Iconic Singer Island waterfront restaurant resurrected, helmed by 'Hell's Kitchen' winner
Eddie Ritz- The Buccaneer Waterfront Bar & Grill, a popular Singer Island restaurant that closed in the early 2000s, has reopened after extensive renovations.
- The restaurant, owned by Sharfi Holding Inc., features a new menu by executive chef and "Hell's Kitchen" winner Paul Niedermann.
- The menu includes elevated dishes like pan roasted local mahi and grilled spiny lobster, as well as more casual options like Fruity Pebble Pudding.
At one time, recalls Palm Beach Shores Mayor Alan Fiers, "The Bucc was the place to be!" That's the Buccaneer Waterfront Bar & Grill that thrived on Singer Island after opening in the mid-1950s, but eventually fell on hard times and closed in the early 2000s.
But sometimes the best things have a second act and after being closed for nearly 20 years, The Buccaneer is back, hosting its grand opening March 18.
Owned and completely renovated by Sharfi Holding Inc., the iconic restaurant has a new look and an "elevated, yet simple" menu curated by executive chef and "Hell's Kitchen" winner Paul Niedermann.
Taking control of the property nearly 10 years ago, Sharfi Holding Inc. partner Ryan Steely said "We knew The Buccaneer once was, and could again be, the crown jewel of the area... we're resurrecting… restoring a staple," he said of their approach to the project.
The work was extensive, Steely said. "We completely gutted it." The original restaurant began as a really small building and was added on to repeatedly over the years. Undoing those layers while selectively preserving the past took a lot of work, he said.
They repurposed much of the wood, including parts from the original bar, and saved many of the fixtures and even the original emblems that had the Buccaneer logo. "We tried to save as much as we could and weave it into the new design."
During the demo inside they discovered a mural from 1964 on one of the walls that had been covered by paneling. Though it was in bad shape, they took multiple pictures and scans and were able to recreate it. The large, framed print is now in the restaurant's bar area.
The new interior is "like a white tablecloth restaurant, without the tablecloth," Steely said.
Instead of tablecloths the tables have authentic nautical maps on them of different nearby islands, including the Bahamas.
Corporate executive chef for Sharfi Holdings Inc., Niedermann said The Buccaneer is "very different than what's around the area… much more refined."
Much of the menu Niedermann designed is inspired from dishes he's had either while traveling on vacation or from different areas he's lived. He said the idea for the Mexican Street Corn pizza featuring lobster, Tajin, onion, jalapeño, cotija cheese, cilantro and avocado crema is from a place he and his wife loved to go in Key West and that the Cherry Stone Clams pizza topped with pecorino romano, oregano, lemon and fine herbs was inspired by his time living in New York City and the Tri-state area.
The Buccaneer's kitchen features an authentic Italian brick oven bought in Italy, disassembled, shipped over and rebuilt on site. Though Niedermann said he's excited to use the oven, he noting playfully, "I've come full circle: my first job in high school was at a pizzeria down the street from my house."
Niederman said they really want to set themselves apart and that in many ways they've geared the menu more to the locals. Local business is what keeps you in business, he said.
The menu features many elevated dishes like the pan roasted local mahi; lemon & rosemary brick oven chicken; grilled spiny lobster with Cajun crab stuffing; local grouper cioppino and many more. But one of the desserts stands out for its more everyman (or every kid?) roots: Fruity Pebble Pudding.
Why Fruity Pebbles? "Because I'm a fat kid," joked Niederman. He described it as a bread pudding — one of those desserts everybody loves, but nobody wants to make. "I think everyone's trying to reinvent the wheel, but if I saw something fun like that, I'm definitely going to gravitate to it."
Though he's an acclaimed chef and "Hell's Kitchen" winner, part of Niedermann's audition for the position was cooking a meal for Sharfi Holdings Inc. owner Ben Sharfi.
Sharfi, who is from Israel, said he admired both Niedermann's chutzpah and his cooking chops. "He prepared an Israeli an Israeli dish, but the food was absolutely amazing." When Sharfi asked him if he had an hesitation about taking that risk, the Hell's Kitchen winner replied "You don't get a job with chef Ramsay if you don't have balls." Sharfi was impressed with the answer, the chef's personality and team leadership.
It's been a long road to bring The Buccaneer back, Sharfi said. "I can't believe the day has come, seven years in the making."
Sharfi said he appreciated Mayor Fiers and the town commission for their help getting the project to completion. Sharfi's worked in four different counties in the state and said there's not place he'd rather be than Palm Beach Shores.
Fiers is happy too. "The Bucc is back and will be a nice addition to our town."
The Buccaneer Waterfront Bar & Grill
What: The Buccaneer Waterfront Bar & Grill
Where: 142 Lake Drive, Palm Beach Shores
Hours: 5 to 11 p.m. Tuesday to Sunday
Information: buccgrill.com; buccaneermarinaresort.com
Eddie Ritz is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at eritz@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.