1. South Beach /
Duval Beach Club
Swaying palms, windsurfers and sun worshippers dot this sandy public
beach. Duval Beach Club, owned by actress Kelly McGillis, offers a newly
refurbished oceanside eatery and a gorgeous vista.
2. 1400 Duval Street, J. Vining Harris
House / Southernmost Mansion
Perhaps Key West's most elegant tribute to grandeur, the J. Vining Harris
House, circa 1905, is a treasure. Built for a judge, the home was once
a popular waterfront restaurant, Casa Cayo Hueso, where literary notables
such as Tennessee Williams and Carson McCullers dined in the Fifties.
Opens in spring, 2002, as a new historical museum, with exhibitions of
historic Key West photographs and displays of one-of-a-kind visual memories
of our island.
3. 1327 Duval Street, E. H. Gato, Jr. House / Southernmost
Point Guesthouse
Built originally in 1885 and first located across Duval, this expansive
Classic Revival manse, a contributing structure in the National Register
District, was once owned by E. H. Gato, Jr., a leading cigar manufacturer.
His father was Key West's first cigar magnate. Reportedly, the house
was put on rollers and moved because the owner preferred morning sun,
not afternoon sun!
4. 1211 Duval, Banana Café
This Paris-like café, with its welcoming porch on Duval, serves
up warm crepes, delicious breakfasts and lunches. A very cool spot.
Historically, this was the birthplace and childhood home of Mario Sanchez,
Key West's folk artist, whose wood carvings of old Key West are nationally
recognized.
4a. 1210 Duval, Alan Maltz Gallery
Photographer Alan Maltz owns this Duval Street Victorian, which exhibits
two floors of his photographic images of Key West, Miami Beach and
south Florida. A wonderful setting.
5. 1200 Duval Street, L. Valladares Newsstand
" One of the great newsstands of the world," according to the late
Charles Kuralt. Valladares Newsstand, which celebrates its 75th anniversary this
year, first opened in this location in July, 1953.
Renovated this year, the steel and concrete building originally cost $15,000!
Customers, from Ernest Hemingway in the Thirties to Tennesssee Williams and Jimmy
Buffett in the Seventies to Annie Dilliard, and Ann Beattie these days, have
picked up their New York Times here. Out of town newspapers, comics, periodicals,
paperbacks, best sellers and works by local authors fill the shelves. Fun to
browse!
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6.
1125 Duval / Alice's Restaurant at La Te Da
Jose Marti, the Cuban revolutionary, martyr and patriot, often viewed as Cuba's
Abraham Lincoln, made this T. Perez Residence his American head-quarters
as he sought funds to lead the war for independence from Spain in the 1890's.
Opened as La Terraza de Marti in 1977, now La-te-da, it is home for Alice's
Restaurant, a gourmet restaurant, and Sunday Brunch phenomena. A grand Duval
Street experience.
6a. 1207 Duval, Gingerbread Square Gallery
In this former 1900 Conch residence, a prominent gallery, originally founded
by Mayor Richard Heyman in 1974, displays fine works of art and glass. Locally
owned by painter Sal Salinero and his partner.
7. 1215 Duval Street, Coco Bistro
Terrace dining highlights this eatery with a European flair. Newly transformed
from a decades-old Cuban eatery, you can enjoy aperfect mojito, the famed
Cuban rum and mint libattion, at the Magician Bar, live music and fine food
in this colorful and uptown setting.
8. 1108 Duval, Cuban Club / Country Conch
Founded in 1900, the Cuban Club was organized by immigrants to provide moral
support to each other. In 1920 these twin facades became a social club for
Hispanics, where dances, billiard tournaments and political rallies took
place. The original edifice was destroyed by fire in 1983.
This reconstruction features the original columns, turrets and facade pediments.
Country Conch, a fascinating shop filled with marine and wildlife wood sculptures,
highlights the work of owner/sculptor Paul Burkhardt.
8a. 1109 Duval, Key West Realty / Historic Hideaways
This gem-like Frame Vernacular edifice with its welcoming sunlit front porch
provides a new home to Key West Realty. Built at the turn of the century,
it was a neighborhood Cuban drugstore. |
