South Beach: Hot, sexy and oh so hip

Brazilian dancers beckon patrons at a South Beach bar and restaurant. (Lebanon Voice/Harrison Thorp photos)

SOUTH BEACH, Fla. - It's 10 p.m. and SoBe is just getting started.

The sidewalks of Collins Avenue are teeming with hipsters and hucksters and everything in between.

After all, this is South Beach, home of Scarface and most of the early episodes of Miami Vice.

Today, with an influx from the LGBT community, South Americans up to escape their winter, Europeans and Australians, this place is as hot a destination as there is on Earth.

Suddenly a jeep with six young black men roars by us down Collins between 15^th and 16^th streets. They're standing in their seats hoisting what looks like a trophy and screaming, "We're number one. We're number one" as the driver pounds on the horn.

They could've been legit, or they could've been doing the Las Vegas commercial. Who knows? But this is standard fare for SoBe. No one even looks up.

Hard to believe that just 50 years ago this was a quiet little enclave made up of old people, Jewish folk and Cubans fleeing Castro's repressive regime.

Art deco hotels line Collins Avenue in South Beach.

But then a couple of things happened in the 1960s. Air conditioning was becoming prevalent in South Beach hotels, and Jackie Gleason was filming his weekly comedy show at a local theater.

Slowly the art deco hotels built in the 1940s and 50s saw their cache rise and the retirement community headed north and the hipsters began to move in.

In the 1990s gays began their own migration infusing cash and creativity.

Now this is truly a mecca for all.

With all the money being spent here on nightlife and vacations, some of the best chefs in the world migrated as well, making it a sought-after locale for foodies of all stripes. Whether your vegan, gluten-free or steak and potatoes, you'll find something you'll like impeccably done.

Diners can sip their beer and gaze from whence it came.

And when you sit down to eat, whatever you do, don't rush. South Floridians like nothing more than to turn a half-hour meal into a two-hour event, enjoying a couple of beverages while savoring a variety of dishes and staying inside a comfortably air-conditioned bistro.

We ate lunch at the Yard House, a beer lover's shrine in the heart of South Beach, where nearly a hundred draft beer offerings await. They even have beer cocktails, beer floats for dessert and a handful of gluten-free beers including one I'd never tried, Brunehaut, an organic Belgian blonde ale. Absolutely delicious.

And much like a Japanese steak house where you can watch the chef prepare you T-bone, beer lovers can gaze at the Yard House's beer room where the scores of kegs supplying your draft are kept comfortably chilled and on display. Too see a list of beers, click here.

Another of their specialties is a baked brownie and ice cream. It takes about 25 minutes, because they bake it to order. Relax, have another beer.

Air conditioning is not only a draw for diners, it's also a draw for shoppers, with many South Beach boutique owners paying a little extra on their electric bill to keep their doors open in the hot sun so that potential shoppers passing by might just follow the cool air inside to shop, and buy.

On this Sunday night it was still hot at 10 p.m., and about to get hotter. Outside a trendy restaurant across from the Richmond Hotel where we stayed, a deejay was spinning Bruno Mars' "Uptown Funk" as two scantily clad Brazilian dancers shimmied and shook.

They happily posed for pictures and engaged passers-by.

Inside, in air-conditioned comfort, we enjoyed three delicious pulled-pork tacos that were deep-fried for extra crispiness, and adorned with thinly sliced radishes, mixed greens and a touch of cilantro for about $14.

But beware South Beach diners. A generous gratuity is included in your check in many South Beach restaurants. No wonder our waitress was beaming when I gave her - unbeknownst to me at the time - a double tip!

By the time we were done with our late dinner, it was close to midnight, but no worries. Most bars down here are open till 2 a.m. and some are open till 5 a.m.

After all, this is where the world comes to party. You don't want to send them off to bed too early.