Buccan

3.5 stars but rounding up for the ambiance. Super modern/​trendy restaurant with very good food– excellent for date night or dinner with the girls. The BFF made reservations for one of my trips to the Miami area, and we came here for a change of scenery from the usual Downtown Miami/​Miami Beach vibe. The restaurant was busy when we arrived, but we were seated right away, and we tried:
–Hamachi Salmon (Peruvian Chilies, Yuzu Vinaigrette, Crispy Lotus Root Salad, $ 17,
): Delicious– the hamachi was super fresh and went perfectly with the other ingredients. It would be very easy to eat more than one plate of this– highly recommended for sashimi lovers!
–Spicy Pork Taco (Avocado Crema, Salsa Verde, $ 5.50): Just ok– the pork wasn’t very spicy, and I wouldn’t get this again.
–Stuffed Squash Blossoms ($ 6/​each,
): Good, but these are definitely on the smaller side for the price. Worth trying once though.
–Hot Dog Panini (Sauerkraut, Gruyère, Mustard, Chili, $ 12): Interesting concept, and we thought we would love this, but it was just ok. Definitely on the greasy side, and we probably wouldn’t get this again.
–Wood Grilled Prime Beef Burger (Brioche, Aged Cheddar, Cornichons, French Fries, $ 19): Solid burger, and the fries were also good. Recommended!
–Carrot Cake Parfait ($ 9): Pretty good, although I wish they just gave you a slice of carrot cake instead of it being in parfait form.
Service was great, and our server was super attentive and accommodating. The food is on the pricey side for the portions, but their ingredients are really fresh. I would come back specifically for the hamachi dish (we were already craving it the day after), and give their other dishes a try. We didn’t bother looking for parking and just used the valet.

Amazing– fresh fish, salads and the burgers (I didn’t have one but boy did they look good).
Came in on a busy Friday night with my 13 year old son. We had enjoyed excellent service and the people watching is spectacular.
It’s young and hip– like a Houston’s on a Friday night. Walking distance from both Worth Avenue and the Brazilian Court Hotel.
Would I go back? Yes — see ya on Fourth of July weekend.

Came here because of the great reviews! We are from Chicago and have high expectations. We came for dinner service. The ambiance is casual and comfortable. Rustic and charming in my opinion. The lighting was dim but not so dark you can’t read. Noise level is appropriate so you can have a conversation. Crowd is a mixed bag and you can bring children. Food is excellent. Being a food snob I thought it was weird they brought the beef empanadas before the hamachi. Both were flavorful. The menu changes so we couldn’t order certain dishes we had read about. The guests next to us had octopus and looked to be a generous portion. When we received ours my husband and I both looked at each other and commented that ours was much smaller. We had about 5 pieces of octopus on the plate.
our server tried to get us more but couldn’t. So I escalated the situation and spoke to the manager in private asking why our portion was meager. He was accommodating and brought us another plate. We split the salmon and that was prepared to perfection.
Overall, I would recommend the restaurant.
We will be dining at their sister restaurant, Imoto, tomorrow which is attached to Buccan. You can access it in the back through the hallway, manager is the same for both.

Hi Florida,
Perhaps my expectations were too high. After driving by fancy million dollar homes and their private beaches, I must say, I was very excited to dine at Buccan. Cocktails were good, wonderful fresh fruits and nicely balanced flavor. They could use better bottles. BUT please, why overly spicy, salty, too much terrible sauce over EVERYTHING? and why do you serve food on grease soaked toast? Why is your egg yolk on beef tartar hard boiled? Oh, do not forget that shrimps were over cooked. Why would you cover the beautiful flavors of fresh seafood with carelessly made sauce and serve it over those grease soaked toasts? Why Florida? Why do you pay for this that much and why do you allow this chef to cook your beautiful shrimps like this?
It was a really odd scene to be in. Beautiful people, all nicely dressed, enjoying each others’ company, great service and all, but their food did not match up to everything else. I hope that this is not representative of the food scene in West Palm Beach, FL. However, I cannot help to think that if this restaurant were be in Portland or San Francisco, (1) it would not be as crowded (2) they cannot possibly sell their food at this price (3) they would not get this kind of rating. Be warned, if you are a foodie from the west coast. In fact, I ate at a couple other places along the water front and they were much better, similarly priced but less pretentious.
Oh their squid ink pasta that everyone is raving about, nothing special. Spicy sausage, squid ink orecchiette, generous parsley and perhaps pasta water, broth or wine to thicken the sauce. Seriously people, not worth $ 14. Their pasta noodles lacked texture and chewiness that any freshly made pasta ought to have. Lastly, they put finely chopped red bell peppers on everything for a no apparent reason, like Applebee’s. I really hope that my experience was better at this restaurant.
Sad, YJ

The food was delicious! You have to order the empanadas and the ravioli! It was to die for. Everything was amazing. A must go!

