Union 27’s dining spaces reflect a ‘beach chic’ ambiance.
By Jan Norris
A social dining club, with paid membership, opened quietly in Boca Raton in October. Union 27 aims to be the hot spot in east Boca, with a “beach chic” atmosphere, an upscale-casual menu — and a membership option.
The club/restaurant is in the former 13 American Table and Lilly’s space at 451 E. Palmetto Park Road.
The couple running it are Cinzia Gaglio and spouse, Tim — who came from the now-closed Osteria Salina in Delray Beach. Their experience includes restaurants in the Northeast as well.
A chic nautical blue leatherette and white marble interior evokes coastal vibes. Seating is at high communal bars or banquette tables. Patio and sidewalk seating also are available.
The menu, limited to appetizers and seven main plate choices along with specials of the day, includes a black squid ink linguine with lobster; handmade fettuccine; a “butcher’s cut” meat of the day; a fish of the day; lobster thermidor; rack of lamb; and an organic oven-roasted chicken.
Prices range from $12 for sides to $58 for a 20-ounce prime New York strip steak.
George Patti of Boca’s M.E.A.T. Eatery has a role but not in day-to-day operations, he said.
Union 27, unique in Boca Raton, offers a membership for discounts, priority seating, member-preferred events including guests, and more.
The initial membership was $1,200 but rose to $2,400 after Dec. 15.
That also gets members in on special dinners and wine tastings, preferred corkage, a pop-up brunch to “taste test” a new menu in the summer and more.
Union 27 is, however, open to the public otherwise, Tuesday through Sunday for happy hour and dinner.
Phone 338-8606; union-27.com.
Organizers of the 2019 Boca Bacchanal, set for April 4-6, have given the popular food and wine weekend a boost and announced a new venue and more events this year.
Along with the traditional vintner dinners held in homes around the area with noted chefs preparing multi-course dinners, a Bubbles and Burgers event is planned April 4 as a kickoff at the Boca Raton Resort and Club, the new location for the fest.
Before the Grand Tasting at the resort on April 6, a VIP party is scheduled for dockside, where guests will get to tour a 90-foot Cheoy Lee yacht.
More than 20 restaurants will serve dinner-by-the-bite at the dine-around, where 130 wines will be sampled from a number of noted wineries. Live and silent auctions are part of the night’s event.
Tickets are on sale through April 6 for individual events and as packages.
Proceeds benefit the Boca Raton Historical Society and Museum.
For more information on tickets and events, go to bocabacchanal.com or bocahistory.org.
Oliv Pit’s new chef, Ayal Kitches, has introduced a fresh menu. Photos provided
New owners have put in a new chef and menu at the Oliv Pit Athenian Grill, a casual Mediterranean restaurant on Southwest 18th Street in Boca Raton.
The chef, Ayal Kitches from Tel Aviv, brought his recipes for pita wraps and hummus to the restaurant.
The new menu offers dishes for meat-eaters, vegetarians and vegans, as well as those following a paleo or gluten-free diet.
Unique on the menu are dishes from the Blue Zones — places in the world where it’s not unusual to find people living over the age of 100 in good health. The zones have been identified by National Geographic.
The restaurant uses olive pit briquettes for grilling its meats — common in Greece but not found in the U.S., according to the owners.
The restaurant is open daily for lunch and dinner.
Oliv Pit, Shoppes at Village Point, 6006 SW 18th St., Boca Raton. Phone 409-2049; olivpit.com.
Briefly: The Four Seasons Palm Beach resort is set to reopen its dining rooms at this writing, with Florie’s as the premier venue. Michelin-starred chef Mauro Colagreco, whose restaurant Mirazur in Menton, France, was named third best on the World’s 50 Best Restaurant List in June 2018, heads up the menu. …
Also new in Palm Beach is Hai House, an American-Chinese restaurant on the second floor of the Esplanade on Worth Avenue. It took the space of Costa, a Mediterranean restaurant, now closed. ...
La Nouvelle Maison at 455 E. Palmetto Park Road, Boca Raton, was one of four restaurants in Florida that made OpenTable’s 100 Best Restaurants in America 2018 list.
Jan Norris is a food writer who can be reached at nativefla@gmail.com. Thom Smith is on leave.
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