Jan NorrisPopular waterfront restaurant quietly reopens after 16-month renovation.
Things are flowing at the Waterway Cafe once more.
The restaurant on the Intracoastal Waterway at the southwestern foot of the PGA Boulevard bridge opened last week after a 16-month renovation.
The indoor-outdoor restaurant dates to 1986. As recently as 2022, it was named a top waterfront destination and may be among the county’s top grossing restaurants. It closed for renovations in August 2023.
Waterway appealed to a wide variety, from locals cheering on their teams at the former indoor bar to tourists relishing dining in shorts on a floating bar to locals showing off waterfront dining to out-of-town guests to boaters who docked and ordered food to go.
What’s changed?
- Clean lines, bright whites and natural accents give it an approachable feel, with class.
- A wider, higher portico greets guests who valet. (And the repaved parking lot feels new, although exiting is still eastbound-only over the bridge.)
- Floors have been leveled — first thing you notice inside. A few steps up, but no climbing up and down multiple levels to get to one of 350 seats throughout.
- Bushy live plants in wide concealing planters are 86’ed (all gone, in restaurant parlance) in favor of strategically placed green spots.
- The old sports bar is gone, replaced by dining tables. The new bar, occupying a third of the main room, is wide open, with just two television sets hanging from the ceiling. It’s modern, bright and has a staff of 20 or so bartenders on rotating shifts.
New and notable: The skylight over the bar brightens the space in daytime and offers starry-sky views at night. A fireplace off the main dining room is a visual “calming” feature. Walls move to offer private areas for dining. Lounge furniture is comfy sofas and low tables for small groups gathering over apps and a drink.
The view across the water has changed. Panama Hattie’s is gone, replaced by the heavy construction of the Ritz Carlton Residences, a three-building, 106-unit condo project.
The big menu Waterway was known for is now condensed to highlights and favorites while the staff in the kitchen and on the floor come up to speed. It opened last weekend by word of mouth to give staff time to work out the kinks.
The mega popular floating bar remains. Redone to match the dining room light grays and whites and tan woods, but still bobbing. It offers the same menu as indoors.
They have added a 20% service charge on every check. All of it goes to servers and support staff to help them earn enough to assure top-notch service, General Manager Mike Dixon said.
Owner Marc Mariacher promised jobs to anyone willing to come back, and kept the oath, Dixon said. Mariacher took over the restaurant after property owners Scott and Jill Yates paid $12.5 million for the site in June 2020.
The chef, many of the servers and support staff are back at their posts. Some of the former managers make up the team of four to five on the floor daily.
While the old bar is gone, the two TVs may show at least one football team regularly. Mariacher is a big Buffalo Bills fan, Dixon said.
For now, the restaurant is not taking reservations. Also, as work continues along the 150-foot seawall, boaters can’t tie up and the water-facing tiki bars won’t open until mid-February or March.
Entrees, ranging from $36 to $51, include a maple-glazed salmon, pan-seared scallops and lobster and shrimp stir fry. A bacon-cheddar burger is priced at $24 and a lobster melt at $39.
Vegan and vegetarian options are being developed. A brunch menu also is in the works.
Editor’s note: This story was updated on Jan. 23 to correct the first name of the restaurant owner, Marc Mariacher, and to reflect the ownership of the property.
Jan’s a journalist covering the South Florida dining scene for 30-plus years. (She knows where the bones and onion peels are buried.) She’s a Florida native, remembers the state pre-Disney, and travels frequently to visit family and friends from the Keys to the Panhandle.
