Bice was founded in 1926 in Milan by Beatrice Ruggeri — known to her family and the regulars as Bice — who turned a farm-to-table trattoria opened with her brothers and sisters into the international fashion-and-banking-set canteen the room became in the 1970s. The Palm Beach outpost on Worth Avenue is one of the brand's earliest American locations and runs the room with the same family-feel mandate that carried the original from a single Milan address to forty-plus locations from New York to Tokyo.
What to Expect from the Kitchen
The menu is calibrated authentic Italian: house-made pastas (the Pappardelle al Telefono della Bice in tomato cream is the order to put on the table first), Insalata di Frutti di Mare with poached shrimp and scallops, fried calamari with marinara, a Carbonara done with guanciale and pecorino — and a serious steak section using Standard Meat Club prime cuts. Mains run $32 to $68. The Sunday brunch service is the room's quietly best meal.
Worth Avenue location, courtyard al-fresco seating, live guitarist, candlelit tables: Bice runs as confidently as a long-running restaurant should. Happy Hour Sunday-Thursday 4pm to 6pm is the bar-side back-door way in for the diner who has not booked.
Practical Info
Who It's For
Bice suits the date-night couple who want a courtyard table under fairy lights, the visiting-from-New-York friend who wants the most Worth Avenue experience available, the small birthday group of six to ten that can take the side dining room, and the team-dinner that needs an upscale-Italian default with an Italian-only wine list. The room handles an anniversary candle and a quiet "buon anniversario" without making a production.
How to Book and What to Expect
Open daily — Lunch 11:30am to 3pm; Sunday-Thursday dinner 3pm to 10pm; Friday-Saturday dinner 3pm to 10:30pm. Phone +1 (561) 835-1600 or book on OpenTable. Reservations one to two weeks ahead for in-season Friday/Saturday evenings; off-season the room is more flexible. Smart-casual is the room's register — Worth Avenue dress code applies (no shorts at dinner).