Five-star and five-diamond resort veteran Eduardo Ruberte as the hotel’s Executive Chef. Ruberte’s career includes previous positions as Executive Banquet Chef at Eau Palm Beach Resort, Executive Sous-Chef at the W Washington D.C., Executive Chef at the Bahia Mar Fort Lauderdale Beach, and a five-year career with Four Season Hotels in Miami and Palm Beach.
Canopy West Palm Beach Downtown is an upper upscale lifestyle hotel brand that offers a fresh approach to hospitality and the guest experience. The brand was created from extensive consumer research and launched in 2014. Each hotel is designed as a natural extension of its neighborhood and provides a place to relax and recharge with guest-directed service, comfortable spaces, energizing atmosphere, and thoughtfully local choices.
Chef Ruberte is envisioning to bring a deliciously creative fusion of Latin, Caribbean and Florida culinary influences for the menu, with an intense focus on locally-sourced, fresh-daily items. He will oversee cuisine at the hotel’s banquet and catering operations, first-floor Banter restaurant, and its 13th-floor lounge and bar Treehouse.
“I don’t think people fully appreciate how lucky we are in Florida to have the best selection of locally-sourced meats, fish, vegetables, and fruit anywhere in the world, and my goal is to showcase the freshest local ingredients through an imaginative selection of dishes,” said Ruberte. “Our menu will be a celebration of Florida, with a variety of sushi, tapas and small plates designed to be shared among friends and family.”
The Banter restaurant will serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily with ingredients sourced from local purveyors. In the evening you can find great cocktails, wine, and local craft beers. Enjoy fresh and local ingredients inspired by the West Palm Beach culture.
At Banter, Ruberte’s main dish highlights include Florida Snapper a la Veracruzana, a traditional Mexican tomato-based sauce served with house-made sweet potato gnocchi; a surf and turf dish combining Chilean sea bass with short rib Cuban ropa vieja and a shiitake relish; and Pumpkin Ravioli from fresh local pumpkins served with a pea puree, ricotta, and sage cream reduction.
The 13th-floor rooftop bar and lounge Treehouse will feature its own menu, offering light bites and new takes on timeless classics. Raw selections include Corvina Ceviche with pineapple, Fresno chilis, and Leche de Tigre; plus Ahi Tuna Crudo with vegetable relish, jalapenos and a sherry-soy vinaigrette.
Exciting new takes on menu classics include the Banter Burger, made with a Canopy-specific beef blend of Creekstone brisket, chuck and short rib created with West Palm Beach-based Bush Brothers Provision Company; a Cranberry Chipotle Cheddar Grilled Cheese sandwich made with braised beef short rib; and the WPB Crispy Chicken Wrap with buffalo cream, bacon bits, corn and blue cheese.
“You’d be surprised at how culinary tastes differ from Boca to Delray to Wellington. Our particular menu will help define and refine West Palm Beach’s own emerging cuisine culture,” added Ruberte.
In the mornings, Banter will offer an artisan Canopy Breakfast Buffet, as well as a number of specially-crafted a la carte items.
In addition to breakfast, lunch, and dinner, Banter offers an all-day menu so guests and visitors can enjoy their favorites at their leisure. Treehouse will begin serving lunch and remain open late into the evening to accommodate nightlife on its 13th-floor perch.
Executive Chef Ruberte is sourcing products from a variety of local purveyors and growers, including Swank Farms, Tropical Acres Farms, Kai-Kai Farms, McCoy’s Sunny South Apiaries, Pascale’s Delray Beach Jam Company, and Third Wind Seafood.
Ruberte’s career began as a young teen in a series of restaurants owned by his family in his native Puerto Rico. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration at the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico before attending the New England Culinary Institute in Burlington, Vermont, where he earned his AOS in Culinary Arts. He accepted apprenticeships at Four Seasons Hotels in Atlanta and Chicago before moving to South Florida. He is a resident of Wellington, along with his wife and two daughters.
—
