MIAMI- Thousands of Cuban Americans raced to Little Havana to celebrate the death of Fidel Castro in the early morning hours of Nov. 26, 2016.
Read More: “Our Generation’s Berlin Wall”- Young Miami Reacts To Castro’s Death
Here is what it looked like to there:
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Where’s The Best Places To Get Great Food In Miami This Upcoming Week?
This piece was originally published by our partner MIAbites.com and is produced by them.
Each week, MIAbites will feature The Weekly Nibble, highlighting “foodie” events and special promotions in Miami for the upcoming weeks. Please note that specific details, dates and prices are subject to change, so please call ahead to confirm event details.
Wednesday January 13th – The Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce “Let’s Eat Dinner” Series is pleased to return in 2016 with the announcement that Bulla Gastrobar will host a special dinner and cooking demonstration on Wednesday, January 13 at 6 p.m. Guests are invited to learn how to make authentic Spanish paella learned at one of Spain’s most famous restaurants, El Bulli. Led by Bulla Doral’s new chef Miguel Rebolledo, who will take the helm at Bulla Gastrobar’s new Doral location in early 2016, refined his technique and culinary skills working under two of the most renowned Spanish chefs, Jose Andres and Ferran Andria, and Bulla Coral Gables’ chef Diego Solano, participants will enjoy CAVA wine and a cooking demonstration of the beloved national dish of Spain, paella. Tickets are $65 and reservations are required. Bulla 2500 Ponce De Leon Blvd, Coral Gables, FL 33134 (305) 441-0107
Saturday January 16th – Burger Beast hosts his 7th Annual “Burgie Awards” honoring South Florida’s best food vendors, restaurants and food trucks. Miami Lakes Auto Mall is bringing the 2016 Burger Beast Burgie Awards back to Magic City Casino on Saturday January 16th from 5-10 pm. After a 2 month long voting period on the Burger Beast Blog which ends on Wednesday January 13th, the 14 Burgie Award Winners will be decided. Those winners will be announced & receive their Awards LIVE at the Burgie Awards. Over 25 different food vendors will be on hand selling to the public a variety of great eats in addition to live music and admission is FREE. Voting is still open and for more info visit http://theburgies.com.
Thursday January 21st – BLT Prime Miami will partner with local home-grown beer makers M.I.A. Brewing for a five course dinner featuring seasonal beers from the Doral-based brewery and tap room. Miami Herald Food Editor Evan Benn, a national beer writer for Esquire, Beer Advocate and other publications, will serve as host for the event; The evening will get underway at 7 PM on Thursday, January 21. Priced at $75 per person, exclusive of tax and gratuity, reservations are required at 305-591-6066. BLT Prime Trump National Doral
4400 NW 87th Ave Miami, FL 33178Do you like this? Read more awesome restaurant reviews, tips and event listings at MIAbites.com.
Saturday January 23rd– StripSteak by Michael Mina at The Fontainebleau kickoffs off their 2016 Cellar 1954 Wine & Dinner serieswith a decadent five-course menu prepared by StripSteak chef de cuisine Derrick Roberts, complemented by seven different wines from Darioush. Darioush Khaledi and his wife Shahpar founded Darioush in 1997. The Darioush Estate has flourished over time and is now comprised of 120 acres in Southern Napa Valley spanning the Mount Veeder and Oak Knoll American viticultural areas. Each of the five courses will be paired with a different varietal from the label. Priced at $225 per person, inclusive of tax and gratuity, the luxurious evening will begin at 8 p.m. Strip Steak by Michael Mina 4441 Collins Ave. Miami Beach FL (877) 326 7412
New and Ongoing:
Mignonette– It’s time to go “Big Easy” at Chef Daniel Serfer’s neighborhood oyster bar and seafood haven in Edgewater. Rolling out this week, Mignonette’s menu features six new brunch items; two new sandwiches for lunch; three appetizers; three ‘fancy’ preparations for dinner and four new veggies for the proverbial chalkboard. Southern- influences abound with a Big Easy brunch items like Conch Fritter Benedict with Bahamian conch, poached eggs and sherry-cayenne aioli. NOLA lunch offerings include the addition of the P-Muffuletta. New dinner items include Steak Diane, a classic dish prepared with beautiful cuts of filet mignon served with herbed spaetzle and cognac; Swordfish is seared to perfection perched atop melty duck confit, wild mushroom fricassee and finished with a marsala pan sauce; Fancy Red Fish takes a cue from Cajun iterations with an Andouille crust, rock shrimp, bomba rice and lobster broth. Mignonette 210 NE 18th Street, Miami, FL 33132 (305) 374-4635
