Beach Market Cafe and Monkey Bar
McCusker adds, “[Beach Market Cafe] is primarily our breakfast concept that leans into the late evening, so it kind of transitions. To start you can get a coffee there, there’s a myriad of different coffee drinks you can get grab-and-go style. There are handhelds that are sold for both breakfast and lunch. But then as the evening goes on, it almost can turn into more of a cafe style where guests can have dinner here and then go there for a coffee drink after. So if you’re not looking for necessarily an upscale dining experience, you can go there to you know, kind of hang out.”
The former Marriott had a non-descript hotel lobby bar. Now the Opal Resort has Monkey Bar, which has a smaller menu of tapas and shareables.
“Just kind of some small bites,” adds Carpenter. “You know, a couple of small plates if needed and a burger, you can’t be a bar without a burger.”
The menu
The Mediterranean fare at Drift starts with dips and spreads such as stone ovenroasted halloumi with tomato fondue, roasted eggplant, young arugula, tapenade, extra-virgin olive oil and 25-year aged balsamico for $12 or skillet focaccia with rosemary, roasted garlic, smoked sea salt, wild blueberry butter and parmesan fonduta for $11.
There are also stonefired flatbreads for $18 and $19 as well as bowls and salads ranging in price from $18-$26.
Six shareables include lobster and avocado toast made with preserved lemon aioli, American caviar, cured egg yolk, petite greens on toasted brioche for $18 or maple and pomegranate-glazed Brussels sprouts for $14.
The five handhelds include choices such as spicy fish taco or a signature Drift burger, both for $19.
Seafood entrées range from coastal shellfish stew with charred fennel and tomato broth, mussels,
lobster, shrimp, local catch, grilled toast and lemon saffron aioli for $35 to crispy branzino with saffron fregula, warm asparagus salad, lemon parsley chermoula, tomato cumin butter and crispy shallots for $42.
Other entrées include pollo al mattone (brick oven) with Bell & Evans free-range chicken served with baby potatoes, roasted root vegetables, lemon raisin marmalata and a natural pan sauce for $29 and an 8-ounce centercut beef tenderloin made with a goat cheese & basil crust, parmesan whipped
potatoes, grilled asparagus, red onion agrodolce and 25-year balsamico for $50.
“We’ve all worked very hard to be able to open this ... to the public,” adds McCusker. “And I think that it’s an experience that everyone should at least try once. And I find that if you do try it once, you’re going to want to try it a second time and come back even more.”
If you go
Drift, Beach Market Cafe and Monkey Bar are all located in the Opal Grand Oceanfront Resort & Spa at
10 N Ocean Blvd. (SR A1A), Delray Beach.
For Drift, call 561-2743289 or go to DriftDelray. com. Hours are 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily with bar service until midnight. Sunday brunch is served from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
For Beach Market Cafe call 561-274-3280 or go to BeachMarketCafe.com. The hours are 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
For Monkey Bar, call 561-274-3200 or go to MonkeyBarFL.com. Happy hour is 4 to 6 p.m. daily with small plates and shareables served from 5 to 10 p.m. daily.