Today we’d like to introduce you to Emi Guerra.
Hi Emi, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I was born and raised in Miami, one of four boys, in a house with no ties to hospitality or nightlife growing up. My dad was a pharmaceutical salesman, my mom was a teacher. Sports and part-time jobs kept me busy through school. Then at 18, almost by accident, I threw my first party, did the math on the door money at a friend’s event and figured I could do it myself. That first party pulled 800 people, and I was hooked. From there it was years of working club doors, throwing parties, and eventually co-founding Club Space, where I spent close to 17 years.
Even though neither of my parents pointed us that way, my brothers all ended up in hospitality in one way or another. Eventually our paths crossed professionally, and today we still get to work together. It wasn’t planned, but it’s something I’m very grateful for — getting to build something alongside the people I grew up with.
A friend, Alex Mantecon, later showed me a piece of land he owned on the Miami River. I pitched him a pop-up concept –a big tent, water views, no cover charge, no velvet rope– and after months of nobody else wanting in, Alex backed it himself. That became The Wharf Miami, and it took off faster than either of us expected. From there it moved quickly. We opened The Wharf Fort Lauderdale and formalized everything under Breakwater Hospitality Group. I’m very lucky to have a business partner like Alex. This wouldn’t have happened without him believing in that first idea.
Then came JohnMartin’s in Coral Gables, an Irish pub that had been a neighborhood institution for 30 years. We made sure to keep the name and bring the founding family in, rather than start from scratch. After that came PIER 5 at Bayside, and then Regatta Grove in Coconut Grove, which opened in 2023 and has become one of our flagship venues.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Not even close. I’ve had real setbacks along the way, starting with my very first year in this business 30 years ago. I bet everything I had on a concert that got rained out, and lost it all. That taught me early on how to take a hit and get right back up, which turned out to be a skill I’d lean on more than once. I went through it during the 2008 downturn, and again around 2012, when a festival I was producing didn’t pan out and I had to start over from close to zero.
COVID was its own gauntlet. We were closed for nine months in Miami and eleven in Fort Lauderdale, and even once we were cleared to reopen, we caught heat just for being one of the few places open. We kept our core team employed through it because we’d always operated with reserves for exactly that kind of rainy day.
More recently, the challenges have looked different: permitting timelines, construction on multiple venues at once, and earning the trust of communities before we ever open a door. At Regatta Grove, for example, we’re right in front of some of the most expensive condos in Miami, so sound was a real concern for neighbors. We met with the village council and community stakeholders before breaking ground, and installed a sound system engineered to push noise out toward the water instead of toward them. We’ve had little to no noise complaints as a result. That kind of groundwork isn’t glamorous, but it’s often what determines whether a venue actually lasts.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Breakwater Hospitality Group is a South Florida hospitality company built around mostly waterfront venues – The Wharf Miami, Regatta Grove in Coconut Grove, PIER 5 at Bayside, JohnMartin’s in Coral Gables, and The Wharf Fort Lauderdale.
What we’re known for is a concept that didn’t really exist in Miami before we built it, a stress-free, no-cover, no-velvet-rope hospitality experience that works for a family during the day and turns into a real night out after dark. That idea came directly out of The Wharf Miami. I wanted to build a place for people who were looking for something different than a night out at a club. People who just wanted to grab a drink, see some friends, or celebrate something, without the headache of unreasonable table minimums, velvet ropes, and cover charges.
What sets us apart operationally is that we take data and community seriously. Two things many operators in this business treat as an afterthought. We’ve built a database which lets us actually understand who’s coming through our doors and market to them intelligently rather than just paying for eyeballs. And when we take on a piece of land, especially one tied to a larger development, we don’t treat hospitality as a loss-leader amenity. We build it to be a legitimate revenue driver and a proof of concept for what a neighborhood can become.
Regatta Grove is probably the clearest example of the philosophy. It’s elevated, but nobody’s showing off. You can walk in off a boat in flip-flops or dress up for it, and neither one feels out of place. Same address, completely different room depending on when you walk in, families and strollers in the afternoon, day-party energy as the afternoon rolls on, and a real nighttime scene once the sun goes down. The best part is those different vibes actually coexist. Depending on where you’re sitting and what time you walk in, you get a completely different experience, and none of them feel out of place next to each other. The thing that’s surprised me most since we opened it in 2023 is how much corporate business has come our way, companies choosing to host their events there. Building something that many different kinds of people claim as their own, that’s not something I take for granted. We want it to be people’s third place. Home, work, and here.
We’re not slowing down, either. We just broke ground on Riverside Wharf, a $350 million hotel and entertainment complex on the Miami River that will include the rebirth and expansion of The Wharf Miami alongside a nightclub, a rooftop dayclub, and a Dream Miami hotel, set to open in 2028. And we’re expanding north as well, with Sea Salt Beach House, our waterfront restaurant selected to anchor the City of West Palm Beach’s redevelopment of Currie Park.
We’re also proud to be part of the effort to bring Miami Marine Stadium back to life, as Oak View Group’s local partner. It’s a project close to home for us, and a good example of the civic work we like being part of beyond our own venues.
What I’m proudest of isn’t any single number. It’s walking through a venue on a good night and watching people leave smiling, seeing it full of the community it was actually built for: families, neighbors, regulars who’ve been coming since we opened. That’s the actual product. Building a place where people genuinely want to be, and one the neighborhood around it is proud to have.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
That the guys who make it aren’t the ones who never fail, they’re the ones who don’t quit. I’ve weathered real setbacks more than once, and every time, the thing that got me back in the game was the same: keep the relationships intact, even when the money isn’t there. Years later, people remember that you did right by them, and it comes back around.
The other lesson is that growth doesn’t pause. If you stop growing, you start dying. That’s part of why we operate with reserves, why we keep saying yes to the next opportunity. You have to keep building, even when things are going well, because that’s what sets you up for the next chapter.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://breakwaterhg.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/breakwaterhg/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emi-guerra-065b6a133/
