Longboards in West Palm Beach Closes to Become Second Kapow! Location

A popular Boca Raton restaurant will be expanding with a long-anticipated second location off Clematis Street in downtown West Palm Beach by the end of the year.

Kapow! cocreator Vaughan Dugan has announced he and Sub-Culture Restaurant and Nightclub Group founders Scott Frielich and Rodney Mayo will team up to turn the Longboards (519 Clematis Street) space into the concept's second location. Construction is expected to begin immediately, and the group is hoping to celebrate a late 2016 grand opening.

"The three of us are back at it. We've had a great run in Mizner Park and haven't slowed down since opening," says Dugan, who opened Kapow! with Frielich and Mayo in 2011. "People are very familiar with the concept in West Palm Beach, and the saying 'Where one door closes, another one opens' is certainly the case here."

Longboards, the surf-themed seafood restaurant and bar located on the 500 block of Clematis Street which Mayo opened in July 2011, announced August 2 via a Facebook post that it would close after nearly five years in business. The space, just over 3,000 square feet, will offer nearly double the dining area of the original Boca Raton location. The restaurant will also unveil a new interior design created by Mayo, the Sub-Culture group's concept and decor creator.

According to Frielich, the menu and beverage plan will remain the same, with favorite dishes including the skirt steak ramen, steamed buns, and the Spicy Lover cocktail. 

The trio also confirm they are actively searching for Kapow! sites three and four, with additional locations being considered both in and out of state, adds Dugan.

"We've grown a lot in the past five years, so we're taking that experience and using it to turn this into a bigger, better Kapow!" says Frielich.

Nicole Danna is a food writer 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 the BPB New Times Food & Drink Instagram.