Velvet underground: Oct 17-23

Don't you look fancy in your hipster bowling alley shoes?

The crowd at the forge

Member rating: 2

By Lesley Abravanel

Sometimes, when it comes to nightlife, we wish that creativity was flowing as freely as the cocktails. Such may be the case at Swoon, the new biweekly Friday night dinner party at The Forge created by a nocturnal collaborative known as the Fraternity of Artistic Souls, the brainchild of Maxwell Blandford, Shareef Malnik and Ernesto Arambatzis. But this isn't your older brother's Animal House. Instead, Swoon is a refined dinner party featuring a three-course menu, white glove service, a glass of Moet & Chandon and complimentary martini reception sponsored by Veev. The $55 menu also comes with a cool soundtrack of, according to a publicist, "an abstract but thoughtfully crafted blend of early '80s new romantic, opera, up-tempo experimental rock, folk and Saint-style disco." We're not sure what Saint-style disco is, but they say the music is similar to that at Base on Lincoln Road. Each Swoon party has a theme; Friday's celebrates the birthday of gal about town Erica Freshman and has a Berlin 1929 motif. Life is a cabaret, you know. 305-538- 8533 or swoon@theforge.com.

And as fun as swooning over a fabulous dinner may be, consider Splitsville, the fabulously named new bowling "parlor" opening Tuesday at The Shops at Sunset Place, in which lanes are split in a way that makes bowlers feel as if they have their own private alley. Food and Wine's Up and Coming Chef Tim Cushman has created a fabulous menu and a sushi bar inspired by Chicago hot spot Kamehachi of Tokyo. Speaking of bars, there are four. Swanky! We wonder if the bowling shoes are made by Christian Louboutin. Adult bowling ranges from $6-$7 per game with shoes at $4 and for kids it's $4 a game and $3 for shoes. Lanes can be reserved for $60-$95 per hour by calling 305-665-5263. After 8 p.m. only those 21 and older will be allowed in.

From the alleys to the beach, from 7-9 p.m. Thursday the Environmental Coalition of Miami Beach will host its first fundraiser in the Red Room at Skybar. A minimum donation of $50 will get you cocktails, hors d'oeuvres, membership to ECOMB and a clear conscience for the night knowing your green will go to making our beach cleaner.

Something that may have been a little green before its time was Afterglo, the restaurant at 1200 Washington Ave. owned by Tim Hogle of Tantra and helmed by a pre-Genuine Michael Schwartz. The eco-esque eatery closed long ago and has been vacant for a while. We hear that in its place, allegedly opening Nov. 7, is Hed Kandi Lounge. According to a publicist, "Owners Juan Carlos Dominguez and Miami's own DJ Cedric Gervais deliver a perfect mix of high octane dance floor glamour and down-tempo sexy soul in their newest venture." The so-called gastro-lounge will feature music curated from London's fabulously successful record label. The menu will offer "molecular gastronomy bites" and "Kandi Cocktails," and will list, yipes, the fat and calorie content for the health conscious. Is that really necessary? Anyway, the food is said to be tapas style and "100 percent interactive." Sounds intriguing, but isn't all eating interactive?

Opening nearby at 764 Washington Ave. is the dubiously titled Hot Tuna, an Asian fusion (just what we need) restaurant that's said to be very Coyote Ugly meets upscale, featuring a "theatrical restaurant experience," built around food, friends, fun and rock 'n' roll. A two-sided projection screen above the bar will feature video art installations of Samurai battles, Sumo wrestling -- there's nothing like watching two morbidly obese, half-naked dudes duking it out when you're stuffing your face -- and Geisha girls. Every 90 minutes a gong will ring and servers will hop up on a catwalk and perform to an assortment of music, including songs from Def Leppard and Bon Jovi. In other words, it's Johnny Rockets with sushi and '80s tunes. Sweet! Best of all in our opinion, as opposed to the usual Asian restaurants in this town, this one will have habachi grills. Sounds like something to swoon over.

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Average rating based on 1 review.

What you said

cleolettry

Posted on Wed, 10.22.2008 @ 17:18

Splitsville is cool. COol aura and atmosphere but expensivo to bowl, food was good tho they handed out samplers at the opening party. Go to have fun with a group, eat some comfort food or sushi and drink til late.... Read more

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