Finally I found a place with really tasty food! Sadly I had to drive 45 min to get there. Service was great. Our server made many recommendations. We had the short rib empanadas, tuna tartar, burrata salad, brisket slider, prime burger and the bread pudding, cookie and French press coffee. The dishes are made for sharing and come by the piece — each around $ 6 per piece. Our favorite was the pork taco. It was so flavorful. Amazing. I would go back just for that. Everything else was very good but the cookie. Just plain — nothing special. I recommend the bread pudding with the French press. For $ 5, we had enough coffee for the entire table (4 people) I had 2 cocktails — a watermelon Martini and a Buccan T. Both were just ok. Not that strong. They had my partner’s favorite scotch — Lagavulin, which made him happy because most places don’t have it. If you like camp fire tasting single malt scotch — try it! The atmosphere was a trendy beachy feel. Like being in the Hamptons. Slightly pretentious. People dress up to come here. Overall — I would come back if it wasn’t so far! Some places in Boca have tried to do this — fancy American menu with food you can’t pronounce — (rebel house — I’m talking about you) but they’re food doesn’t deliver making them a flop. This place has pasta with squid ink — but it delivers on flavor. Wish Boca had a place like this. Buccan pulls it off. Yay!

The vibe: hip, casual (check).
The dining room: large windows, open kitchen, animated (check).
The menu: seasonal, well thought out, reasonably priced (check)
The service: courteous, professional (check)
Dined with 3 others, so had a chance to sample numerous menu selections. Perfect for sharing, All of the following were really delicious: Stuffed squash blossoms, grilled octopus, mushroom pizza, short rib empanada, seared scallop, whole fish. Desserts were awesome as well.

This place is a good as it gets in Florida. Best dishes we ordered: sweet corn ravioli, squid ink orecchiette, short rib empanada and duck confit. Really looking forward to returning soon.

Hot spot! Great small Tapas type dishes. Watermelon martinis were delicious. Squash blossom and white asparagus. Have fun!

Holy moly. At first I read diner so wasn’t at all expecting such a hip/​classy/​cool place and man oh man am I happy I went and listened to the other reviewers! The hod dog panini and empanada were MIND BLOWING! Do not miss out. Definitely give this place a visit and you will not be disappointed. Also the service we had was impeccable. Great staff :)

Oh Buccan… thank god we found you!
This was arguably the best meal I’ve had in the whole Palm Beach area. The restaurant is in this beautiful space right off Worth Ave. It has an upscale feel yet still feels modern and hip… which I find can be tough to pull off in Palm Beach.
My meal started with a delicious Watermelon martini which was simply perfect. Not too sweet and super fresh.
Some highlights:
So there are two things that I love and almost always order if they are on a menu… steak tartare and octopus. These two preparations have to be some of the best I’ve had.
The steak tartare was so melt in your mouth. The addition of the truffle and «crispy egg» added a wonderful flavor and texture. Once put on the smokey wood fired bread, it was perfection!
I believe that this may have been the best octopus I have ever had. First it was insanely tender which is always a challenge with octopus. Next, the combinations of flavor were like nothing I’ve ever tried. Who knew papaya and cashew butter went so fantastically with octopus!
We tried a few more dishes but I think you get the idea. This place is totally worth the reservation you need to make 6 weeks out!

My husband and I went in to celebrate something on a special date night. Buccan had come highly recommended by a family member from West Palm and it did not disappoint.
My husband had come in early with a bouquet of flowers and wanted champagne waiting at the table. The manager of Buccan had it all waiting and beautifully set up at a romantic and more quite table. He even offered us the two of us a 4 top on a particularly crowded night instead since we were celebrating. Our server was also fantastic and new the menu inside and out. He advised well on what to order and how to course out the tapas we wanted to share.
We started with the Burrata salad which you can get so many places, but here was really well done. It was seasoned well and the dressing on the greens elevated the dish. Next, we shared the squid ink orchietta with conch and Italian sausage. This was the most disappointing dish of the night. It was way too spicy and was not described as such. The delicate ingredients were overpowered by the spice and I ended up not eating it. The highlight of the night was the shrimp scampi which was served on a toast square. It was a huge piece of shrimp, perfectly cooked, and excellently seasoned.
The atmosphere is great and it is definitely a hot spot right now. We would definitely come back.

AMAZING!!! This is one of my new favorite spots to come to when I’m in Florida. The food is delicious. The chef clay Conley I heard changes the menu almost every month. However if you get in there and see the sweet corn ravioli — GET IT! You will not be sorry, it was light yet full of flavor. You will find yourself dipping bread into your leftover sauce. Another favorite of mine was the squash blossom. It was filled with crab and I’m not sure what else — all I know is it tasted fantastic. The restaurant can get a little busy and noisy. I would definitely suggest making a reservation. I will be back again soon :)

Do not bother to make a reservation. We made a reservation for 8pm and were forced to stand by the door until 9:15pm. To make matters worse the staff could not care less and kept asking us how many where in our party rather than resolving the issue. We spoke to multiple people at the bar who complained about the same issue. It’s absolutely insane and as a restaurant on palm beach I expected much much more.
Don’t waste your time.

