruises and hire private charters from the nearby nature preserve. perryhotelnaples.com

Discover 226+ Years of History!

Voted one of the top attractions in St. Augustine, no trip to town is complete without a stop at the Ximenez-Fatio House Museum! Immerse yourself in 19th-century life with our captivating Guided and Self-Guided Audio Tours. With specialty events and evolving exhibits, there's always something happening at the Ximenez-Fatio House!

Join us in celebrating America’s 250th! We are proud to partner with fellow historic sites for a series of exciting events and a special lecture series: “Forgotten Florida: Facts, Features, and Faces That Impacted the Revolution.” Stay tuned to our website for more information!

The Ximenez-Fatio House Museum | 20 Aviles Street, St. Augustine, FL, 32084 | 904-829-3575

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— Unf ilter ed Fodder —

Capital Dame

By D i a n e R o b ert s • Il l u st ra t i o n by Ju l es O z a et a

This page: The site of

Stetson Kennedy’s home in North Florida, Beluthahatchee, is now a park, and his cabin is a museum and a National Literary Landmark.

My Afternoon with

Stetson Kennedy How this Florida folklorist took down the KKK and became the most hated man in America along the way.

ON ELECTION DAY in 1950, Stetson Kennedy—journalist, folklorist, civil rights activist and champion of the poor—turned up in the tiny hamlet of Switzerland, Fla. Before he was able to vote, Kennedy was confronted by a small mob threatening him with broken

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beer bottles. A couple of deputies ran them off, only to arrest Kennedy for supposedly violating the law by possessing campaign materials near a polling station.

Kennedy was running as a write-in Independent candidate for the U.S. Senate.

His opponents were the well-known Democrat George Smathers and Republican John Booth. In those days, Republicans in Florida were as scarce as hen’s teeth.

Kennedy was well known, too, mostly as a troublemaker. Folk songwriter Woody

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Capital Dame UNF ILTER ED FODDER

Guthrie, Kennedy’s friend, fellow leftist and frequent houseguest, composed a campaign song for him. His campaign slogan was “Not White Supremacy, but Right Supremacy!”

This did not endear him to most white folks. A back injury had kept Kennedy out of World War II; he said if he couldn’t fight fascists abroad, he’d fight them at home.

“It was the least I could do,” he said when I interviewed him in 2003. The St. Johns County cops may have saved him that day at the polling station, but they didn’t like him,

action from the House Un-American Activities Committee. Dragging a trunkful of KKK material, he entered the Capitol wearing full Klan regalia and asked to speak to the committee before the police kicked him out. Kennedy finally dropped his cover to testify at the trial of two Georgia neoNazis the following year.

Stetson told me these stories when he was a spunky 87, with eyes still a bright robinegg blue. We sat drinking coffee on the deck of his lakeside home south of Jacksonville,

The Klan said the Bible said that Jim Crow was God’s will and therefore eternal.

—STETSON KENNEDY either. Kennedy laughed: “I thought they were going to lynch me.”

Several years before the election, in the mid-1940s, Kennedy infiltrated the Ku Klux Klan. Posing as a member, he exposed Klan secrets by sharing the information with the FBI, a popular syndicated columnist and even the writers of the “Superman” radio program so that it could be used as plot material for the Man of Steel’s battle against right-wing extremists. After a few years as a “klavalier” in the Nathan Bedford Forrest Klavern #1, a frustrated Kennedy traveled to Washington, D.C., to demand

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watching little blue herons wading in the shallows. The land he bought in 1948 is now a park, while his cabin is a museum and a National Literary Landmark. Kennedy wrote eight books here; Guthrie wrote scores of songs here, too. Kennedy named his little piece of Florida “Beluthahatchee,” a term from Black Seminole lore, which means “all is forgiven and all is forgotten.”

Stetson delighted in recounting stories of when people wanted to kill him—or at least run him out of the country. People that Guthrie called “racey-haters, pinky-baiters, dead-brainers and fraidy cats.” Kennedy’s 1946 book, “Southern Exposure,” was a scathing account of racism, neo-slavery and rapacious capitalism in America that made him notorious. His union work, articles for The Nation and other progressive publications, as well as his attacks on white supremacy, made him a constant target for violence. As he wrote in a 1995 letter, “The Klan said the Bible said that Jim Crow was God’s will and therefore eternal, and anyone, white or (Black), who dared say nay thereby made themselves a likely candidate for social,

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economic and even rope lynching.” Enraged, the Klan threatened to burn down ’s house, leaving an ominous note: “S.K.—You are finished; we have just begun!—KKK.”

Writing With Zora Neale Hurston

William Stetson Kennedy was an unlikely provocateur. Born in 1916, Kennedy was the child of a well-off Jacksonville family that traced its lineage back to signers of the Declaration of Independence. His grandfather was an officer in the Confederate army. He could have chosen the life of a Southern gent, pursuing a career in the law or business or Dixiecrat politics. But Stetson Kennedy never did anything the easy way. He was radicalized as a child when Klansmen assaulted his family’s much-loved Black housekeeper, supposedly for arguing with a white bus driver. At Robert E. Lee High School (now called Riverside), Kennedy recalled seeing white boys knocking Black delivery boys off their bikes for fun.

In 1935, he enrolled at the University of Florida with a focus on creative writing. He cut class to go out in the field, documenting the Old Florida ways of railroad gandy dancers, sponge divers and Seminole shamans. College life was, he said, “politically illiterate.” With the Spanish Civil War going on at the time, he collected blankets and boots to send to the antifascist Spanish Republican troops. Kennedy liked to say, impishly, “I guess I invented independent studies.”

He dropped out and joined the Roosevelt administration’s Federal Writers’ Project.

The program employed journalists, scholars and authors to produce local histories, guidebooks and photographic records of rural America, and record interviews with former slaves. Despite his lack of academic qualifications, Kennedy talked his way into a job as a folklorist. He was good at it—almost as good as his supervisee, Zora

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Hurston, “feted by New York literary circles, (was) given to putting on certain airs, including the smoking of cigarettes in the presence of white people.”

While Kennedy heaped scorn on such condescending racism, he did not dare travel the state with Hurston: A white man in a car with a Black woman was likely to ignite deadly attacks. Instead, Hurston would first drive ahead to the destination by herself, while Kennedy would follow. The stories they gathered shaped “Palmetto Country,” Kennedy’s 1942 history of Florida’s folk: mill hands, blues singers, farm laborers, fishermen and voodoo practitioners. A New York Times reviewer called the book “a forceful argument animated by an alert and justice-loving mind.” Publications closer to home, such as the prestigious Florida Historical Quarterly, ignored the book.

Few appreciated Kennedy’s work: As historian Gary Mormino said, he was “one of

I looked over several continents and 30 countries, searching for something more Floridian than Florida.

—STETSON KENNEDY Neale Hurston. The author of “Mules and Men” and “Their Eyes Were Watching God,” Hurston was a Columbia Universitytrained anthropologist who had previously worked with Margaret Mead and Franz Boas. When she arrived at the headquarters, Carita Doggett Corse—the Florida director for the Writers’ Project—called the allwhite editorial staff Above: Born in into her office: and she 1916, Kennedy was announced Hurston the child of a welloff Jacksonville would be joining the family that traced program, explaining its lineage back to signers of the they’d have to “make Declaration of Independence. allowances” for her.

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the most hated men in America.” After stirring the hornet’s nest with his Senate run, he decided to make himself scarce. He decamped to Paris, becoming friends with fellow exile Richard Wright and the philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre. American publishers wouldn’t touch his books. “I Rode With the Ku Klux Klan” (1954) came out in London, while “Jim Crow Guide to the U.S.A.” was published originally as an essay in Sartre’s literary journal in 1955 in France.

Back to BeluThaHatchee As we sat at Kennedy’s home, a couple of ospreys swooped over the lake, and the

tangerine-colored sun began to sink low in the west. Kennedy and I had moved on to egg salad while I started on a glass of wine. He told me he had loved Europe, but by 1960, he’d gotten homesick: “I looked over several continents and 30 countries, searching for something more Floridian than Florida. I found plenty of bathing beauties and palm trees, but the weeds weren’t right.”

“So you came home to Florida?” I asked.

“And stayed put,” he said.

Kennedy remained at Beluthahatchee for the rest of his days, advocating for workers’ rights and championing environmental causes. He produced essays for Southern Changes and wrote more “folksay” books like the 2008 title “Grits & Grunts: Folkloric Key West.” As an increasingly frail 92-year-old, he insisted on going to Barack Obama’s 2008 inauguration, saying: “I’ve been campaigning for President Obama since 1932.”

A couple of snowy egrets landed on the deck rail. He often fed them, though when his kitchen clock struck the hour—or, more accurately, chirped the hour—they flew off. It was one of those Audubon clocks with twelve different birdsongs. He wasn’t sure he liked it. “That Yankee bird clock confuses them,” he said. Not only were the weeds outside Florida wrong, but the birds were, too.

Diane Roberts is an eighthgeneration Floridian, educated at Florida State University and Oxford University. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian and the Tampa Bay Times. She has also authored four books, including “Dream State,” a historical memoir of Florida.

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Neon Dreams The boom and Bust Story of Florida’s roadside motor lodges and how retro motels are sparking a new urban renaissance

By ERIC BARTON • Photography by MARY BETH KOETH Hair and makeup by SILVANA AVIGNONI Styling by LINDSAY WHITE

This page: Model

Zaria Dennis at the Vagabond Hotel Miami

This spread, clockwise: A

Quality Motel sign in Tallahassee c.

1969; model Zaria Dennis at the Vagabond’s pool; an ad for Miami Beach’s Neptune Resort Motel c.

1961; a vintage image of Miami’s Vagabond Motel

L

ynn Acor was 15 when she started as a bellhop at a kitschy roadside motel on the beach in Vero—the Driftwood Inn. She’d park a guest’s car and then pretend to struggle with their bags for extra tips. Back then, in 1985, she called it Zero Beach because there wasn’t anything for a teenager to do. But she immediately loved the Driftwood.

It’s fair to say the motel’s first owner was eccentric. Waldo E. Sexton built the original building out of slash pine and pecky cypress. Faded to gray, it now looks like the detritus washed ashore from a shipwreck.

Now known as the Historic Driftwood Resort, the property includes several buildings and oddities. At one time there was “Waldo’s Mountain,” a mound of dirt piled up on the property after dredging the Intracoastal, and according to Sean Sexton, an author and Waldo’s grandson, “the second-highest point between Key West and Kitty Hawk.” Waldo filled the lobby with a statue found in a Madrid attic, a 700-year-old wedding chest from Persia and a quirky 250-year-old painting from Italy.

Highway 90 is a pretty drive if you’re not in a hurry.

THE VAGABOND HOTEL MIAMI, FLORIDA MEMORY

—Tracy Revels

Acor loved it and still does today.

She moved away from Vero, lived in eight states and two countries.

Next, she married the son of Vero’s then-mayor, finally moving back in 1996 to raise their two daughters.

Twenty-seven years after her first day as a bellhop, Acor took a job again at the Driftwood in 2012, and she’s spent the past 13 years working at the front desk. Just as it was back then, there are no computers to help run things—just a hand-written ledger for tracking bookings.

“Oh, this place is my everything,” Acor says with a laugh, although I suspect it may not be a joke. “But I’m a weirdo.

Everyone knows this here. I’m also a widow, and people joke that I’m in love with two dead people.” Just to be clear, they’re talking about her late husband as the first and her fellow weirdo, builder of the Driftwood, Waldo E. Sexton as the second.

Perhaps it would seem odd to some of us to be smitten with the late builder of an eclectic motel. Or similarly to be in love with the Driftwood itself. But old motor lodges like the Driftwood helped

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This spread, clockwise:

build Florida. They sat as welcome signs for upstart cities, they waited at every interstate exit, and they were the lighter’s spark on the Roman candle of the Sunshine State’s first tourism boom. For the nostalgic, it can be easy to love old motels themed like high school dances—which is why some with a more adventurous spirit have begun renovating historic motels in an attempt to recreate every meretricious detail.

