The long-anticapated opening of 1 Hotel & Homes on Miami Beach occurred Wednesday, March 25th beginning with an A.M. ribbon-cutting and ending with a swanky rooftop party that began at “dusk. It’s Miami’s first true eco-lux hotel (read about it here) by Barry Sternlicht and developer Richard LeFrak. To kick it off right, the buildings new residents celebrated with VIPs like Karen LeFrak, Tommy and Dee Hilfiger, Paris Hilton, Bob Sinclair Top Chef’s Tom Colicchio, who will be opening Beachcraft restaurant in the building. Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine, Jorge Perez, and Jackie Soffer all came out support the new project as well.
The event took place on the building’s breezy rooftop, which had been remodeled to include lots of chic white canvas seating and bungalows ensconced in hardwood, on par with the building’s earthy, Brazilian design.
Bites by Colicchio’s team and lots of bubbly made the rounds as celebrations continued. So when will this much-anticapated Colicchio restaurant be open? The owner and chef would like to know that too, but after nearing completion, there was a snafu the chef would not elaborate on, “Let’s just say an important piece of equipment got damaged, so I can’t give you a date,” said Colicchio. If you can’t wait to see the inside, you can peek into the restaurant from the street level and get an eyeful of good things to come.
When a fresh-faced Hilton arrived, she gave the locals a lesson in how to really work the red carpet, as she effortlessly struck a series of poses. After watching this, a gaggle of socialite onlookers decided that Miami needed red carpet posing class like the one Hilton purportedly took years ago to become such a pro. Local PR maven Tara Soloman interviewed her on the red carpet for Entertainment Tonight, and spoke to her about DJing and her plans for Winter Music Conference. After the interview, Hilton happily posed for even more shots on the red carpet, even taking selfies with photographers, until one photog spoiled the fun by asking if she wasn’t a little “too old to party,” causing Hilton to disappear into the crowd faster than the click of a camera.
Photos by Seth Browarnik of WorldRedEye.com
