We Took a Tour of Palm Beach With Lilly Pulitzer’s Creative Director — Here Are Her Favorite Spots

It’s a balmy Friday night in Palm Beach, and I’m dining at Le Bilboquet with Mira Fain, Lilly Pulitzer’s creative director and executive vice president of design. The French restaurant is just steps from the flagship Lilly Pulitzer store on Worth Avenue, and over a glass of wine, I ask for her recommendation. “You have to try le poulet cajun. It’s one of their best dishes,” Fain confides. She’s right. The chicken dish comes tender and juicy, complemented by a spicy crust and French fries. 

After moving to South Florida in 2015, Fain knows her way around Palm Beach. The designer joined Lilly Pulitzer after stumbling on the brand after a Google search for “happy dresses” and has steered the company in design for 18 years. Since then, the brand’s offerings have swelled to include everything you need for a vacation: swimsuits, sandals, coverups, and their signature punchy shift dresses. 

Ahead of its 65th anniversary, the brand is leaning into the bold prints that made it a fixture in Florida while embracing earth-friendly initiatives like sustainable and recyclable fabrics. During my visit, I toured the design studio and learned that each print is hand-painted and the design team’s travels inspire the palm fronds, seashells, and tigers. Also, if you look closely, you’ll see the designer’s name hidden in each print — a wink to the founder’s whimsical nature. 

The Lilly Pulitzer brand has evolved over the years, as has Palm Beach, by adding new restaurants and updating the island’s celebrated hotels. As resort season kicks off, Fain shares her favorite places around the island that you can discover (or rediscover) on your next visit. 

Where to Stay

The Brazilian Court Hotel

Framed by hedges on an unassuming street, the nearly century-old hotel is a favorite of Palm Beach regulars. Book a stay in one of the 80 classically styled guestrooms or stop at the hotel restaurant, Cafe Boulud, for a flower martini, a favorite of Fain’s. The hotel is also a favorite among Lilly Pulitzer staff — it’s just blocks from the brand’s design studio and steps from the dining and shopping on Worth Avenue. 

The Breakers Palm Beach

The Breakers Palm Beach stretches along 140 miles of the Atlantic Ocean, and the Italian Renaissance-style resort has been in business for over a century. The 500-room resort was the creation of business tycoon Henry Flagler, who wanted a glamorous getaway for America’s high society, and it remains one of Palm Beach’s crown jewels. “Lilly was a frequent visor at The Breakers, and we hosted our 50th brand anniversary party here, dressing the outdoor fountains in pink,” Fain tells me. Travelers can splurge on an overnight stay or opt for the hotel’s famous Sunday brunch at The Circle, the Florentine-inspired restaurant, where dishes range from Belgian waffles to sushi and baby lamb chops. 

The Colony Hotel

If The Breakers represents Palm Beach’s opulence, The Colony Hotel symbolizes the island’s playful, quirky side. Located just off Worth Avenue, the boutique hotel opened in 1947, and recently redesigned guest rooms feature ‘Palm Beach chic’ pastel walls, wicker furniture, and tropical textiles. Book a night in the newly opened Goop Suite, a collaboration with Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle brand, which features a hand-painted bathroom by one of Lilly Pulitzer’s designers. The hotel’s restaurant has a charming poolside restaurant and a beach butler who escorts guests to the beach and sets up beach chairs and pink-fringed umbrellas. 

Where to Shop

Worth Avenue

Though the Lilly Pulitzer store is now housed in a more prominent location, the brand started on Worth Avenue in a tiny store where the dressmaker would pick out fabrics for customers on the spot. Only four blocks long, the chic thoroughfare is lined with designer boutiques like Chanel, Gucci, and Bottega Veneta. Set aside an afternoon to wander through the vias that lead to quiet courtyards and charming shops and grab a cup of limoncello gelato at Piccolo Gelato. Fain often strolls the avenue, dipping into Tory Burch and Saks, where she gets inspo from the Badgley Mischka and Pucci. Another favorite of the designer is the lifestyle store Hive because the brand “embodies the Lilly ethos of resort living as a way of life.” 

The Royal Poinciana Plaza

First built in the late 1950s and revitalized in 2020, The Royal Poinciana Plaza features a mix of high-end retail stores like Hermes and Saint Laurent alongside specialty stores like Assouline, which produces the popular “Palm Beach” coffee table book strategically placed in local hotels and cafes. If you’re picking up a few gifts for tweens or teens, be sure to stop by the preppy accessories store Stoney Clover Lane, which was founded by two Palm Beach sisters. Fains says she likes to swing by here and grab a cold-pressed juice from Celis Juice Bar or stop by Sant Ambroeus for a feta and watermelon salad with truffle fries, following Lilly Pulitzer’s sage advice to “always get the fries.” 

Where to Eat 

Surfside Diner

Palm Beach’s restaurant scene is an eclectic mix that locals and visitors have come to cherish. Surfside Diner is an unfussy diner that locals flock to, serving homestyle American breakfast and lunch plates. Fain’s usual is a toasted muffin and a latte or slice of coconut cake for a sugar fix. 

Cafe Via Flora

Tucked away in a sunny courtyard on Worth Avenue, Cafe Via Flora is an Italian restaurant with a full menu of seafood and pasta that’s ideal for long lunches. The gazpacho is incredibly refreshing, and the pan-seared snapper al limone is sourced from Key West. Fain loves it here because it’s right behind the Lilly store, where she can “sit and watch customers come and go.” 

iMOTO

Seafood is a South Florida specialty, and for “the best sushi on the island,” Fain says she heads to iMOTO. James Beard award-winning chef James Conley helms the restaurant, and along with sushi, there are small, flavorful plates like Kung Pao cauliflower bites and Peking duck tacos. 

Renato’s

Nestled on Via Mizner on Worth Avenue, Renato’s has been around since 1987, and its location next door to Pulitzer’s original shop earned the restaurant a spot on the designer’s favorites. Fain is a fan, too — the restaurant has traditional Italian fare (the homemade saffron tagliolini is a crowd-pleaser), and tables spill out onto sidewalks framed with bougainvillea. Renato’s is a quiet, romantic restaurant, and a night here might make you fall in love with Palm Beach.