My Weekend in Palm Beach

When my husband asked me if I wanted to tag along on his business trip to Florida, of course I said yes! I lounged all day on the beach while he worked, and then we went to dinner in the evenings together. We then spent the weekend in Palm Beach so he could have a little vacation time, too. Neither one of us had been back in 26 years. It looks exactly how I remembered it with perfectly manicured landscaping, beautiful homes and a great shopping avenue. 

We stayed at The Brazilian Court Hotel. It's a historic boutique hotel with beautiful courtyards only two blocks from Worth Avenue and the beach. I was so excited that we got a room upgrade to a one bedroom suite with a living room. It was enormous! I could have stayed there all week. The service is impeccable as well. The staff greeted us by name and made our visit so much more wonderful. One reason we chose this hotel over the very popular Colony Hotel is that a complimentary two hour yacht cruise is included with the stay. We usually rent a boat anyway, so it was a big plus for us. Cafe Boulud is a very popular restaurant on site. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to fit it in. We did go to the bar one evening after getting a recommendation from a local. I was told the white cosmopolitan is a must, and I can see why. The presentation with the orchid in an ice ball was also very cool. My husband had a basil gin martini that he absolutely loved. They did some type of bubble gun blower when they poured his drink. I was surprised they could serve such intricate drinks so quickly to a large crowd.

The first thing we did after unpacking is walk to Worth Avenue for lunch and shopping. I enjoyed browsing the small stores and courtyards. Every turn of the corner was something even more beautiful. Palm Beach truly feels like another world. 

My husband didn't want his photo taken so I got several of him walking from behind. There was a photo shoot going on right here at the corner minutes before with the tallest model I've ever seen in my life wearing a ball gown. Some of the conversations we overheard on the streets and stores were hilarious. I wish I had written some of them down for a "Things I Overheard in Palm Beach." However, everyone was beyond friendly and helpful.

I carefully planned out our itinerary so we could make the most of the two nights we were there. It was difficult with so many great restaurants and things to do. We went to Pizza al Fresco for lunch. I love the outdoor seating in the courtyard. I also wanted something light since we had an early dinner reservation. 

The cute little birds will land on your table and steal the food right off your plate. I thought it was hilarious since I was already finished. 

My favorite places to shop were the small local stores. I also bought new perfume at Aerin. There are so many jewelry stores that I browsed since I'm in the market for a new ring. I met a local jeweler that has had his store on Worth Avenue for 30 years. We're still in contact to discuss the custom piece I have in mind. 

Then we went to dinner at Buccan. The internet said this is "the place" to go for dinner. The internet was right. The corn agnolotti is the crowd favorite. I thought it was amazing as well, but the pork taco is the best taco I have ever had. I don't even care for pork tacos that much! My husband has probably mentioned our dinner there at least once a day. Definitely get a reservation in advance. This is the shoulder season, but the only reservation we could get was 5:45pm despite booking weeks in advance. 

The next day we went to Swifty's at The Colony Hotel for an early lunch. I really just wanted to check out the hotel because I always wanted to stay there after seeing it on social media for so many years. The hotel lobby, restaurant and pool area are so much smaller than I imagined. However, it does look identical to the super cute photos online. My husband was confused why we were paying almost $50 for an ordinary chicken sandwich. It's for the atmosphere, honey!

We had an early lunch at 11am because our boat reservation was at 12:45am. The hotel has three different times daily for the first eight guests to sign up. We booked early so we could have the rest of the day to shop or go to the beach. The boat took us around Peanut Island and on a tour of the homes lining the coast. We had a full boat of eight guests, plus a captain and a deckhand. The two hours flew by with such good company!

Arrange drinks or a charcuterie in advance with the restaurant staff in advance. 

How pretty is the water? I wish I had taken more photos. Between the sun and the rosé in my hand, I needed a nap after this! 

I did rally and we had the hotel staff drop us at the second shopping area in Palm Beach, The Royal Poinciana Plaza. It's not to be missed with Hermes, Zimmerman, Staud and other stores. We then walked over to The Breakers Hotel that I thought was next door. It was more like a 15 minute walk. Thank goodness I wore flats! There was also a Serena & Lily store to break up the walk. We went to The Seafood Bar at the hotel. Again, it was more to check out the hotel than the food, but the food was really good! I debated between The Seafood Bar and the popular Le Bilboquet for weeks, but I really wanted to see The Breakers. They don't take reservations so we got there early, and they seated us right away with a view of the ocean. There's no outdoor seating, but the windows at the rear of the restaurant are floor to ceiling.

The hotel itself was so busy with events. Guests were in formal dresses running in and out of the different ballrooms. It was kind of a madhouse, to be honest. The hotel is amazingly beautiful and definitely worth seeing at least once. It is far from Worth Avenue so you need transportation if you want to go shopping. It has more of a resort feel than The Brazilian Court or Colony. It's perfect if you just want to take advantage of all the resort offers-beach, tennis, restaurants. It especially would be nice for a large group. 

We called for our hotel to pick us up and they were there in minutes. We barely had time to take this photo! I kept forgetting to take photos on this trip. Thankfully, my husband was on his game and noticed all the photo worthy places. I mean, I match the flowers! How did I miss that?

We went back to The Brazilian Court and had one drink at the bar before heading to bed. The plan was to go to Le Bar, but we were exhausted. We woke up the next morning and walked through town to Starbucks, and then along the ocean. I wish I could do that everyday. We didn't have to catch our plane until later so we drove through South Palm Beach, West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens and Jupiter. We're hoping to move back to Florida in two years when our youngest graduates, so we're getting a feel for where we want to live. I don't know if it's going to happen, but it's good to check out the communities while we're there. I do know that I will be back to Palm Beach and The Brazilian Court Hotel!