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As schools of new residents swim into Palm Beach, as development and investment shoal, a new cosmopolitan menu is being served to what had been a thoroughly continental crowd.
“The Palm Beach community was used to showing their wealth and status by pulling up in a Rolls, having a host greet them and escort them to tables, saying ‘Kiss kiss, I love your dress and your earrings,’ while they waved at other people in the room. It was about the social atmosphere,” said Chef David Bouhadana, who grew up in Palm Beach County, but currently lives in Japan. “Omakase is the opposite. It’s not about you; it’s about the counter as stage. A lot of the top sushi masters don’t even allow perfume in their restaurants.’’
Perhaps that’s why sushi never really took off here among the social set. In fact, until this year, Palm Beach island had only one dedicated sushi restaurant, Imoto, which has just 10 tables.
“We were told that people here are very wealthy and prefer white table cloths,” said restaurateur Clay Conley, who opened Imoto back in 2012. “It’s challenging to find the right sushi chef in this area.”
Nevertheless, sushi has finally arrived in America’s winter playground. “We had some places that served inauthentic, Americanized rolls slathered with spicy mayo, but no one even heard the word ‘omakase’ here before this year,” said Michelle Soudry, who owns a PR firm and runs South Florida lifestyle Instagram show “House of Gab TV.” “Now it’s popping up everywhere.
All the people who moved down here brought the food trends with them. People like the fact that it’s more fun and interactive.’’
Bouhadana has converted a beachfront spot next to the Four Seasons into a counter for his new omakase bar, Sushi by Bou. He has also opened a location at the PGA National Resort in Palm Beach Gardens.
Meanwhile, the new Amrit hotel is adding sushi next month, and at the Hilton in West Palm Beach a location of Moody Tongue — a Michelin-starred omakase and brewery combination offering a $145 tasting with the option of a $75 beer pairing — premiered this season. The Boca Raton opened the Japanese Bocce Club and nearby Waterstone has put sushi master Takashi Yagihashi at the helm of its new dining room, Kasumi, where he is bringing in scallops from Hokkaido.
The Dining Room at the new Palm House hotel is also offering up bitesize pieces of raw fish alongside wagyu. While at the Eau Palm Beach Resort, an outpost of Nobu was unveiled this season, and reservations at coveted times are almost impossible to score. Even the popular Greek spot Lefkes in Delray, which opened in December, has added a sushi bar.
For some, this culinary comeuppance is a shock.
“Can you imagine the Everglades Club serving sushi?’ gasped Christine Pressman, a Palm Beach resident who moved to the island 15 years ago with her husband Gene, scion of the Barneys department store family. “Their standard fare is a tea sandwich and a glass of gin. Nobody here ever asked if we wanted to go out for Japanese food before.’’
Hilarie Viener, a branding CEO who lives on the island, argued that part of Palm Beach’s charm has been its lack of change: “Everyone loves the fact that it’s so traditional and old school, so people have always gone to the same places.’’
“The younger crowd has this itch for it, and they feel elite because they know the Japanese word for tuna or the right daiginjo to order.’’Chef David Bouhadana
And perhaps Melania Trump best summarized the prevailing attitude on the island when she wrote in her recent memoir, “I do not eat raw fish.”
Love it or hate it, these days the old guard is sharing Palm Beach with other big fish — sushi-loving finance bros. Goldman Sachs and Citadel have opened offices in the area. And chefs are praising the ripple effect it’s having on the island’s dining scene.
“The less you know about sushi, the less you like it, and the people here didn’t understand it. But Palm Beach is not just silver foxes anymore,’’ said Bouhadana. “The younger crowd has this itch for it, and they feel elite because they know the Japanese word for tuna or the right daiginjo to order.’’
Cow a bunga!
What’s surf without turf? These are Palm Beach’s latest steakhouses.
Bourbon Steak
Opened this month in the Seagate Hotel, this elegant location of Michael Mina’s stylish steer palace poaches beef in tallow and butter before wood-grilling it on oak, hickory and cherry wood. It specializes in hormone-free beef including kobe and both Japanese and American wagyu (4 oz. of A5 Hokkaido Snow Beef goes for $300) and offers seafood including caviar and stone crabs.
Gallaghers
A southern sister of the legendary New York meat palace premiered last season with a a selection of dry-aged cuts grilled over hickory coals. House-smoked bacon gets a chipotle pineapple glaze and steak toppings include blue cheese, bone marrow and pepper crusts with Makers Mark. Pescatarians can dive into melt-in-your-mouth tuna and swordfish steaks or the jaw-dropping raw bar.
Novecento
Opened this season. this Argentinian spot is a pretty sweet (uh, we mean savory) deal. Its wagyu Denver steak is just $54; a large New York strip is $38; and filet mignon, well that’s only $39. All come with a choice of side — including jasmine rice, truffle fries and charred asparagus. Try the Cocoa Malbec reduction sauce.
