The once-quiet Coconut Grove is busting at the seams with new developments, which this week includes Groot Hospitality’s The Key Club. David Grutman’s new classic American restaurant opens below Planta Queen, and is more modest than any of his other establishments to date—from its size to its decór to its menu. For starters, The Key Club centers on community, which feels appropriate for the hippie neighborhood.
“Right now, Coconut Grove is an incredibly exciting place to be.’ says David Grutman, who describes The Key Club as “easygoing—a place for everyone, where we will deliver great food and memorable experiences in our signature Groot way.
The hospitality group enlisted ICRAVE to conceptualize the warm, woodsy, open-air space. Parts of it, such as the outdoor patio and open floor plan, are a nod to the Grove’s free-spirited origins. While the custom woven sofas, hand-painted tile tables and sculptural mid-century furnishings draw from Brazilian design and architecture in the 1950s.
The Key Club, which gets its name from its geographical location in the upper keys and Coconut Grove’s famed Dinner Key Auditorium—the now-defunct nearby concert venue where The Doors and many others once performed—serves your standard American classics. We lack specifics on the menu but can tell you it’ll feature steak and seafood dishes, fresh salads, shareable starters, sushi rolls and specialty cocktails and more. It could read a little like Houston’s offerings but it’s Grutman so the two reported dishes, chips and caviar starter a coconut lobster roll, lead us to believe it’s far from what you'll find at the upscale American chain.
The Key Club opens Friday, March 11, for dinner with DJ-fueled brunches slated to start on March 19.