Why, you might be wondering, would people care about these two-bit buildings that, in your own town, might still serve as by-the-hour fleabags? I had suspected the answer might simply be that the places make business sense. But the answer is more than that: It’s about how these places helped make Florida what it is today.

The interior of a resdesigned Vagabond room; space-themed motel sign in Cocoa Beach c. 1958; model Zaria Dennis and dog Pongo outside the Vagabond’s fountain; a modern view from the front of the Vagabond Hotel Miami; A vintage Vagabond ad

I realized right there—people have an emotional connection to these places. And it was something I needed to research.

—Tracy Revels

For all of Tracy Revels’s life, the roadside motels along U.S. Highway 90 stood as totems of the passage of time, like yellowing family portraits on the mantle.

When she was young, after her parents split up, Revels would be the passenger as they drove her between the Madison tobacco farm where she was raised and the place where her father lived in Jacksonville. The old motor lodges served as guideposts to how close she was to home: the Hawkins Motel in Baldwin, the Sands Motel in Lake City and, getting close now, the Sunshine Inn in Live Oak. “Highway 90 is a pretty drive,” Revels says, “if you’re not in a hurry.”

Those old motels began to fade. When Revels enrolled at Florida State University, she found herself traveling on 90 again between home and school, where she eventually earned her doctorate in history. From her car window, she’d watch the hospitality relics roll by with trees growing out of windows and plywood nailed over doors. Revels moved away from Florida to take a job as a professor in the

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BOOM, BUST & REBIRTH

1925

Across the 20th century, miami’s iconic motels saw it all.

Construction on Miami’s Biscayne Boulevard begins.

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BOULEVARD OF DREAMS

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THE VAGABOND HOTEL, FLORIDA MEMORY

The Era Kitsch

history department at Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C. Those empty boarded-up inns faded from her memory just like old work friends did.

In the early aughts, Revels attended a history conference in Daytona as part of a panel of three experts.

While talking about her fascination with “the gaudy age of Florida tourism,” something odd happened.

People in the audience kept raising their hands at the end to tell her stories about the old roadside Florida motels where they used to vacation. “It was so weird,” she says. “I realized right there—people have an emotional connection to these places. And it was something I needed to research.”

She spent years working on her next book, “Sunshine Paradise: A History of Florida Tourism.” What she learned in the process was that roadside motels tell the story of the growth of Florida. It begins back in the era of Henry Flagler, who built grand hotels along his railroad, lavish places out of reach for almost everyone. Then came the automobile and interstate highways, which brought G.I.s who trained in Florida and wanted to drive their families here for vacations. In the beginning, travelers stayed in motor courts, which are essentially drive-in-style campground destinations. But then came roadside motels that allowed people to park their cars right in front of their room. The motels advertised window AC units and sported kidney-shaped pools. They drew families in with

1940s

1945

1950s

Buildings begin popping up along Biscayne Boulevard, the main road into Miami.

MiMo (Miami Modern), a modernist style of architecture with tropical twists, takes off.

People moved to the suburbs and bought cars. More cars meant more travel and the need for motels.

BISCAYNE BOOM

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MODERN IN MIAMI

MOTOR HOTELS

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schlocky attractions attached to the hotels. “They were on their way to the beach, but they were willing to wander and see all these little Monkey Gardens and Sunken Gardens and Weeki Wachee and Silver Springs,” Revels says. The people arriving in those big, hulking American cars had a nickname: “Tin-Can” tourists, a reference to the popular Ford Model T they drove.

The building style of these motels might look utilitarian to some, like places solely designed around the car. But these flatroofed, squat structures—often —Anthony Abbate no higher than two stories—followed a generic floor plan template with guest rooms that opened toward a parking lot, says Anthony Abbate, architecture professor at Florida Atlantic University. The roadside motels would take architectural cues from the cities around them, adding Spanish-Mediterranean, midcentury modern or art deco flourishes. They’d sprout beacons and lighthouses above the lobbies. Often they’d incorporate intricate signs directly on the building. They’d stand out from neighboring competitors with attention-grabbing, bright signage or themes: the Polynesian Inn in St. Cloud, the Neptune Hollywood Beach Hotel on Hollywood Beach and the Seabreeze Inn in Fort Walton. “It’s a time when Americans were adventurous and really exploring the country easily for the first time,” Abbate says. “These places, they felt like adventures.”

You know what comes next.

Big, boxy chain hotels arrived, though not on the side of highways. Instead, these new hotels sprouted from the sand, favoring the smell of the ocean rather than exhaust. The old motels mostly became by-the-hour flophouses. But then came a new appreciation for nostalgia.

Americans were really exploring the country easily for the first time.

1953

late 1960s

1973

The Vagabond Motel, designed by Robert Swartburg, opens on Miami’s Biscayne Boulevard.

The Interstate System diverts travelers away from Biscayne Boulevard, and its motels begin to decline.

OAPEC puts an oil embargo on the United States, causing road trips to become less popular.

VIVA LA VAGABOND

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BOOM TO BUST

OUT OF GAS

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THE VAGABOND HOTEL MIAMI

Checking in

Most cities in Florida had roadside motels along the corridor that led downtown, but nowhere is this highway of hospitality more obvious than in Miami. These vintage outposts dotted Biscayne Boulevard in bright neon for Selina Gold Dust, King Motel, Leeward Motel and the Vagabond Motel.

Billie Myers remembers being dazzled by all of their glowing signage and art deco details when she first came here from her hometown of Coventry, England. “In England, it’s all centuries-old buildings that are mostly decaying,” she says. “Then you come to Miami, and there’s a brightness and optimism.”

This was the late ’90s, and Myers planned to stay two weeks but eventually ended up making Miami her home. “Florida is so incredibly different. It’s bizarre, really,” she says.

Myers worked for hotels, helping open and run them—usually massive resort properties. So it was a bit odd when Wall Street bond trader Avra Jain called her in 2013 and asked if Myers would come work at what is now known as The Vagabond Hotel Miami. The place had sat behind a fence for years, windows missing, a filled-in pool, wounds in the roof, foliage overgrown. But Myers saw a challenge in it all—a challenge to give new life to something once beautiful.

Jain assembled a team and invested around $8 million into purchasing and restoring the property, which reopened in 2014 to much fanfare. The rooms are outfitted with midcentury-style murals and plush Italian mattresses. Around the pool, teal umbrellas shade bright orange loungers, all

This spread, clockwise:

Model Zaria Dennis skating through the Vagabond’s corridors; the current Vagabond pool and outdoor space; a mosaic mermaid at the bottom of the Vagabond pool; a vintage postcard of the Vagabond

1980s

1990s–2000s

2012

Biscayne Boulevard’s original motels decline and are used for hourly rendezvous instead of family vacations.

The Vagabond’s neon dims, with its pool drained and courtyard overgrown.

Real estate developer Avra Jain decides to revamp The Vagabond, soon becoming a chic boutique hotel.

RISKY BUSINESS

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VAGABOND VACANCY

RETRO RENAISSANCE

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surrounded by lush tropical vegetation. The setting evokes a Space Age period film set. Over the past decade, the revamped Vagabond has drawn celebrities like Pitbull to film music videos, chic Miamians to throw glitzy poolside parties and acclaimed chefs to open restaurants on the property. Most recently, the bar and dining area became home to Ensenada—a buzzy Mexican seafood hot-spot.

The Vagabond turned into a beacon again.

Its blue neon sign lights up a potential turnaround for the whole neighborhood, which is now referred to as MiMo—one of those rebrandings developers do to make a once-neglected neighborhood seem cool again. The Vagabond isn’t alone in the annals of old motels brought back to life in Florida. Naples designer and developer Kristen Williams purchased The Gondolier Inn in 2018, bringing it back to its pink-hued glory. The Beachside Hotel & Suites in Cocoa Beach spent over 10 months undergoing a $5.9 million reno in 2020 that brought out its multihued charm. In 2021, Leila and Adam Bedoian reopened The Local in St. Augustine and then earned the honor of “Best Roadside Motel” in America by USA Today.

Fashion highlights:

Page 57 denim dress

by Theory, denim headband by Chanel, red slingbacks by Chanel; page 59 halter swimsuit by Norma Kamali, jewelry by Goldyn Hour Style; page 61 denim skirt by Sea New York, scarf

by Hermès, shoes by Jimmy Choo, jewelry

by Goldyn Hour Style; page 62 cotton top

by Scotch & Soda, crochet shorts by Fred Segal, jewelry by Goldyn Hour Style

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Less than a year after The Vagabond reopened, restaurateur Ani Meinhold found herself literally confronting ghosts at the Sir Williams Hotel in Miami. Meinhold grew up in Puerto Rico and New York, came to Miami for college, and has been here 23 years now. I asked her if she ever stayed in the roadside motels along Biscayne during her visits to Florida: “What?

No. Absolutely not. No.” They were places she associated with women walking the street in front of them and those less fortunate sleeping under the motel overhangs. They were not places to vacation, not anymore.

The Vagabond’s renovation kicked off a string of similar projects along the Biscayne corridor. In 2015, Meinhold opened Phuc Yea, which she describes as a “modern Vietnamese mash-up.” The restaurant took over the space that once was the Sir William Hotel lobby, serving cod lacquered in Chinese barbecue sauce and bao buns with caviar. In 2022, The Michelin Guide gave it a Bib Gourmand award, which they’ve now won four years in a row, and the quirky restaurant suddenly became a place, not just for locals, but for outof-towners too. Michelin explains the vibe: “A nearby table might launch into song.

You are welcome to join the fun.”

You come to Miami, and there’s a brightness and optimism.

Florida is so incredibly different. It’s bizarre, really.

AMY R AYMOND AND LYNN ACOR, FLORIDA MEMORY

—Billie Myers

Sometimes, there are also uninvited guests at the restaurant. People spot a woman smoking in an upstairs window, a former room in the Sir William Hotel. It’ll smell of cigarettes up there, too, even though, as far as anyone knows, nobody’s been smoking. “You can,” Meinhold pauses, “feel the spirits. They’re not bad. As humans, I think we can just sense these things. But you can just feel that there’s something. I believe she’s a kind one—a protector of sorts.

Nothing spooky or negative—just a quiet, watching energy that keeps us on our toes.”

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People on the Driftwood deck c. 1966; an advertisment for Miami Beach’s Windrift Resort Motel c. 1961; the breezeway at Vero Beach’s Historic Driftwood Resort; oceanfront view at Vero Beach’s Historic Driftwood Resort; vintage postcard of the Driftwood

The smoking woman in the window is seemingly like a symbol of the old roadside motels, once so full of life and optimism. The iconic motels were symbols of Florida’s comeuppance. Then, the motels haunted our towns, shuttered and ugly and sometimes housed humanity’s darkest shadows. But finally, here and there, the motels have been renovated back to their former glory, to the way they appeared in postcards— symbols, in neon and pastels and kitschy themes, of something new and exciting.

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A sure Shot escape FOR

NEXT GEN

GOLF

A father-son outing of golf and target games at the new Cabot Citrus Farms showcases the latest in sporting hospitality.

By DAVE SEMINARA

This spread:

The Karoo course at Cabot Citrus Farms was named after the call made by sandhill cranes.

S

My job here is

to make this place like the bar in “Cheers.”

—Rick Kelso

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We hopped on a golf cart at Karoo, a top-rated 18-hole course. Named after the call made by sandhill cranes, the course features split fairways, huge contoured greens and an abundance of vast no-rake bunkers.

Kelso, a single dad who lost his wife, Aimee, to breast cancer five years ago, detailed his story along the way. An Ohio native, Kelso was hired by Japanese businessman Yukihisa Inoue in 1991 to be the golf director of World Woods, the original golf resort built on the grounds where we were now whipping around in the teeth of 30-40 mph wind gusts. It sounded like a dream job—Kelso even got to train in Japan for several months before the place opened. And for a while, it was. Golf Digest rated World Woods’s Pine Barrens course one of America’s 100 greatest courses, and other accolades

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CABOT CITRUS FARMS

pring break had just started, and my son was looking forward to sleeping in until noon and playing video games with his friends. Leo is 17 and will soon be leaving our nest in St. Petersburg, a sobering reality that’s already chipping away at my heart. He surprised me in agreeing to wake up at 8 a.m. to accompany me to Cabot Citrus Farms, a much-hyped, recently opened golf resort in Brooksville, located on Florida’s Nature Coast and just an hour north of our home. My stealthy goal was to savor a little father-son bonding time, but I think what sold him on the excursion was the opportunity to fire a gun, though he wanted reassurance on the golf part.

