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Eat, Play in Miami / South Beach

South Beach combines the playful pulse of Rio, the intense revelry of Manhattan, and the tropical ambience of Maui, all on one relatively affordable island that's just a 10- minute drive from Miami. In this favorite gay getaway that's especially popular with the circuit-party set, people pursue dining and partying with a near fanatical fervor. For a relatively small community, the variety of swanky and sophisticated restaurants and nightclubs is astounding. You could easily spend a week here without having to visit the same gay bar or hip eatery twice.

Fashion and food have never been strangers, so it's not surprising that stylish South Beach offers a thriving culinary scene. However, as many of the most popular restaurants along the city's traffic- clogged oceanfront have become overrun with tourists, gays and lesbians have flocked to the trendy establishments along the utterly charming Lincoln Road pedestrian mall, where you'll find consistently better food. One of the great standbys along this attractive thoroughfare, with its palm- and awning-shaded sidewalk tables, is Pacific Time. Offering a Pan-Asian panoply of succulent dishes like whole ginger-stuffed tempura yellowtail with steamed ribbon vegetables, this see- and- be- seen eatery also draws kudos for its decadent desserts - try the chocolate bomb, a rich bittersweet confection served with two kinds of fresh fruit and two flavors of ice cream. 

A gay-operated restaurant just off Lincoln Road, Jeffrey's keeps a low profile by South Beach standards, but the food is always terrific, and the slightly formal dining room is a perfect venue for a romantic tete- a- tete. The bistro menu features plantain-crusted dolphin (that's the common Floridian term for mahimahi, not to be confused with the endangered fish of Flipper fame) with roasted red-pepper tartar sauce, among other treats. Sushi Samba may have the slickest decor of any Lincoln Road eatery - this yellow- and- red, back- lit space with curvaceous banquettes and sexy servers presents contemporary Japanese fare with a Latin- American twist. Try the sublime South American beef maki roll with hearts of palm and grilled scallions, or just drop by in your flashiest threads to sip caipirinhas or pisco sours among the poseurs and fashionistas. 

Balans, a chatter-filled London import with a whimsical zebra- striped ceiling, serves inventive fusion fare. The lobster club sandwich with bacon on onion bread is a treat. The upscale restaurant Touch holds an intoxicatingly funny drag brunch on Sundays and serves stellar seafood in the evenings. And then there's Nexxt, with such huge portions, it's almost silly. But this chaotically popular restaurant does a commendable job with most dishes. The menu reads like a food encyclopedia: Vietnamese crab rolls, buffalo chicken taquitos, pizzas, burgers, and several more pages of drink specials, salads, grills, seafood, and desserts.

Across the way from each other, Da Leo Trattoria and Lincoln Road Pizza e Via both offer terrific value and dependable Northern Italian fare, though the Trattoria's menu is somewhat more substantial. The pizza place has a wildly popular lunch buffet. Around the corner, the food at El Rancho Grande, always a hit with the lavender crowd, ranges from standard burritos and fajitas to authentic Mexican dishes like pescado relleno (fish fillet marinated and stuffed with shrimp, crab, onions, tomatoes, almonds, green peppers, and raisins, cooked and topped with melted cheese). Pop inside Joffrey's Coffee, a Euro- inspired cafe with comfy varnished- wood tables, to sample such elaborate elixirs as muddy mocha sundae (espresso with chocolate syrup and vanilla ice cream, topped with ground espresso and whipped cream). Next door, you can further satisfy your sugar cravings with a hazelnut gelato at Gelateria Parmalat.

Away from Lincoln Road you'll find plenty of great restaurants, too. B.E.D. is one of the strangest dining concepts in South Beach. The dining room contains several beds that hold from two to eight patrons - you eat lying down in bed, served by staff clad in silk pajamas. The harem- inspired decor brings out the romantic in most people (though do try to save any excessive PDAs for later in your hotel room), and the elaborate contemporary American fare has earned high praise. Another rather daft entry to South Beach's weird- dining sweepstakes is Tantra, where belly dancers and an aphrodisiac- themed menu kick things up a notch. Seared foie gras with pear tart is a favorite appetizer. Who knew? 

Noted Florida chef Mark Militello helms the kitchen at Mark's South Beach - here you can savor creative wonders like ravioli filled with goat ricotta and smothered in a corn and pumpkinseed sauce. Count on Grillfish for delicious, fresh, and surprisingly affordable seafood, such as grilled mahimahi with a mango- orange barbecue glaze. The stainless-steel, deco- style 11th Street Diner serves standard fare 24 hours a day, including a great Philly cheese steak and the most voluptuous vanilla malts in South Beach. In the spirit of traditional greasy spoons, the servers are so grumpy they actually yell at the customers from time to time. On the upper stretch of Ocean Drive, the Front Porch Cafe fosters a lazy, devil- may- care atmosphere - a far cry from the stand- and- model showdowns a few blocks away. The food is eclectic: Thai noodles, pizzas, overstuffed sandwiches, muffins, and hearty breakfasts. 

Pop diva Gloria Estefan is part- owner of Larios, a chic, moderately priced, and consistently good (if middle- of- the- road) Cuban restaurant. Try the paella Valencia or the tamale platter, and finish it all off with the fresh guava- and- cheese flan. It's less snazzy, but nearby Puerto Sagua serves arguably better and more authentic Cuban cooking. 

South Beach's high- profile discos, which resemble New York's and L.A.'s massive warehouse clubs, are the big draw during the designated gay theme nights. A few smaller but no less popular cocktail bars stay gay seven nights a week and can be great fun if you're not in the mood for a major club event. And don't overlook Miami proper, which has a handful of cool gay bars. The best among them is the Cactus, which is just a 10- minute drive from South Beach. It's known for its easy- going happy hours, friendly and age- diverse crowd, and its great little restaurant, Prickly Pear. Also in Miami proper, Club Body Center is the hottest bathhouse in these parts.

Back in South Beach, the Saturday night circuit- party blowout Salvation is a must-attend for the shirtless, tanned, and toned. The lines are long and the cover exorbitant, but for die- hard party- hardies, there's no substitute. Crobar is a must- do for the same crowd on Sunday nights. On Fridays, everybody piles into Level, while Wednesday's big queer event is Flamingo.

Several blocks west of the action, the dark and cruisy Loading Zone is South Beach's top leather- and- Levi's club. A seat atop a metal oil barrel ensures a good view of the racy crowd. (Hard- core porn on the TV monitors seems to get everybody in a willing mood.) The longest-running of South Beach gay bars, Twist is a great little video bar with a tiny dance floor upstairs and several cozy spots for lounging. The open- air porch off the second floor is especially convivial on a warm evening. Best of all, Twist stays open until 5 a.m. and never charges a cover. 

An attractive two-level space with a cozy lounge up front and great outdoor seating along Lincoln Road Mall, Score is great fun on any night. There's usually dancing, and on Mondays a terrific cabaret. Right around the corner, the quasi- industrial Laundry Bar, though it pulls in plenty of boys, is the most popular nightlife option among South Beach lesbians. Patrons cozy up in the big cushy chairs, shoot pool, and yuck it up above the loud music. And yes, you can actually do your laundry here - the entire back room is lined with washers and dryers and often swarming with cute young things folding their silk undies. Now if that isn't the perfect milieu for meeting somebody interesting, what is?