The Vagabond Hotel reopened last year after a three-year, multimillion-dollar reno of the former Rat Pack hangout. Originally designed by prominent architect Robert Swartburg, the Vagabond opened as a motel, restaurant and lounge in 1953, before the fashionable mainland "MiMo District" -- that's shorthand for Miami Modern -- even existed. (Back then, the Vagabond was just "new.")
Fast-forward 62 years, and the roomy, low-rise property has retained its classic motel look and feel. The retro hotel signage says it all: I mean, as if every hotel in Miami doesn't have AC. There's ample parking -- a rarity in nearby Miami Beach -- while the 45 rooms, newly opened restaurant and verdant pool area (pictured below) are all like something out of Mad Men, or better yet, out of Pulp Fiction.
My main critique: There are no $5 milkshakes on the restaurant menu...