A Palm Beach restaurant known for its gourmet comfort food won approval to move some of its interior seats outdoors.
During its development review meeting Oct. 15, the Town Council approved a special exception allowing Henry’s Palm Beach to add outdoor café seating.
The Breakers-operated restaurant at 229 Royal Poinciana Way proposed moving 16 seats from its approved indoor plan to the outdoor courtyard area when weather conditions permit. The total approved seating count would be unchanged.
Henry’s is located in Via Flagler by The Breakers, an open-air plaza featuring a mix of boutiques, restaurants, and residences.
The restaurant had previously offered outdoor seating under a temporary COVID-19 outdoor seating program approved by the town in May 2020, but later moved the seats indoors after discovering the approval had expired, Jamie Crowley, an attorney with the Gunster law firm and a Breakers representative, told council members.
“They stopped using the seats once they realized they didn’t have current approval,” he said. “We wanted to get that memorialized and come back and go through the process to have the seating that they previously used.”
Workers from RGE Associates and Bradford Electric installed a halo-lit illuminated sign on the exterior wall above Henry’s Palm Beach restaurant at Via Flagler in Palm Beach.
The town maintains two sets of regulations for outdoor café seating, Crowley said. One is for seating on public sidewalks, and the other is for seating set back from public sidewalks.
Henry’s outdoor seating meets the requirement for being set back from public sidewalks, he added. Those seats would be placed in the interior of the courtyard where it would not “bother” anyone outside of the property.
The Breakers reached out to neighbors who live near the restaurant and secured their approval to move some seating outdoors, Crowley said.
“The neighbors are in support of this,” he said. “They’ve enjoyed using this outdoor seating, and we’ve never had any issue with them. There’s always an open line of communication between The Breakers and all of these neighbors. The Breakers enjoys seeing the kids come and run around in the courtyard. It’s a very collegial kind of family atmosphere.”
Crowley added that the outdoor area would not feature music or any cooking stations, with proposed hours of 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
“This is a very quiet, kind of chill environment that the neighbors have enjoyed,” he said.
Council members expressed unanimous support for the outdoor seating request, noting that it would add to the surrounding neighborhood’s charm.
“In France, you have all these wonderful little seating areas, cafés,” council member Julie Araskog said. “We have some of this on Worth Avenue, and I think it’s more charming, and I think it’s more exciting, and really adds to the neighborhood.”
Henry’s, named after Breakers founder and railroad pioneer Henry Flagler Morrison, opened in June 2020.
The restaurant has built a loyal following since its debut, and in June it became one of two Palm Beach County spots named to OpenTable and Kayak’s list of the Top 100 Hotel Restaurants in America. The other restaurant is Akira Back, a modern Japanese concept inside The Ray Hotel in Delray Beach.
“We are honored that Henry’s Palm Beach has been recognized among the Top 100 Hotel Restaurants in the U.S. by OpenTable and Kayak,” David Thall, The Breakers’ director of food and beverage, told the Daily News in June. “This distinction is a testament to the passion and precision our team brings to every plate.”
Henry’s is the Breakers’ 10th restaurant and second off-site venture on the island, along with Echo at 230A Sunrise Ave.
Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, with brunch served until 3 p.m. For information, visit www.thebreakers.com/dining/henryspalmbeach/.
Jodie Wagner is a journalist at the Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at jwagner@pbdailynews.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Palm Beach approves outdoor café seating for Henry’s restaurant
