Bella Rose sprung up as an antidote to the velvet rope and bottle service scene. Co-owner Alfred Spellman says that when the beach became dominated by high rollers and celebrities, “I got sick of going out. And I’m only 29!” So he opened his own hangout—dark, creative and edgy, with “no bottle service pressure.” The crowd it draws is only for those hip enough to know about it. That includes Dennis Rodman, DJ and Lindsay Lohan gal pal Samantha Ronson and Danger Mouse (from musical duo Gnarls Barkley).

Dark and loungy Bella Rose is popular among anyone cool enough to know it exists—like artists, musicians, hipsters, and Dennis Rodman. It's busiest on "Black Sundays," when the owners put on a "pop-art murder night" and faux-kill a different South Beach local each week. It plays out like a real life game of Clue.

The planning and subsequent opening of the nightclub Mokai was such a monumental event that filmmakers made an online documentary about it, called Clubland. Co-owner Nicola Siervo says that by designing the club as one single open space, “It’s like a house party in your living room every single day.” But because it’s so cozy, he adds, “we have to be very selective at the door.”