The Gale & Regent Hotel

Photography by Regina Arriola; Photos: Seth Browarnik on December 20th, 2012 in Art Basel 2012, Celebrity, Clubs, Nightlife

Josh Wagner

Miami Beach, FL – December 19, 2012 – If ever there were a property to adequately represent the ever-evolving dream of what South Beach is and will forever be, said real estate would need to speak to the city’s architectural introduction of Art Deco design, the rooted and rich cultural diversity and SoBe’s sometimes infamous reputation for breeding all things charming and wild. Gale South Beach and Regent Hotel fit the bill rather perfectly.

The Art Deco hotel, originally constructed by architect L. Murray Dixon circa 1941, can be credited for coining the classic boutique hotel concept. But with the influx of massive resorts and skyscrapers rising along Collins Avenue like wild fire, the popularity of the property eventually lost momentum. While our attention may have drifted, those of us born and bred in Miami never lost sight of what made South Beach, well, South Beach.

Cue 2012 and Menin Hotels resurrected Gale South Beach just in time for a peek during Art Basel Miami Beach. Slated to officially open late January 2013, LDV Hospitality’s nightlife venues during Basel gave locals and international guests a preview of coming attractions. “We are thrilled with our Art Basel week and preview of our food and beverage venues at the Gale Hotel: Dolce Italian, Rec Room, and the Regent Cocktail Club,” says John Meadow, Principal at LDV Hospitality. “For years we have been planning our revitalization of the property and developing experiences that embrace both the grandeur of Collins Avenue but more importantly the laid back charming beach life of the local community.”

“Personally, my best night was Saturday night in Rec Room,” Meadow adds, “because I finally got over my opening week jitters, let loose and rocked it with DJ Matteo. There is no greater feeling in this crazy business than experiencing one of your charming dreams brought to life.”

While we reflect back on our Basel nights at Gale South Beach, including Le Baron’s opening night party, Alec Monopoly’s live artwork installation at Rec Room, and StyleCaster’s “Miami’s 20 Most Stylish” bash, LDV Hospitality’s Miami Managing Partner Josh Wagner gives us even more insight into the newly-unveiled locale.

Q: You’ve overseen a long list of Morgans Hotel properties including Skybar at the Shore Club, Sunset Lounge at Mondrian, and Florida Room at the Delano. What makes Gale South Beach a particularly special project for you?

A: I’ve had the privilege to work in some great properties over the years and have worked with some remarkable people. I was lucky to have started my career working with a company that was founded by Ian Schrager, the man who coined the phrase “boutique hotel”. Over the years the term has been brutalized and we now see 300 plus room hotels calling themselves “boutique”.

The Gale is truly boutique, an 87-room hotel driven by four food and beverage outlets. This is what the original formula was based upon: a thoughtful, well-designed hotel that’s driven by its common areas. What I particularly love about the Gale is that we are building a brand from scratch, we are not replicating anything and everything here is an original concept. We are building the ethos and we are creating the story and we hope our guests will feel that when they walk in the door. We have paid attention to every detail, making sure to give the space soul.

Our goal with this project is to provide friendly, attentive service offering a quality product with programming to match. This property is being built with the local customer at its core. I have lived in Miami for 12 years and pride myself on being a local and delivering a product that will not only make our out of town guests pleased, but also offer them an authentic local experience. I hope to make this town proud by offering an unparalleled space built by Miami for Miamians.

Q: With so many other events taking place around town, how were you able to properly curate the list of those that would take place at Gale South Beach during Art Basel?

A: The project was ahead of schedule so we had to make it all come together very quickly. This time taught me how important our relationships and friends really are. We were able to call upon our friends and make great things happen on the fly. Everyone we partnered with was someone that we understand, and vice versa, so it all felt natural and everyone was all-smiles during the entire week.

Q: What were some of the highlights from Art Basel at Gale?

A: There are so many to list. The opening night with Le Baron, they are old friends and this was a great way to kick of the week. Alec Monopoly doing a piece live in Rec Room, The Krug Dinner with Adrian Grenier, The launch of our BeachKred party and Santlov’s Tunnel Gallery, Spencer Tunick’s champagne reception, Falling Whistles’ installation in the Regent Cocktail Club, StyleCaster taking over the property for one night, our partner Amy Sacco being the amazing woman she is every night, Demi Moore closing down Rec Room three nights in a row, and many more to list, but the biggest highlight was seeing smiles from ear to ear on our guest’s faces. Art Basel 2012 was a memorable week and a great way to preview the property!

Q: You’ve been witness to some pretty epic moments in Miami nightlife. How will Rec Room and Regent Cocktail Club be different from other places on South Beach?

A: The goal is not to be different; rather, the goal is to complement the great venues this city has to offer! I am not just talking about South Beach, I am talking about Miami as a whole. As a city we are no longer separated by a bay, we are a city to embrace as a whole and we want to be a place that complements everything this city has to offer. We have world-class nightclubs, lounges and restaurants and the goal for Rec Room and Regent Cocktail Club is to be considered world-class destinations as well.