“I don’t really know how to golf, Dad, and neither do you,” he reminded me.

He had a point. Although I love watching the sport on television, my golf resume is a blank slate—besides once sacrilegiously spraying balls around the driving range adjacent to the hallowed Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland. I reassured Leo that Cabot Citrus Farms also offers activities more in his sweet spot, such as clay pigeon shooting, archery, ax throwing and fishing. I even convinced him to ditch his trademark HeyDude shoes, which would make our golf illiteracy apparent.

Mike Johnston, the resort’s director of golf, greeted us outside the pro shop on a freakishly blustery Monday morning in March. He introduced us to Rick Kelso, the director of operations and community at the resort and a PGA golf professional who offered to give us a tour of the place. “Rick’s been here since the very beginning back in 1991, so he’ll explain everything,” Johnston said.

arrived from golfers who likened it to Oregon’s famous Bandon Dunes course. But as Japan’s real estate bubble burst in the ’90s, Inoue stopped putting money into the resort. World Woods gradually became a bit like a neglected British estate owned by unemployed aristocrats unable to afford the upkeep.

Cabot, a Canadian company that specializes in luxury golf resorts with roots embedded in Nova Scotia’s Cabot Trail, tried to buy World Woods in 2014 and 2016. The answer was always no until in Brooksville the COVID-19 pandemic, when Inoue finally decided THE CABOT COLLECTION to sell. The resort marked is a developer of luxury golf resorts founded by Cabot’s first in America; their Ben Cowan-Dewar, a other properties are in Nova Canadian whom GolfPass Scotia, St. Lucia, British calls “arguably the hottest Columbia, Scotland, Norway golf developer on the planet.” Cowan-Dewar and France. started work on the “You don’t find this in collection’s first course, Florida,” Kelso said, waving Cabot Links, built on a his left hand at a wide-open, former mining site in Nova Scotia in 2004 at age 25. pastoral landscape of rolling Cabot Citrus Farms is the hills and sand traps aplenty. company’s first U.S. resort.

“All the sand, the native grass, the elevation changes.

It’s more reminiscent of the Carolinas than Florida.”

Golfing Nirvana

This is Florida?

KAROO

18 HOLES

This page from top: The cottages

at Cabot Citrus Farms are for purchase or for rent; illustrated map of Karoo, a top-rated, 18-hole golf course

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The 1,200-acre property has been completely redesigned with an adventure golf ethos that’s unconventional yet traditional. Outside of the steamy summer season, carts can only be used for golfers with medical needs because Cabot wants players to slow down and savor every bit of the course.

Golfers can choose to play on either of the resort’s two 18-hole courses. Besides Karoo, there’s also Roost, a hilly gem named after the wild turkeys that roost under the property’s moss-covered oak trees. Both are bucket-list courses that could one day host PGA events. Meanwhile, the two shorter courses nod to the next generation and the future of the sport. The nine-hole Squeeze is a fun course full of challenges and surprises, while The Wedge is a lit 11-hole beauty open until 11 p.m. with rollicking music piped in along the course.

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Cabot Cape Breton

Cabot Bordeaux

Situated along the rugged coast of Nova Scotia’s Cape Breton Island, this Canadian resort features an award-winning lodge and two of Golf Digest’s top 35 courses in the world.

France’s most iconic wine region is the setting for this resort, which features a pair of highly rated 18-hole courses and a luxury hotel with a fabulous indoor pool.

NOVA SCOTIA

This page from top: In

addition to its Florida resort, Cabot has six international locations.

As we barreled over a hill on Roost, we passed a foursome that appeared to be two married couples in their 50s or 60s. “Hey guys, how’d you get the girls out of school this week?” Kelso asked with a conspiratorial smile. The two women busted up laughing, and one of them said, “We’re on spring break!”

“My job here is to make this place like the bar in ‘Cheers,’” Kelso told us, referencing the television show about the convivial pub in Boston where “everybody knows your name.”

Indeed, as we motored around the clusters of handsome white cottages—all sold, but priced between $1.8 and $3.7 million—many of the guests we passed greeted Kelso by name.

“Does anyone live in these houses?” I asked. “Nope,” he said.

“The owners rent them out.”

Cabot Citrus Farms is a destination resort aimed at an affluent demographic. A tee time on Karoo or Roost costs $395 per

FRANCE

person during peak golf season, plus caddy fees and tip. But The Squeeze is only $125, and The Wedge is just $75. Guests have the option of staying in either a two-bedroom or four-bedroom cottage. With high-end furnishings and chef’s kitchens that appear straight out of Architectural Digest, the petfriendly accommodations run $1,250-to-$1,500 per night for a two-bedroom, while four-bedroom units range from $2,500to-$3,000. Kelso says that business is good, though it remains to be seen if there will be a dent in their important Canadian clientele following President Donald Trump’s imposition of tariffs on their country and jokes about making Canada our 51st state. “Fewer young golfers are joining country clubs,” Kelso said. “Instead, they’re coming to bucket-list clubs like ours because they prioritize experiences.”

To that end, Grant Horvat and Garrett Clark, Gen Z golf YouTubers with millions of followers, recently played Roost.

Cabot Highlands

Cabot Saint Lucia

Set in the stunning Scottish Highlands and overlooking the North Sea, Cabot Highlands boasts a world-class links course, an art deco clubhouse and a 17th-Century castle.

The Point Hardy Golf Club’s oceanfront green, dramatically situated on a 375-acre peninsula, is a stunning course on one of the Caribbean’s lushest and most beautiful islands.

SCOTLAND

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CARIBBEAN

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Lofoten Links NORWAY

CABOT CITRUS FARMS, JACOB SJOMAN

Situated alongside the Norwegian Sea, several hours north of the Arctic Circle, the northernmost links golf course in the world offers 24 hours of daylight from mid-May until the end of July.

They raved about the courses and the resort’s little touches, like the comfy couches set up next to the greens and the freshly baked citrus sugar cookies from Brooksville’s Bread Box Bakery offered to golfers before teeing off. (Each Cabot resort has special cookies—in Scotland, they are shortbread; in St. Lucia, a woman bakes chocolate chip cookies in her home using local cacao; and Cape Breton serves Cracker Jack cookies.)

“This is beautiful. You don’t feel like you’re in Florida,” said Clark, who shot a 70 on the course. It’s its own thing. I feel like I’ve never seen a course look like this. When you tee off, you see so much.” Accolades have also poured in for Karoo from other heavy hitters in the golf world. Golf Magazine lists it as the #32 course in their top 100 golf courses feature. Rick Shiels, a British golf influencer who has nearly 3 million subscribers on YouTube, called Karoo the best new golf course in America, while Golf Digest named it one of their most anticipated new

courses of the year in 2024. The Athletic said Karoo “puts a smile on your face … and widens your eyes at every tee box for its daring nature.”

Food and beverage options are set to expand with the impending opening of Grange Hall, an elevated casual dining restaurant, but there’s already a cafe, a cantina with tacos and tequila and The Porch, a truck-turned-pizza oven. The

Fewer young golfers

are joining country clubs.

—Rick Kelso

Cabot Revelstoke BRITISH COLUMBIA

Opening in 2027, Cabot’s second Canadian golf resort is nestled in British Columbia’s majestic Selkirk Mountains, close to world-class skiing at Revelstoke Mountain Resort.

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oven serves unique wood-fired pizza options like the Figgy Piggy, which uses a fig bacon jam as its base and is topped with soppressata, pepperoni, prosciutto and fingerling potato chips. At the comfort station on Karoo, golfers can buy high-end cigars along with Cabot-branded craft beers and cocktails and enjoy them in comfy rocking chairs overlooking the course. Also nearby is a tennis court and two pickleball courts. The resort plans to open additional courts, along with adult and family pool areas, later in 2025.

We tested our golf “skills” at the resort’s TrackMan driving range, which allows golfers to virtually play famous courses like Pebble Beach in California and the Old Course at St. Andrews and provides stats on carry distance, total

Every day, I find trees and

fruits .... I never knew about.

—Kyle Goodwin

distance, ball speed and other metrics. I quickly learned to ignore my results on the screen when I shanked balls, which was depressingly often in the howling wind. Occasionally— very occasionally, if I’m being honest—one of us would hit a nice shot, and Kelso would praise us as if we were legit golfers. “Look at that one!” he’d say.

Our luck wasn’t much better at the undulating, lit putting course, though it was fun trying to putt up and over the waves of giant green hills. Rather than defile the courses and delay serious golfers on a blustery day with any more of our duff golfing skills, we ROOST elected to try our luck at clay pigeon shooting—something Leo was stoked for. Kelso introduced us to Cabot Citrus Farms’ recreation manager,

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Kyle Goodwin—a gregarious, bearded man of 32 who looks younger. The resort borders the Withlacoochee State Forest, which means construction around the area is limited. As we found out as we bounced along on muddy tracks through the forest on an ATV, much of the surrounding acreage is still delightfully undeveloped.

Goodwin grew up on a cattle farm five minutes away, moved away for a spell, and was happy to have an opportunity to return to his hometown when Cabot Citrus Farms opened last year. He told us that Elvis Presley spent time in the area while filming the movie “Follow That Dream” in nearby Inverness in 1961. The owners of the nearby Coney Island Drive Inn still brag about how The King once ate a foot-long hot dog there.

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Off the links, guests can enjoy activities including tennis, pickleball, clay pigeon shooting, archery, ax throwing and fishing; an illustrated map of the Roost 18-hole golf course

“And my great-great grandfather used to go fishing with Babe Ruth when he used to come here for spring training,” he said.

Passing a man-made lake, Goodwin told us, “One of our guests caught a 9-pound bass in there last week.”

Goodwin spotted a bunch of muscadine grapes and pulled over to pick some. “So delicious,” he said, popping one in his mouth and handing us a few. “Don’t we have to wash them?”

I asked. “Oh, you can, but I don’t,” he said. “That’s just how I was raised.” They were a little too tart for me—but not bad.

The wind finally died down as we wound our way through the woods. Goodwin told us there would soon be tangerines and blackberries to pick. “Every day, I find new trees and fruits out here I never even knew about,” he said.

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This spread from left:

tktktktkt

I grew up in the suburbs of Buffalo, N.Y., and I’d never fired a gun in my life. Leo tried target shooting on a stationary board once before at summer camp, and when I asked how he did, he said, “Not bad, I guess.”

The first saucer flew out from the woods, starting in a high arc and dropping quickly toward us across the cobalt sky. BANG! Leo shattered it on his first shot. Goodwin hollered in celebration and surprise and then launched another. BANG! Once again, Leo shattered the target as if he’d been shooting his whole life. “Two for two!” Goodwin hollered.

“Oh my goodness, you might be the next Chris Kyle,” he added, referencing the famous Navy SEAL sniper with 160 confirmed kills.

I watched as Leo blasted targets from all five directions— coming at us, going away from us, bouncing off the ground; you name it, and he shot it. Here was a talent I knew nothing about. Who was this skinny kid with the big gun? When it was my turn, I appreciated Leo’s marksmanship even more.

I didn’t hit a single target and gave up after a few shots because I wanted to see Leo obliterate more yellow pucks.

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The Porch offers alfresco dining and wood-fired pizzas; the 11-hole Wedge course stays open until 11 p.m. and pipes in music.

THE WEDGE

11 HOLES

74

A Sure-Fire Day

We arrived at a clearing in the woods where the resort has built what is essentially an adult/teen playground where guests can compete in what Goodwin calls the “Cabot Olympics.”

