Haute Living just launched our newly redesigned website, which is constantly being updated with the most pertinent information about the luxury lifestyles in each of our markets. Over the course of Haute Living Miami’s five-year history, we have encountered and profiled some of the city’s most notable individuals. While we are happy to share their stories with you, now we want to take it one step further. These are people who have the inside scoop about the Miami scene, so we thought it prudent to ask them for their opinion on the city’s best, from brunches and power lunches to romantic dinner spots and shopping destinations. You can find a slew of these completed questionnaires on HauteLiving.com, and we will be showcasing the answers from one notable individual in each edition from here on out. For our first Platinum Guide, we asked Shareef Malnik of The Forge restaurant fame for his thoughts on Miami’s hautest venues.

Name Shareef Malnik

Age 51

Where were you born Miami, FL

How long in Miami I’ve lived in Miami most of my life, except after law school when I traveled the world from 1982 to 1990.

Neighborhood Ocean Drive, South of Fifth

Occupation Restaurateur

The Most Notable Miami Resident Craig Robins helped shape the way we live and work in South Beach and the Design District. His developments and projects have never sacrificed the public good for personal greed, but on the contrary have always promoted beauty, art, and designs that are friendly and appropriate. The risks he has taken have resulted in new and thriving neighborhoods that are a testament to his status as a true visionary.

Favorite Restaurant The Forge. I built exactly what I like.

Best Sushi Shoji

Best Ethnic Food Mr. Chow

Best Italian Randazzo’s in Coral Gables and Scarpetta at the Fontainebleau

Best Pizza Sosta on Lincoln Road from the Quattro boys

Best Lunch Juice & Java

Best Place for Late Night Dining Au Pied du Cochon

Best Dessert Date Pudding from Joe Allen. It tastes a thousand times better than it sounds.

Best Place for a Romantic Date Casa Tua

Best Sunday Brunch Nemo

Hautest Club LIV at Fontainebleau

Hautest Lounge Wall at W South Beach

Best Place for a Power Business Meeting Joe’s Stone Crab, where every politician and power broker does their networking

If you have out of town guests, which hotel would you recommend? Fontainebleau

Favorite Shopping Venue/Boutique Dolce & Gabbana in Bal Harbour, the Webster in South Beach, and En Avance in the Design District

Best Place to Buy Jewelry/Watches Buchwald Jewelers and Pastime Inc.

Best Spa mySpa at Hotel InterContinental Miami

Best Gym/Athletic Facility The best personal training gym, Elite Health & Performance; The best gym to train at, Equinox.

Best Massage Male, Hassel Daniel; Female, Nicole Halkides

Best Limousine/Driving Services Aventura Limo, Carefree Lifestyle, and Julio Limo

Favorite Charity Event Hotel InterContinental Miami Make-A-Wish Ball, of which I am chairman

Favorite Cultural Event Art Basel

Favorite Cultural Institution Miami City Ballet

Best Museum/Exhibit Miami Art Museum (MAM), MOCA and The Wolfsonian

Favorite Historic/Legendary Place to See or Explore I love to explore Miami by boat, and have been doing so since I was 13 years old. Whether riding through the labyrinth of canals that make up Miami Beach or up the Miami River in Downtown, I always find something new and amazing. I have also discovered great wreck dives off the coast of Miami Beach and explored them thoroughly. One can explore restaurants, houses, fishing holes, dive sites, architecture, and water sports by boat.

All-Around Favorite Locale in Miami The Design District. It is what South Beach was like when it started. It is the future.

Best Aspect of Miami is its tropical environment and diverse ethnic flair. We live in a spicy city near the equator where clothing is minimal and inhibitions are rare. Its diversity is represented in food, clothing, architecture, and art. It’s a very c’est la vie town which chooses not to judge but rather is very accepting of all times. If the rest of the world were like Miami, there wouldn’t be any wars and there would probably be a lot more babies!