Florida

Renowned Swiss watchmaker Piaget took over Palm Beach and Wellington, Florida recently to celebrate the brand's longtime commitment to the sport of polo.

Among the posh events was a garden party presenting the band's newest collection at the Flagler Museum, and an intimate field-side dinner at the International Polo Club Palm Beach to present the new Pilarà-Piaget polo team.

The festivities concluded with the final match of the Piaget Gold Cup at the Polo Club, attended by American Beauty actress Mena Suvari and followed by an exclusive champagne reception outside the 7th Chukker.

On display for the first time in the U.S. were the latest editions to the Piaget Polo FortyFive collection including two new models in rose gold and titanium, one featuring Piaget's manufactured chronograph movement and the other equipped with Piaget's in-house perpetual calendar movement.

Audi's polo team won the Gold Cup and each of the victorious players got to take home a Piaget
Polo FortyFive watch.

We last mentioned Pine Creek Sporting Club near Okeechobee, Florida back in 2009. The club is designed for shooting enthusiasts. The community is about an hour from West Palm Beach, and founding members include Tullio Fabbri (world renowned shotgun maker), Jack Nicklaus, Nick Price, and Tucker Frederickson (a former NFL #1 draft pick). The gun-friendly development boasts over 1000 acres of quail fields, guided hunting, a members lodge, aviary, dog kennel, a sporting clay course, a rifle and pistol range and a simulated quail flush course. Non-shooting related amenities include concierge service, helipad, a treehouse restaurant, bocce courts, swimming pool and horse stables. The community includes smaller cabin properties and larger ranch properties.

The club has luxury amenities include the recently completed fitness center and pool area. The 4,127 sq. foot Fitness Center and pool area was designed by Palm Beach architect Roger Janseen and interior designer Marc-Michaels. Pine Creek Sporting Club also has a new six-horse equestrian program.

This cabin is a modified version of a floorplan called the .20 gauge. There are a total of only 23 custom cabins on a tranquil lake, surrounded by live oaks, cypress, and majestic pines. The Cabins at Pine Creek also back up to a unique preserve area bustling with an abundance of wildlife and foliage. The Cabins range in size from 2,329 to 3,472 sq. feet, with two and three-bedroom options available. All cabins include two bathrooms, a fireplace and a spacious porch. This one is three-bedrooms with two bathrooms and a sleeping loft with two built-in beds. Architect Denio Maderia designed an open floor plan invites people to spend their time together in the expansive central area while the decor by Giana Allen Interior Design is rustic but chic eschewing the easy country cliches. This property sells for $1.2 million furnished.

If winter has you dreaming of warmer weather, Anderson Realty USA could have your new dream home, a waterfront luxury estate home in Gulf Breeze, Florida. Gulf Breeze is a suburb on Pensacola in the Florida panhandle and this home face in toward East Bay. The home is currently up for online pre-bidding with a live auction scheduled for February 12. The home has 9,449 square feet with five bedrooms, seven bathrooms, a screened bayside pool and patio area and a private dock and boatslip.

Built for a casual lifestyle, the home has a recreational and game room with direct access to the pool, multiple living areas and a mother-in-law or guest suite on the first level complete with its own kitchen and living area.

The master suite has two walk-in closets and there is also a private study with wet bar. The property may be inspected February 6 from 1:30pm to 4pm, or by appointment. Bidders can register online to bid on the property. The online pre-bidding will end Saturday, February 12, 2011 at 11:11am CST, just prior to the live auction. For more details about the property, including auction terms, visit www.AndersonRealtyUSA.com or call toll free (877) 654-5300.

The legendary Ferrari 250 GTO, built between 1962 and 1964, is a holy grail for car collectors. The last one that came on the market is said to have sold for about $28 million. Ralph Lauren has one of course, as does Pink Floyd's Nick Mason, UK Ferrari maniac Chris Evans, and many men whose fortunes exceed all measure of normality. Now the renowned Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance in Florida has announced plans to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the iconic car at its 2012 show. The organizers are hard at work delving into the history of the incredible vehicle in order to properly honor significant milestones in its evolution. The 250 GTO's anniversary will be celebrated at the event by figures who participated in its storied past, and an eye-popping assortment of the cars will be on display. Meanwhile the 2011 Concours is slated to take place from March 11–13 at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island.

There is risk and there is reward, but during December's Ulysse Nardin event in Boca Raton Florida there may be only reward. Opening up a dedicated boutique for the first time in a specific market can be a challenge and a risk. It is an expensive endeavor and failure can hurt your reputation as much as it can your bottom line. High-end watch brands tend to do only one thing well – and that is make watches. Being sales people isn't always their bag.

Lucky for Ulysse Nardin that they don't need to worry much about managing the store with their name on it. They opted for a cleverer means of opening their first US boutique store. Have a successful existing dealer in the area do it for you.

