Michelle Bernstein Leads Culinary At Thompson Miami Beach

In collaboration with KNR Hospitality Group, James Beard Award-winning celebrity chef Michelle Bernstein has been tapped to oversee the culinary direction of Thompson Miami Beach, with three restaurants slated to open in mid-November.

Two of those restaurants — the Floridian brasserie Seagrape and the small-plates restaurant 1930's House — will feature chef Bernstein's cuisine, and the hotel's signature bar and lounge, Crown Room, will feature local expert bartenders specializing in mid-century cocktails.

The 267-seat Seagrape will focus on "locally sourced bounty from both land and sea," and chef Bernstein will work with local farmers to provide specialty items exclusively for the Seagrape menu. Menu items will include crispy veal sweetbreads, housemade squid ink spaghettini, and whole Florida snapper. Designed by the award-winning Martin Brudnizki Design Studio (MBDS), Seagrape blends "elements of 1950s architecture with a warm, relaxed bohemian flair."

1930's House, built in the 1930s as a freestanding venue and later moved to the hotel, will feature innovative cocktails, Spanish-inspired small plates, and crudos. Chef Bernstein's internationally-inspired menu for 1930's House features fluke crudo, octopus carpaccio, and crispy chickpea panisse, to name a few.

At Crown Room, the beverage program will focus on artisan cocktails — a mix of enduring classics and reimagined revivals — in an intimate and inviting setting.

Slated to open in mid-November 2014, Seagrape, 1930's House and Crown Room will be located at Thompson Miami Beach, 4041 Collins Avenue.