Boynton Beach Insider

Since opening in 2018, Driftwood has become a staple within Boynton Beach and is one of the city’s premier dining destinations. The restaurant, which is located at 2005 S. Federal Highway, offers high-quality locally sourced food, craft cocktails, and a relaxing atmosphere. Driftwood is the perfect place to enjoy a romantic date night, evening out with friends, or happy hour after a long day of work.

When dining at Driftwood you will enjoy their inventive, sustainable, and Southern-inspired menu, which includes a variety of unique and tantalizing dishes, such as: Holmans Egg Korean Pancake (house collard greens kimchi, local fish, octopus, kewpie mayo, and house gochujang), Spaghetti with Clams (handmade spaghetti, cedar key clams, and calabrian chillies), and Local Mutton Snapper (fire roasted tomatoes, Carolina conch pea ragu, preserved lemon chimichurri, and roasted spring onions). Check out this Bon Appetit’ Boynton Beach video to see how their signature Shrimp N’ Grits dish is prepared. In addition to their delicious meals, they have a full bar and serve a variety of signature cocktails, craft beers, and wines.

In celebration of their recent 5-year anniversary, we decided to get an inside look with Jimmy Everett, owner and chef, on what has made his restaurant such a success.

What inspired you to open Driftwood in Boynton Beach?

The first thing that sold us on Driftwood’s location was the potential that we saw for the building. We loved the fact that it was a stand-alone structure with its own parking lot and already had its own special charm. The concept of Driftwood was completely based around what we had to work with at the time. We already had our set standards for what we were and weren’t willing to do, but we had only a few months to create a concept. We had to make sure that it felt right in the location while making sure that it was something we could be proud of doing every day. The unique opportunity of purchasing the property was definitely a big plus. The Boynton Beach CRA offered a lot of support that allowed us to make the potential we saw a reality. 

What sets Driftwood apart from other restaurants in the area?

We are very supportive of our neighboring businesses, especially restaurants. We don’t see nearby restaurants as competition, but as partners all working towards creating a better food scene for the area. Every restaurant is contributing to the bigger picture of the experience of living or visiting Boynton. With that being said, there are a few things that we focus very hard on in hopes to set a good example as well as improve sustainable growth for both Driftwood and our community.

 We pay very close attention to what is going on in our local community. When we see others doing something that we feel is making things better, we will do anything in our power to support them. We are very specific about where and who we source our products from as well as what effects our decisions will have down the line. Local farming, fishing, production and services will only continue to be available if we prioritize those products and services. Unfortunately, the needs of many businesses are not always available locally, but many times expressing our needs to a local producer has gone much further than with larger national or international producers/distributors. 

We are very big on respect at Driftwood. Respecting each other, the products that we are using, the people we work with, our guests that come in and spend their hard-earned money, and of course making sure we are always respecting ourselves individually. Restaurants are always going to be a difficult environment to work in, there’s always many different types of people the we are dealing with. Treating others with respect, even in difficult times, has always gotten us much further than not. 

We always try to have fun. We all work a lot of hours and for many of us, we spend more time there than at home or with our families. We are always looking for ways to make what we do more enjoyable for everyone. 

We love diversity and different views/personalities on our team that help represent the diversity of our guests. As long as we are all sharing the common goal, the more diversity the better. Our goal is to provide an environment where everyone can make a fair living doing what they love while being themselves, fulfilling their professional needs, growing sustainably, feeling proud of what they are doing, and having a blast every day. 

What types of obstacles have you faced as a small business owner?

There are challenges every day that we deal with. Some bigger than others but as long as we keep our core values in mind, most challenges become more of a launchpad than an obstacle. We try to learn and grow from every obstacle we come across. We look for ways to turn negative situations positive. 

We can imagine it’s very difficult to run a business, tell us about your team at Driftwood? Who is on the team and what is their role?

We have a team of 23 people, all with different roles. Our lead management team of Leo Mamaril (General Manager), Tommy Coombs (Chef de cuisine) and Joseph Everett (Beverage Director) lead the team day-to-day. Everyone’s role is equally important from my own to Dean’s who helps with prep one day a week. Everyone has created a role for themselves that makes the most sense for them. When we bring new people on board, it’s not because of skills or experience but because they feel good about what we have started and want to continue building with us. We allow time for them to find what they are best at and enjoy the most. Ultimately, this will allow everybody to be as efficient and as beneficial to the business as possible in the long term. 

What type of assistance have you received from the Boynton Beach CRA?

We likely would not have been able to open if it wasn’t for the assistance we received from the Boynton Beach CRA. We received multiple grants pre-opening that allowed us to make the modest changes we needed to, while construction delays depleted our cash flow. They have been a constant resource for us the five years we’ve been open, but definitely a survival tool in our first year. When COVID hit, they were the first to reach out to see how they could help, followed by an emergency grant that they created to keep local businesses afloat. We are forever grateful for their help and will do whatever we can to make it possible for them to continue helping businesses in our community. 

We are so proud that this locally-owned, small business has chosen Boynton Beach as their home. To learn more or book a reservation, visit their website. You can also connect on Facebook or Instagram.