WGM Weekender: Mr Chow is Out. Major Food Group is in. NBA Finals w Crosscourt Founder Charles Seltzer.
+ the Best Real Estate Listings this Week in Miami
Summer Shake Up: Mr. Chow is Out. The Rumor Mill Says Major Food Group is in and the W is changing to Waldorf.
After 17 years on Collins Avenue, Mr. Chow has closed its doors at the W South Beach. The iconic dining room, the 123-foot gold leaf chandelier, the Beijing duck, the nightly noodle show, is done. It had a good run. South Beach in 2009 was exactly the right place for it. South Beach in 2026 is a different city (althought I still loved it!).
Now the rumors start.
Word circulating in Miami hospitality circles is that Major Food Group is taking over the space. The name being whispered is The Grill, their mid-century chophouse concept that has been one of the most celebrated restaurant openings of the last decade out of the Seagram Building in New York. If that lands on Collins Avenue, it’s a significant moment. MFG already has Carbone, ZZ’s Club, and a deepening footprint in Miami. Adding The Grill at the W would be a dominant force in South Beach dining overnight.
And here’s where it gets more interesting. The W itself may not be the W for much longer. There is talk that the property is headed toward a conversion to Waldorf Astoria. That would be a meaningful brand elevation for one of the best-located hotels in Miami Beach, 300 feet of Atlantic frontage on Collins Avenue, and it would signal a new chapter for a property that has been looking for its next identity since the acquisition.
A Major Food Group restaurant inside a Waldorf Astoria on South Beach. If the rumors are right, that corner of Collins Avenue is about to become a very different address.
We’re watching. We’ll report back when the ink is dry.
The Miami Basketball Show: NBA Finals Preview, Destiny, Red Wine, and Knicks in Six
The NBA Finals are here. We sat down with Charles, founder of Crosscourt (Find out more about Crosscourt at this LINK), the Equinox-meets-Barry’s-Bootcamp of basketball coming to Miami very soon, for the debut episode of the Miami Basketball Show. We talked Brunson, Wemby, KAT’s inevitable stupidity, and why destiny might just be a real thing.
The Western Conference was a bloodbath. OKC crumbled. The Spurs survived. Meanwhile the Knicks walked through the East like they owned it, no Giannis, no Jokić, no Halliburton, and somehow made it look inevitable.
Now it’s Jalen Brunson and a 53-year drought against Victor Wembanyama and whatever planet he came from. It’s the best possible Finals matchup, and we’re not going to pretend otherwise just because the Heat aren’t in it.
Here’s what you need to know.
The Knicks Are a Team of Destiny. That’s Not a Cliché.
The last time these two franchises met in the Finals was 1999. The Knicks have spent the decades since cycling through Marbury, Carmelo, and James Dolan’s greatest hits of mismanagement. And yet here they are.
The path they took to get here matters. No Giannis. No Jokić. No OKC. Everything was handled for them, and they still annihilated everyone put in front of them. That’s not luck. That’s a team that believes it’s supposed to be here.
Brunson is the reason. He has that playoff thing, the Mahomes factor, the killer gene that shows up when the lights get brightest. He took a $100 million discount to build this team. He came from Dallas as an afterthought. He’s undersized by every NBA standard and he does not care. If the Knicks win this, Jalen Brunson becomes the greatest Knick in the modern era. Patrick Ewing never won a title. Nobody else is close.
But Wembanyama Is an Alien. Literally.
Seven foot six. Moves like water. Spends his offseasons dribbling up hills in China and doing pool training and reading books. He beat Oklahoma City, a team nobody thought anyone was beating, and he’s 22 years old. He changes the game just by standing in the paint. He doesn’t just have the talent. He wants to win. That combination, at that age, at that size, doesn’t exist anywhere else in sports right now.
The X-Factors Nobody Is Talking About Enough
Everybody’s focused on Brunson and Wemby. The series gets decided somewhere else.
Stefan Castle (Spurs): Forget the alien for a minute. Castle has that angry, rip-your-heart-out Jimmy Butler defensive energy. He plays hard every possession, locks in on defense even when his shot isn’t falling, and he’s going to make Brunson’s life miserable all series long.
