TAKING OFF

Mitch Amsterdam and Mike Linder, pioneeers of the private jet catering industry, began their round-the-clock business in 2001 with Silver Lining InFlight Catering.  “It’s 24 hours a day, we’ve never closed in 12 years,” Linder says. The two lifelong friends have set the standard for aviation concierge services, providing a first class experience for worldwide

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2018 Buick Enclave

Overview: The three-row crossover is no longer a novelty in the automotive industry, but Buick’s new model (and new sub-brand) certainly feels like a revelation. It offers all of the cutting-edge technology and premium materials that one would expect from a luxury ride amid an interior setting that manages to balance high style and you’ll-feel-right-at-home

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Fun and Games

Xtreme Action Park High score: Xtreme positions itself as an entertainment complex, but even that description fails to do justice to the activities and adventures inside this sprawling facility. To be sure, there are plenty of arcade attractions—more than 100 popular and cutting-edge entries, including the XD Dark Ride Theater, an interactive 7D movie where

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Friendly Foundation

A chance encounter about 30 years ago rippled to affect lives today. When Scott Mishner and physician Stuart Bederman met at a movie theater, they realized their families had something in common: their children “fell between the cracks,” as they were highly functioning and motivated but in need of structured help. From this friendship, they founded

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Guarding Your Health

As Lisa Marie Presley traveled and performed across the country, 38-year-old Chris Kingen (pictured left) spent hours on her tour buses, slicing vegetables and washing fruit. Kingen, Presley’s bodyguard at the time, was rarely caught without a blender and a few extra bananas, which he used to create on-the-go smoothies. Presley’s tour bus driver and

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In the Driver’s Seat

Near the center of downtown Miami, Braman Enterprises is hard to miss. One of Florida’s largest car dealership companies, it commands a large portion of 20th Street. But this facility does more than sell cars. After a major expansion about five years ago, Braman created a wing dedicated to education, in which dozens of young

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Let it Roll

Diamond Strike Lanes Number of lanes: 32 What’s striking: It’s been around since 1958, and it’s still going strong. Diamond Strike has a nostalgic and casual vibe that’s complemented by something you don’t see every day at a bowling center—live music. Singers and bands take the stage at Rip’s Sports Bar & Grill (check the

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Philanthropy in Tow

Coconut Creek residents might recognize Emerald Transportation’s trucks as the city’s contracted towing company. But what they might not know is that the company also is home to Towers with a Heart, a nonprofit organization that began in 2012 to educate Florida drivers about the so-called “move-over” law. Jim Jennings, a member of the organization’s

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Without a Trace

Claudio Sorrentino hasn’t built a burgeoning empire entirely on other people’s regret, but the continuing growth of Body Details certainly can be attributed, in part, to that emotion. That’s because the state-of-the-art PicoWay laser used at the company’s multiple South Florida locations provides more than just hair removal and skin rejuvenation. The Class IV laser,

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Reel Them In

If you spend some time with Mark Zoradi, CEO of the Cinemark USA theater chain, it won’t take long for him to try to persuade you that watching a movie in the comfort of your family room is fine—but that going out to the cinema is an entirely different experience. Especially at Cinemark Palace 20

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THE SOUND OF MUSIC

South Florida is one of the few regions where you can see an authentic Cuban band, a rising jazz star and a legendary hardcore act performing in different cities along a 70-mile stretch. It’s that variety—and the sheer number of clubs, theaters and bars where someone can catch a live set on any given night—that

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The Noodle With a Heart

Four gluten-free grams of carbs and less than 20 calories. That’s all it took for Alfonso Tejada to secure $300,000 of funding on the ninth season of the ABC television program “Shark Tank.” “It’s hard to believe this actually happened,” says Tejada, whose pitch to the show’s “sharks” was featured in an episode that aired

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