Joel Engelhardt
One of the most prominent and long-lasting restaurants in CityPlace, The Cheesecake Factory, is preparing to leave.
Yes, but: It isn’t going far.
Why it’s important: The California-based chain expects to do what several other large restaurant brands have tried but failed to do: Make a go of it on Okeechobee Boulevard across from the Palm Beach County Convention Center.
In its place at the heart of the rapidly changing shopping and dining district, the CityPlace developers have the right to build an eight-story structure. They are not saying what will replace the Egyptian columns of The Cheesecake Factory but the buzz is a boutique hotel.
- A West Palm Beach spokesperson said the city expects plans to be submitted in August.
Cheesecake applied for a permit in January to demolish the interior of The Regional Kitchen & Public House, as first reported in the CityPlaceAngels newsletter in March. The Regional opened at 651 Okeechobee Blvd. in 2016 and closed in October. Subscribe
Other stalwarts to try and falter in the big space on Okeechobee since CityPlace opened in 2000: Angelo and Maxie’s Steakhouse, Columbia Restaurant and McCormick & Schmick’s.
Through it all The Cheesecake Factory remained at the heart of CityPlace at Rosemary Avenue and Hibiscus Street. That would leave City Cellar Wine Bar and Grill as the lone unchanged original.
- Across the street, a Macy’s department store has been torn down and replaced by the Laurel, a 21-story, 322-unit apartment building.
- An entire block containing the AMC movie theater has been torn down, to be replaced by two 20-plus-story office buildings.
- The old church across Rosemary, known as the Harriet, is undergoing renovations to house a dining marketplace. Residents are angered by the developer’s decision to gut the stairs, a prominent entry point, on the nearly 100-year-old building.
What they’re saying: A boutique hotel could complement the new office space, providing lodging for business-related travel. “The Hilton (at the convention center) is not upscale enough,” said commercial real estate veteran Neil Merin.
Of note: Despite Cheesecake’s plan to remain at CityPlace, it is still committed to opening a restaurant at Tuttle Royale, the so-called CityPlace of the West rising at Southern Boulevard and State Road 7 in Royal Palm Beach, developer Brian Tuttle confirmed.
Joel is a founder, reporter and editor at Stet News. His award-winning newspaper career spanned more than 40 years, including 28 years at The Palm Beach Post, which he left in 2020. Joel lives with his wife in Palm Beach Gardens. He volunteers on the board of NAMI Palm Beach County and the Palm Beach Gardens Historical Society.