This is a great place I love it. Probably the best place to have dinner in all West Palm beach county. The environment is awesome the people are great. First of all make sure you ask for from Francisco as your server. He is the best. He gave us his suggestions and he wasn’t wrong. First of all try the cocktails you won’t regret it. Definitely try the empanadas, tuna tartare and steak tartare. But the best thing on the whole menu was the sweet corn on agnolotti. Definitely life changing. Dont leave without trying the grown up cookies. They are amazing.
I will go back as many times I can. Food is unbelievable, great service and great atmosphere.

The pork sliders were phenomenal. The best I’ve had. Also, enjoyed the empanadas and parmesan fries. However, the oysters were mediocre at best. The service was great and I can’t wait to come back.

Suck in your gut and put your tailored jeans on– then head down to this delicious spot in West Palm Beach serving up some truly creative food that hits all the right flavor notes. Most stuff is served tapas style– this is what we mowed down.
1^st– Steak Tartare with a ‘cripsy egg yolk’- this was awesome. Great balance of savory, salty, sweet, tang, egg yolk was crispy on the outside– creamy on the inside– how you do that son?
2^nd– Short rib empanadas– fantastic again– super tender meat wrapped in a flaky crust– great sauce underneath– think veal demi-​glacé on steroids.
3^rd– Oh shit. This pasta dish was top 5 things I’ve ever eaten. Sweet corn purée filled pasta in a bacon pea corn cream sauce. What’s that? You hate corn? Don’t worry– you’ll like this. Honestly– if you don’t get this– you’re missing out big time. We weren’t going to and then our waiter slapped us and corrected our order. Thanks for that buddy.
4^th– Mushroom flatbread. After that corn pasta– it was a bit of a let-​down. Solidly tasty– mushrooms, truffle, rosemary– creamy. All good. But that corn pasta, droooool.
5^th– Pork belly kimchi bao bun. Now originally, we had ordered another pork belly dish– but then our waiter went NEXT DOOR to their sister restaurant to get us this dish. Honestly– our waiter was a total boss. It was a funky delight– real deal kimchi– super tender pork. Crispy bao bun.
All in with a couple beers it was $ 75. Not too shabby. You can spend a ton more if you wanted to– but we were super-​full and, yeah, corn.

This place is a diamond in the rough. Truly a stand out of a restaurant in a sea of medocrity. Everyone else in town is serving up the traditional, but Buccan is bringing innovative dishes executed with pure perfection. In fact, this place was so good that my wife and i ate here 2 nights in a row (2 out of 3 dinners on our trip).
Here are some highlights:
Pork Belly Sliders with Pimento Cheese
Agnolotti with sweet corn, peas, and bacon
Hot Dog Panini — Hotdog, Grueyere, and Saurkraut
Even the burger was spot on!!!
Service is impeccable with highty competent servers and friendly management who occassionally float the floor to check on each table.
Must have the adult cookies and milk for dessert
Half price bottles of wine on Mondays!!!

Buccan is an incredible spot for a date night or fun dinner with friends. The service was great, the atmosphere is classy with a trendy twist, and the food is a delicious experience.
We got the tuna tartar, which was the perfect consistency and very fresh. Then we got the squash blossoms, short rib empanadas, and spicy pork tacos. All of them were great but the squash blossom was really special — a must try. We also has the mushroom pizza, which was very rich in flavor, and the sweet corn agnolotti which was so unique. Sweet corn and ricotta pasta with bacon for crunch… That and the squash blossoms were my favorite.
Buccan is expensive but worth every cent. It is really special and I would not have changed a single thing about it.

As far as my ears are concerned, this place is the talk of the town. Finally, got to stop by on my last night in West Palm.
It is certainly hip. You can tell not just from the menu options, but from the clearly chic Xerox’d menu itself. Also, what doesn’t say hip like a sneaker clad staff and a DJ?
We ordered the mushroom pizza and grilled octopus. I got a strawberry sparkler for hydration. I actually wasn’t too excited about the mushroom pizza at first (it was my date’s choice, and he was paying, so I appeased him), but it was SO good. Now, I’m a girl who’s been fortunate enough to have eaten her face off in Italy twice. This pizza was truly awesome! This pizza with it’s perfect thin crust, oozy-​gooey cheese, sliced mushrooms, punch of truffle… I’ll be dreaming about this pizza for meals to come. The grilled octopus was cooked perfectly, but it was seasoned a bit too salty for me. The strawberry sparkler’s effervescence hit the spot of my soul that daringly admits to drink a cocktail with the word «sparkler» in it.
Like the rest of what I’ve seen of Palm Beach, the crowd is older and they are transplants from just about anywhere in ‘Merica. I’m twenty-​four so I might need to revisit when I’ve got a couple more decades under my belt to enjoy the scene, rather than view it curiously. I’m sure it reminds enough people of what they remember from the nightlife back home.