Gabby Karan and Gianpaolo de Felice Open Tutto Mare in Royal Poinciana Plaza in Palm Beach

There are many lovely settings to have a chunk in Palm Beach, however just one sits straight on the water, a remarkably low quantity for an island. One can think about it was fairly a coup for Gianpaolo de Felice and Gabby Karan de Felice of the Tutto il Giorno restaurant group within the Hamptons to attain the Royal Poinciana Plaza’s waterfront restaurant area beside the brand new performing arts middle Glazer Hall. Their aptly named Tutto Mare opened in January.

“I think they loved that we’re a husband and wife who are involved in our community and not about a fancy, 300-seat restaurant,” mentioned Karan de Felice, concerning WS Development president Samantha [Perry] David’s imaginative and prescient in leasing the retail middle. “The Perrys are big customers of ours.”

The inside of Tutto Mare. Photo by Eric Striffler Photography.

Judging from Tutto Mare’s debut, David guessed proper. Karan de Felice isn’t the name-dropping kind but estimates they hosted 75 to 100 VIPs a day for the grand opening and he or she plans one other cocktail reception this winter for many who had been out of city. Guests marveled at how she managed to wrangle the Palm Beach crowd.

“Many asked how did you get all these people to come out of their homes, but the restaurant is warm and unpretentious with the candles, the music, flowers and the water view,” mentioned Karan de Felice. “There’s a soul to our places like how you feel the spirit of the owners at Indochine, Bar Pitti, and [Keith] McNally’s restaurants.”

The narrative begins in southern Italy, the place de Felice hails from and the couple met in Ischia. Commissioning their longtime structure agency Bonetti/Kozerski and lighting design by L’Observatoire International, they sourced Costa Group millwork and Dedar cloth in addition to travertine marble and dishware from Italy.

The 15,000-square-foot area was damaged up into intimate vignettes, together with the previous, John Volk-designed Royal Poinciana Playhouse’s Celebrity Room that after entertained Hollywood A-listers, a lot of whose likenesses stare down from its restored, unique ceiling mural. Karan de Felice reimagined the landmark as a lounge with Balinese teak furnishings for diners to have drinks, seafood towers, caviar and French fries whereas ready for tables; the ground was raised to maximise proximity to the water. Diners may also entertain themselves by purchasing onsite for Kelly Klein ceramics, Robert Lee Morris jewellery, and cashmere sweaters manufactured in Italy by Karan de Felice’s mom, Donna Karan.

The inside of Tutto Mare. Photo by Eric Striffler Photography.

“I’m close with Kelly Klein, and she’s been by my side this whole Palm Beach venture,” mentioned Karan de Felice, who additionally counts her mom and the late Italian Vogue editor in chief Franca Sozzani as inspirational innovators. “It’s not just a restaurant. There are books, a juice bar, and people want to hang out all day for breakfast, lunch and dinner.”

Full menus with a Mediterranean seafood focus will roll out in the course of the season. Lemon spritzes complement crudos, crustacean pastas and salt-encrusted, complete fish ready by govt chef Agostino Petrosino, who’s serving to the place rise up and operating, and chef de delicacies Carmine Nozzolino, who’s in for the lengthy haul. Two pastry cooks from Capri make desserts reminiscent of pistachio profiteroles and chocolate caprese.

“I’m getting fat just telling you about all the desserts,” mentioned de Felice, who works with regenerative espresso farms in Costa Rica for the after-meal espresso, among the many all-day espresso providing. “Our coffee program is run by our restaurant partners Gally and David Mayer, who are partners here in Palm Beach, too.”

Having grown up in boating tradition, de Felice hopes so as to add dock and dine hospitality. If dock allowing isn’t within the playing cards, he at the least envisions a 1967 Riva motorboat that will ferry company to benefit from the sundown on Tutto Mare’s 1,200-square-foot terrace.

“We want to create what we’ve achieved in the Hamptons, where you can park your boat, have a spritz and a beautiful grilled fish. That’s our biggest goal,” mentioned Karan de Felice.