Karl-Anthony Towns (Knicks): The best shooting big in the league is the ultimate wild card. If KAT can pull Wemby out of the paint, it opens everything up for Brunson. The problem is KAT is also capable of doing something spectacularly stupid at the worst possible moment — early fouls, a phantom timeout, something. He’ll have one transcendent game and at least one moment that makes Knicks fans consider throwing their television out the window. That’s just who he is.
OG Anunoby & Mikal Bridges (Knicks): OG is likely drawing the short straw of guarding Wemby, which is arguably the hardest job in basketball right now. You’ll also get at least one unhinged Josh Hart game — six for eight from three, completely out of nowhere — and when it happens, the series shifts.
MSG Is Worth Two Games by Itself
San Antonio has rabid fans and great basketball history. It is not the same thing as playing in Madison Square Garden in the NBA Finals. The front row is going to be Chalamet, Spike Lee, Ben Stiller, Tracy Morgan, a few billionaires, and all the Kardashian-adjacent drama that follows KAT everywhere he goes. It is the biggest city in the world turned into a pressure cooker. The Spurs are going to feel that.
The Watchlist: How to Do This Right
You can’t watch a historic Finals on an empty stomach. Two options.
The Light & Elite Miami Move: High-end sushi. Clean, easy, you can jump out of your seat without feeling sluggish by halftime.
The Locked-In Luxury Spread: Start with a beautiful Pinot Noir, this is a red wine situation, not a rosé, or head to The Flowery to take the edge off. DoorDash John & Vinny’s: wings, tomato pie, side salad, spicy rigatoni. Close it out with a chocolate chip cookie. Savor the victory or cushion the loss.
The Pick: Knicks in Six
The head says Spurs. They have the best player on the floor, came from the harder conference, and have a deeper bench. On paper they should win this.
But destiny is a funny thing. There’s nothing more common in this world than wasted talent, victory doesn’t only come from ability, it comes from persistence and something harder to name. The Knicks have that thing right now. And this might be their one clean shot. The Celtics are coming back. Wemby gets another ten shots at this over the next decade. The Knicks, in the Brunson era, may not.
Let New York have one last run at glory. Then Miami takes it all from here.
Knicks in six.
Game 1 Update: Called It.
Down 14 in the third quarter, in San Antonio, on the road, in the NBA Finals — and Brunson scored 13 points in the fourth quarter alone to close it out. Final score: Knicks 105, Spurs 95. New York extended their postseason win streak to 12 games and became the first team to ever beat the Spurs in a Game 1 of the Finals — San Antonio was 6-0 in those before Wednesday night.
Destiny isn’t a talking point anymore. It’s a box score.
Game 2 is Friday. Knicks in six.
The Miami Basketball Show is a collaboration between What’s Good Miami and Crosscourt. Find out more about Crosscourt at this LINK
A Remodeled 1920s Sanctuary on Pine Tree Drive. This gated mid-beach estate brings a polished, organic soul to one of Miami Beach’s most historic corridors.
5236 Pine Tree Drive stands as a masterclass in modernizing heritage architecture, completely bypassing the stark aesthetic of local new builds for something far warmer. Dating back to 1925, the substantially remodeled two-story residence functions as a highly secure, private oasis enclosed by lush tropical landscaping and mature mango trees. It is a rare find in the 33140 zip code, giving buyers a turn-key smart home positioned just minutes from the sands of Mid-Beach and the fairways of La Gorce Country Club.
The 3,140 SF interior balances clean lines with classic textures, pairing original wood features with high-end porcelain tile flooring. The layout centers around a striking great room with a fireplace, leading into a brand-new open gas kitchen loaded with an eat-in island, Sub-Zero, and Wolf appliances. The primary wing serves as a true indoor-outdoor retreat, featuring custom closet built-ins and a versatile Florida room with sliding glass panels that completely recess out of sight. Outside, the backyard transitions into a resort-style playground anchored by a redone PebbleTec heated saltwater pool, an outdoor shower, and a covered summer kitchen complete with a motorized retractable screening system for bug-free, year-round dining.
