Top of the Point
West Palm Beach

A casually stylish ambience, a pleasing menu, and an excellent service
are topped by the spectacular view

By Jana Soeldner Danger

The view alone is arguably a reason to visit Top of the Point, a restaurant perched on the club floor of the Phillips Point East Tower in downtown Palm Beach. Wrap-around windows provide gorgeous180-degree vistas of the Intracoastal Waterway, the island of Palm Beach, and the ocean beyond.
Previously the private Governors Club at Phillips Point, the restaurant is now owned and operated by the famed Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach, and open to the public in the evening. During the day, it remains a private club. Along with a $1 million renovation, the new management has also traded the restaurant’s stiffer, more formal atmosphere and pricey menu for a more casual ambiance and moderately priced fare.
At the helm is The Breakers Executive Chef Anthony Sicignano, who also presides over the resort’s seven other restaurants. A native Long Islander and graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Sicignano has a 20-year track record in the restaurant industry, including tenure as banquet chef at the Waldorf Astoria in New York.
Top of the Point’s newly remodeled dining room, which is open to the bar area, is done in a mix of soft gold, cranberry, caramel and black. Dark woods chairs with ivory leather seats flank hard-surface tables softened with woven runners.
The one-page menu features American fare, with some of the Asian accents that are now ubiquitous in South Florida.
Even though no one brought bread to our table, or asked if we wanted any, which seemed somewhat surprising, service is attentive and professional: The wait staff delivers plates in a group, so every person at a particular table is served at the same time. A service charge of 20 percent is automatically added to each check in lieu of a discretionary gratuity.

Appetizers
Starters are a mix of bar-style finger food, traditional choices reminiscent of a mid-20th century supper club, and some contemporary creations.
Short rib sliders ($11) were spicy and very tender. A small square of hot dog bun held the meat, plus a topping of buttery Manchego cheese and pickled onions. Colorful on the plate, they’re flavorful and fun to eat, although a bit messy.
Flatbread ($11) had a crust that was actually a large water cracker. A topping of olive oil, sweet caramelized onions, tangy artichokes, and fresh diced tomatoes, plus a generous sprinkling of goat cheese, was very good, with a nice combination of crunchy, creamy, and juicy textures.
Other appetizers include crab nachos ($14); oysters on the half shell ($14 for a half dozen); calamari ($12); oysters Rockefeller ($15); zucchini chips ($9); lettuce wraps ($12); and a comfort food platter ($14) that includes franks in a blanket, bacon-wrapped scallops, and Swedish meatballs. There are also shrimp ($17 or crabmeat cocktail ($16) and sushi. Gazpacho ($7) contains crab and cucumbers, and clam chowder ($8) is served in a bread bowl.

Entrees
Main courses are, for the most part, straight-forward, traditional American-style fare.
Sea bass was a thick, generous cut of tender fish, seared to a light golden color on the outside, and lightly cooked to a flakey perfection inside. A citrus sauce made with lemon, lime and orange juices, shallots, butter, white wine and a touch of garlic was an ideal accompaniment that enhanced the fish without overpowering it. Fresh sautéed spinach added color to the dish, and fluffy lobster mashed potatoes were very good.
A New York strip steak ($40) was cooked medium rather than the medium rare we ordered, but it was tender and flavorful. A Diane sauce with Worcestershire, cognac, and a touch of Dijon mustard nicely accented the meat. Lightly broiled fresh tomatoes topped with gorgonzola cheese, along with fried bok choy, added pleasant tanginess and texture.
The menu offers a number of dressed up, homestyle comfort foods like chicken and dumplings ($22); rigatoni ($17); Kobe beef ($20) or turkey ($16) burger; roast chicken ($21); lobster pot pie ($42); rib chop ($34); and barbecued short ribs ($28).

Desserts
Like the entrees, most of the desserts are homestyle comfort foods. Deep dish apple pie ($7.50), served warm may evoke images of Grandma’s kitchen. The apples were tender but not at all mushy, and there was just enough cinnamon to add bite. Sweet, sticky caramel sauce, along with both ice cream and whipped cream, make this an indulgent treat.
Chocolate layer cake ($7.5) was dark, moist, and delicious. It is served with sweet whipped cream and fresh berries.

Top of the Point has a casually stylish ambience and a pleasing menu, and the service is very good. The spectacular view of the Intracoastal, the island of Palm Beach, and the ocean beyond adds much to the experience of spending an evening there.