Ta-Boo, Palm Beach, FL (restaurant)

Name:Ta-Boo
Type:restaurant
Street:Worth Avenue
City:Palm Beach
State:FL
Zip:
country:USA
Phone:
Status:operatoinal

Description:
Cool name. I have this postcard showing the interior of the Ta-Boo restaurant.

Here is a close up of the Tahitian Bar on the side.

A really nice postcard rendering posted many years ago by Puamana.

And a bamboo Ta-boo matchbook from ebay.

DC

[ Edited by: dustycajun 2010-01-31 09:37 ]

Actually, this place is still very much in business! They even have a website at http://www.taboorestaurant.com/

Ta-boo is known one of the favorite watering holes of the Palm Beach "Society" crowd.

It is one of those places that reeks of secret liasons and wispered gossip. It is not uncommon to see really famous folks in there, having a drink. I actually sat next to F.Lee Bailey at the bar one night. And have seen Jimmy Buffet, Hunter S. Thompson, and Brooke Shields in there, over the years.

It is very non-tiki today, but the owners have always changed the place, to reflect the current tastes. It is worth a visit, if you are in the area, as it is one of the cooler spot on the island of Palm Beach. Not a good spot to really tie one on, as the police on the island recognize people who are not locals, and watch them very closely.

Bahama Don,

Thanks for the story on Ta-Boo. Updated the post to indicate that it is still operational. I wonder what the Tahitian Room looked like back in the day. From the two postcards it looks like it was owned by Ted Stone and then Jim Patterson.

DC

I put a call in to a customer, who was quite a "Man about town" in Palm Beach, back in the day. He said The Tahitian Room was "quite enchanting". With bamboo furniture, carved statues, and south seas paintings. Sounds like it may have been a really cool spot!!! Unfortunately, his memory is a bit hazy on details....too many Dark n' Stormys...

I will look around and see if there are any photos that still exist, locally. Kinda neat to find out about this place, as I frequent there, and never knew it had a possible Tiki connection!!

I imagine some of the Kennedy's imbibed there, back then, as they were often in Palm Beach, and Ta-Boo has always been a hot spot on the island.

Check this pic....Ethyl Merman and Eddie Duchin

Here is a little history from Ta-Boo's website:

Ta-boo was opened in 1941 by Ted Stone shortly before the U.S. entered World War II. Stone owned the restaurant for 14 years before selling it to Jim Peterson in 1955. Peterson held on to Ta-boo until 1975, after which it underwent several ownership changes until Franklyn deMarco and Nancy Simmons (formerly Nancy Sharigan) reopened the doors in October of 1990.

From the beginning, Ta-boo quickly became a haven for it's wealthy and well known patrons. Sporting an intimate bar and roll-away roof that allowed dining under the stars, the restaurant drew the likes of John F. Kennedy, Frank Sinatra, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and other celebrities.

The bistro became the center for a trove of tales and anecdotes, ranging from one about the German submarine commander who came ashore for a couple of drinks during World War II, to gossip about Joseph P. Kennedy barricading himself and Gloria Swanson in the ladies room for an entire evening.

One story, possibly apocryphal, claims that the Bloody Mary was concocted one morning by a bartender at Ta-boo, at the request of Barbara Hutton for a soothing drink after a night of partying.
Over the years, the restaurant has been a winner of a host of awards. Society tabloids and food and wine publications crowned Ta-boo for it's understated elegance and influential gatherings. Ta-boo has been hailed as the best night spot in the country to "drink, laugh, and meet women."

Ta-boo's fame and following has grown over the years and has quicky become "a must" on every travelers list when visiting Palm Beach. It is said, "If you were not seen at Ta-boo, you were not seen in town."

I just came across this thread and thought I'd share some photos that I have access to:

An exterior shot from 1946 ...

A dapper wine server at Ta-boo in the early 1940s ...

The bar at ta-boo in the 1940s ...

An old news clip shows actor Gary Cooper and friends at Ta-boo ...

Now fast-forward to November 2010. Yawn ...

Great vintage pics HH, thanks for posting.

Here's an update on Ta-boo on the 70th anniversary ...

If Ta-boó’s walls could talk, what stories they could tell – 70 years’ worth, this week.

Stories about Joseph P. Kennedy and Gloria Swanson in the ladies’ room of the Worth Avenue bistro. Or John F. Kennedy sneaking out the back door – and away from the Secret Service.

Tales tinged with what author and lunchtime regular James Patterson recently described as “a delicious hint of rumor and scandal.”

“It has so much history to it,” says Nancy Sharigan, who’s owned the restaurant since 1990 with business partner Franklyn deMarco. “You run into people all over the country and they’ll say, ‘I went there with my grandmother’ or ‘I met my husband there.’ “

Says deMarco: “And they said it wouldn’t last.”

More: http://www.pbpulse.com/bars-and-clubs/2011/12/13/ta-boo-70-years-of-food-fun-and-fabulous-stories/

Here is another postcard I got showing the cool interior of the Ta-Boo restaurant 1950's style.

DC