THE DEETS:
Price: $4,695,000 (Also available for rent at $26,000/mo)
Neighborhood: Mid-Beach (Beach View), Miami Beach
Square Footage: 3,140 SF
Lot Size: 7,563 Square Feet
Built: 1925 (Substantially Remodeled)
Rooms: 4 Bedrooms, 3.5 Bathrooms
Amenities: Heated PebbleTec Pool, Summer Kitchen with Motorized Screens, Smart Home Technology, Wolf/Sub-Zero Appliances, Fireplace, 1-Car Garage
Listing Agency: Compass Florida, LLC by Nancy Batchelor
→ Buy Now
An Ultra-Private Gated Sanctuary on Brickell Avenue. This massive estate brings a rare suburban scale to Miami’s most energetic urban corridor.
2820 Brickell Avenue is an expansive residential stronghold tucked behind private gates, standing right in front of Wainwright Park. It offers a total departure from the high-rise glass towers defining the area, sitting on a sprawling 20,000-square-foot lot that connects you to Coconut Grove, Brickell, and the Design District in minutes. It is the ultimate mainland hideaway for someone who values massive ground acreage without sacrificing central city proximity.
The 6,522 SF interior (with an 8,881 SF total structure) emphasizes light and spatial volume, detailed with soaring ceilings and a blend of marble and hardwood floors. The floor plan spans two stories, featuring a chef’s kitchen anchored by an oversized quartz island, custom cabinetry, and a dedicated wine cellar. Upstairs, the primary suite features French marble baths and a private sitting area bathed in natural light. Outside, the property functions as a gated tropical fortress, boasting a Chicago brick driveway, a heated pool with an integrated jacuzzi, a full summer kitchen, and a four-car garage equipped with an integrated car lift for collector vehicles.
THE DEETS:
Price: $10,900,000
Neighborhood: Brickell (Brickell Flagler), Miami
Square Footage: 6,522 SF (8,881 SF Total Structure)
Lot Size: 20,000 Square Feet (0.46 Acres)
Built: 1999 (Updated)
Rooms: 6 Bedrooms, 6.5 Bathrooms
Amenities: Heated Pool & Jacuzzi, 4-Car Garage with Car Lift, Summer Kitchen, Wine Cellar, Impact Windows/Doors, Fronting Wainwright Park
Listing Agency: Coldwell Banker Realty by Judith Zeder & Nathan Zeder
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A Mega-Scale Tropical Modern Compound on Center Island. This sprawling compound pushes the boundaries of elite ocean-access living in Miami’s most secure enclave.
385 Centre Island stands as a monumental architectural achievement hidden within Golden Beach, a town completely protected by its own private police force and private beach gates. Constructed in 2014, the massive compound completely breaks away from the modest footprints of the neighborhood to command a premier half-acre parcel. Boasting 137 feet of wide, direct Intracoastal frontage with zero fixed bridges to the Atlantic, it serves as a generational sanctuary meticulously tailored for serious yachting enthusiasts.
The massive 10,802 SF interior structure provides an exercise in pure volumetric luxury, featuring dramatic high ceilings and walls of custom-engineered impact glass. Built to operate as a high-end personal resort, the expansive two-story floor plan incorporates twelve large bedrooms, a commercial-ready chef’s kitchen, and a formal dining setup tailored for grand-scale entertainment. The primary wing is a private sanctuary of its own, complete with custom closet cabinetry and private upper-level views across the water. Outside, the western-facing backyard morphs into a spectacular waterfront oasis, offering an integrated indoor gym and spa, a built-in outdoor grill, a deep-water dock, and a multi-tiered sun deck framing sunset views over the Intracoastal.
THE DEETS:
Price: $41,995,000
Neighborhood: Golden Beach, FL
Square Footage: 10,802 SF (Living Area) / 14,225 SF (Total Structure)
Lot Size: 22,688 Square Feet (0.52 Acres)
Days On the Market: 9
Built: 2014
Rooms: 12 Bedrooms, 12.5 Bathrooms
Amenities: 137’ Intracoastal Frontage, Private Yacht Dock, Indoor Gym & Spa, Double-Gated Driveway, 4-Car Garage, Deeded Private Beach Access
Listing Agency: Miles Goldstein Real Estate by Alexander Goldstein & Alejandro Victores
→ Buy Now
Keep your SPF high and your standards higher.
See you at the beach,
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