Miami is unique, and so are our manners. We have our own rulebook, from the way we greet people to the time we arrive at events. Roxanne Vargas and Sheli Muñiz sat down with an etiquette expert to get a lesson in what’s polite and what’s pushing it and why manners matter.
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Handshake or hug? On time or “Miami time”? Do the rules of etiquette come with a little extra flavor in South Florida?
“If you’re here in Miami, that’s something to be expected and something that you should appreciate and the warmth of it all,” said Alison Cheperdak, founder of Elevate Etiquette and author of Was It Something I Said?
By “warmth,” that can mean going in for the hug and kiss. But if that’s not your thing, Cheperdak said there’s a polite way out.
“So you want to apply the same policy for everybody, and then do something really intentional with your hands, so like clasp your hands in front of you, or put your hands behind your back, or reach out with one hand,” she said. “And then you need to be extra, extra warm and extra, extra kind, if you’re not opting for the hug or the kiss because you don’t want to offend anyone by doing that.”
Then there’s arrival time.
“If you’re going to someone’s home, you definitely do not want to be arriving before the official start time,” Cheperdak said. “And even in Miami, you want to give people a little bit more time, because it’s part of the culture here.”
She said the gracious thing to do is read the room, know your hosts and give them a little extra time rather than showing up exactly when the event is supposed to start.
There’s also modern etiquette around phones and social media, including snapping pictures of your food.
Cheperdak said taking a photo of your meal was once frowned upon, but now it depends.
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“So long as you’re doing it really discreetly, it can be seen as a compliment to the chef or a compliment to the restaurant,” she said.
That also applies if someone posts the photo online with a kind review of a local establishment.
As for AirPods in public, Cheperdak said context matters.
“If you’re having a conversation with someone else who’s not present, like someone on the phone, AirPods are the way to go,” she said. “You don’t want to have speakerphone. That would be rude. But if you are talking to someone in person… that would be rude.”
And honking? Very Miami, but still situational.
“If it’s like a gentle tap, and you are just making someone aware of a light change, or you think that they’re not paying attention, then it’s fine,” Cheperdak said. “But if it’s aggressive, then it’s rude.”
So why does any of this matter?
“It’s all about kindness, grace and showing everyone the respect and integrity that they deserve,” Cheperdak said. “So it’s not about being perfect. It’s not about being performative. It’s really about setting the stage for relationships and conversations that matter.”
Whether it’s a hug, a honk or a hashtag, Miami manners may evolve, but respect never goes out of style.
And at the table? Cheperdak said your phone does not belong there.
“You don’t want to put anything that’s not needed for the meal… no bag, no sunglasses, no phone,” she said.
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