Sprightly and young for a man of his wealth, Bobby Yampolsky who owns and runs East Coast Jewelry can claim to operate one of the most successful watch selling businesses in the US. An existing Ulysse Nardin watch dealer, he was chosen to have the honor of starting and operating the Ulysse Nardin boutique. In the Boca Raton Town Center Mall located relatively close to his main store in South Florida, he put on quite a show for the boutique's opening event.

Famed French champagne house Taittinger will unveil the newest limited edition bottle in its coveted Taittinger Collection series at an event toasting the kick-off of Miami Art Basel on Saturday at the luxurious Setai in South Beach. Since 1985 Taittinger has commissioned an artist to create a special bottle for its glorious bubbly every year. For this, the 12th edition in the Collection, Taittinger selected artist Amadou Sow for the quality and originality of his work, along with his cultural artistic identity. The artist's design (above) graces a bottle of the 2002 vintage of Taittinger Brut Millésimé, which is produced only in the best years from select Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes grown in vineyards in several of the finest microclimates of France's Champagne region. Meanwhile the Setai also recently celebrated the reopening of its eatery The Grill with newly appointed Executive Chef David Werly, who brings his take on the space offering a fresh menu and alternative to the Asian cuisine of The Restaurant with European inspired menu items.

On the auspicious date of January 11, 2011 (1/11/11) at 11:11 AM, the new Salvador Dalí Museum will open in St. Petersburg, Florida, with a grand opening party to be attended by Her Royal Highness Infanta Cristina of Spain as guest of honor.

St. Petersburg, Florida may seem like an unlikely home for Dali, but the Dali Museum actually originated there in 1982 after St. Petersburg offered financial support to collector and industrialist A Reynolds Morse and his wife Eleanor Reese to house their already substantial collection. Today, the museum contains more Dali masterworks than any other museum in the world and has the largest collection outside of Spain. The annual attendance is over 200,000 people per year, bringing an economic impact of an estimated $50 million to St. Petersburg.

The opening of the new, visually stunning $36 million building will double the current space of the Dali Museum to 66,450 square feet. Construction began in December 2008, and the attractive, innovative structure can reportedly withstand a category five hurricane. The roof is 12-inch thick solid concrete. The walls are 18 inches. All this is to protect the precious Dalis, of course, of which there will be 2,140, including 96 oil paintings.

The Dali Museum will be occupied throughout 2011 with a special exhibit called Viva la Revelacion!, displaying all paintings and highlighting other major works from the permanent collection to celebrate the new building. An Education Gallery will feature student exhibits and invite visitors of all ages to explore Dali's illusions and visual experiments.

A royal purple 1914 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost that's said to have belonged to Nicholas II, the last Tsar of Russia, is being offered for sale in Germany via global online luxury marketplace JamesList for about $7 million. In the 1920s the custom-made car, which features nickel plated fittings, a speaking tube for communicating with the chauffeur and coachwork by Barker, found its way into the collection of circus impresario John Ringling of Ringling Bros. at Ca d'Zan, his famous 30 room Venetian mansion in Sarasota, Florida. After being displayed in a classic car museum next to Adolph Hitler's Mercedes for a spell, at some point it was acquired by a German collector who kept it in an underground bunker from which it was recently unearthed. The nearly century-old Rolls, made just 10 years after Henry Royce built his very first car, offers not only a royal pedigree but is an important piece of automotive history it its own right.

Florida's Atlantic Yachts is collaborating with Rolls-Royce's Marine division to design and engineer a new line of superyachts dubbed the NVC 85 Y. The 279-ft. ships will be built by Germany's Nobiskrug GmbH while Atlantic's founder Paul Madden, formerly of Blohm + Voss (builders of Roman Abramovich's gigayacht Eclipse) will oversee the project. Available in different trims, the yachts will be equipped with completely bespoke interiors with plenty of Rolls-Royce branding. Featuring a steel superstructure and hydrodynamically efficient hull the NVC 85 Ys will be capable of a maximum speed of about 20 knots and a cruising speed of 17 knots with a range of 8,000 nautical miles at cruising speed, with the aim of minimizing fuel consumption and environmental impact. Accommodation for 12 passengers in six double cabins and 22 crew members will be the base configuration, while a helipad on the foredeck assures they will arrive in style. While no price has yet been named, Killian Yacht & Ship Brokers will handle sales beginning with the first completed hull in 2012.

[via JamesList}

Plantation, Florida seems a bit of an unlikely spot for a gangsta rapper's paradise but according to the Real Estalker that's where you'll find Fat Joe's home. The rapper has listed the four-bedroom home he built in Florida's Broward County. In 2000 he paid $115,000 for an acre of land and then had his Mediterranean modern mansion constructed. It apparently wasn't completed until ast year. The style is modern luxe, neutral in tone but eschewing some of the faux Tuscan details often seen in Florida luxury homes.