Goodwin gave us some instructions, handed my son a heavy 12-gauge Berretta shotgun and explained that he’d launch yellow, saucer-shaped clay pigeons from five different targets of varying directions using a remote control.

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My great-great grandfather used to go fishing with Babe Ruth.

—Kyle Goodwin

As we moved over to the archery targets, Goodwin told us the place is popular with bachelor and bachelorette party groups—at least, among those who prioritize games over strippers. “Here’s where we build bonfires,” he said. “It’s so dark out here at night, you can really see the stars.” Goodwin said that he’s essentially on call 24 hours a day and comes out to this clearing to build bonfires whenever guests want one.

“So, if a guest wants a bonfire, they call you late at night and you’ve got to come back to work?”

I asked.

THE SQUEEZE “Yeah, but I don’t mind at all,” he said, clearly meaning it.

Leo was almost as good at archery as he was at shooting, beating me HOLES 7-to-3 in our competition. He had a hard time getting the hang of the ax

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Cabot plans to expand the amenities to include a pool later this year; The Squeeze nine-hole course map; The Wedge course at night

CABOT CITRUS FARMS

9

throwing, and I managed to beat him, 21-to-16. My victory prompted Goodwin to comment: “At least you didn’t get shut out, Dad.” I sat in an Adirondack chair watching Leo practice, flinging every ax Goodwin had on hand—first with one hand, then with two over his head, which worked better for him.

The warm rays of the sun felt like manna from heaven after an icebox of a morning. I wanted to sit there forever, hanging onto the moment and my son, the sharpshooter, who is growing up much too fast.

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FowL Why Florida’s iconic feral flocks in Key West and Ybor City just might hold the key to saving chickens everywhere.

Play

Words & photographs by HELEN BRADSHAW Illustration by JULES OZAETA

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Domestic rooster Elvis, who was abandoned, caused quite the stir in Tampa with his frizzled feathers.

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By day, Elvis had all the suave appeal of The King, with his curled, frizzled feathers rocking the streets of the Northeast Tampa enclave known as Cigar City. But at night, Elvis’s unique plumage was trouble. Abandoned in the streets of Ybor, Elvis lacked the feral genetics to survive. He quite literally wasn’t born for this: his unruly feathers couldn’t catch enough wind to roost as high as other birds, leaving him to hide in bushes, unable to fully escape the crowds and chaos of nightlife.

“He would come up to me and wait for me to pick him up,” Breese says. “I put him on the lowest branch of his favorite tree, and he would climb up the rest of the way. And if I happened to see him the next morning, we would admire each other from a distance, not get too close. He was either embarrassed or he wanted to party later than the rest.”

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FLORIDA KE YS HISTORY CENTER /MONROE COUNT Y PUBLIC LIBR ARY

E

very night in Ybor City, as booming music began to resonate from cigar factories-turned-nightclubs, Elvis hid in the shadows. For the streets full of young Floridians ready for a night they can’t remember, it was fun. For him, it was a threat.

This Elvis didn’t have blue suede shoes or a hip swivel that could make anyone swoon like his namesake. But he did have similarly iconic dark coiffed locks, an aesthetic that earned him more trouble than acclaim in the street chicken world.

That’s why each evening as the sun bid adieu to Ybor, chicken rescuer Dylan Breese tuned out the music and tuned in to the tiny taps of talons on pavement and the little flutter of unsuccessful wings.

Ybor’s feral chickens are the Tampa Chickens forage at José Martí Park in chapter of a storied Tampa’s Ybor City; lineage—birds that a backyard coop in Key West c. 1910; have crossed turRosalind Grooms bid oceans, outlived holds her pet chicken in Key West c. 1920. cockfighting rings and carved out an existence in Florida’s streets. Their most famous cousin flock roams Key West, dodging mopeds instead of Gasparilla-goers. These birds are scrappy, charismatic and woven into the cultural fabric of their cities—just check any Key West gift shop. But beyond their streetwise charm, they may hold something far more valuable: genetic resilience. As avian diseases like bird flu threaten global poultry stocks, Florida’s wild flocks could be an unexpected lifeline for the future of farming.

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The Chicken Guardian of Tampa Elvis is a favorite, but really, most of Tampa’s chickens view Breese with the same admiration. He’s rescued upward of a thousand birds in the city: some abandoned like Elvis, but others born-and-raised Ybor chickens that ended up in a rough spot. He’s treated wounds, raised orphaned babies and even retrofitted a shop vacuum to suck chicks out of drains. And every bird gets just as much dedicated attention as Elvis, and their own name to show it—just ask Ruane, Dottie or Buckeye.

Breese started rescuing chickens in Ybor when he still lived in a condo, before he even had an outdoor space of his own. “What I’d have to do, if I had a bird that I was trying to take care of, was find a place to hide it in the neighborhood— behind an abandoned building, or I would build little houses out of palm fronds and pieces of wood where I would keep the birds I was taking care of. I really didn’t know of any other resources at the time,” he says.

In 2020, Breese launched the Ybor Misfits Microsanctuary, the city’s first nonprofit dedicated to protecting and rehabilitating the city’s iconic chickens. Gone are the days of makeshift chicken shelters behind abandoned cigar factories. Now, he’s got it down to a science. As soon as Breese gets a text that a bird might be in danger, he starts coordinating a response. “I have hooks

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Everywhere the migrant tobacco workers settled and moved on from, they’ve left these types of birds in the streets.

XXXX

—DYLAN BREESE

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for storm drains to get babies out,” Breese says. “I have a bag with antimicrobial sprays, Terramycin, gauze, powder that stops the bleeding. I have a snake camera if I need to find a baby that’s in a tunnel. I have my nets.”

After nine years of rescuing the neighborhood’s chickens, he’s become fluent in their language—30 distinct vocalizations, from the soft purr of contentment to the sharp, urgent call of a predator sighting. And when that stress call rings out, Breese reacts instinctively.

“I’ve almost become one of them,” says Breese, who works as an engagement services manager in higher education and is the executive director for a nonprofit maker’s market when he’s not saving the flock. In Ybor City, if you’re willing to listen, most moments aren’t just punctuated by music or traffic— there are also the clucks of over a hundred nearby chickens.

This is the sound of Breese’s Ybor City, a cacophony of chicken calls thanking him for his help, letting him know they need him or warning sloppy spring breakers to back off.

VALENTIN F/ADOBE STOCK

From India to Ybor Every chicken in Ybor and Key West, and every domesticated chicken worldwide, traces its lineage to the dense forests of Southeast Asia. To the untrained eye, India’s red jungle fowl, a species of wild birds with a shriek of a call, might just seem like a skinnier, scrappier version of today’s chicken. Their domestication began 3,500 years ago in the region’s rice fields, where the feathered forefathers were first attracted to humans—a connection that eventually led to a new subspecies: Gallus gallus domesticus, also known as the modern chicken.

From there, the birds gradually dispersed around the world, where they were often prized for their value as a food source.

But by around 400 B.C.E., the birds entered a different kind of slaughterhouse: the cockfighting ring.

Cockfighting birds are jungle fowl on overdrive. Think Brad Pitt in “Fight Club”—lean and agile, but still built for battle. These birds are quick enough to dodge a poultry punch and tough enough to throw one right back. They’re tall and wiry, and many have spurs that would make any cowboy pause.

They’ve left their mark on the cultures of the Conch Republic, becoming a symbol of resilience and toughness in the process.

“People just brought them in. (Chickens) were easily transportable. They were easy to raise,” says Corey Malcom, the lead historian at the Florida Keys History Center. “There are other accounts of people coming from Cuba and … having chickens on board the boat … So that was really the beginning.”

As the cigar industries in Key West and Ybor City began to boom in the late 1800s, people flocked from the Caribbean to these areas, bringing their cockfighting and backyard laying birds with them. Wherever the smoke blew, the birds followed. In the early 20th century, more than 100,000 Cubans

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moved between Tampa, Key West and Cuba annually. These migrants carried cultural and iconic items to remind them of these places—clothing, food, cigars, music and, evidently, their beloved chickens.

“Everywhere the migrant tobacco workers settled and moved on from, they’ve left these types of birds in the streets,” Breese explains. “So you see pictures of Cuba, and it’s the same bird on the streets. And in Key West, the same types of birds are existing in the streets when Vicente Martinez Ybor moved his entire operation (from there) to the town of Tampa.”

But the cigar industry in both towns eventually waned.

Today, there’s only one remaining large-scale operating cigar factory left in Ybor City. Then the two towns began to change in other ways, too.

Down in Key West, the area’s first grocery, Fausto’s Food Palace, opened in 1926. A string of other grocery stores followed. Suddenly, eggs came refrigerated by the dozen and chicken breasts came perfectly packaged. Backyard birds grew obsolete as the introduction of the modern supermarket led to the gradual dissolution of home coops. “You see (feral) chickens really starting to take off here because nobody is watching them anymore,” Malcom says.

These free birds cautiously expanded their reign from neighborhood backyards to bushes on Duval Street and bricks in Mallory Square. As they migrated, Malcom says the chickens became a symbol of the city: “I’d say that around 2000, we started seeing them become the Mickey Mouse of Key West.”

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In Key West, feral chickens frequently roost in trees, but can be seen exploring the streets or, occasionally, dipping their talons in the white sand.

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Onlookers watch a cockfight in Key West in 1940; a feral rooster takes a stroll in Ybor City’s José Martí Park

And now, on any given morning in Key West, well before tourists are even awake enough to question if they really saw the green flash or they just stared at a Key-lime-rita a little too long the night before, the chickens are out. They search for bugs and seeds in multimillion-dollar yards, dodge cats that are almost definitely related to Hemingway’s six-toed squadron and roost in banyan trees that have watched the cityscape change for centuries. Florida’s chickens know their way around their cities better than any human local.

There’s no genetic study of Florida’s feral birds to confirm what combination of fighters, backyard birds and jungle fowl comprise the modern chicken. However, Eben Gering, an evolutionary biologist at Nova Southeastern University who studies feral birds, is confident about a few things. For one, the genes that made their ancestors so great at cockfighting are probably still present in the feral chickens found around Key West today. “One thing that is definitely the case—the (Key West) males are very aggressive with each other, much more so than Bermuda and Hawaii,” he says.

Based on studies he’s done of other feral populations, Florida’s feral chicken populations likely owe their survival to developing an optimized mix of genes suited to their environments—a sweet spot of egg-laying and chick-raising qualities that rivals all their ancestors: “In a wild environment—where you’re surrounded by cars and kids with slingshots and pathogens that the mother can protect the offspring from by oiling their feathers … any genes that contribute to substandard parental care are going to be selected against,” Gering says.

But the birds are also very much their own—influenced by their pasts, but undoubtedly a unique variety: Floridian. “I would wager a tremendous amount on the animals that could be sampled and studied in Ybor and Key West today being quite different from their distant relatives when those populations were first established,” Gering says.

And of course, even after studies are done someday, some specific genetics may never be pinned down—like the crowingalong-to-Jimmy-Buffett-songs gene or the early-morning-roosting-at-Blue-Heaven gene. As all Key West locals know, those just come with the territory.

But not even the most well-adapted chicken (or human) can be fully prepared for the nightlife of these towns. Take Duval Street in Key West, where it’s a never-ending celebration of all that is weird and wonderful about the Sunshine State, with stumbling rum-soaked tourists and a legion of distracted moped drivers. Needless to say, it can be an equally tumultuous environment for a chicken in Ybor City. That’s where the rescuers come in. “I think spring break is my least favorite time of year,” Breese says.

On any given day, Breese might be resuscitating a coldstunned chick, rehabbing a bird who has been hit by a car or even treating a bullet wound. Since Breese started his rescue, most locals have embraced the idea and are quick to report anything awry.