Quality Meats– Coming up on the one year anniversary of the popular Quality Meats Miami, chef de cuisine Patrick Rebholz has added to the menu a Signature Chicken Parm Pizza, a buzzworthy import from NYC sister restaurant, Quality Italian, and is the star of the new line-up. Intended for two diners at $32 per person, the 14-inch chicken parmesan topped with mozzarella, Parmesan and Pecorino is delivered to diners on a pizza rack, and is sliced tableside. So popular in New York that the restaurant often runs out midway through dinner service, the dish is accompanied with all the requisite pizza toppings including shakers of parmesan, pepper, dried black olives and Calabrian chili honey. Other new menu items make their way onto the charcuterie board and as new appetizers including two seasonally fresh selections – a snapper ceviche with local strawberries and heirloom tomatoes and yellowfin tuna carpaccio with roasted beets and lemon olive oil. Among the newest main courses, two new selections are sure to please non-carnivores — juicy lemon-charred chicken, and the Quality Lobster Bake. Quality Meats Miami Beach 1501 Collins Avenue (305) 340 3333
The Filling Station (previously located in Downtown Miami) in Oakland Park is giving guests a reason to celebrate the new year with a lunch deal that’s a savory steal! Through the end of January, locals and visitors can enjoy The Ultimate Great American Bacon Cheeseburger served with a side of their signature tater tots and a draft beer for $11. To cure any hunger pain, the hunk of a meat is dressed with American cheese, candied bacon, buttermilk ranch and homemade chipotle ketchup. This offer is available daily from 11:30 AM – 4 PM.Additionally, the irresistible bar food paradise will be offering new specials weekly like Trivia Night, or their $1 tacos during happy hour. The Filling Station 3200 NE 12th Oakland Park. FL (954) 908-5225
Beaker & Gray in Wynwood announces the launch of $5 Happy Hour. Certain to become a go-to destination to wind down after work, Happy Hour at Beaker & Gray features lineup of libations and bites, available Monday through Friday from 5PM-7PM. For night owls, Happy Hour returns with a second round on Monday through Thursday from Midnight-2AM. Drink special include $5 craft cocktails, $5 beer and $ glasses of wine. $5 bites include: Oaxaca – wax pepper, oregano and tomatillo; Sandwichitos – plantain brioche, pork belly and watermelon rind; Onion Rings – cipollini, pearl and dill; Ricotta – Black Mission fig, Thai basil and Citterio chorizo; and Glass Noodles – green papaya, chayote and Valencia peanut. Beaker & Gray 2637 North Miami Avenue in Wynwood. (305) 699-2637
(Information provided from various sources and subject to change. Please call ahead to confirm details )
The above was produced by MIAbites, one of the leading sources for food news in South Florida. Be sure to visit their website for more great information.
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A Miami Judge Just Did Something Really Important
Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Milton Hirsch ruled today that Florida’s death penalty system is unconstitutional due to a controversial element of state law that allows juries to sentence defendants to death without a unanimous decision.
According to the Miami Herald, Hirsch’s ruling will be the latest to stir the pot in terms of Florida’s death penalty.
Capital punishment in the state is already under review after the US Supreme Court ruled the sentencing system unconstitutional.
As the Herald points out, only Florida and Alabama allow non-unanimous juries to impose death sentences.
“A decedent cannot be more or less dead. An expectant mother cannot be more or less pregnant,” Judge Hirsch wrote in a court document obtained by the Herald. “And a jury cannot be more or less unanimous. Every verdict in every criminal case in Florida requires the concurrence, not of some, not of most, but of all jurors – every single one of them.”
Hirsch issued the ruling in the case of Karon Gaiter, who is accused of first degree murder.
The Florida Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case last week that could see all 390 people who are currently on death row in the state to be given life sentences due to the flawed sentencing system.
“Arithmetically the difference between 12 and 10 is slight,” Hirsch wrote in his opinion. “But the question before me is not a question of arithmetic. It is a question of constitutional law. It is a question of justice.”
RISE NEWS is a grassroots journalism news organization that is working to change the way young people become informed and engaged in public affairs. You can write for us.
