Wong Answers
A Fernando Wong Update
On the social front, what exciting events has Fernando Wong been to of late and what restaurants does Fernando frequent?
We just got back from East Hampton, where we went to quite a few parties and New York where we went to quite a few restaurants. In New York, Crown is our favorite and the last time we were there we had a very lively political debate with Barbara Walters and Georgette Mosbacher. You would be very surprised at Barbara’s vote! In Miami Beach we really like Juvia and Pub Belly.
What exciting projects is Fernando currently working on?
We are working on the landscape/hardscape for a major hotel/condo project on Miami Beach with New York based designers Roman & Williams and Raymond Jungles who is doing the landscape for the condominium portion. It truly is a dream come true to be able to work with these incredible design giants. We are also working on a very exciting project doing a roof top garden with a pool for a $25 million South Beach ocean front penthouse with renowned local interior designer Sofia Joelsson.
Why did you decide to open a Palm Beach office?
After doing a very large ocean front estate on Billionaires Row we started getting more and more business. Then after the “Palm Beach Society” cover things just exploded. We rent office space from our very dear friend Leta Austin Foster, the doyenne of Palm Beach interior design. It has an unbelievable location right off of Worth Avenue on Via Mizner across from Renato’s. Luckily it has always been our favorite place to eat in Palm Beach.
You also have a new office in Miami Beach. Tell us about that?
We doubled the size of our staff and simply out grew our old one. The new office is within walking distance of our apartment, which is important because we work all the time. It also has a balcony that overlooks Biscayne Bay and Downtown Miami, which is also pretty great for our wine and cheese open house every Friday.