One of the most common incidents that rescuers respond to is botulism. If that sounds like an illness from the Victorian era, that’s probably because it is. Botulism forms when the perfect storm of bacteria and a lack of oxygen combine to create

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FLORIDA KE YS HISTORY CENTER /MONROE COUNT Y PUBLIC LIBR ARY

Poultry Paramedics

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This spread, clockwise:

Roosters in a Key West neighborhood; a mural in Ybor City; Dylan Breese at Hotel Haya’s chicken yoga; Marshmallow the chicken at yoga

a toxin. It can happen in improperly canned foods or, in the case of these chickens, when they eat contaminated, decaying things. The toxin could come from the discarded remnants of a late-night Duval Street dive bar. But in most cases, Gary Butcher, a poultry veterinarian at the University of Florida, says the contamination is likely coming from a delicious dead rat: “I don’t think people throwing french fries or Cheetos is going to be a problem for that,” Butcher says. If a bird consumes the toxin from discarded Key lime pie or otherwise, it can end up paralyzed in a state called “limber neck.”

“When it’s paralyzed, it’s not going to get to feed. It’s very prone to predators… So it’s always fatal,” Butcher says. Fatal, that is, unless rescuers like Breese can quickly get to the birds and give them plenty of rest and nourishment. They often do, but in hot summer months, bacteria thrive, and with the sun beating down on the birds, it’s a time-sensitive mission.

Another issue is dumped domestic birds, like Elvis. People

who see chickens in Ybor or Key West assume theirs can survive, too, and choose to abandon them. Roosters are the most often abandoned, sticking out like a sore thumb amid the cities’ sleeker birds. As a result, it doesn’t take long for either town’s rescue teams to find them.

“Right now, we have two frizzles or something, I don’t know.

Crazy-looking things with Rod Stewart feathers and feathered legs,” says Peggy Coontz, the animal care director at the Key West Wildlife Center. “They’re cute little fluff balls, but they have no business being on the street. Somebody dumped them in a parking lot…It’s just completely irresponsible.”

Fate of the Flocks It’s the combination of diverse feral genetics and rescuers like Breese and Coontz that protect Florida’s flocks the best.

The former is something Breese notices every day: “The (feral birds) are 1,000 times more resilient (than domestic chickens),”

They’re built for it.

The genetics are different.

—DYLAN BREESE

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DANITA DELIMONT / AL AMY STOCK PHOTO

he says. “They’re built for it. The genetics are different.” And in an age where avian influenza looms, that genetic diversity is more important than ever.

Florida is home to nearly 100 million chickens used for food production. Across the country, chicken is the leading source of animal protein. While plant-based alternatives are becoming more common, per capita chicken consumption has still doubled in the last 40 years. “There are six chickens alive for every human on Earth,” Gering says. “If a disease … were to happen on a big scale, humanity would be in big trouble very quickly.”

But these feral fowl are cockfighters, backyard birds and jungle fowl all wrapped up into one feathery, Florida-dwelling package—they have an unparalleled amount of genetic diversity. Each feather and tiny talon holds thousands of years of biological history of adaptation. Their DNA has survived traversing oceans, the rise and fall of entire industries and hundreds of thousands of cruise ship passengers stumbling into their habitats annually—all equally monumental feats.

Broiler birds like those in the commercial poultry system don’t have the same genetic diversity. Their limited gene pool puts them at risk, especially as agricultural pandemics become increasingly common. Gering believes studying these few thousand feral birds could lead to clues about increasing resilience among all chickens. Examining the genes of the feral chickens could unearth a hidden adaptation or grant greater insight into the genetic diversity of the overall species.

“The environment these animals live in is radically different from the one that they used to in a whole bunch of ways,” Gering says. “We know they can evolve. Who knows? It could be the Ybor population or the Key West population that

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Breathe in, beak out

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any of the abandoned or injured birds of Ybor can’t go back onto the streets, so instead, they spend their Sundays at Tampa’s Hotel Haya.

Once a month, Breese brings some of his most behaved birds to hold a chicken yoga class at the boutique hotel. The class takes place in the Las Novedades event space—the former home of Tampa’s first Spanish restaurant, which opened in 1890. During the class, the chickens bask in sunlight filtered through the room’s art deco-stained glass, fall asleep to serene music, and precariously perch under yogis’s tree poses. Although the bird’s DNA can’t escape it, Breese’s yoga-loving birds seem blissfully unaware of the history under their feet and revel in the opportunity to sit in a warm lap during post-class photo ops. Here, chicken diapers and tranquility are requisites. “The birds love the attention, and it’s a wonderful fundraiser for us. They donate 100% of the ticket sales to us, and that’s what we use to sustain the rescue operation,” Breese says.

actually, unknown to us, holds the particular combination of genes that will save the poultry industry someday.”

Regardless of a poultry pandemic, people like Breese will be there. They’ll keep protecting chickens, whether or not we one day need them to protect us, and they’ll preserve the history of Florida along the way.

“Ybor City’s chickens are not just a quirky charm—they embody the neighborhood’s grit,” Breese says. “They are living history. And they are unique little souls who are just trying to exist in an urban environment that their backyard cousins could never imagine. They endure challenges and always persist ... They look out for each other and serve as a model for what we should all aspire to be: tough, loyal and free.”

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I N G E O R G I A’ S H I S T O R I C H I G H C O U N T RY

It started with nature. Specifically, 3,000 acres of breathtaking forests, fields and fairways that all yearn to be explored. We simply made it an experience, with opportunities to play, dine and discover among newly renovated accommodations and amenities in this natural wonder we call home.

S T AY. S H O O T . S P A . G O L F .

8 7 7. 7 7 3 . 2 4 4 7 B A R N S L E Y R E S O R T. C O M

Panhandling — sunny dispatches from NW FLA —

By Pr i s s y El ro d • I l l u st ra t i o n by S t ep h en L o m a zzo

She’s Still got it AT 109 Prissy Elrod learns the secrets to life from a centenarian friend.

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t was a cloudy day in January as we drove to Lake City, my hometown, for yet another funeral—this time for Joan Rountree, a friend of my late mother.

At 93, Joan was the last of Mama’s close friends to pass. A chapter had closed, one I wasn’t quite ready to finish reading.

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At the service, I scanned the pews filled with familiar faces—older now, more fragile than I remembered. We stood, we sat, we sang. I searched for ghosts in the crowd, glimpses of who we used to be. And I thought about Mama.

After, I stood with a paper plate of pound cake in the fellowship hall, mourning not

just Joan, but the end of a generation.

The linoleum under my feet, the smell of Maxwell House in the air—it all felt so familiar, and yet foreign.

I turned to Betsy, a lifelong family friend, and said how sad it was to have lost the last of Mama and Daddy’s circle.

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Panhandling

sunny dispatches from NW FLA

“Helena’s still alive,” she said.

I paused. “Helena?”

“Yes,” she nodded. “She’s 108.”

My brain stopped right there. Helena Powers.

I hadn’t thought of her in years. I assumed she’d passed sometime after her hundredth birthday— the one Mama and my sister Deborah attended in 2016, just around a year before Mama passed herself. Deborah had called me after that party: “Helena drank three bourbons. After the third one, she stood up and said, ‘That’s my limit.’ And the party was over.”

Was that the secret to a long life? Bourbon? If so, I might be out of luck; I never acquired the taste. But the idea of Helena still being here—still breathing, still lucid—thrilled me. I wasn’t in Lake City just for another goodbye. Maybe I had one more hello—one more connection to Mama. Someone who remembered her—possibly even better than I did. Someone who didn’t just see the past but still carried it.

For the first time that day, I felt something more than grief. I felt curious. Hopeful. I needed to find Helena Powers.

And if she was still talking, I was going to listen.

The next night, mid-bubble bath, I remembered Betsy. I dried one hand, bubbles clinging to the other, and texted: “Do you have Frankie’s number?”

Two minutes later, I had a lead on connecting with Helena’s son, Frank to most, Frankie to me.

Oh, the perks of small-town life—and lifelong friendships. But Helena had just turned 109 and was in the emergency room—I worried I might be two days too late.

the same green cottage-style house she’d lived in since 1938. Eighty-seven years in the same home. A whole history lived within those walls.

As we neared Lake City, I braced for another cancellation. But this time, Frankie met us in the driveway, pointing to where we should park. Their house, once tucked in a sleepy neighborhood, now stood along a busy road.

But it was still one of my favorites in town: solid, green, familiar. We lingered outside, dodging the yard cats that circled my feet. Nostalgia followed me in.

Helena sat in the Florida room, bathed in the soft light coming through jalousie windows. The room was warm, like memory itself. When I saw her, I blinked. Then blinked again.

After high school, she moved to Jacksonville for beauty school. One weekend, while visiting her Aunt Lucille in Lake City, they stopped for gas at a filling station. A young man named Ralph Powers pumped it. “My aunt introduced the two of us, since she knew him.”

“He asked me for a date,” she said. “I gave him a date. We married six months later. I was 20. He was 23.”

When I asked what the one thing that changed her life was, she didn’t hesitate: “Marrying Ralph.”

Helena told me that he became the youngest Cadillac dealer in the country and a self-made millionaire—truly a rags-to-riches story. He went on to campaign for Farris Bryant, who later appointed him District 2 delegate for the Florida Road Board.

“That led to our meeting so many people,” she said. “We went with other Florida delegates to many places, even took the train to Washington for JFK’s inauguration. January 20, 1961. Coldest I’ve ever been. They made paper hats with holes for our heads, and we brought blankets down from the hotel room and wrapped ourselves in them. We still froze. But that night, we attended the inaugural ball, where Ralph and I danced beside Jackie and the President.

They were such a beautiful couple.”

When I asked if she followed a diet or exercise routine, she grinned and sat up.

Then she showed me—20 leg lifts, some arm stretches, a few “arm hugs” and her walker laps around the house. “So, what are your secrets to a long life?” I asked.

“Stay active, eat right and live right.”

Then she shared a story I’d never heard.

“When your mother was pregnant with her third, she came to our dealership with you and your sister. Wanted herself a Cadillac.

Your daddy said if she gave him a boy, he’d buy her one. But then she had another girl, so he canceled the order.” She laughed out loud.

We attended the inaugaural ball, where Ralph and I danced beside Jackie and the President.

SKINC ARE AND SENTIMENTS A week later, my husband and I were headed back to Lake City—my fifth scheduled visit. The other four had been canceled for what Frankie called “understood reasons.”

“It’s just not a good day for her,” he’d say.

Frankie, now 84, had his own health issues. And yet he’d moved back in with his mother to care for her. He slept in the bedroom he grew up in, inside

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—HELENA POWERS “Hi! Wow. Look at you!” I said, breathless.

She looked 85 years old. Her face was smooth, her makeup perfect and thick white hair styled beautifully. But it was her eyes that got me. Still blue, still sparkling.

“I’m so glad to see you, Prissy,” she said, squeezing my hand. I had a mental list of deep questions. But the first one that flew out of my mouth? “Okay, what is your skincare routine?”

She laughed. Her afternoon caregiver, Liza, fetched three products: Ponds Cold Cream Cleanser, Clinique Smart Clinical Repair Wrinkle Correcting Cream and Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion. That was it.

We sipped our Cokes and chatted. Her voice, soft but clear, flowed with stories. Every answer came wrapped in a memory. She was born in Apalachicola, one of six children. Her father harvested oysters from the bay for their dinner.

“We’d slurp them fresh in the backyard and eat Mama’s vegetables grown in the garden,” she said, eyes dreamy.

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And I laughed so hard my Coke nearly came out of my nose. I couldn’t wait to get back to Tallahassee and tell Gina that Daddy didn’t ever want her. Sisters!

THE SECRET TO LIVING A LONG LIFE Helena was born into a world lit by lanterns and warmed by coal. An outhouse sat out back, and clothes were scrubbed on washboards. The first time she saw a light bulb, she thought it was magic. Her first car ride was in a 1914 Cadillac. The same Ralph, who’d later become her husband, picked her up in that very car.

She watched letters become texts. Neighbors disappear behind garage doors. She remembers a nickel loaf of bread and radios that brought the world into living rooms—if you had one. Her life spanned World Wars, moon landings, big band music, smartphones and drones. She raised her son when some women needed a man’s signature to open a bank account. She has lived to see women fly jets and run corporations. Her mother couldn’t even vote. Her granddaughters can run for President.

She buried everyone she danced with, outlived the people who built her world, and still—she wakes up to sunlight and birds singing.

