Russ, are you going to be in Playa between Aug. 31 and Sept. 6th I would love to meet you. I met a woman on the plane who goes to Playa anbd Cozumel regularly. She recommended taking a walk towards 38th st. and there's a bar/restaurant that Jacques Pepin goes to and I believe he lives in the area. I will have to find the name of the restaurant to share.
Also, I found out the Playa Jazz festival is going to be thanksgiving weekend. I'm definitely going to make an effort to be there!
Sonia