The new Oceano Kitchen on Lucerne Avenue in Lake Worth Beach will include a wood-fired pizza oven, fuller menu and bar, credit-card acceptance and a light, open interior. Rendering provided
By Jan Norris
Mid-month is the targeted reopening date for the newly designed Oceano Kitchen.
The popular Lantana restaurant moved in 2023 to the former Social House in downtown Lake Worth Beach. It’s been closed since June for the renovation.
Chef/owner Jeremy Bearman said the former restaurant and bar is transformed. “We gutted the entire thing.”
Bearman got through last season with a limited menu. “We went into the contract on the building a year and a half ago. After we were kicked out of our old space, we moved in in nine days in Lake Worth,” Bearman said.
“When we moved over from the old space, we left a kitchen with a wood-burning oven. We had used it for everything. So we ran without pizza.
“Now, we have a new wood-fire oven — no gas. And a pretty big smoker outside. We’ll be doing pizzas and all the wood-fired dishes as we did in the past.”
Bearman co-owns the restaurant with his spouse, Cindy Bearman, and they planned the layout. “We did all the architecture,” he said.
The interior spaces are their vision that a New York designer fulfilled, he said.
“We hired this designer, Sarah Carpenter, from Brooklyn. We love her work,” Bearman said.
Carpenter’s designs incorporate a modern feel, with light woods and open spaces, and not what Bearman calls the cliché of dark, industrial interiors he dubs as overdone.
“You don’t see too many like these in South Florida,” he said.
He’s excited about having expanded seating, patio dining, and a practical kitchen. It’s a big step up from his former restaurant, a tiny house on Ocean Avenue in Lantana.
“For 6½ years we were working from a 500-square-foot kitchen. We were limited in how much we could do. Guests didn’t like the 2½-hour wait,” Bearman said.
That, combined with a lease disagreement with the landlord, and the Bearmans were ready to move. “So when we found this place in Lake Worth Beach, we jumped,” Jeremy said.
The Social House was used for co-working and as a private event space at the time.
“One good thing was a functional commercial kitchen. We were able to run out of there for six months. If it hadn’t been there, we would be closed,” Bearman said.
Also new is the full bar. “We’re super excited. We brought on a gentleman, Patrick Wert, who does a lot of work in New York and Miami. He’s consulting with us on our cocktails. He does amazing work.”
A change in menu format is underway as well.
“We used to do a menu that changed every night. But we limited it when we moved here. Now we’ll have a few things that remain on it weekly — pizzas, pastas, fish every night. But we’ll change a couple items every week. By the time we get into a couple months, a lot of the menu will change,” Bearman said.
He will continue to source locally when viable, and change the menu with ingredient availability.
Cindy Bearman will continue as pastry chef and add a few more desserts each night, Jeremy said.
“We have new wait staff and, the great thing, a new general manager.”
Eric Abney is from Dallas where he worked at Loro, a well-known Asian smokehouse.
“All of our employees are coming back, too,” Bearman said. “Eric Sheremeta heads up our kitchen as chef d’cuisine, the former general manager wants to stay on as maitre d’. Even all our dishwashers are coming back. It’s pretty amazing.
“A lot of our guests have been clamoring for us to reopen.”
The new restaurant seats 140 — 80 indoors and 60 outside. “We’re taking reservations for all size parties. We can accommodate 40 to 50 people in our back dining space. We’re already sold out for two weddings,” Bearman said.
Diners will also be in for a pleasant payment surprise.
“Oh yeah — we’re now taking credit cards. Gotta move forward,” he said.
512 Lucerne Ave., Lake Worth Beach. Online at oceanolwb.com.
Max’s Grille changes hands
Max’s Grille in Mizner Park is under new ownership as of mid-December and is open during the transition.
David Baldwin, owner of Arka Restaurant Group, says the group will keep the Max’s name but tweak the concept to Arka’s specifications.
Baldwin is behind the trio of Kaluz restaurants, in Wellington, Plantation and Fort Lauderdale.
Max’s Grille was created by local restaurant gurus Burt Rapoport and Dennis Max in 1991, and considered a new concept at the time: a chef-driven, modern American grill. It has been a draw to the plaza from the start.
“It’s got a long and successful history,” Baldwin said. That’s one of the reasons it will remain under the same name, he said.
It will pick up the best features from Kaluz, but still retain the Max’s Grille feel, he said. Changes will be subtle and not immediate.
“I’m happy with the general manager and chef and others that are there,” Baldwin said. “We are trying to integrate their opinion and at the same time, make sure to move the concept forward.”
Baldwin says dining at an upscale-casual restaurant has changed since Max’s opened.
Looking at other recently opened restaurants in the plaza, he said, “We want to be relevant, and continue to stay relevant. We’ll improve what you touch and feel in the restaurant and the food.”
Adapting to trends and shifts in diner perception is important.
“People who want to go out to dinner want a good meal and good service — and an experience,” Baldwin said. “We get birthdays and celebrations, the special occasion diners. We’re selling an experience. But people have to see the value in it.”
Baldwin is hoping to expand Max’s Grille concepts elsewhere, while he continues to add more Kaluz locations.
404 Plaza Real, Boca Raton. Phone 561-368-0080; maxsgrille.com.
In brief
The Falcon House in Delray Beach is now Novecento, with a soft opening late last month and grand opening set for Jan. 16.
The upscale-casual Argentinian steakhouse has roots in the Soho area of New York and in South America. Currently there are four in Miami-Dade County.
Expect a large selection of grass-fed Argentinian steak cuts, a raw bar with dishes such as wagyu carpaccio and salmon crudo, plus pasta and chicken items. Brunch, lunch and dinner; weekly tango shows. More info at novecento.com.
The Boca Raton resort is bringing back the Napa Valley-partnered winter wine and food event that focuses on top chefs and winemakers.
The Artisans of Wine and Food event is Jan. 17-19 at the resort and includes the popular gala with wine auction. Tickets and more information are available at artisansofwineandfood.com.
Jan Norris is a food writer who can be reached at nativefla@gmail.com.
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