I wandered through her house, taking in the many photos on the walls—faces from long ago and not so long ago. Generations of Helena’s family, reaching back to the 1800s. Her Ralph. Her Frankie.

Her younger self. Grandchildren and great-grandchildren. You could feel the love in every frame.

I asked about the best day of her life. She didn’t hesitate, “The day Frankie was born.”

Her happiest memory? “The day I married Ralph.”

Her greatest regret? “Putting Ralph in a nursing home, where he died.” Tears pooled in her eyes.

“I worry so much about my Frankie’s health,” she whispered. A heartfelt reminder that a mother’s worry never sleeps. Even when she’s 109, and her son is nearly 85.

All the progress, all the change—and still, her anchor was love.

“And now these three remain,” Bible scripture says, “faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

Maybe that’s the real secret—not skincare, or oysters or even bourbon. But love. Love that lasts. Love that remembers. Love that carries us through all of it.

What a relief. I don’t have to like bourbon!

Prissy Elrod is a professional speaker, artist and humorist, and the author of two nonfiction books: “Far Outside the Ordinary” and “Chasing Ordinary,” the sequel. She was born and raised in Lake City and now lives in Tallahassee with her husband, Dale.

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One of America’s Great House Museums When it was completed in 1902, the New York Herald proclaimed that Whitehall, Henry Flagler’s Gilded Age estate in Palm Beach, was “more wonderful than any palace in Europe, grander and more magnificent than any other private dwelling in the world.”

Today, Whitehall is a National Historic Landmark open to the public as the Flagler Museum, offering guided tours, changing exhibitions, and special programs.

The Grand Hall

One Whitehall Way, Palm Beach, FL 33480

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Rainbow confetti, rugby tournaments and rounds of beer

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Love goes where the Mistletoe grows.

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Sushi from Shiso, an Asian smokehouse in Miami

SHISO

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This page: Sealey’s Shiso Chicken, Please features a Cornish hen prepared two ways: one half is smoked and the other half is deep-fried.

ON THE FLY: GROVE STAND SEASON’S EATINGS B y E va n S . B en n

Currying Flavor

Raheem Sealey of Miami’s new Shiso is reinventing the iconic KyU and cooking up one heck of a culinary story.

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rowing up in St. Croix, Raheem Sealey remembers cooking alongside his grandmother, “Gran Doris” Gumbs, as she showed him how to slowly braise oxtails for stew and make comforting red peas soup with pigtails and cornmeal dumplings.

As Gran Doris got older and her arm strength waned, Sealey stepped up to

from his grandmother—into his newest endeavor: Shiso, which opened in Wynwood in March.

“The inspiration is a nod to my journey through Miami,” Sealey says, teasing menu items like smoked brisket nigiri and udon noodles with braised oxtail—just like Gran Doris taught him how to cook.

Sealey’s take on chicken two ways, a dish

She was my heart, my mom and my dad all in one. She taught me everything.

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—RAHEEM SEALEY help her with Thanksgiving and other big meals, mashing potatoes and stirring mac and cheese. She kept a home in Miami, and when she moved there in the late aughts, Sealey followed her.

“She was my heart, my mom and my dad all in one,” Sealey says. “She taught me everything.”

He turned to her for advice in 2010 when, as a new father and new Floridian, his future didn’t seem so clear.

“I needed to figure out life real fast. I thought about going into the military or driving a truck. I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” says Sealey, now 36. “She said to me, ‘You love to cook. Why don’t you go to culinary school?’ I went to Le Cordon Bleu (in Miramar, Fla.) the next day and enrolled.”

His culinary path since then has taken him through the kitchens of some of Miami’s most lauded restaurants, from modern American (Sugarcane) to modern Japanese (Zuma) to modern Italian (Scarpetta), and from Asian-inspired wood-fired cooking (KYU) to opening his own American barbecue joint (Drinking Pig BBQ) during the pandemic.

This page, from top: Now he’s bringing toChef Raheem gether everything he’s Sealey; the bar at Shiso, learned and loved from Sealey’s newest restaurant those spots—as well as

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called Shiso Chicken, Please, exemplifies his approach to cooking new versions of recipes from his past experiences, both in professional kitchens and from his personal memories. Two halves of a Cornish hen, one smoked and one deep-fried, come together on a plate with a white barbecue sauce, house-made pickles and a charred-scallion waffle on the side.

“It’s a marriage of where I’ve been that

represents where I am now,” Sealey says.

Another Shiso plate marries tender grilled octopus with a bold red curry, the fiery edges of which are softened by coconut milk and a cool herb salad. Sealey says the simply cooked octopus reminds him of “being home in the Caribbean,” and the curry’s alluring spice and heat have become a signature of his cooking.

Shiso and KYU sit three blocks from each

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ON THE FLY: GROVE STAND SEASON’S EATINGS

other in Miami’s art-forward Wynwood neighborhood, which looks much different today than it did in 2016, when Sealey was part of KYU’s opening team.

“Wynwood back then was all graffiti and metal and exposed concrete,” Sealey says, of the artsy Miami neighborhood. “Today, it also has an elegance and refinement, and we wanted to pull all of that into one space in a way that feels cohesive. There are exposed ducts and brick walls, but also a beautiful open kitchen and well-crafted furniture and countertops.”

A highlight of opening Shiso, Sealey says, has been hiring SHISO friends who have helped him — LOCATION — 239 NW 28TH ST. along the way, including a chef MIAMI de cuisine who was by his side at — HOURS — WED.-SUN. 5-10 P.M. KYU and Drinking Pig, and a sushisomiami.com shi chef from his Zuma days.

“It’s fun to make good food with friends I adore, but my real KYU MIAMI motivation is to succeed so that — LOCATION — those around me can succeed,” 251 NW 25TH ST. MIAMI he says. “It’s a great feeling to be — HOURS — able to put people I’ve worked MON.-TUES. 5-10 P.M. with in new positions to win.”

WED., SUN. NOON-10 P.M. THU.-SAT. NOON-11 P.M. Sealey, who had parted ways kyurestaurants.com with KYU after an ownership change during the pandemic, rejoined the restaurant group— now with additional locations in New York, Las Vegas and Mexico City—last year as global executive chef.

He says he was brought back to align KYU’s menu closer to its original iteration and to add a higher level of consistency across its kitchens.

“I hit the ground running, getting recipes back to where they used to be—the way Miami liked them—and made sure we were doing it the same in New York and Vegas,” Sealey says.

KYU hired him with the understanding that he was working on other projects, including Shiso. He says he doesn’t see the

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Grilled octopus with red curry from Sealey’s Shiso

I hit the ground running, getting recipes back to where they used to be—the way Miami liked them.

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Octopus With Red Curry and Herb Salad

By Chef Raheem Sealey, Shiso Serves 4 to 6

OCTOPUS 1 whole Spanish octopus 1 white onion, cut in half 2 heads garlic, cut in half 2 serrano peppers, cut in half 1 cup soy sauce PREPARATION: Rinse octopus in salted water.

Place in a Dutch oven with onion, garlic and peppers. Add soy sauce and enough water to cover octopus and vegetables. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer for 45 minutes. Strain and reserve octopus.

HERB SALAD 1 cup Thai basil 1 cup mint 1/4

cup dill

1/2

cup cilantro Squeeze of lemon juice (optional)

PREPARATION: Roughly chop all herbs, then toss them with lemon juice in a bowl.

RED CURRY 1/4

cup olive oil

2 tablespoons minced ginger 2 tablespoons minced garlic 2 tablespoons minced shallots 1 cup palm sugar 2 ounces red curry paste 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

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1 can (13.5 ounces) unsweetened coconut milk PREPARATION: Add oil to a pot over medium heat. Add ginger, garlic and shallots, stirring until light brown. Add palm sugar, stirring until melted. Add curry paste. Deglaze with red wine vinegar, then add coconut milk. Turn heat to low and allow mixture to slowly boil.

Remove from heat, let cool slightly and blend smooth. Serve by spooning some curry onto a plate, then add octopus and salad on the side.

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Seabass Sashimi from Sealey’s Shiso

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ON THE FLY: GROVE STAND SEASON’S EATINGS

two restaurants as competitors, suggesting that diners could start their night with a meal at KYU and finish with a nightcap and snack at Shiso or vice versa. As for his arrangement at both spots, Sealey says he plans to stay on at KYU “for as long as they’ll have me.”

As with Shiso, KYU’s menu also has plenty of Sealey’s personal touches, like the Japanese sweet potato that plays a versatile supporting role to any of KYU’s signature wood-fired entrees.

Sealey says the inspiration for the side dish came from his grandmother, who used to top her sweet potatoes with salted butter and brown sugar. At KYU, he subs salted butter for miso butter and uses deeply caramelized Japanese black sugar in place of brown sugar.

Sealey says all of his cooking is his way of paying respect to Gran Doris, who passed before he graduated from culinary school.

He knows she would have been proud to see his accomplishments both in and out of the kitchen.

From his work at Shiso and KYU to time with his family—he has a daughter and two sons, and he and his wife have a fourth child on the way—Sealey says he’s exactly where he wants to be on his journey. He’s also more experienced than he was in his days as a new Floridian and new dad, and now the future seems much clearer.

“Miami is where my career as a chef started, and it’s where it took off,” he says.

“It feels special to be able to move forward in my journey with the people and the city that I love.”

Japanese Sweet Potato

By Chef Raheem Sealey, KYU Miami Serves 1 to 2

MISO BUTTER 2 tablespoons miso 4 tablespoons butter

Below: The dining room at KYU in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood

PREPARATION: Combine ingredients and stir until evenly incorporated.

SWEET POTATO 1 large Japanese sweet potato 1 teaspoon Maldon sea salt, divided 1/2

cup miso butter

1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese 1 teaspoon brown sugar

NOTE: Umami salt, flavored with umamipacked dashi, can be used in place of Maldon salt. Sealey substitutes brown sugar with Japanese black sugar (black cane sugar). All may be purchased at specialty retailers.

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PREPARATION: Bake sweet potato on a baking sheet at 325 degrees for 70 to 90 minutes, until softened and cooked through. When cool enough to handle, split potato in half lengthwise. Season with one-half teaspoon salt, then spread miso butter on potato and top with cheese and sugar. Set oven to broil and return potato to a baking sheet for one minute or until caramelized. Season with remaining salt.

ON THE FLY: DESIGN DISTRICT

By Nila Do Simon

THE HOUSE MUST BE

PERFECT

This page: The

2,000-square-foot Tetreault-Pirman residence in Sarasota blurs the line between indoor and outdoor spaces.

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The ultimate client challenge is accepted and achieved

by Seibert Architects, creating spaces in the Sarasota School of Architecture TRADITION for 70 years.

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Above, clockwise: Dale Parks, Taylor Brunsvold,

William Craig and Michael Epstein

Below: The MHouse South's indoor living

spaces open seamlessly to its outdoor spaces.

GREG WILSON, RYAN GAMMA PHOTOGR APHY

ucked just off homes tailored to Florida’s tropical downtown Sarasota, climate would earn global acclaim.

SEIBERT a quiet neighborhood ARCHITECTS In 1955, Seibert launched his own became the cradle of one of firm, racking up accolades from the — LOCATION — 1373 FIFTH STREET Florida’s boldest architectural Florida chapter of the American SARASOTA movements. Here, the Sarasota Institute of Architects. But his real — INSTAGRAM — School of Architecture took achievement? Designing homes that @SEIBERT.ARCHITECTS.PA root—an ethos of modernism weren’t just admired—they were seibertarchitects.com adapted for the tropics. At its lived in. heart was Seibert Architects, “Some may say that we are the the firm behind some of Southwest Florida’s box,” says Michael Epstein, who now heads most iconic structures, from the sculptural Seibert Architects. “But your home is not a Bay Plaza condominiums to the soaring, box; it’s an assemblage of spaces that need to cantilevered canopy of the Siesta Key Beach do things. You live inside of it, and it needs to Pavilion. Now, 70 years since its founding, create a sensation that helps you feel at home.” the firm is still building on that legacy with no Take, for example, the home that Seibert signs of slowing down.

