Dennis Max's latest concept, Max's Social House, will be opening later this month in Delray Beach. Dubbed SoHo, it will be delivering yet another incarnation of the area's latest trend: craft food and spirits at the site of the former Falcon House.
The 2,000-square-foot restaurant, which is housed in a historic Delray Beach cottage, features 80 seats indoors and 70 outdoors on a brick garden patio surrounded by lush landscaping. The interior was redesigned by Manhas Design and showcases the original brick fireplace behind the bar as well as a comfortable outdoor patio lounge and bar.
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Max and his partners will open at 116 NE Sixth Ave., just off Federal Highway and one block north of Atlantic Avenue.
"SoHo will offer seasonal, small-batch, artisanal spirits and infusions made with organic juices and hand-picked garnishes," says Max, who selected executive chef Scott Pierce to run the kitchen.
A few menu item sneak peeks have been released, a first look at starters -- or "Ice Breakers" -- like crispy pork rinds with Korean chili and salt ($5); an olive plate ($6); pickle jars with house-made pickles, old school bread, and whey butter ($5); warm Stilton cheese dip with house potato chips ($5); pimiento cheese with pickled green tomato and crostini ($8); and chorizo stuffed dates wrapped in house-smoked bacon with a piquillo pepper tomato sauce ($9).
"The Pick Up Lines" section of the menu will be all about salads, riddled with ingredients like toasted Parmesan, olive oil croutons, smoked chicken, pickled green tomato, and house-made bacon. A rib-eye burger here is made with dry-aged beef, potato bun, pickle, beefy onions, two-year-aged cheddar and fries ($16); as well as a Kobe-style hot dog with bahn mi sriracha aioli, crispy onions, and jalapeño stout mustard and Brussels-sprout kraut ($12).
Addition items dubbed "Anytime Eats" has a few familiar items -- mussels, oysters with pickled shallots and served with house-made hot sauce ($15), a pork belly ramen ($14), and everyone's new favorite -- octopus à la plancha. The "To Each Their Own" section of the menu has some larger offerings with akaushi short rib, Murray's half-chicken, Wagyu flat-iron steak, and swordfish ranging from $19 to $25.
The restaurant will also serve more than a dozen specialty and classic cocktails, including a fig and walnut old-fashioned ($10) with dried fig and toasted almond-infused bourbon, Bitter Truth Bitters, and rock ice; a Chocolate Covered Cherry ($12) with Buffalo Trace Bourbon infused with cherry, fresh pressed lime, black cherry liqueur, crème de cacao and served with a brandied cherry and Hemingway's Hallucination ($11) with light and dark rum, passion fruit puree, Luxardo Cherry Liqueur, served with a few drops of absinthe. The restaurant will also feature an extensive selection of South Florida craft beers, both on tap and in bottles and cans.
Max's Social House is located at 116 NE Sixth Ave., Delray Beach. The restaurant will be open from 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. daily. Happy hour is 4 to 7 p.m. Visit sohodelray.com, or call 561-501-4332.
Nicole Danna is a food blogger covering Broward and Palm Beach counties. To get the latest in food and drink news in South Florida, follow her @SoFloNicole or find her latest food pics on Clean Plate's Instagram.
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