Cooper’s Hawk Brings Popular Restaurant And Winery Concept To Wellington
By Mike May
Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant made its long-awaited opening in Wellington in December, and it is proving to be so popular that it’s often a challenge to get a reservation.
To say that business has been steady since its opening would be an understatement. “We have been busy every single day since we first opened in early December,” senior restaurant manager Adam Mejia said. “It really gets busy late in the afternoon until closing.”
The restaurant opens at 11 a.m. for lunch on weekdays, and 10 a.m. for brunch on weekends, remaining open until 9 p.m. most days, but 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
According to Mejia, reservations are recommended after 4:30 p.m., but the best time to just walk into the restaurant without a reservation is between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. When you arrive at the restaurant, there is seating for roughly 280 people. You can sit in a booth, at a table or at the bar. There is seating outside, too.
In all, there are 73 Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant locations throughout the United States, two of which are now located in Palm Beach County — with Wellington adding to the popular location in Palm Beach Gardens. The Cooper’s Hawk concept pairs wonderful wine choices with a wide array of dining favorites and seasonal specialties.
The restaurant’s menu is filled with enough choices for a month’s worth of daily visits. The menu includes two soups, two surf and turf options (both served with oven-roasted vegetables and Mary’s potatoes), three appetizer salads, four chopped salads, four chicken dishes, five steaks and chops, five seafood entrees, seven burgers and sandwiches, eight house-made desserts, 10 pasta and risotto options, 10 lunch-sized entrees (served between 11 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.), 10 signature sides and 11 appetizers.
Since it is a family restaurant, Cooper’s Hawk also has a kids’ menu with 10 items. For those who are calorie-conscious eaters, there are nine items listed under the heading Life Balance, which means each menu item is between 300 and 700 calories. Those menu items are designed to accommodate guests who are looking to enjoy mindful portions when dining out. Meanwhile, on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., there are nine items under the category of “Brunch & Bubbles.”
According to Mejia, you can’t go wrong with any selection from the menu.
“I have eaten everything on the menu,” he said. “It’s all delicious. Some of the most popular items include the Red Wine Braised Short Ribs, Crispy Brussels Sprouts, the Spaghetti & House-Made Meatballs and the Cooper’s Hawk Chocolate Cake. The chocolate cake is out of this world.”
New items appear on the menu every two months. According to Mejia, some of the new items on the March menu will include Grilled Snapper, Barbecue Steak Tacos and Ginger Spice Carrot Cake.
Every item on the menu is specially prepared for guests. “We are a scratch kitchen here at Cooper’s Hawk,” Mejia explained.
After you order your food, it shouldn’t take long for it to arrive at your table.
“Our goal is no longer than 20 minutes for an entrée, and 15 minutes for an appetizer,” Mejia said.
In addition to a wide array of delicious food selections and wines in the dining room, there is a wine bar on the premises that offers wine tasting opportunities throughout the day. There are two types of wine tasting experiences. One is the Traditional Experience for $12, and the second is the Lux Experience, for $17.
“The wine tasting experience is first-come, first-served,” said Mejia, adding that the Lux version is more popular. “The Lux Experience may be more expensive, but it offers a higher quality of wine.”
To add appeal to a visit to any Cooper’s Hawk location, customers are encouraged to join the Wine Club with three levels of membership.
Wine Club memberships range from $19.99 to $69.49 a month, depending upon how many bottles of wine you get each a month, along with a host of other benefits that also come along with membership. All the wine is privately labeled under the Cooper’s Hawk label. Another perk of Wine Club membership is a complimentary wine tasting experience every month for you and a guest. To add convenience to the experience, Cooper’s Hawk has four open parking spaces at the front of the restaurant marked Wine Club Pick-Up.
The wine bar experience — which usually lasts about 30 minutes — is always busy, and customers have a great time. At the wine bar, the wine is dispersed in 1.5-ounce portions, just enough to tantalize your taste buds.
“We came here for red wine, which is good for the heart,” patron Nikki Bankston said. “It’s very good. I like the almond chocolate wine.”
“The wine bar is a good opportunity for fellowship with friends and co-workers,” Dylita Maharaj added.
If you are searching for a venue for a special birthday or anniversary celebration, Cooper’s Hawk may have what you need. “We have a private dining room which has room for 48 people,” Mejia noted.
Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant located in the Lotis development at 1387 S. State Road 7 in Wellington. To learn more, call (561) 922-9463 or visit www.chwinery.com/locations/wellington-fl.
