Palm Beach is an easy call from Dallas — direct flight into Palm Beach International, three hours in the air, and you land somewhere that moves at a different pace entirely. Eau Resort & Spa sits in Manalapan, a small town on the barrier island just south of Palm Beach, fifteen minutes from Worth Avenue and the crowds but on seven private acres of Atlantic coastline where the beach is seaweed-free and the only noise is the water.
It’s a five-star Preferred Hotels property with 309 rooms, and it starts right — champagne at check-in, a private balcony on every floor with ocean, pool, or garden views. The Eau Club level adds a private concierge, complimentary food and beverages, and VIP pool service. The Cabana Suites sit at ground level, opening directly onto the beach. If your plan is to be in and out of the water all day, book a Cabana Suite and don’t overthink it.
Through September 30, Eau is running a Red, White & Eau package pegged to America’s 250th: two-night minimum, $250 resort credit toward dining, spa, recreation, or retail, a patriotic welcome amenity, and complimentary valet. The credit is flexible — it goes toward things you’d spend money on anyway, which is the right way to structure a package.
The Eau Spa at 42,000 square feet is the property’s anchor. A recent renovation refreshed the reception and corridors, added a Zen Garden around the Wishing Well at the center of the space, and made the whole operation feel quieter than it already was. Treatments are personalized during a pre-appointment consultation. Sauna, steam room, and relaxation gardens are available daily. The spa café, Savor, handles light bites and juices while you decompress.
Angle is the main dining room — a modern American steakhouse run by Executive Chef Neall Bailey, open seven nights a week with live music Tuesday through Sunday from pianists and jazz performers. The room runs dark wood tones, soft neutrals, and warm golden light, and the wine list comes on a tablet that lets you sort by varietal, region, and vintage — a detail that actually works well for a room this serious about its pours.
The menu is built around Creekstone Farms Prime Beef and Snake River Wagyu alongside local farms including Swank Farms, Holman’s Harvest, and Kai Kai Farms. Start with the Lobster Bisque — it’s poured tableside, the bowl already holding a tail and other ingredients, and it is the dish that appears in nearly every favorable review. The Caesar salad is the other opener worth ordering. On pasta, the Lobster Campanelle with Sauce Américaine and Black Truffle is Bailey’s own pick as the dish that defines the current kitchen — indulgent, technically sound, not as heavy as it sounds.
The Pappardelle Bolognese with beef, pork, veal, San Marzano tomatoes, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and herbed ricotta is the other pasta to know. For the main event, the Tomahawk Steak for two — Creekstone Farms Prime, grilled to order — earns the most consistent enthusiasm from guests who’ve been. The Wagyu Ribeye with lobster tail is the surf-and-turf version. The Seafood Tower is the call if raw bar is the direction. Sides: the short rib mac and cheese is the one everyone orders and nobody regrets.
CraveDFW Suggestion: Order the Lobster Bisque, the Lobster Campanelle, and the Tomahawk for two. That’s the meal. Pair it with whatever the sommelier pulls from the tablet that fits your budget and stay out of your own way.
Beyond Angle: Stir in the lobby handles casual lunch and dinner with cocktails and firepit seating in the evenings. Polpo Palm Beach does Italian for all three meals. Breeze Ocean Kitchen runs Floribbean seafood at lunch, open air, directly facing the Atlantic. Two poolside bars and a roaming margarita cart on the beach handle everything in between.
The beach itself is the real argument for the resort — seven private acres, no seaweed, loungers, umbrellas, and water clear enough that snorkeling gear is complimentary alongside paddleboards and boogie boards. Parasailing is available for an upcharge. Three Har-Tru tennis courts with a resident pro, two oceanfront pools, and daily yoga and Pilates round out the property. You could stay four days without leaving the grounds and not run out of things to do.
Worth Avenue and downtown Palm Beach are fifteen minutes north for shopping and restaurants. Delray Beach is fifteen minutes south for a more relaxed dining and nightlife scene. The Flagler Museum and the Norton Museum of Art are both close enough for a half-day without disrupting the pace of the trip.
The Red, White & Eau package runs through September 30. Details at eaupalmbeach.com. The address is 100 S. Ocean Boulevard, Manalapan, Florida. Phone is (561) 533-6000.
Dallas to Palm Beach is three hours. The $250 credit covers a spa treatment and a bottle of wine at dinner. The math works.
