Zulma Torres 
Miami’s Best-Kept Secret Lives on RIVANI’s Third Floor
From the team behind Delilah, The Nice Guy and Bootsy Bellows, Bar Shishi brings together Japanese cocktail technique, a highly considered food program and a music program curated specifically for the space.
Bar Shishi is the new Japanese-inspired cocktail lounge from The h.wood Group, located on the third floor of RIVANI, a $125 million office redevelopment in Miami Beach, near Lincoln Road. The 2,000-square-foot lounge features a Japanese ice program, small plates, and curated music. A 12-seat bar anchors the room beneath a sculptural arch, and 108 private spirits lockers give members a place to store personal bottle reserves. It operates as a private amenity for RIVANI members on weekdays, opening to the public Wednesday through Saturday evenings.
Senior bar manager Kevin Lee, a certified Japanese Ice Master, leads the bar program. Lee uses hand-carved diamond ice, kakigōri-style shaved ice, Japanese cobbler shaking, and cocktail throwing to bring visible technique to each drink. House-made bitters, tinctures, and infusions build umami-forward flavor, while rum and tropical fruit pull in a Miami sensibility. Signature drinks include: Guava Kakigōri – shaved ice layered with rum, guava, yuzu, and shiso; Hakushu 12 Old Fashioned – served over one of Lee’s hand-carved ice diamonds; Point Zero – rum-forward with tropical fruit; Lychee Martini – a classic recipe updated with lychee, bergamot, and shochu.
The menu is built to pace with cocktails, not compete with them. Small plates like Hamachi Crudo with yuzu ponzu, serrano, and shiso, along with hand rolls and maki such as the Lion Crunch Roll, are designed to keep the table ordering throughout the night. Heartier dishes follow, including Chicken Karaage with Bulldog sauce and Wagyu Katsu made with A5 Wagyu and caramelized onions in milk bread. Roasted Japanese Eggplant, Caviar Service, and desserts like a Matcha Sugar Cookie with miso caramel round out the offering.
Eddie McDonald, known as Eddie Mac and serving as musical director, curated a collection of more than 100 records spanning deep house, funk, soul, disco, and Latin influences. The soundtrack shifts through the night, starting low enough for conversation and building toward a livelier DJ set later on.
Bar Shishi runs on two schedules. Monday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m., it operates exclusively for RIVANI members and their guests. Wednesday through Saturday, from 7 p.m. to close, it is open to the public.
RIVANI is built around the idea that work, wellness, and leisure don’t need separate addresses. Members can move between the office, fitness and wellness spaces, and Bar Shishi without leaving the building. Rivani said partnering with The h.wood Group brought the intrigue of Tokyo’s nightlife into that vision, giving the building what he calls its “social heartbeat.”
Bar Shishi shows how office buildings are starting to borrow from hospitality design, treating the workday as one part of a longer experience rather than the whole. For RIVANI members, that means a martini can be as close as the elevator. For everyone else, it’s a reason to seek out a lounge that isn’t trying to be found.
Bar Shishi is located at 1691 Michigan Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33139, Third Floor. More information is available at barshishimiami.com.
