The 27th Annual Best Buddies Miami Gala returned to Mana Wynwood Convention Center on November 15, 2025, bringing together 850 guests for an evening of philanthropy, performance, and design.
Held in support of Best Buddies International’s mission to create friendships, jobs, leadership opportunities, inclusive living, and family support for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, the gala has become one of Miami’s anchor charity events.
For this year’s edition, Best Buddies entrusted renowned event planner and lifestyle authority Colin Cowie with the creative vision. Inside Mana Wynwood’s expansive industrial canvas, he imagined a journey: guests stepped into a luminous all-white cocktail lounge punctuated with flashes of red, then transitioned through a dramatic, tunnel-like corridor into a warm, nightclub-inspired dining room where the evening’s program unfolded.
Within that immersive setting, Thierry Isambert Culinary and Event Design was asked to shape the culinary experience and manage staffing and service. As a Miami caterer specializing in large-scale galas and corporate events, the team curated pre-dinner cocktail stations and a custom plated menu designed to flow seamlessly with the room’s choreography and the evening’s tight timeline. For planners seeking luxury catering in Miami that can support complex productions, the Best Buddies Miami Gala offered a clear example of kitchen and floor working in sync.
The night opened with passed hors d’oeuvres that moved easily through the crowd, playful chicken bites dressed up with caviar, crisp sushi and tartare, delicate crab and shrimp pieces, and vibrant vegetarian and vegan selections layered with herbs and citrus. Nearby, guests discovered two contrasting cocktail stations: a dim sum-inspired bar with bite-sized dumplings and “money bags,” and the MIAMI MAR CRU station, where a trio of chilled crudo-style tastings echoed the city’s coastal energy.
Once seated, guests were welcomed with Caprese Incognito, a reimagined tomato-and-burrata composition that arrived fully plated at each place setting. For the main course, the menu offered a choice between potato-crusted corvina with seasonal vegetables, grilled chateaubriand with wild mushrooms and velvety potatoes, or a rich yuca gnocchi with chanterelles and shaved truffle for the vegetarian option. Each plate was styled to mirror the event design’s play on light and shadow, using contrasting china and tight, graphic plating.
As the Champion of the Year announcement and live auction concluded, dessert signaled a shift from formal dinner to dance floor. Two late-evening plated sweets, including the sculptural Secret of Love and a heart-shaped strawberry composition, nodded gently to the evening’s romantic visual language before guests joined the concert-style finale with Ashanti and Ja Rule.
Together with the Best Buddies Challenge: Miami cycling event held earlier that day, the gala was expected to raise $5 million for Best Buddies programs worldwide.
BEHIND THE CURTAINS
For organizations planning fundraising galas, product launches, or catering for corporate events in Miami, the 2025 Best Buddies Miami Gala demonstrates how thoughtful event design and a collaborative Miami catering company can turn a large-scale evening into a vivid expression of purpose.
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