Southern Hospitality: The Hottest Restaurants & Hotels Coming to Palm Beach

When we heard that one of New York’s chicest restaurants, high-end Hellenic culinary mecca Milos (estiatoriomilos.com), was planning a location in West Palm Beach, we knew the area would never be regarded in the same way again. The restaurant will be the culinary anchor of One Flagler, part of the Related Companies expansion into the area, and is expected to open in 2023. Related Co. will be plenty busy with new restaurants in their West Palm buildings this season, though.

These include: Felice (felicerestaurants.com), the Tuscan inspired sister of Sant Ambroeus, opening its first location outside of New York in West Palm; Wall Street steak house Harry’s (harrysnyc.com); its offshoot, Adrienne’s Pizzabar  (adriennespizzabarnyc.com); and Lettuce Entertain You, which will unveil its first restaurant in West Palm, RPM Italian  (rpmrestaurants.com), where you can expect handmade pasta, steaks and seafood.

A new entry will join the already impressive roster of West Palm hotels that includes Hilton, Ben and Canopy. AKA (stayaka.com/locations/west-palm-beach), which already has a location in Miami, is opening its second Florida hotel/residence December 1 at 695 South Olive Avenue, a stone’s throw from Rosemary Square and walking distance from dining center Climatis Street. The six-story building will house 215 rooms that are beyond standard hotel accommodations. Sized from studios to two-bedrooms including penthouse suites, they are perfect for long-term stays, complete with kitchens, washer/dryers and private terraces. A pool and deck as well as a Technogym will be ready for guests, while a pet spa welcomes canine travelers. Popular West Palm restaurants, The Blind Monk (theblindmonk.com) and Egg Bar (facebook.com/EggBarWPB) will have new locations within AKA.

Meanwhile, longtime favorite the Hilton West Palm Beach (hilton.com) is holding yoga and sculpt and sweat classes on its lush and expansive lawn, complimentary for guests and only $10 for local residents. The hotel has also introduced a bottomless brunch at its restaurant Galley (galleywestpalmbeach.com), though those with more modest appetites can still order a la carte.

Nearby, The Ben (thebenwestpalm.com) is launching daily high tea service this season, and unlike the one at Buckingham Palace, this offers creative brews (like Smoked Caramel Lapsang), and spiked varieties (such as Smoked Citrus and Sage with Jack Daniels and Black Bacon Manhattan with bacon tea and Maker’s Mark), as well as traditional teas. To keep things entirely civilized, guests are asked to place their cellphones in a wooden box.

The Ben’s tea comes just in time because the Chesterfield on Palm Beach Island, known for its decades long high tea, shuttered this year. The property has been taken over by the Oetker Collection, whose portfolio includes Hotel Du Cap-Eden-Roc, Le Bristol Paris and Eden Rock St. Barths. In partnership with Reuben Brothers, it will reopen next year as The Vineta Hotel (oetkercollection.com/hotels/the-vineta-hotel).

Milos is not the only top Greek spot opening down south. Avra, arguably one of the most successful restaurants in New York, will premiere its new location at the palatial Estates of Acqualina (estatesatacqualina.com) in Sunny Isles, next to adjoining Acqualina Resort. Avra will have a 360-degree bar overlooking the pool and ocean.

Another favorite New York spot is opening in the area. Le Colonial (lecolonial.com), the French Vietnamese restaurant from Rick Wahlstedt and Joe King that originally premiered in 1993, will branch out to 601 East Atlantic Avenue in Delray after the new year. Apart from the dining room adorned with murals by Jonas Wickman, there will be an outdoor oasis with a cascading fountain and lush foliage.

Also in Delray, one of the buzziest spots is Drift at the Opal Grand (opalcollection.com/opal-grand/restaurants/drift). Not only are the room and outdoor space spectacular, the food is craveworthy. For the holidays, it’s particularly festive, with a range of drinks ready for Instagram, including Autumns Up made with Knob Creek Bourbon, demerara syrup, pressed lemon and cinnamon, and the Santa Sparkler with Chambord and pressed pomegranate, enlivened with Benvolio Prosecco.

The Eau Palm Beach (eaupalmbeach.com) will also be a celebratory spot to spend the holidays, with a breakfast buffet and eggnog making class on Christmas Eve, and a Christmas brunch in the ballroom and Italian brunch at Polpo (eaupalmbeach.com/dining/polpo-palm-beach) on Christmas Day. Santa and Mrs. Claus will even be on hand.

The Palm Beach Food and Wine Festival is happening once again, and an event not to miss is Bubbles & Bites at PGA National Resort (pgaresort.com) on December 10. Held at a pavilion at the newly renovated resort, it will a celebrate late ’70s and early ’80s soft rock, and feature foods from the hotel’s three acclaimed chefs — Lindsay Autry, Jeremy Ford and Miguel Santiago.

We will be back with more next month!