Restaurateur Stephen Starr is planning a 165-seat restaurant inside the former department store at 151 Worth Ave., part of a major overhaul of the building that has sat vacant since 2020.
The working name is Room Service. Despite the steakhouse billing, Starr told the Palm Beach Town Council on Sept. 9 that he has something broader in mind: a neighborhood spot where diners can order more than the usual steakhouse staples.
Plans show 126 indoor dining seats, seven bar seats and 32 outdoor seats on a balcony overlooking Worth Avenue. It would be Starr’s first restaurant in Palm Beach.
The dining room is only part of the makeover. The nearly 49,000-square-foot property would be broken up to make room for smaller boutiques on its first two floors. The redevelopment also calls for new storefronts, balconies, landscaping, a refreshed arcade and Mediterranean-style architectural details.
It’s a major second act for a building constructed for Neiman Marcus in 1998. The luxury retailer spent about 22 years there before closing its Palm Beach store in September 2020.
Starr has built a restaurant empire that includes Le Diplomate in Washington, D.C., and Michelin-starred Le Coucou in New York. He’s also behind Pastis West Palm, opening this fall at the Nora Hotel.
If all goes to plan, Room Service could open as early as December 2027.
