Wild Thyme opens quietly at Atlantic Hotel
Wild Thyme Oceanside Eatery quietly opened in May, serving a Mother’s Day brunch. Since then the restaurant inside the Atlantic Hotel and Spa on Fort Lauderdale beach has been tweaking the menu and decor on the down-low before an official opening on June 20.
This is a far cry from the way things went down in 2017 when Beauty and the Feast closed in the same location after three years amid recriminations and threats of litigation between the Atlantic Hotel and Society 8 Hospitality Group, which owned Beauty and the Feast and now — believe it or not — owns Wild Thyme. After Beauty and the Feast closed, the hotel operated Atlantic Grill. In late 2018 both sides worked it out and dropped ping-ponging lawsuits.
“Well listen, we have to look at the prior [board of directors],” explains Society’s 8’s Steven Dapuzzo. “They had a board representing them and … they wanted to give it a shot on their own. That was really what their motivation was. Now, why you would take a successful concept and not move with it, I can’t answer.”
For its part, the Atlantic Hotel responded via email. “As our hospitality concept evolves, Society 8 brings fresh ideas that will continue to demonstrate our commitment to authenticity and excellence,” writes Andrew Jarrett, asset manager and chief financial officer for the hotel on State Road A1A between Terramar and Auramar streets.
Now the Atlantic Hotel has a new board of directors that approached Society 8 saying, “This could be a good marriage again,” recalls Dapuzzo.
The name Wild Thyme references how the menu and the restaurant design encourage dish sharing as well as the kitchen’s use of fresh ingredients. “It’s also fun,” adds Dapuzzo.
Wild Thyme, decorated with warm, reclaimed woods and a color palette of brown, gray and black on the tables, banquettes, elongated bar and conversation areas, seats around 140 people. Whole roasted cauliflower, $18, at Wild Thyme Oceanside Eatery in the Atlantic Hotel and Spa on Fort Lauderdale beach.