Good Taste is the Worst Vice

News Café, the Everglades, & Pollo Tropical, Miami

Most visitors to South Beach spend their days lounging in the sunshine and their nights clubbing until the wee hours.  


But when my sister, our friend E, and I headed down this weekend, our plans were a little different – plenty of walks, relaxing dinners… and an outing to the Everglades to look for alligators!
Our gator adventure started bright and early on Saturday.  South Beach is different in the mornings, quieter, with more locals than tourists (the latter are still asleep); the early sunshine and cool breeze are invigorating. 
My sister spent a year in Miami, so we went to her old favorite, the News Café, for breakfast.  It’s nestled in a shady courtyard on Ocean Drive, with tables right on the sidewalk, perfect for people watching.  The food isn’t extraordinary (except for E’s iced cappuccino, which she raved about!), but the simplicity of yogurt and fruit is an antidote to the excesses of South Beach.
After breakfast we drove to the Everglades, arriving along with a torrential downpour that rained out our biking plans.  

We made up our own driving tour instead, and saw a lifetime supply of alligators up close and personal – floating or swimming or just sunning on the side of the road, some sleeping and others watching us lazily.  


Despite a bit of concern from my sister and E (probably justified given some of my past mishaps), I made it through the afternoon without falling into a swamp or accidentally inciting an attack.

Chasing gators is hungry work, so on the way back to South Beach we stopped at a Pollo Tropical, which my sister describes as “Miami’s McDonalds.”  We each had black beans, rice, and plaintains – simple but oh-so-satisfying.

This wasn’t a typical South Beach day, for sure – it was much, much better!


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