Friday evening, early May. Dinner hour, and CityPlace is alive — couples strolling, groups laughing, the sidewalks humming with that particular energy West Palm gets when the temperature settles into the low 80s and the breeze finally cooperates.
It’s the kind of night made for dining alfresco, and CityPlace offers plenty of options for it. But I had my sights on a newcomer: Moxies, the bright addition tucked into the ground floor of The Laurel apartment building. For anyone who hasn’t been to City Place in a while, that’s the spot where Macy’s used to stand. I’d passed Moxies several times, admired its relaxed outdoor seating, and made the same promise each time — “One of these nights, I’ll give it a try.” Last Friday, I finally did, with a friend in tow.
A cluster of friendly hostesses greeted us at the door and asked the inevitable question: outside or in?
Despite the gorgeous weather, the answer was obvious the moment I stepped through the door. Inside was where the night lived. Well-dressed people were drifting in and out, music pulsed just loud enough to signal weekend, and the servers moved through the room with that confident choreography you only see in restaurants that have found their rhythm.
“Definitely inside,” I told her.
We were led to a table in the section beside the bar — and what a bar it is. Stretching nearly the full length of the dining room, it anchors the space like a runway. The layout works beautifully: booths line each flank, high-tops fill the center aisle, and there’s enough room between everything for the staff (and the people-watchers) to move freely.
My first impression crystallized within minutes: Moxies is where West Palm Beach comes to meet people now.
“It’s true what everyone’s been saying,” I told my companion. “This is the weekend spot.”
“Yeah,” she said, glancing across the room. “Even Pete from Palm Beach is here.”
Sure enough, the Florida man who went viral back in March — the one who bears an uncanny resemblance to you-know-who but is decidedly not you-know-who — was holding court at a nearby table, graciously posing for selfies with anyone who recognized him.
I don’t mind a loud room. Moxies gets loud, but it earns it; the buzz is part of the appeal, and you can still hear your dinner companion without leaning halfway across the table.
Our server certainly heard us. She walked us through the menu with genuine warmth, offered recommendations tailored to first-timers, and never once felt rushed.
Speaking of the menu. This is where Moxies really won me over. I’m not strictly vegan, vegetarian, or pescatarian, but my choices tend to orbit those categories, and it’s surprisingly hard to find a restaurant that handles all of them gracefully under one roof. Moxies does. The menu spans sushi and raw bar, appetizers borrowed from various cuisines, soups, salads, a generous run of vegetarian and plant-based mains, steaks, seafood, and pastas. No wonder the place pulls a crowd. No more standoffs over where to eat when one friend wants steak and another wants a grain bowl.
When in Rome, eat like the Romans. So, I leaned hard on anything marked with the little Moxies icon, signaling a house signature.
From the Sushi + Raw section, we shared the Tuna Sushi Stack — ahi tuna layered with seasoned rice, avocado, and mango, finished with a soy-ginger glaze, spicy mayo, and crisp prawn crackers on the side. From the appetizers, the Crab Cake: lump crab with a breadcrumb crust, lemon cream, arugula, and grapefruit. Both were good. The Tuna Stack was the clear winner — bright, layered, and somehow both creamy and crunchy in the same bite.
A round of mocktails arrived, and I settled into my Salmon & Avocado Cobb Salad while my companion launched into stories about new spots opening downtown over the coming months. Mid-conversation, a couple of folks standing near the bar — our table sat right in the thick of it — asked if they could borrow one of our empty chairs.
“Of course,” I said.
That small exchange turned into the kind of conversation you can’t engineer. The chair-borrower turned out to be a longtime downtown resident I’d somehow never crossed paths with, and we share affection for many of the same neighborhood haunts. Hopefully, we’ll bump into each other again soon.
This, more than anything, is what I’d credit Moxies with: it’s a place where strangers actually talk.
But back to dinner. The mains arrived — a 12-oz Prime New York steak for my companion and a Scottish Salmon for me. The salmon sat on a bed of ancient grains and seasonal vegetables, finished with a lemon-herb sauce that I’d happily eat by the spoonful. The quinoa was unexpectedly the standout: nutty, well-seasoned, and somehow the perfect counterpoint to the fish. Portions were generous without tipping into overkill.
Another mocktail for me, a Porn Star Martini for my companion, and then dessert. The White Chocolate Brownie arrived warm, under a pour of chocolate sauce, with vanilla bean ice cream melting into the edges and real whipped cream on top. It was rich enough that two of us couldn’t quite finish it, which is exactly how a good dessert should end.
Moxies has built a loyal following at its Fort Lauderdale and Miami locations, where the brand’s polished-but-energetic formula has earned it a reputation as a go-to for locals and visitors. Now it’s ours, too — and judging by Friday night’s crowd, West Palm has embraced it just as quickly.
The genius of the place is how naturally it gets people connecting, unwinding, and celebrating. It’s already shaping up as a top pick for date nights, game-day gatherings, and groups of friends who don’t want to argue over cuisine. Between the chic, warm atmosphere, the quality of the food, the genuinely attentive staff, and the stylish design, Moxies earns its tab and then some.
I’ll be back. And next time, I might even take a chance on that outdoor seating.
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Where? 565 S Rosemary Ave (City Place)
Online: moxies.com
More photos of my visit to Moxies