For Rec Room we are going to provide high-energy fun, great drinks and amazing music that will feature 70’s, 80’s, funk, disco, soul, and old school hip hop. In The Regent Cocktail Club we are going back to basics and have assembled a stellar bar team that can provide perfectly crafted cocktails in a setting that allows a conversation and an opportunity to discover new spirits and cocktails. We have a staff that can educate if a guest is interested, and will do so without being pretentious. Our goal is to be friendly, attentive and deliver a quality product, and we hope that is something that is not considered different in this town, for Miami is getting better every day and these should be considered norms.

Here’s a toast to Gale South Beach for everything it was, is and will be in 2013 and forward.

Additional Photos: Nathan Valentine, Ryan Troy, & Matt Root

Le Baron Opening Night at Rec Room on December 4, 2012

On the opening night of Art Basel, the Rec Room opened its doors for the first time ever for a legendary evening and a phenomenal way to start off the week.

Damien Hirst

Damien Hirst & Tony Shafrazi

Danny Moorla, Julian Lennon, & Josh Wagner

Jose Parla & Danny Moorla

Jose Parla

Josh Wagner & Sam Keller

André Saraiva & Josh Wagner

André Saraiva

Marc Spiegler

Greg Boust & Benjamin Moreau

Greg Boust

Greg Boust & Josh Wagner

Sebastian Puga

Lionel Benseroon & Josh Wagner

Lionel Benseroon, Josh Wagner, Roy Alpert, & Tolga Albayraka

Nektar De Stagni, Nicole Soden, Nick Theobald, Jayma Cardoso, & Bhakti Baxter

Ricardo Dunin

Domingo Zapata

Flavia Tallo

Grisell Tudisco & Flavia Tallo

Alejandro Gonzalez

Gioia Jansen

Alejandro Cabanellas

Sam Keller

Marc Spiegler

David Simkins & Allese Thomson

Bette Ann Schlossberg & Devin el Tigre

Bette Ann Schlossberg

Alejandro Gonzalez

Roy Alpert, Josh Wagner, & Golden Boy

Josh Wagner, Allese Thomson, & David Simkins

Tommy Saleh & Josh Wagner

Danny Moorla & Sebastian Puga

Ricardo Dunin

Todd Goldenfarb

Louis Aguirre & Kamal Hotchandani

Josh Wagner, Domingo Zapata, & Sarah Mirmelli

Bibs & Alan Roth

The Arab Parrot & Lincoln O’Barry

Tolga Albayraka

Roy Alpert & Nick Scappa

Nick Scappa & Peter Richardson

Alejandro Cabanellas, Golden Boy, Lionel Benseroon, & Sebastian Puga

Evelyn Castro

Joshua Phillips & Dov Konetz

Todd Goldenfarb & Alan Roth

Nicole Soden

André Saraiva

Alec Monoploy Live Art Installation at Rec Room on December 5, 2012

Alec Monopoly, A$AP Rocky, & Dan

Alec Monopoly & A$AP Rocky

Elliot

Falling Whistles

Falling Whistles’ home base was inside the Regent Cocktail Club the entire week of Art Basel. The installation spread awareness to end the deadliest war on the planet in the Congo. The Regent Cocktail Club was a place for conversation and cocktails to raise awareness and support for the cause.

Kwasi Gyasi, Darin Vartanian, & Joy Rheman

Elide Rita, Tini Courtney, & Gaelle Dreyfus

Darin Vartanian, Tommy Banis, Adam Moonves, & Tate B

Krug Dinner with Adrian Grenier at Dolce on December 6, 2012

Adrian Grenier

Sarah Arison

Rec Room on December 6, 2012

Adrian Grenier

Eugene Remm & Katia Tallarico

Tatanka

December 7, 2012

The Stylecaster party celebrated of the 20 most stylish Miamians took place at the rooftop at the Rec Room and throughout the entire property.

Paul Sevigny & Josh Wagner

Ari Goldberg

James Wark

Ryan Schinman & Josh Wagner

David Schenchmann & Eric Marx

Anastasia Ganias & Lisle Richards

Ben Pundole, Chelsea Leyland, Erica Domesek, & Joey Carlucci

Chelsea Leyland & Ben Pundole

Erica Domesek

Crispy Soloperto

Bibs

Marni Blickman

Crispy Soloperto

Bronques

December 8, 2012

Amy Sacco, Bobby Rossi, Josh Wagner and Bungalow 8 hosted celebration of the arrival of the RecRoom.

Dave Welty & Alex Osorio

Karlie Reitano & Joanne Birkitt

Morgan Dorr & Amanda Estrella

Spencer Tunick Cocktail Reception at Regent Cocktail Club on December 7, 2012

Spencer Tunick & David Hershkovits

Spencer Tunick & Josh Wagner

Spencer Tunick & Carlo McCormick

Spencer Tunick & Eric Doeringer

Esteban Cortazar

Gale Shuffleboard on December 10, 2012

Hendricks Gin rooftop shuffle board Tournament was the perfect way to wind down from Art Basel. Hendricks Gin cocktails accompanied by an old Miami pastime created a relaxing, cool environment.