By Dmitry Rashnitsov
Newport Beach Hotel and Resort
The 300-room Newport
beach Hotel offers not only a regular two-bed room, but also a one and two-bedroom suite with ocean views. The entire hotel is smoke-free and friendly for families with scheduled pool activities for children. There are three on-site restaurants and 500 yards of beach front with deck chair rentals for hotel patrons.
Wows and Woes
Kitchen 305 is an award-winning restaurant on property with outstanding dinner specials that change every night. Chef Julius Brown brings his American flare to the establishment, which makes for a great meal.
The hotel is about 10 miles north of South Beach in an area called Sunny Isles, which is filled to the brim with luxurious hotels and condos, but not a lot of fine dining establishments. With the exception of Kitchen 305, another upscale restaurant is not available for miles.
Insider Tips
This hotel hosted the MTV spring break show in 2008 and 2009 and while most of the kids who attend the weekend tapings did not staying on property, the entire beach and pool area are taken over by a wild crowd. Avoid this hotel during the spring break season.
Author's Most Memorable Moment
Chef Brown from Kitchen 305 came out to greet patrons during dinner and took the time to explain his infused concept dishes and the backgrounds that he studied to come up with the flavors. It was very classy and it made the meal even more enjoyable.
Bottom Line
The Newport charges a high price and continues to charge for services such as parking and deck chairs. Keep your wallet close and open the entire trip.
About the Author:
Dmitry Rashnitsov is a writer based out of Fort Lauderdale. His work has appeared in the "Sun-Sentinel" newspaper, "South Florida Blade" newspaper, "Cape Coral Daily Breeze," "411 Magazine," "South Florida CEO Magazine" and the Examiner.com web platform. He has a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Arizona.
