Note: I am honored that the Head Tomato and Lois, the brilliant Miami Editor asked me to write the summer fill-in column while Lois and her wonderful husband Eliot are in Provincetown.

Like Lois, I am a NYC Tomato who has fallen in love with Miami. For the past three years, I have been going back and forth between apartments in Miami and NYC. But the more I get to know Miami, the longer all my stays here are. I’ll share some of my favorite places, starting with The Pilates Place and Via Emilia 9 for the best Pilates teachers, workouts, and authentic Italian food anywhere. And will also cover other great Miami experiences such as during June’s Pride Month, reporting on the Palace, the most fun drag queen shows and with Christmas just six months away, it’s time to start booking tickets for holiday performances such as Andrea Bocelli at the Kaseya Center in Miami.

Pilates at The Pilates Place in Miami and Miami Beach.

Whether you are a full-time resident, part-timer, or a winter visitor in Miami, you may want to work out and enjoy professional Pilates. The Pilates Place is the best place with two fully equipped studios – one in South Beach and one in Miami next to the Design District. Owners Jackie Weiner and Louis Gonzales have been teaching for 18-plus years in their studios and they teach teachers.

We love that they have all the best equipment, and teachers trained properly by Jackie and Louis. They teach all abilities. I go three times a week for 90-minute private sessions and see folks older, younger, fitter, and less fit.

The typical private session is 55-60 minutes and so are classes – never more than six participants – so you get a great teacher-to-student attention ratio. They customize for all abilities and other clients include professional athletes, doctors, CEO’s and their kids, and people like us.

Some places say they teach Pilates, but before you head to a studio, check the studios’ websites – buyer beware if you don’t see bios or information about the teachers.

For Tomatoes who want authentic and quality teachers who understand your body, sign up at The Pilates Place. The head Tomato has come with me several times. And in addition to making us longer, leaner, and stronger, it’s fun.

 Via Emilia 9 for Authentic Italian Food

If you are hungry for authentic Italian food from the Emilia Romagna region, you must book Via Emilia 9 in Miami Beach. I’ve been going a couple of times a month for several years because it is REAL Italian and you feel like you are in Italy, not Miami. I bring all my friends and family when they visit, and Via Emilia 9 is always a highlight where my guests want to return.

Run by husband-and-wife team Chef Giancarlo “Wendy” Cacciatori and Valentina Imbrenda who come from families of restauranteurs in Italy, you hear Italian speakers at Via Emilia in the charming restaurant with open kitchen.

All the Primi’s (pastas) – ravioli, gnocchi, tagliatelle, lasagna, and more are homemade at the front of the restaurant so you can watch a little show. One of the signature dishes is Tortellini in Brodo – that Wendy learned to make from his Nonna.

The Secondi’s are as great as the pastas, especially the Tomahawk Steak, aged 30, 60, or 90 days and you can choose from the Via Emilia aging room.

A special treat is their truffle menu (in season) and the sweetest melt in your mouth langostinos – imported from Europe.

The wine list is a dream – with a virtually all Italian list featuring many options from the multi-generation family-owned Antinori Winery.

They also have an Italian market with wonderful imports you can purchase to enjoy at home. And they cater events big and small.

For Tomatoes who want to enjoy Via Emilia’s special authentic dishes, I have great news – their sister restaurant, Nonna Beppa, is in NYC. Wendy and Valentina regularly come to work at Nonna Beppa. In fact, earlier this month Chef Wendy was joined by Chef Christine Lau for an Italian Chinese collaboration – that was a sellout crowd.

Earlier this year, Gisele Bundchen joined Chef Wendy to cook.

Whether you are Gisele or a regular Tomato, you will be treated like a celebrity when you dine at Via Emilia.

The Palace

In honor of pride month, it’s fun to share about The Palace, the top drag queen show, bar, and restaurant in South Beach. A great tourist activity. Opened in 1988, based on the idea “Every Queen needs a Palace,” Palace is a hoot – especially for bachelorette parties, birthday parties, and other group celebrations.

Palace has daily drag shows, but the most popular are the weekend drag brunches. As part of my friend’s 60^th birthday destination weekend, the final event was Sunday Brunch at the Palace for our group of 20 guests. Most of us – except the birthday boy and his husband and a couple of others – had never been to a drag show and were happy to join in the buzz.

There are many brunch options and bottomless mimosas – if day drinking is your thing. The cocktail names are right on brand such as God Save the Queen, Life’s a Drag, Sweetie Darling, and Girl Please. The show is creative, funny, and energetic. The queens are beautiful and so expert at moving and synching. Some are super acrobatic, and others change costumes and wigs in a flash. There is sequence and fringe galore, and the music is appropriately loud.

Our MC was Tiffany T. Fantasia. Another favorite queen is Joanna James who performs as two of my favorites – Cher and Dolly Parton.

You can buy a fan to flap during the show to join the experience – and if it’s hot out, it will also help cool your flashes – because the best seating is outside right on Ocean Drive.

Bring singles to tip the Queens! Or the waiters can give you change. The waiters are so cute too. Long Live the Queens!

Performances

With Christmas just six months away, it’s time to start booking tickets for holiday performances such as Andrea Bocelli at the Kaseya Center in Miami. The Bocelli concert is on December 22^nd and tickets are selling fast already.

Kaseya Center used to be named American Airlines Arena. Other notables who have performed there include Celine Dion, Madonna, and Lady Gaga – oh, and Taylor Swift. And it’s also the home of Miami Heat.

The Arsht Center is another great venue for great performances. My favorites there are Broadway productions – more comfortable seats and more affordable prices than Broadway in NYC. A couple of family members wanted me to take them to Hamilton in NY. Bad seats were $$$$$. Great seats for Hamilton at the Arsht Center were a fraction and the musical was the same as I saw on Broadway (except for the original cast with Lin- Manuel Miranda). My guests loved it.

The 2024-2025 season is fast approaching starting on December 3 with Some Like it Hot. Tina, Mamma Mia, and Chicago are also on the docket. And you can subscribe and enjoy Broadway in Miami all winter.

And with the Tony’s awarded this month, it’s a perfect time to think about theater.