Virgin MiamiCentral's Marketplace Officially Opens

By GERRY and PAMELA BARKER
North Palm Beach Life
Published May 24, 2019

We've been waiting for this a long time. Ever since the "Coming Soon" signs appeared at Brightline's MiamiCentral Station over a year ago, in fact.

It's called Central Fare, a marketplace of restaurants and specialty food venues. Last weekend, on the one-year anniversary of the Miami station, it officially opened for business. Having waited so long, we had to see it for ourselves, so this week we booked the Brightline to check it out.

Central Fare is located on the second floor of the MiamiCentral station. You don't need a ticket to ride; just take the escalator up. Past the "Wizard of Oz" exhibit and the Florida Power and Light Charging Station (great idea, FPL and Brightline), you'll find the entrance.  Inside there are currently six eateries open, and more on the way. As the restaurant business is ever-shifting, the lineup has changed since it was announced over a year ago, but there's still lots of variety from which to choose.

Let's take a look--

The FPL Charging Station

Photos by North Palm Beach Life

This way to Central Fare...

Our first stop was Rosetta, an Italian bakery "named in honor of the founder’s oldest sister who resided in a small and humble house in the Italian countryside and who would bring a special bread to share with her five brothers after a day’s work at the mill." We can already see we're going to have to pace ourselves!

La Estacion ... fancy, with a touch of home

La Estacion - American Brasserie, currently Central Fare's only sit-down restaurant, accommodates 240 diners in 10,000 beautifully decorated square feet of space. Owned by Miami mainstay Juvia Group, it's open for lunch and an extended Happy Hour until 8 pm.

The welcoming hostess gave us a tour, and we took advantage of Happy Hour by ordering drinks and some bar bites from Daniella, our friendly Cuban-born bartender.

The stylish, chic bar

Decor lends a homey feel

Bucks Crepes...

Pam ordered the "Glamour" cocktail ($7), and it was amazing. A little prosecco, a little vodka and a large ball of ice with a frozen rosebud in the middle. Plus a side of deviled eggs ($4). Magnifico!

Have a sweet tooth? Head for the "Dulce" section at La Estacion. We had to try the tiramisu ($5). Presented in a jar with the chocolate on top,
​ it was heavenly.

Authentic, French, savory or sweet ... Bucks Crepes is the go-to place for crepes in all their glory. That's the owners on the right -- Christopher and Phillipe. They told us about what goes into their crepes, which are sweet, and galettes, which are savory crepes.  They use buckwheat sourced in the U.S. for their  gluten-free and vegan crepe batter. One savory crepe for Pam, and Gerry will have
​sweet -- thanks very much!

Also now open in Central Fare ...

Patagonia Flavors-
Argentine empanadas

Bio Bio-
​Organic Italian gelato

Coming Soon-
Kuenko Fusion Poke Bowls

For coffee lovers, there's also Parliament Coffee. In the "coming soon" category are Kuenko Fusion Poke Bowls, World Famous House of Mac, 800 Degrees Woodfired Kitchen and Art De Vivre. You can read more about these and others on the CENTRAL FARE WEBSITE. With future development in and around MiamiCentral that includes shopping, expanded transportation offerings and residential living, Central Fare will be an important hub for both
​Miami residents and travelers.

It was well worth the wait.

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