The home includes a double-height entry way with a wall of shimmering tile and a chandelier, formal dining room, large kitchen, home theater and a master suite that includes three dressing areas with walk-in closets. The listing says that no expense was spared, the home theater alone boasts $50,000 in oversized power seats and a 100-inch screen. It is listed at $1.999 million with The Campins Company.

As the oil spill in the Gulf continues past day 40, the effects for the industries in Florida, Louisiana and other states are starting to mount up. Vacation resorts in Florida are getting proactive to reassure potential vacationers that they won't be seeing any oil slicks on the local beaches. As CNN reports many hotels are changing their cancellation policies and promising refunds in guests see oil on the beaches. The six properties operated by The Resort Collection of Panama City Beach has an oil-free beach guarantee and the company's Facebook page has an ad with the slogan "The only oil on our beach is suntan oil!"

In Alabama, oil-free beach guarantees have also slowed down the rate of cancellation. Royal Shell Vacations, the largest vacation rental company serving Sanibel and Captiva Islands, Florida, with more than 400 luxury homes and condominiums, has announced a provisional refund policy, the Royal Shell "Clean Beaches" Guarantee. Royal Shell Vacations will provide a proportionate refund to any rental clients should the City of Sanibel or Lee County authorities officially close either Sanibel or Captiva Islands beaches. Royal Shell Vacations will be providing daily or as-needed "Clean Beaches" updates on both its website and Facebook page.

In Louisiana the tourism outlook isn't so bright. The lure of traveling to Louisiana isn't relaxing on the beach, it's often activities like sportfishing. With oil washing ashore into Louisiana's marshes recreational fishing is at a standstill. Sadly, hotels are full, but with workers, journalists and others who are there because of the spill.

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We've mentioned this one a couple of times since Homes of the Rich brought it to our attention but now the Palm Beach Post has a piece on a little slice of real estate hubris in Florida dubbed Versailles. The property which still shows a listing price of $100 million on real estate agent Lorraine Barrett's website might actually be a bit lower priced now. The Post says that the home has an asking price of $75 million.

Key West is home to another historic non-profit enterprise left for dead by a thing called economics: the Heritage House Museum has closed after more than 30 years in business. The home, built in 1834 by George Carey and rescued 100 years later by the late Jessie Porter, hosted 20th century literary lights led by Robert Frost and Hemingway but simply got too expensive to maintain.

Peter Brawn bough the home for $2 million from Porter's family, and he added another $60,000 for some of its contents. There is no word on what Brawn plans for Heritage House nor, just as importantly, the Robert Frost poetry competition held every year in the Frost Cottage behind the house.

The Miami Wine and Food Festival is all set to offer a wide variety of gourmet delicacies, rare vintages, and fun experiences for food and wine lovers in South Florida. Celebrating its 15th year and scheduled to take place on the 22nd - 24th of this month, one of the highlights is the return of chef Todd English to the festival for the "Food, Friends & Fun Interactive Dinner" where tables will team up to cook their own 3 course meals under the direction of Chef English. Other events include live music, the "Taste and Toast" extravaganza (with VIP tasting), and The Champagne GH Mumm reception with silent auction.

The Miami Wine and Food Festival benefits Camillus House and United Way of Miami-Dade, and more info and event tickets are available here.

As a Tampa resident for over twenty years, I've had the gastronomical pleasure of experiencing these fine dining establishments. Trade those beach shorts for something more cosmopolitan, and come hungry.

Here's my rating scale: $$ - Comparatively Inexpensive. $$$ - More Expensive. $$$$ - Very Expensive. Upscale = dress nice. Chic = dress to kill.

Charley's Steakhouse
(813) 353-9706
4444 West Cypress Street, Tampa, 33607.
Upscale $$$$. Charley's has graced Tampa since 1974 with a quiet, sophisticated ambiance. The service is as upscale as the clothes. Everyone should be waited on like this at least once in their lives. Cozy and elegant, chandelier-decked setting. The specialties are mouth-watering cuts of steak and Surf & Turf.
Rated number 5 out of the Top 10 Steak Restaurants in the U.S. at Prime Top 10, a list of America's Finest USDA Prime Steakhouses & Restaurants.
Reservations not usually needed.

Mitchell's Fish Market
(813) 289-3663
204 Westshore Plaza, Tampa, 33609.
Upscale $$$. Mitchell's is reminiscent of the classy mid-nineteenth and twentieth century 'men only' dining clubs. But women are allowed, of course. All varnished wood and frosted glass with some miniature ships on display. Mitchell's hasn't been in Tampa that long (several years), but it's made a name for itself. The broiled tilapia is succulent, for one. The seafood-many varieties obtained from one coast to the other-is always fresh, never frozen. A relaxed, classy ambiance. Reservations not needed.