Cover Photo Credit: Andrew Petro/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
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Authorities Investigating Potential Criminal Wrongdoing In Miami Shores Charter School Scandal
Rise News has learned that there is an ongoing investigation into allegations that members of the supervisory board of a Miami area charter school may have criminally violated Florida Sunshine Laws.
One of the members of the board at the time of the alleged law violations was the current Mayor of Miami Shores, Alice Burch.
At least two members of the Doctors Charter School (DCS) Board of Directors and a high-ranking school official have been subpoenaed and interviewed by an Assistant State Attorney and an investigator with the Miami-Dade Ethics Commission.
Sources close to the investigation indicate that the inquiry is focused around the events of the controversial non-renewal of contract of DCS Executive Director Nick Dorn.
DCS is a highly rated charter school with 600 students nestled in the sleepy neighborhood of Miami Shores.
Rise Miami News, the predecessor website to Rise News first broke the story of the scandal in June of 2015 and showed that Burch had improperly coordinated with a few other members of the unpaid DCS board to remove Dorn in a secret meeting.
From our original report on the matter:
“Rise Miami News has learned that Burch supplied DCS board members meeting in the ‘shade’ a dossier of information that she had been collecting for over eight months, meant to act as justification for the non-renewal of the school director’s contract.
Burch has also admitted to violating state Sunshine Laws by continuing to volunteer as the de-facto secretary of the DCS board of directors while serving as the acting mayor of the Village.
Burch apologized to the Miami Shores community at a Village Council meeting on June 2 but did not discuss her level of involvement in the dismissal of Nick Dorn, the director of DCS.”
Due to the public outrage, Dorn was eventually offered a contract and a raise. Dorn accepted the contract extension but did not agree to a raise. He is currently leading the school.
DCS board meeting in June. Photo Credit: Rise News
Read More: Miami Shores Mayor Actively Advocated For Removal Of Charter School Head In Closed Door Letter
While Burch did not vote in the secret meeting, she openly discussed the idea of not renewing Dorn’s contract with members of the board both before and immediately after the “shade” meeting.
Additional public records including text messages show the extent of communications between Burch and other board members. It also showed how important Burch was to the lifeblood of the board and therefore potentially to the Sunshine Law violations she later admitted to.
Read More: Text Messages, Emails Bring Into Focus Influential Role Miami Shores Mayor Played In DCS Scandal
According to multiple sources with direct knowledge of the matter, the inquiry is being headed up by Assistant State Attorney Luis Perez-Medina and Miami-Dade Ethics Commission investigator Larry Lebowitz.
Perez-Medina works out of the Public Corruption Unit under Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle while Lebowitz, a former Miami Herald reporter works under Joseph Centorino, the longtime former head of the Public Corruption Unit and current director of the county Ethics Commission.
Neither the State Attorney’s office or Ethics Commission would confirm or deny that there is an ongoing investigation.
Paul Calli, an attorney and current member of the DCS board first blew the whistle on the “shade” meeting in a series of Facebook posts last spring.
In June, Calli filed a complaint with the Ethics Commission alleging that there had been violations of Section 286.011 of Florida Statutes, also known as the Sunshine Laws.
The Commission referred the complaint to the State Attorney as it said that it does not have jurisdiction over Sunshine Laws.
Miami Shores Mayor Alice Burch. Photo Credit: Alice Burch/Facebook
“The rules should not and cannot be different for elected officials and Village administrators in Miami Shores,” Calli said in an interview with Rise News. “The residents of Miami Shores do not deserve to be excluded from the political process and government administration by elected or appointed officials who hold the trust of residents and voters. The Shores is not a fiefdom, with its residents vassals.”
Mayor Burch did not respond to a request for comment.
Vice Mayor Steven Zelkowitz said that he was not aware of any investigation ongoing in Miami Shores but said that public officials should be careful of Sunshine Law violations.
“I live and breathe the Sunshine Law,” Zelkowitz, a lawyer who deals with many local municipalities in his practice said in a phone interview. “I’m very cognizant and I’m very careful with it. Maybe elected officials should read the laws and understand them before acting.”
Another member of the Village council had a similar view.
“What is important is what[ever] the investigation reveals, it will help bring closure and restore confidence in our leaders,” Councilwoman Ivonne Ledesma said in an email statement.
READ: The 14 page dossier of information Miami Shores Mayor Alice Burch presented to DCS board members before secret, “shade” meeting
Miami Shores Mayor Alice Burch’s “Shade” Letter by Rich
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Cover Photo Credit: Rise News/ Rich Robinson
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