Around the Town

Not all bike rides have to be long distances to be enjoyable. Heck just taking the bike around the block is “all good“to me. So this past weekend my wife and I decided to ride a around our own area code.

On Friday we headed down to see my friend DJ Noiz at a local watering hole called Renaissance. The guy can really get a party going, however the club is small and there is a 2 drink minimum with the price not at all very friendly. After spending about an hour listening to some great dance tunes, we headed east to Miami Beach.

It was already about 10pm and we were hungry, but if you’ve ever wandered around South Beach you know that there is never a shortage of places to eat. Instead of cruising down the always too packed Ocean Drive, we headed north on Washington Ave. Here is where all the dance clubs are and where you’ll hook up with Espanola Way where you’ll find some pretty nice outdoor dining.

After finding a safe place to park the bike, we walked a block up Espanola and found Tapas y Tintos. An authentic Spaniard restaurant that specializes in Tapas. If you don’t know what that is, Tapas are sort of like appetizers usually consisting of different types of beefs and cheeses. On weekends the place offers some great traditional Spanish Flamenco music. When we got there we quickly found an outside table next to the window where we could see the band playing.

Tapas y Tintos offers a huge variations of Tapas, so you should take your time and read the whole menu so you don’t miss anything. Their wine selection is pretty nice too, but after riding for a couple of hours, I was in the mood for something more refreshing, so we both settled for a Mojito. Our food was served very quickly considering this is the heart of South Beach where nothing is served quickly. (Although let’s face it; most Tapa dishes don’t take much preparation).

My wife ordered a plate of pinto beans cooked in virgin olive oil with several herbs and spices, while I enjoyed 3 different types of hams served with pita bread soaked in olive oil and black pepper.

After eating we walked down the short Espanola Way to do some window shopping then headed back to our bike and rode back south towards 5^th Street then west towards the city, and home.

On Sunday morning my wife decided that she wanted to take a ride up towards Ft. Lauderdale. (If I had known that on Saturday I wouldn’t have gone to the trouble of storing it). So we drove up to her mom’s house and took the bike out again. This time we headed up the Turnpike up to Hollywood Beach to Bu’s Beach Bar. When we got there, there were about 4 bikes parked outside next to the beach. Inside the place was packed because the Dolphins were playing against Houston. We ordered a beer each and sat on the balcony over-looking the sand and the ocean.

Afterwards we walked down the boardwalk until my friend Jorge from MMR text me asking who wanted to go riding after the game. Of course I answered him back letting him know we were one step ahead of him. Jorge texted me back asking if we could meet-up at La Carreta in South Miami at 5:30pm. It was only 3:30pm so I said “yeah” and we got back on the bike and headed south.

Instead of taking the highway, we rode down A1A to Bal Harbour. There we headed west to I-95 then met up with highway 836 to South Miami. It’s a much longer ride, but “hey” that’s the way we like it…

By the time we stopped for gas and did some site-seeing, we got to La Carreta at about 5pm. We hung out there watching other bikes that come to hang out there. La Carreta has several restaurants in Miami and it is famous for its Cuban cuisine, but for some reason this particular one has become a popular hang out for Latin bikers. As I drank my shot of Cuban coffee, Jorge pulled up on his Victory bike. A couple of minutes later we were joined by 5 other biker friends. We didn’t have any particular ride planned (sometimes those are the best rides), but we quickly voted on heading to Coconut Grove and to have lunch at Scotty’s.

The ride to Scotty’s took us through trendy Coral Gables and into the heart of Coconut Grove. Scotty’s is right on the water in front of the marina which houses some pretty amazing yachts. The place has been around for what seems forever, and if you don’t know the area, it’s pretty difficult to find. They usually always have some live music. Today they had a guitarist playing some late 70’s favorite.

My wife and I shared some baby-back ribs, while some of the others ordered hot wings. Both were absolutely great. We also ordered a big plate of onion rings and a bucket of beer. We hung out at Scotty’s for a pretty long-time because by the time we paid the tab, the sun was already going down. The sky was also threatening with rain, so we all decided to head on home quickly.

As my wife and I rode up 27^th Ave, a large black cloud cam over us and just let it rip. It only took me less than a minute to pull over under a covered parking lot, but we got soaked. And as is usual for South Florida, as soon as we parked the bike, the rain stopped. I told my wife that no matter what next week I’m getting the saddlebag racks put on so we can carry a couple of raincoats.

After storing the bike, we finally made it home at about 9pm. Although a little wet and tired from riding all day long, we were already thinking about our next ride in 2 weeks to Key West for Fantasy Fest.