Oceano Kitchen closing in Lantana, but no worries: It has a new home

Oceano Kitchen needs to swim in larger waters.

In November, the foodie-favorite restaurant will shutter its Lantana location after seven years and open larger digs in Lake Worth Beach.

The dynamic dining duo behind Oceano, Cindy and Jeremy Bearman (she’s the pastry chef and he’s the executive chef), have plans for Thursday, Nov. 2, to be the last night of regular service in their Lantana repurposed-bungalow-turned-restaurant — and the next night will host a farewell party.

“While we will miss our little space in Lantana, where we have been for the past seven years, we are excited for the next step in the life of our business,” Jeremy Bearman tells the South Florida Sun Sentinel.

The goal, he says, is to begin service in Lake Worth Beach on Tuesday, Nov. 14.

“We are moving into the space without doing too much in regards to renovation. We plan on being open through (the) season,” he says. “In June of 2024, we will close for extensive renovations that are being planned for the space. We will be expanding the kitchen, seating, adding a full bar and an amazing outdoor space in the rear of the building. We are hoping to be open fully-renovated by November of 2024.”

For updates, go to oceanokitchen.com or their social media sites Instagram.com/oceanokitchen and Facebook.com/OceanoKitchen.

WHO ARE THE BEARMANS?

Jeremy Bearman first came to the attention of many South Floridians at Giovanni Rocchio’s One Door East in Fort Lauderdale. Before that, he earned a Michelin star as the executive chef of since-closed Rouge Tomate in New York City and worked with chefs Daniel Boulud and Joël Robuchon.

Cindy Bearman was a food stylist and editor for Martha Stewart Living magazine and worked with chefs Bradley Ogden at his eponymous restaurant in Las Vegas and Jean-Georges Vongerichten at ABC Kitchen in New York, as well as at iconic NYC restaurants Le Cirque and Boulud’s DB Bistro Moderne (where she and her husband met).

In South Florida, the couple also opened seafood restaurant High Dive in downtown West Palm Beach in 2019, but that project was soon thwarted by the pandemic shutdown.

This past January, the Bearmans were two of five chefs in Palm Beach County to get a James Beard Foundation Award “Best Chef: South” nomination.

THE NEW HOME FOR OCEANO KITCHEN

When they initially open at 512 Lucerne Ave. in Lake Worth Beach, the new elevated eatery will be able to seat about 40 guests inside and another eight to 10 outside. But by January, they hope to open a back patio, for an additional 40 seats outside. The planned renovations for next year would mean somewhere around 170 seats total, with roughly half indoors and outdoors.

By comparison, the original Lantana location could handle 50 guests with most of the tables in a canopy-covered patio.

Even better, the Bearmans will own their new culinary home, a building that was formerly Social House, an event and coworking space.

“We purchased the building in Lake Worth Beach about a month ago,” Jeremy Bearman says. “It is only about 2 miles from our Lantana location, which is ideal for our guests, many of whom come from West Palm Beach, Lake Worth Beach, Boynton, Manalapan, Ocean Ridge, Delray.”

WHY LAKE WORTH BEACH?

Jeremy Bearman says they’re big on the vibe.

“Coming from the Northeast, we have always favored having a restaurant in a standalone building which is part of a walkable town. We have never wanted to be in a plaza or large center. We feel like the vibe of Lake Worth Beach complements who we are as a business and that there is opportunity in that area both from a business standpoint as well as a real estate investment opportunity,” he says. “The city of Lake Worth Beach has been extremely helpful over the past few months in helping to navigate our licenses and change-of-use for the space. Everyone in the city is excited for us to move to our new space, and the feedback from many of our regular guests has been overwhelmingly positive.”

WHAT WILL BE NEW AND WHAT WILL STAY THE SAME

In addition to the concept of American and global shareable dishes, and the cozily unplugged feel of Oceano Kitchen in Lantana, the restaurant was also known for some quirks such as: No reservations; a cash-only operation and a menu that changed daily. At least at first.

“We will keep most of what our guests have come to love about Oceano Kitchen the same,” he adds. “The name will remain. The menu will continue to change daily and take advantage of what is being grown and caught locally. We will still have our smoker outside to incorporate some BBQ dishes. We will still be cash-only, no reservations except for parties of six or more.

“Once we do our renovations in … 2024, we will make many more changes to our service and menus, including taking credit cards, reservations and increasing the size of our menu slightly.”

But he adds that they are keeping an eye on the features that made Oceano Kitchen a dining destination for so many.

“We are committed to keeping true to the ideals which have allowed us to reach the level of success we have achieved as we move forward into a new space,” he says. “Although Lantana has been a big part of our story, our true business has been built upon our guests, our amazing staff and our food. Only one of those elements, the space, will be changing and we feel like that is a huge positive.”