Architects coined the MHouse South in Edward J. “Tim” Seibert arrived in Sarasota Sarasota. With neighboring houses on all in 1942, fresh from Seattle and ready to make sides, the residence’s owners requested that his mark. He soon joined forces with visionary Seibert create a respite that guarded their architect Paul Rudolph, whose modernist privacy within an intimate, light-filled space

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ON THE FLY: DESIGN DISTRICT Every great space must have proportion and humanity.

—MICHAEL EPSTEIN to public projects to office buildings. But for him, it will always be homes that will immediately warm his heart.

“Tim told me that you have to love your clients,” Epstein says. “And I understand why.

You want to make something extra special for them. The reason why I like doing houses is because it’s very personal. And it gets to be very tailored, and it responds to many desires and needs. And I think about what makes this client special and what makes this place special.”

That spirit of personalization—and the pursuit of something deeply meaningful—was put to the test with the Tetreault-Pirman residence. The New York City transplants came to Seibert Architects with a request that would make even seasoned designers pause: “The house must be perfect.”

Rather than shy away, the firm leaned in.

The resulting home embraced a light-industrial aesthetic, defined by clean geometry, exposed steel and walls of glass that flood the space with natural light. Minimal roof overhangs invite uninterrupted views of the Florida sky, while the living room stretches nearly the full width of the property, drawing the eye to the lush backyard and blurring the boundary between indoors and out. Despite its modular framework, the house feels anything but rigid. There’s a softness, a sensitivity—a quiet confidence in simplicity. In the end, the house wasn’t just perfect—it was personal.

Even with a space that may be considered modular, Epstein says it’s a personal, human touch that the firm pushes for in every project.

“Every great space must have proportion

GREG WILSON, RYAN GAMMA PHOTOGR APHY

while also allowing for regular entertaining.

The architectural team, led by Epstein, set off to design a home organized around the rear courtyard with an expansive pool. Every room facing the courtyard featured sliding glass doors and fixed glass that allowed optimal views of the pool—where at certain vantage points from inside the home, it felt “like the water is right where you’re standing,” Epstein says.

The architects designed windows and openings strategically to increase light while making neighboring houses disappear. “It’s as if it is the only house on the street,” Epstein says. “Nobody can see the home, and you can’t see any house from inside.”

A former colleague of Seibert, Epstein says he has the rare gift of not just decades of experience at the architectural firm, but also of working next to Below: In the its namesake. To date, Tetreault-Pirman Epstein has worked residence, floor-to-ceiling on various structures, windows maximize light. from school buildings

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and humanity,” he says. “I’ve architected voluminous homes that feel like a museum.

They are not a place to sit and watch TV or to feel comfortable living your life. A home should enrich your life and the life that you have within it.”

Today, sitting in his office at Seibert Architects, Epstein says he feels grateful to work on projects that are still influenced by the Sarasota School of Architecture masters from several decades ago. A few years back, the team finished designing a now-constructed house—a residence in the Sanderling Club in Siesta Key, one noted for its density of native vegetation that intertwines into the play between the interior and exterior.

Epstein says that he feels fortunate not only to be able to look through the photographs of past Sarasota School of Architecture homes, but also to work on them firsthand. “Seeing these projects come to life is an eye-opening experience,” Epstein says. “There’s a simplicity that was so beautiful. It makes me think, ‘Why isn’t everyone doing it this way?’”

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This page, from top: The Seibert team redesigned the mid-century Arguedas House

in Lido Shores; the Tetreault-Pirman residence incorporates values of the Sarasota School of Architecture, such as an exposed modular structure. .

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ON THE FLY: FLORIDA WILD P H OTOGR APHS & F IELD NOTES B y C arlton War d Jr.

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A River Restored

T

he Kissimmee River, flowing from Lake Kissimmee to Lake Okeechobee, is the heart of the Everglades Headwaters—and the stage for one of the world’s greatest environmental restoration stories. During the past century, Florida’s abundant fresh water, particularly in Central Florida, was seen as a blockade to development. The solution was to dig canals to drain the land. For the first half of the 20th century, the meandering Kissimmee River would fill a floodplain several miles wide during the rainy season. In the 1960s, the Army Corps of Engineers dug a straight canal— 300 feet wide and 30 feet deep—to dry out the river valley, lowering lake levels at the top of the Everglades watershed to facilitate development near Orlando. On top of this, the Herbert Hoover Dike had already been built to contain Lake Okeechobee, and the St. Lucie Canal and parts of the Caloosahatchee River were dug to divert lake water directly to the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean.

An unintended consequence of the Kissimmee canal was that water racing down from Orlando was NOTES loaded with nutrient pollution, in large part because the once naturally wide and shallow floodplain could — HABITAT— no longer do its job of cleaning the water. That led to KISSIMMEE RIVER Lake Okeechobee becoming overloaded with water and pollution. Area wildlife declined. Within a few years of completing the canal, the abundance of waterbirds fell — SEASON — SUMMER by 90%. These problems compounded throughout the Everglades watershed.

The solution was one of the most expensive river — TIME OF DAY — restorations in history, totaling more than $1 billion. The 7:49 P.M. project meant filling in long stretches of the Kissimmee canal and restoring the river’s historic S curves in order — SUBJECT — to slow down the water and rehydrate the historic FLOODPLAINS floodplain. The physical restoration began in the 1990s RESTORATION and was completed in 2021. Not all the river’s original bends could be restored, because removing the entire straight channel would back the water up too much, increasing flood risk for homes and businesses built close to the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes Area after the canals were cut.

Shortly after the physical restoration was complete, I traveled the length of the Kissimmee River in a mud boat with conservationist Adam Bass. In this photo, which I captured with a drone, Adam is navigating the turns of a restored section of the river near Basinger. From above and along the water’s edge, the Kissimmee felt wild and free, and an abundance of birdlife had already returned.

Elsewhere in the state, there’s still time to apply the lessons of Kissimmee. On Florida’s northern Gulf Coast, for example, we have a chance to preserve entire river systems like the Withlacoochee and Suwannee, and conserve all the environmental benefits they provide. While restoration is possible and can be largely successful, the far better option— for ecological and economic reasons—is to protect natural river floodplains, and let them run free.

27°23’21.2028” N

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81°7’15.6072” W

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ON THE FLY:BIRD’S-EYE VIEW A G U I D E TO O U R FAVO R I T E N E I G H B O R H O O DS

By EEmile mileee G Peardue By r be r • Illus tration by Le s lie C halfont

¡Bienvenidos Check out these Magic City Icons, From

1. VIZCAYA MUSEUM & GARDENS

Originally built in 1916 for industrial magnate James Deering, this Mediterranean Revival estate is now a historical landmark that offers the public a glimpse into the 20th century with 34 rooms, 10 acres of gardens and a grotto pool. 3251 S. Miami Ave.

2. THE WEBSTER

More like a fashionable friend’s luxury closet, this boutique is overflowing with designer brands such as Miu Miu, Gucci, Versace and more. Shop for the latest couture in men’s and women’s clothing, beauty products and home decor.

1220 Collins Ave.

3. THE BILTMORE HOTEL

This 271-room, four-star hotel is approaching its centennial. Opened in January 1926, the property has seen its fair share of Old Hollywood elites, served as an Army Air Forces hospital and was once the location for the University of Miami’s School of Medicine. 1200 Anastasia Ave.

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4. ADRIENNE ARSHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

7. CARBONE

5. BOOKS & BOOKS

8. FAIRCHILD TROPICAL BOTANIC GARDEN

Local live entertainment takes center stage at this performance venue. It’s home to three companies: the Florida Grand Opera, the Miami City Ballet and the New World Symphony. 1300 Biscayne Blvd.

Founded by Mitchell Kaplan, this independent bookstore is a local literary landmark with five locations. Browse the shelves for new and notable titles, purchase autographed limited editions of your favorite novels and attend readings by authors like Carl Hiaasen. 265 Aragon Ave.

6. BILL BAGGS CAPE FLORIDA STATE PARK

This seaside park was once a stop on the Underground Railroad, where runaway slaves escaped to the Bahamas. Now, it’s home to the Cape Florida Lighthouse, a mile-long stretch of beach and a boat camping harbor. 1200 S. Crandon Blvd.

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This Italian-American eatery is helmed

by James Beard-nominated Chef Mario Carbone and staffed by tuxedo-clad serving captains. Dress to impress and make sure to order their lobster ravioli with ricotta.

49 Collins Ave.

Leave the concrete jungle behind for 83 acres of fabulous flora, including orchids, heliconias and hibiscuses. Take a summer stroll past more than 740 species or snap a picture with the 16-inch waterlilies.

10901 Old Cutler Road

9. CARILLON MIAMI WELLNESS RESORT

Transform into a state of physical wellness with treatments like salt float gravity therapy, crystal steam rooms and an herbal laconium. Plus, the Carillon has Miami’s only igloo—a cooling room with mint and eucalyptus. 6801 Collins Ave.

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This spread from left: Freedom

Tower, Public Sculpture by Romero Britto, Joe’s Stone Crab, The Webster, Vizcaya Museum & Gardens, Pérez Art Museum Miami, The Biltmore Hotel

a MIAMI! Bookstores to boutiques.

10. PÉREZ ART MUSEUM MIAMI

13. FREEDOM TOWER

16. JOE’S STONE CRAB

11. EL REY DE LAS FRITAS

14. FAENA HOTEL MIAMI BEACH

17. ROMERO BRITTO FINE ART GALLERY

Overlooking Biscayne Bay, this cultural hub displays modern and contemporary art from Latin America and Africa. Their collection currently includes pieces from Widline Cadet, Anna Bella Geiger, Mary Sibande and more. 1103 Biscayne Blvd.

The frita, a Cuban hamburger with chorizo and shoestring fries, became a Miami sensation in 1979 when the Gonzalez family first opened this culinary institution.

Forty-six years later, the family-owned biz still serves their original sandwiches with cheesy twists. 1821 S.W. 8th St.

12. RUSTY PELICAN

Savor seared scallops with yuzu kosho while overlooking the waterfront skyline.

This modern eatery is the first stop on a Magic City night out with live DJs, exotic fire dancers and creative dishes. French fries with caviar, anyone?

3201 Rickenbacker Causeway

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Built in 1925, this 289-foot-tall tower was first home to the Miami Daily News, then served as headquarters for the Cuban Refugee Center and is now the site of Miami Dade College’s Museum of Art and Design.

600 Biscayne Blvd.

Lounge beachside under a red and white striped umbrella and attend a cabaret performance all in one day at this glamorous stay—and don’t forget to stop by Damien Hirst’s golden mammoth sculpture, Gone but not Forgotten.

3201 Collins Ave.

15. PHILLIP AND PATRICIA FROST MUSEUM OF SCIENCE

Touch stingrays and explore galaxies at this aquarium and planetarium. Learn about South Florida’s aquatic ecosystems, watch paleontologists work on fossils and embark on visual odysseys through the Milky Way. 1101 Biscayne Blvd.

One of the first American restaurants to serve stone crab, this fourth-generation family-owned eatery is a crustacean cornerstone in South Florida. Beyond the seafood fare, try their crispy fried chicken and Key lime pie. 11 Washington Ave.

Walk into a world of neon colors and cubism from Brazilian artist Romero Britto.

Shop for works in his playful pop-art style and spot several of Britto’s sculptures scattered throughout Miami’s public spaces.

1102 Lincoln Road

18. ZAK THE BAKER

Miami native Zak Stern keeps it kosher with his butter croissants, nova bagels and babka. Each baked good is naturally leavened and made from scratch with highquality ingredients, which earned Stern a James Beard Award nomination in 2018.

295 N.W. 26th St.

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ON THE FLY:THE TIDE ROAD TR IP–WORTHY EVENTS (NORTH) SUNSET BAT PADDLE PA LAT K A

June 5–8 Join fellow nature lovers and a naturalist on a kayaking tour to watch a cloud of bats make their summer debut and fill the night sky at this St. Johns Riverkeeper event. stjohnsriverkeeper.org

11TH ANNUAL FISH HOUSE CRAFT BEER FEST P E N S A C O LA

June 14

Raise a glass for a good cause.

