Tuna crudo at Café Boulud Palm Beach
Chef Daniel Boulud commemorates 20 years in Palm Beach.
Widely recognized as one of America’s leading culinary talents, chef Daniel Boulud’s namesake restaurant has been a mainstay on the island of Palm Beach for two decades. Since opening in 2003, the restaurant has become one of the area’s most coveted dining destinations, earning four stars in the Forbes Travel Guide and Wine Spectator’s Best of Award of Excellence. As we ring in the new year, Café Boulud (cafeboulud.com) has much to celebrate, so we caught up with the restaurateur to reminisce about the past 20 years.
Congrats on your 20th anniversary on the island! Tell me about your long-standing relationship with Palm Beach and why it’s an important destination for you. We want to celebrate this important moment in our history with our guests. I love that I see familiar faces every time I’m in town. We welcome guests from all over America and Canada, especially from the Northeast, and when I’m in Palm Beach, I see so many people who I also see at Daniel in the Upper East Side. Now, many are relocating to Florida. We have long-standing guests from New York City, including four generations of the same family, and they are also spending time together in Palm Beach. It’s wonderful to see them in both places.
Chef Daniel Boulud.
Café Boulud Palm Beach was your first restaurant location outside of New York. When you look back now, what was exciting for you about the expansion and that time period? There was such a distinct buzz the entire time we were under construction in Palm Beach. Our guests in New York, who were coming from all over the world, were also very excited for the opening. The much-anticipated opening night was a whirlwind and attended by our regular clients, as well as local chefs, media, socialites and the who’s who of South Florida—they all embraced us right away. And while other restaurants on the island have come and gone, we have stood the test of time.
Café Boulud Palm Beach’s outdoor patio seating at The Brazilian Court Hotel
How has your relationship with the owners of The Brazilian Court Hotel been a key ingredient for your 20 years in business on the property? The minute we were introduced to Richard Schlesinger and the Brazilian Court, we felt it was a perfect match for the Café Boulud brand. We also took over all of the food and beverage for the hotel. Richard and his late wife, Leslie, have always been amazing partners and accepted evolution and change. It has always been a family affair.
Dover sole meuniere prepared tableside
Is it true that you met your wife, Katherine, in Palm Beach? What are some of your favorite places to visit together when you’re in town? We love Palm Beach. To be able to catch a sunrise on the beach is such a cool moment of the day and great activity with our young children. Of course, we have lunch at Café Boulud, but we also love to visit The Breakers. We play tennis together and go on boat rides. I enjoy browsing the shops and galleries along Worth Avenue and have discovered several artists there. I also make sure to stop in and see my friend Marcello [Fiorentino] at La Sirena in the heart of West Palm Beach.
Steak tartare
How do you plan to commemorate this momentous occasion? We plan to do a fantastic event in January, and throughout the year we will create moments and celebrations centered around wine, cuisine and our industry. We invite everyone to join us as we celebrate.
Photography by: PHOTO COURTESY OF CAFÉ BOULUD
