Biltmore Coral Gables - Miami — Hotel Review Rating: 4.0 Pearls

Oyster Review Summary

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Oyster Hotel Review

Reporter: Dipayan G.
Updated: October 12, 2009

 Scene

I observed a few wasted businessmen trying to start up awkward conversations in the Cellar Club. But the Biltmore typically draws professionals and middle- to upper-middle-class families in town for business or pleasure. There's no raucous spring break crowd here.

 Service

The bellboy whisked away my bags the second my cab pulled up to the entrance and promptly disappeared. I was up in my room for less than five minutes when I heard a knock on my door. It was the bellman. He didn't even know my name, let alone my room number, so I don't know how he found me. I reached for a tip, and he stopped me. "All tips are included in your $28 resort fee, you know?" I gave him a tip anyway. A conscientious bellboy is hard to find!

Everyone else I encountered was eager to help, giving me directions around the huge property. Do remember to carry your room key, though. Your name will be printed on it, so it doubles as an ID card. This helps separate guests from locals who stop by to dine at the Biltmore's award-wining restaurants.

Best of all, the Biltmore has 24-hour room service!

 Location

Surrounded by luxurious homes and its famed golf course, the Biltmore doesn't have anything in terms of entertainment or restaurants within walking distance.

The Biltmore is located in Coral Gables, a Miami suburb that balances multimillion-dollar homes, high-end shopping, excellent dining and the University of Miami. This means plenty of beer pong tournaments that get out of hand and move out onto impeccably kept streets.

But a 20-minute walk -- or a short cab ride -- will get you to the Miracle Mile, which has plenty of shops and restaurants.

 Rooms

I marveled at the lobby, with its soaring, vaulted ceilings and carved pillars. My superior room, in comparison, wasn't as awe-inspiring, but it was comfortable and serene.

Painted a simple cream with light wood furnishings, it had little decorative flourishes like a veil whimsically festooned around the bed, which made the room feel special (or at least worthy of haughty language like "whimsically festooned.")

The bed was comfortable, if a little firm. It had high-grade linens and was very clean, barring the few rust stains I discovered on one of the sheets.

Hard-wired and Wi-Fi Internet access were free, though the Wi-Fi was surprisingly faster than the wired Internet connection.

However, technologically speaking, the room wasn't very advanced. There was just a simple alarm clock where I would have expected to see an iPod dock, and the TV was a 32-inch old-school RCA TV that developed really bad static on CNN. I expected better from you, Biltmore!

The bathroom was simple but beautifully detailed, with carved moldings, marble countertops and a brass tissue box. There were plenty of towels and Gilchrist and Soames toiletries for my stay. My only qualm is that I only had hot water for a half-hour while I was getting ready to leave in the morning. Just as I was about to call the front desk, the problem resolved itself. But seeing as how the hotel was built in 1926, I wasn't too upset.

 Features

As if to excuse its landlocked location, the Biltmore is overflowing with high-grade facilities.

Its famous 18-hole, par 71 championship golf course is beautiful. I don't know a thing about golf, but if I had the time, I would have checked out the resident John Pallot Golf Academy.

The Biltmore is best known for its 22,000-square-foot swimming pool. Film buffs take note -- the actor Johnny Weissmuller, better known as Tarzan, used to be a swimming instructor here.

The Biltmore's fitness center and 10 tennis courts have been rated Top 10 in the nation by both Men's Fitness and Men's Health. The 10,000-square-foot fitness center had a lot of machines, but it wasn't well designed. The ceilings were oppressively low, and the rooms were divided into a confusing maze. Since the fitness center is also open to the public -- for a fee -- a number of locals use the gym as well. One former Bostonian who had just moved to Coral Gables said the Biltmore's gym was the classiest in the neighborhood and had the best classes and instructors.

 Family

So, there's no kids' club, but the Biltmore has a lot of activities to offer! Apart from tennis lessons, children can also learn how to play golf on the freshly restored Donald Ross 18-hole par 71 course. But the Bitlmore's most unusual feature is its culinary class where kids receive training in cooking from the hotel's award-winning chefs. Younger children can enjoy water shows with synchronized swimmers doing vintage routines at the hotel's historic pool.

The Biltmore also has free cribs for infants.

 Cleanliness

Considering the amount of dirt and water tracked in from the golf course and swimming pool, I was surprised not to see a grain of dirt anywhere. My only complaint was that there were some rust stains on our sheet.

 Food

The Biltmore's afternoon teas are such an attraction that even locals stop by. Don't miss it. It's served every afternoon in the lobby.

There are two poolside food options. There is full food service to the lounge chairs as well as a full restaurant, the Cascade Bar and Grill, which serves sandwiches and salads. It's a little pricey, though, and the food itself is hardly mind-blowing.

Dinner is served at the Fontana restaurant. In a courtyard under the stars, the prices were astronomical and my order was ... merely "good." Excluding the host's initial attention, service took forever! It took 1.5 hours to get through a one-course meal.

After Fontana, I headed over to the elaborately lacquered Cellar Club. It's supposedly the only bar in Miami that serves more than 100 types of wine by the glass. This once-exclusive club is now open to the public, but a membership will still allow you to BYOB.

I wasn't able to check out Palme d'Or, the jewel in the Biltmore's culinary crown. But it's probably a good sign that it was closed for a wedding party. Winner of multiple awards, this French restaurant is headed by chef Phillipe Ruiz, who received France's highest culinary honor in 2006. No wonder jackets are required and ties "appreciated."

 Bottom Line

Built in 1926, the iconic Biltmore (a national landmark) brings timeless luxury to a hotel scene overwhelmed by skin-deep glitz. Though far from any beaches, it offers doting (tip-free) service, a miraculous pool, a prestigious golf course and a catalog of amenities. Unfortunately, its residential neighborhood can get boring.