Sip your way through pours from 50+ microbreweries, including Grayton Beer Company, Doc’s Hop Shop and Swamp Head Brewery—all to benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwest Florida. greatsouthernrestaurants.com

SCALLOP SEASON S T E I N H AT C H E E

June 15–Sept. 24 EMERALD COAST BLUE MARLIN CLASSIC MIRAMAR BEACH

June 18–22

Behind every big catch is a crew running on adrenaline, strategy and maybe a little superstition. The Emerald Coast Blue Marlin Classic isn’t just a tournament—it’s a Gulf Coast tradition where captains, anglers and deckhands chase offshore glory and serious prize money. Boats launch from Sandestin at 11:00 a.m., fueled by coffee and competition, then vanish into deep water for hours—sometimes days—in pursuit of the legendary blue marlin. Back on land, Baytowne Marina transforms into a bustling hub— expect weigh-in spectacles, dockside storytelling and the occasional champagne spray when someone hooks a winner. With last year’s prize topping $849,000, the pressure is real. Even if you’re just there to watch, the energy is electric. fishecbc.com

PENSACOLA BEACH AIR SHOW

GREATER JACKSONVILLE KINGFISH TOURNAMENT

TALLAHASSEE BEER FESTIVAL

July 9–12

July 9–19

Aug. 8–9

P E N S A C O LA

Above: Florida scallops are most

prevalent on the Gulf Coast.

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Watch the Blue Angels blaze across the Gulf sky in a weekend of aerial acrobatics.

The show builds all week with practice flights and a finale over Pensacola Beach. visitpensacolabeach.com

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JACKSONVILLE

This 11-day tournament hosted

by Jacksonville Marine Charities reels in serious competition and community with its Junior Angler Offshore Tournament, food festival and live music. kingfishtournament.com

TA L LA H A S S E E

In two days of tasting, toasting and live music, thousands of beer lovers descend on the capital to sample from more than 360 craft brews. Don’t overthink it—it’s your sign to go. tlhbeerfest.com

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MA X IMPAC T PHOTOS, MIKE WINKLES

Slip into the shallows for a Gulf Coast tradition. North Florida’s scallop season means lazy days in clear water, coastal picnics and a bounty you can bring home all summer long. myfwc.com

Make Time To Take It All In In St. Augustine | Ponte Vedra, you’ll lose track of time marveling at nearly five centuries, enjoying world-class cuisine and basking in seaside elegance. So come discover something truly unforgettable –– it’s about time.

HASTINGS MAIN STREET FALL FESTIVAL OF ART Join the Hastings Main Street Fall Festival of Art on October 24 & 25, 2025, and explore an inspiring range of fine art, from painting and glass to pottery, fiber, photography, and jewelry. Downtown Hastings will be alive with art, live music, a cottage vendor area, food trucks, a kids’ zone, and live art demos.

418 N. Main Street, Hastings • www.HastingsFL.org

THE ST. AUGUSTINE ART ASSOCIATION The St. Augustine Art Association produces monthly exhibitions (in-gallery & online), education and outreach programs & more. The gallery is located in the historic district of the nation’s oldest city, and is open with free admission 6 days a week.

22 Marine Street • 904-824-2310 • www.staaa.org

BENEFITING VILANO BEACH MAIN STREET

WHISKEY, WINE & WILDLIFE Whiskey, Wine & Wildlife takes place November 6-9, 2025, oceanside in Vilano Beach, St. Augustine, FL. Tickets are ALL-INCLUSIVE with unlimited beverage and culinary tastings from some of Florida’s best restaurants. Experience “St. Augustine’s Walk on the Wild Side!”

Vilano Beach, St. Augustine • 904-385-9121 • www.whiskeywineandwildlife.com

Visit FloridasHistoricCoast.com to learn more.

ON THE FLY:THE TIDE ROAD TR IP–WORTHY EVENTS (C E N T RA L ) ST. PETE PRIDE FESTIVAL & PARADE ST. PETERSBURG

JUNE 28

Parade your pride alongside local LGBTQ+ community members and allies as a monthlong celebration culminates in a colorful march down St. Pete’s Bayshore Drive at Florida’s largest Pride celebration. stpetepride.org

CLERMONT MAIN STREET BREWS & BBQ CLERMONT

JUNE 15

Where there’s smoke, there’s flavor—enjoy food trucks serving barbecue bites, local breweries pouring craft beer and a classic car show for the autophiles. centralfloridathingstodo.com

SHARKCON TA M PA

JULY 12-13

Above: St. Pete Pride is Florida’s

largest LGBTQ+ celebration.

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2025 SUMMER SERIES AT WORLD EQUESTRIAN CENTER O C A LA

JUNE 4–AUG. 10 Saddle up for a 10-week equestrian extravaganza as riders from around the globe—pros, juniors and amateurs alike—compete for over $4 million in prize money. Set in Ocala’s World Equestrian Center, the Summer Series features hunter, jumper and equitation classes. But the main draw is the jumper events, where spectators might witness a clear round or a jump-off win by mere seconds. Beyond the rings, you’ll enjoy luxury accommodations at The Equestrian Hotel with stunning arena views, fine dining, boutique shopping and special events—like the Saturday night Grand Prix, where top riders compete under the lights of the WEC Grand Arena for the lion’s share of prize money. Stick around for the awards ceremony, and you may even catch a signed ribbon from one of the first-, second- or third-place finishers. worldequestriancenter.com

SUNCOAST LADIES’ CLASSIC

COKE ZERO SUGAR 400

P1 AQUAX

ST. PETERSBURG

JULY 24-26

AUG. 22-23

AUG. 22-24

Cast your line for a great cause and join female anglers in this annual offshore tournament.

Feel the rumble in your feet as drivers floor it toward their fates in the NASCAR Cup Series regular season finale. daytonainternational speedway.com

suncoastclassicevents.com

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D AY T O N A

C L E A R WAT E R

Watch from the sandy shore as Jet Skis slice through Gulf Coast waves at upward of 80 mph in this splashy watercraft showdown. p1aquax.com

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ANDREW RYBACK , ST. PETE PRIDE

Sink your teeth into two fintastic days of shark-themed rides, speakers from popular shark TV programming, scuba demos and more than 30 shark exhibits, all presented by National Geographic Sharkfest. sharkcon.com

HARBORSIDE :: WINTER HAVEN, FL

Taste The Real Florida Magic at charming restaurants serving up freshly caught seafood and so much more. Our exceptional culinary scene, attractions & natural beauty offer experiences you won’t soon forget.

See where to get your fix at VisitCentralFlorida.com/rooted-in-flavor.

ON THE FLY:THE TIDE ROAD TR IP–WORTHY EVENTS (SOUTH) SURFIN’ 7S RUGBY TOURNAMENT

GOLD CUP TARPON TOURNAMENT

June 7

June 16–20

This all-levels sevens tournament honors a fallen surfer and teammate by attracting global squads to Florida’s fiercest rugby comp. surfin7s.com

Chase the elusive silver king in this legendary, five-day flyfishing tournament where skill meets suspense on Florida Bay. goldcuptt.com

AMERICAN BLACK FILM FESTIVAL

12TH ANNUAL BOCA BURGER BATTLE

June 11–15

July 12

MIAMI BEACH

Above: Find rare fruits at the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Mango Festival.

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I S LA M O R A D A

Don your red-carpet best and show your love for Black brilliance in film with premieres, panels and parties at this annual fete. abff.com/miami

B O C A R AT O N

This juicy showdown features top chefs grilling wild-card burgers to win over seasoned sammie judges and for bragging rights. bocaburgerbattle.com

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FAIRCHILD GARDEN MANGO FESTIVAL, ABFF

W E S T PA L M B E A C H

ON THE FLY:THE TIDE ROAD TR IP–WORTHY EVENTS (SOUTH) FAIRCHILD GARDEN MANGO FESTIVAL

HEMINGWAY DAYS

July 12-13

Party like Papa, watch a horde of Hemingway look-alikes tear through the town and tour the author’s estate. hemingwaydays.com

CORAL GABLES

Sip and savor your way through mango mania with tropical tastings, a chef-driven brunch and rare fruit finds. fairchildgarden.org

KEY WEST MARLIN TOURNAMENT

KEY WEST

JULY 23-27

INTERNATIONAL LATIN HUSTLE FESTIVAL

F O R T LA U D E R D A L E B E A C H

KEY WEST

Aug. 21-24

Reel in marlin by day and wind down with a pig roast by night at this four-day angler competition for a $50,000 purse. keywestmarlin.com

Hit the dance floor (and the pool deck) for four days of Latin hustle workshops, shows, theme nights and seaside salsa on Fort Lauderdale Beach. ilatinhustlefest.com

July 23–26

Above, from left: Nicole Friday, Issa Rae and Jeff Friday at ABFF 2024.

PLAN YOUR DAY AT FROSTSCIENCE.ORG

Planetarium Aquarium Museum

1101 Biscayne Blvd., Miami, FL 33132

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FLORIDIANA ALL THINGS VINTAGE B y S t ev e D o l l a r

Meet Me at Mistletoe

O

nce part of the territory of the Apalachee and later the Seminole Native American tribes, this verdant spread located between Tallahassee and Thomasville, Ga., has passed through many hands over the past two centuries.

Welcome to Mistletoe, an 85-acre retreat named after the plant that grows in the trees there—a picturesque locale in the Red Hills region, beloved for its unspoiled pine forests, abundant bobwhite quail and lush rolling hills.

Today, Mistletoe is a touch demure compared to the nearby Pebble Hill Plantation, perhaps the best known of the area’s hunting plantations. But in the mid1900s, it was much larger after a northern lawyer purchased the land and surrounding properties and named it Mistletoe Plantation (a name current owners shortened to Mistletoe because of connotations with slavery).

The land dips across the Georgia-Florida border in distant view of the Ochlockonee River. Although smaller now, the core of the property still thrives, along with a few

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magnificently gnarled old oak trees, offering visitors a window into another era.

“It’s close to downtown, but it’s a lifetime away,” says Loranne Ausley, a former state senator and representative. Mistletoe has been a

Above: Mistletoe was renovated and transformed

from a private family estate to an event venue.

part of Ausley’s life since 1985, when her family joined five others to buy the property. She now shares ownership of the Mistletoe retreat with her two siblings. She’s hardly the only politician to have treasured the place. It’s been a notable haven for popular Florida Governor Lawton

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“Walkin’ Lawton” Chiles, who liked to do some turkey hunting from time to time.

This year, Ausley aligned the land’s historical aura with more contemporary vibes by opening Mistletoe as a bucolic retreat to a new generation of visitors.

It’s an experience ready-made for hiking, swimming and leisurely dinners under the stars, with plenty of cozy spots to meditate and commune with nature.

With room for 30 guests across its four houses—including the newly renovated 1880s farmhouse near the entrance—the site can accommodate weddings and special occasions, such as a recent Food Network culinary event for the television show, “Chopped.”

“It means so much to all of us and to our children that we want to keep it in the family,” Ausley says. “And so we are trying to figure out the best way to do that.”

Thanks to the Ausleys, the spirit of Mistletoe lives on, offering a quiet refuge for a new generation to call their own.

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MISTLETOE

Tucked between Tallahassee and Thomasville, the historic Mistletoe property blends Southern hospitality with modern sensibilities.

THE ICONIC

BILTMORE HOTEL

BEAUTY AND SOPHISTICATION The Biltmore has been a favorite of world leaders and celebrities since 1926. Stunning architecture, luxurious amenities including golf, fitness, a European spa, and one of the largest hotel pools in the U.S., combined with nearly a century of rich history, makes it one of Florida's most preeminent historic landmarks.

1200 Anastasia Avenue Coral Gables, Florida 33134

305-445-1926 www.biltmorehotel.com

WINTER PARK • DOWNTOWN NAPLES • WATERSIDE SHOPS NAPLES • JUPITER PONTE VEDRA BEACH • EQUESTRIAN HOTEL OCALA