Coconut Grove, Oldest District in Miami - Former Pan Am Flying Boat Terminal

Coconut Grove Marina, Miami

The Coconut Grove neighbourhood is the oldest continuously inhabited district of the City of Miami, dating back to 1834. Locals often refer to the area as the Grove.

Tree-lined Restaurant Area
Its fairly small centre is a pleasant area of tree-lined streets with restaurants and bars, and a couple of slightly upmarket shopping malls – CocoWalk, which has a multi-screen cinema, and Streets of Mayfair.

There isn't the regular grid pattern of streets and avenues that other parts of Miami have, and the streets have names, not numbers.
  
Wild-West Bar
Mr. Moe's is a bar-restaurant in Commodore Plaza, in the restaurant area, done up in Wild-West style. It's bit tacky looking but normally it has at least a couple of microbrew beers and it usually serves veggie burgers. Ask before being seated, and try to get the fries without salt.

Early Settlement
Coconut Grove was settled by immigrants from Key West, the northeast of the United States, Britain and the Bahamas. Although Coconut Grove was incorporated as a city in 1919, it was absorbed into the City of Miami in 1925.

City Hall Former Seaplane Terminal
In fact Miami's city hall is located in Coconut Grove, not Downtown Miami, in what once was the Pan American Seaplane Terminal, on Dinner Key, an island in Biscayne Bay which was joined to the mainland.

The terminal had a huge revolving globe of the world in the lobby, weighing almost three tonnes, which attracted thousands of visitors to the building, plus a restaurant, a cocktail lounge, customs and immigration desks, and an observation area to watch takeoffs and landings.

Pan Am Flying Boats to Latin America
Pan Am started its services from Miami to Latin America in 1930 with a flight to Panama. Flying boats, also known as flying clipper ships, were initially used because of inadequate airfields on the South American route. But by 1945 landing fields had become available in Latin America, and Pan Am stopped flying seaplanes from Coconut Grove.

Marinas and Waterfront Bar-Restaurants
Close to the city hall, off South Bayshore Drive, is a series of marinas, and two bar-restaurants on the waterfront – Monty's and Scotty's Landing.

Boaters can find directions on the Scotty's Landing website. Although you can moor alongside a jetty and walk directly into the restaurant, the site also points out that shoes and shirts are required dress.

At Monty's I ordered a veggie burger, which I ate because I was hungry, but the bread was dry and the salad unexciting. However this is a pleasant spot to sit and have a drink, and the beer was a microbrew, Samuel Adams if I remember right.

Hippies and Madonna and Sylvester Stallone
In the 1960s and 70s Coconut Grove attracted a bohemian and hippie population, but most of them are long gone. Famous former residents include Sylvester Stallone and Madonna.

The Barnacle – Oldest House
Right in the centre is The Barnacle, the oldest house in Miami-Dade County still in its original location, now a museum set in a park with a view over Biscayne Bay.

Shopping in Coconut Grove
There are bigger shopping malls all over Miami-Dade County, but if you're looking for music or films, check out FYE in CocoWalk. However, European visitors should bear in mind that DVDs will almost certainly be region one, which are incompatible with most DVD players in the UK and elsewhere in Western Europe, unless you have multi-region player.

Bookshop and Café with Vegan Cupcakes
Close to CocoWalk is The Bookstore in the Grove, an independent bookshop with free wi-fi and a café which serves vegan cupcakes, located in Virginia Street.

“Unsafe” Grand Avenue and Racism
Even though the centre of Coconut Grove is a safe area, including the part of Grand Avenue nearest to CocoWalk, several people have warned me that away from the shopping and restaurant district Grand Avenue is dangerous.

However, I have walked the full length of the avenue several times, as my wife works there, without any problem. People of Bahamian origin live in the area, so I think the real problem is racism.

Vizcaya and the Science Museum
Although Vizcaya Museum, with its mansion and extensive gardens, and Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium are within the boundaries of Coconut Grove, neither of them is in the centre. Both of them are close to Vizcaya Metrorail Station.

Buses and Trains from South Beach
It is possible to get to the centre of Coconut Grove from South Beach by public transport, but it will take over an hour, and longer in the evenings and at weekends.

Local Bus from Coconut Grove Metrorail Station
When you arrive at Coconut Grove Metrorail Station you are not in the restaurant and shopping area, but the number 249 bus will get you there in about ten minutes, and costs just 25 cents. This bus service runs from Coconut Grove Station through the centre to the next station on the line at Douglas Road.

Directions to Coconut Grove in Google Transit
For directions to Coconut Grove, either driving or by bus or train, click on the Google Transit link in the right-hand sidebar of this blog.

If you'd like tips on using Google Transit see the following post: Directions in Miami - Walking, Driving, Bike, Buses & Trains.