A Minted Location day guide
Dock & Dine in Fort Lauderdale
South Florida invented the dock-and-dine afternoon, and no stretch does it better than the run from Port Everglades to Palm Beach — an unbroken chain of raw bars, fish houses and Intracoastal institutions where the dinghy dock is the front door. Every stop below publishes its own arrival-by-boat welcome, and we've noted exactly what each dock offers, because a 75-foot tie-off limit or a five-foot low-tide depth is the kind of thing you want to know before you're abeam of the restaurant.
The classic Fort Lauderdale afternoon
Clear the inlet or idle up the ICW and you can hit three icons without ever making ten knots: lunch at 15th Street Fisheries inside Lauderdale Marina, a raft-up at Coconuts on the New River Sound, and sunset at Shooters, which has anchored the Oakland Park Boulevard stretch since 1982 and offers complimentary dockage all week. Southport Raw Bar — Fort Lauderdale's oldest seafood locale, with free dockage on its canal — is the local-knowledge detour that makes the day.
Up the New River
Downtown is a boat trip, not a drive: the Boathouse at the Riverside invites you to dock after a day on the water and eat on a pier over the New River, and The Wharf's open-air riverfront scene sits steps from the city's own 100-slip downtown docks. It's the prettiest low-and-slow mile in the city — on-demand bridges, superyachts in their driveways, and the Riverwalk at the end.
The full-day run north
Make a day of the ICW: Cap's Place in Lighthouse Point — a 1920s rum-running speakeasy turned island restaurant — still runs its own launch, because there is no road. The Cove in Deerfield Beach backs its tiki bar with 400 feet of dock. Anchor off the Lake Boca sandbar with the weekend fleet, tie off at Deck 84 on Atlantic Avenue in Delray, and finish in Boynton where Prime Catch, Banana Boat and Two Georges cluster around two bridges — then it's a straight shot into Palm Beach waters.
Before you go
Dock space at every one of these is first-come, and weekend rafting is standard — hail ahead on VHF or by phone. Depths matter on the tie-offs (Deck 84 publishes roughly five feet at low tide and a 75-foot max), and the two stops whose sites don't advertise private dockage — The Wharf and Bokamper's — are both Water Taxi stops, which is its own kind of arrival. If the mission is bigger than lunch, the form on this page reaches the brokers who run this stretch every week.
The stops, as their own docks describe them
| Spot | Where | Arriving by boat |
|---|---|---|
| 15th Street FisheriesLegendary old-Florida seafood house on a working-marina point — the classic first stop inside the inlet. | ICW just north of the 17th St bridge, inside Lauderdale Marina | “You can also visit the Fisheries by boat” — and it's Water Taxi stop 3 |
| Southport Raw BarFort Lauderdale's oldest and most popular seafood locale by its own telling — the local-knowledge raw bar. | Canal off Cordova Rd, near Port Everglades | Free dockage, per its own history page |
| Boathouse at the RiversideThe Riverside Hotel's waterfront room, built to join “the worlds of boaters and diners.” | New River at the Riverside Hotel, Las Olas | “Dock your boat and join us for a meal” — dining on a pier over the river |
| The Wharf Fort LauderdaleOpen-air riverfront venue on the banks of the New River — bars, food vendors and events. | New River, downtown at Las Olas Riverfront | Check local dockage options — the city's 100-slip downtown docks are steps away |
| CoconutsWaterfront dining with yacht-dappled Intracoastal views — a raft-up institution. | New River Sound, Seabreeze Blvd near Bahia Mar | “Raft your boat at our dock,” per its About page |
| Shooters Waterfront“Fort Lauderdale's Intracoastal Icon” since 1982 — dockside seafood and the weekend scene. | ICW at Oakland Park Blvd | “Complimentary dockage all week”; also a Water Taxi stop |
| Bokamper's Sports Bar & Grill18,000 sq ft of waterfront sports bar on the Intracoastal. | ICW at Oakland Park Blvd, next to Shooters | Check local dockage options — Water Taxi stop 10 |
| Sands Harbor Resort & MarinaWaterfront resort whose patio bar and Lola's on the Water sit over its own marina. | Pompano Beach — ICW at Atlantic Blvd | Full-service marina, 50 slips for boats to 120 ft — arrive by land or water |
| Cap's Place Island RestaurantA 1920s rum-running speakeasy turned island restaurant; there is no road, and that's the point. | Island off Lighthouse Point — ICW halfway between Miami and West Palm | Reachable only over the water — its own launch runs from Cap's Dock |
| The Cove Waterfront Restaurant and Tiki BarClassic tiki-bar dock-and-dine with easy access to the Hillsboro Inlet. | Deerfield Beach — ICW near the Hillsboro Blvd bridge | Connected full-service marina with 400 ft of dock |
| Deck 84Self-described dock-and-dine destination with the most transparent dock policy on the run — it publishes the full FAQ. | Delray Beach — ICW at the Atlantic Ave bridge | ~140 ft of tie-off dock, 75 ft max, ~5 ft at low tide, dining hours only |
| Prime CatchWaterfront seafood with water views from every table. | Boynton Beach — ICW at the Woolbright Rd bridge | “Dock & dine” by its own description, plus Prime Island, its bar out on the water |
| Banana BoatBoynton's landmark waterfront bar since 1978 — live music and the weekend fleet. | Boynton Beach — ICW at the Ocean Ave bridge | Boats dock along its waterfront; no formal policy published |
| Two Georges Waterfront GrilleThatch-roof open-air grille known for Maryland crab cakes — the north end of the day run. | Boynton Beach — Boynton Harbor Marina at Ocean Ave | “Dock slips available,” per its own page |
Dockage notes are what each restaurant publishes on its own site — space is first-come and dinner-hour rafting is real, so hail ahead. Where a venue states nothing about docking, we say so rather than guess.
Planning more than lunch?
This run is our backyard — the same docks where we shortlist, survey and sea-trial boats for buyers. Tell us the mission and we'll tell you which boat, and which slip, it calls for.