Miami Mayor Francis Suarez & More Welcome Nami Nori to the Design District During Art Week
On Monday night, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez offered a succinct assessment of the city’s Art Week ahead.
“It’s about as intense a week as there is on the planet,” said Suarez. “As a mayor, I can tell you it’s a three- to five-events-a-night week. But it’s a great way to kick it off with a couple of restauranteurs.”
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The mayor was on the ground floor of Nami Nori in the Design District for the restaurant’s opening night party. Backed by Pharrell Williams, the opening marks the popular restaurant’s expansion to Miami, landing in the city’s luxury retail epicenter, developed by Design Miami founder and event cohost Craig Robins.
“When you see the ecosystem growing like this, it’s very rewarding,” added Suarez. “It’s really about empowering visionaries to do what they do. And the biggest ‘thank you’ to me is their belief in our city. They can invest their money, they can go anywhere, and they chose us,” he added.
Cote restauranteur Simon Kim, another Design District tenant, walked through the doors and made a beeline to the mayor. “Good to see you. I gotta go by — it’s been a while,” said Suarez.
“One of the other things about Miami that I think is really different than any city in America right now is, even as a mayor, it’s hard to keep up with all the things that are happening,” added Suarez. “It’s growing faster than my ability to see every component of it.”
Artist Lee Qui?ones arrived shortly before 11 p.m., followed shortly after by Kaws and Futura. They joined curator Sky Gellalty near one of the chef counters, where cooks doled out handrolls throughout the evening. Other guests included designer Andrew Kwon, gallerist Hannah Traore, Delfin Finley, and DJ Mona Matsuoka.
“We were interested in coming to Miami three years ago during the pandemic when everybody was coming to Miami at the time,” said Nami Nori co-owner Limb. “We came, we scouted different neighborhoods, we’re like, where should we go? And then I was like, very adamant that it’s gotta be the Design District.”
The team ran into an issue: there were no spaces in the neighborhood available. Later, they fielded a call from Design District developer Craig Robins.
“He actually heard about us through Pharrell, because they are quite close friends. So Pharrell would always mention us when they were out to dinner or whatever. He was like, oh, you should bring Nami Nori over to Miami,'” added Limb. “So [Robbins] called us up and he’s like, ‘I need to tell Pharrell something.’ He reached out to meet us and see what it was about, and from there he was super supportive of us coming in [to the Design District]. He’s like, ‘I don’t have anything available, but I’m gonna keep you in mind and I’m gonna find something for you guys.’ And he found us this amazing place.”
The restaurant is already booked up, with private events lined up throughout the week.
“Everybody’s been warning us all week how crazy Art Basel is,” said chef and co-owner Jihan Lee. “We’re like, how crazy can it be, you know? So we’re very excited to see the craziness, and we’re excited for the energy in the city. I think it’s a great time to open.”
Launch Gallery: Kaws, Futura and More Celebrate Nami Nori's Opening at Art Basel
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