The Grateful Palate

3.5 stars for nautical Lauderdale eats at The Grateful Palate

Long known as a caterer to the yachting crowd, The Grateful Palate has altered its course. The gourmet marketplace and deli on Fort Lauderdale's17th Street Causeway moved that operation to Dania Beach and turned itself into a high-end restaurant and lounge under new owner Heather McIntyre Leaky. Still relatively unknown beyond its seafaring fans after more than a year, the new Grateful Palate is worth discovering. The eclectic menu features nine starters and nine main courses (choices often change). The ingredients are top-notch, a taste of what you'd eat aboard one of those glamorous boats gliding along the Intracoastal, so The Grateful Palate is a splurge.

Ambience: The staff is friendly and welcoming, and the sophisticated setting has a subtle urban elegance, with a cozy lounge and wine bar on one side and a dining room on the other, seating about 50 total. A 15-seat captain's table overlooks the open kitchen, and a long communal table at the front of the restaurant is ideal for after-work schmoozing. We prefer dining in the comfier lounge, where plush seating and a golden glow make it romantic enough for a date night. There's a TV (often tuned to the Food Network), but the sound is turned down, and there's live music (usually a vocalist) after 8 p.m. Saturdays.
 
What Works

• A well-organized, book-size wine list with many boutique picks among its 300 labels ($30 and up)
• Nearly 40 wines available by the glass
• Osetra caviar
• Farm-fresh micro greens and herbs
• One perfectly seared pan-seared scallop paired with a good-size slice of ultra-rich duck foie gras
• A refreshing spoonful of chopped strawberries drizzled with a balsamic vinaigrette and micro greens
• A fun pairing of a melon ball with an equally small feta cheese fritter resting in chive oil
• A complimentary plate of crusty wheat slices studded with olives (served upon request)
• Caesar salad in a lemon-anchovy dressing
• Grilled lamb lollipops
• Three delicious mini lump crab cakes served with micro greens and a lemon caper aoli
• A burger bursting with juices – an incredibly tender, fist-size patty of wagyu beef topped with goat cheese and onion marmalade
• Wonderfully crunchy, truffle yuca fries
• A superb 8-ounce filet mignon with strips of deeply flavored Iberico ham and a red wine demiglace
• A sweet, tender butter-poached Maine lobster tail served atop a mound of fettuccine in a creamy sauce and garnished with osetra caviar, & a scattering of pine nuts
• Scottish salmon cooked in a bamboo steamer with snow peas, bok choy, fingerling potatoes, tomatoes and lemon
• Indulgence dessert - house-made mango and coconut sorbet layered with passion fruit curd and topped with a meringue browned with a blow torch
• Ultra chocolate brownie with eggnog ice cream