Chef Jeremy Bearman is turning lemons into ceviche this week -- and if you’ve followed Bearman’s cooking endeavors, you know it will be some excellent ceviche.
Bearman is the culinary mind behind Lantana’s popular Oceano Kitchen. His newish seafood restaurant High Dive debuted at Rosemary Square just weeks before the pandemic hit, shutting down some of the area’s important sources of dining traffic, namely the Kravis Center and the Palm Beach County Convention Center.
Bearman reopened briefly for patio dining and takeout, but the second-floor location in a suddenly stalled area proved “incredibly tough,” he says. In mid-July, he and his wife/partner Cindy Bearman decided to close the place until the worst of the crisis passes.
“We’ll reopen High Dive, but we’re not in any rush. We won’t reopen until we feel it’s the right time to do it in the way we want to reopen it,” he says. “Otherwise, you’re just there, spinning your wheels.”
Speaking of wheels, Bearman will open a related concept Wednesday on High Dive’s outdoor patio: a fancy seafood trailer called Fish Bowl.
“We’re going to be doing some cool things, like ceviche and poke and papaya salad,” says Bearman, who describes the venture as “a cool little pop-up” that will make use of High Dive’s spacious outdoor seating area.
In addition to serving a small menu of fresh, cool items, Fish Bowl will offer house-bottled cocktails, craft beers and most of High Dive’s wines. Cindy Bearman, a celebrated pastry chef, will be making fresh ice cream for the trailer as well. Customers can order online or via cellphone.
“People can come and sit in the upper deck. We’re hoping we can start some live music there soon,” he says.
Bearman has tapped fellow celebrated chef Joel Ehrlich, formerly of the now-closed Valentino Cucina in Fort Lauderdale and presently at Oceano Kitchen, to help operate Fish Bowl. With a career that includes turns at Michelin-starred restaurants in northern California’s wine country, Ehrlich shares Bearman’s fresh and refined cooking style.
Meanwhile at Oceano Kitchen, season has kicked into high gear, says Bearman. While nearly half of his clientele continues to opt for takeout, more diners are venturing out, he says. It helps that the restaurant’s main dining room is on the open-sided terrace.
“Never in our four years has our outdoor seating worked to our advantage -- until now,” Bearman says with a laugh.
So far, this season has been busier than last season, he says. Some nights, the place is downright “jamming,” he says.
“It’s like the tale of two restaurants,” says Bearman, referring to the contrast between bustling Oceano and temporarily closed High Dive.
He credits Oceano’s loyal customers for helping to keep the restaurant afloat throughout this year’s most difficult months.
“The support we got from our community was really something,” says Bearman. “It made you stop and think we really built something special.”
Fish Bowl at High Dive
- Located at 550 S. Rosemary Ave., Suite 236 on the second floor of Rosemary Place in West Palm Beach.
- Opens at 5 p.m. Wednesday and will operate Wednesdays through Fridays from 5 to 9 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 9 p.m.
- On Instagram @HighDiveWestPalm
