VERO BEACH — Will’s 55, a new restaurant on Vero’s South Beach, opens Friday in the building that formerly housed MT’s Chop House on Ocean Drive.
Will Collins, whose father Tom Collins opened Capt. Hiram’s in Sebastian 26 years ago, is making his debut in the hospitality business.
“It’s the first restaurant venture I’ve done myself at this point,” says Collins.
A graduate of the University of Colorado with a degree in architecture, the younger Collins moved back to Florida three years ago and settled in Vero Beach.
Despite his training in a different field, it was natural for Collins to get the itch to open a restaurant.
The hospitality business, volatile and challenging as it can be, is really all he’s ever known.
“My dad opened Capt. Hiram’s the year I was born,” says Collins.
The young boy grew as the restaurant and hotel did. A few hotel rooms blossomed into the Key West Inn.
The small outdoor seating area of the restaurant mushroomed into what is now the sprawling Capt. Hiram’s Sandbar, which is packed with locals and tourists alike on the weekend and hosts nationally known acts on its stage.
“That place is a unique experience and I’ve watched it evolve. That how I learned about the design world,” Collins said.
The restaurant’s name is a combination of Collins’ first name and the address.
“I decided to put my name on it because if my name is on it, I’m all in.”
Collins says he’ll build on the steak house concept of MT’s Chop House.
“This was successful as a steak house, but we’ll open our menu for more small plates and seafood,” he says.
The restaurant’s slogan, Collins says, is simple: “Fresh Ocean Eats and Steaks.”
The menu will feature classic cuts of steak from petite filets and rib-eye steaks to New York strip steaks and a 20-ounce offering called the Cowboy steak.
It also will feature an equal number of seafood offerings.
“We want to align with local fishermen and farmers,” he says. “We want to be aggressive and try different things such as organic food and west coast cuisine.”
He also says Will’s 55 will be influenced by his time in Colorado which he feels is a wellspring of new dining ideas and approaches.
“We won’t be afraid to try things here,” Collins says.
Collins says one reason he’s going into the restaurant business now is he has noticed a lot of his friends and second- and third- generation professionals moving back to Vero Beach and he is targeting that market.
“I see this as a place for young professionals to hang out,” he says. “There is definitely a market here for the younger crowd.”
In addition to steaks and seafood, Collins says he will offer a late night menu and a bar menu with smaller plates.
“That will cater to the guy who goes to a movie and wants to get something to eat and drink on the way home,” he says.
Will’s 55 will seat 160 in a variety of areas including the main dining room with its red leather booths and black accents, a terrace and the bar area.
The chef will be Ricky Cruz, who worked for MT’s Chop House a few years ago.
Most recently, Cruz was the chef at the Lob Lolly Country Club in Hobe Sound.
Collins says Cruz has extensive experience in the restaurant business.
“He’s aggressive in the kitchen and he’s going to be allowed to experiment,” he says of Cruz, whose wife is the food and beverage director at Sea Oaks.
“We did everything we could to keep the menu limited to integrate daily specials,” says Collins.
Collins says the restaurant also will target women on Wednesday nights with a “Ladies Night at the Vineyard.” On these evenings, the restaurant will feature “pink food” and a portion of the night’s proceeds will go to breast cancer research.
According to Collins, Thursday nights will be M&M nights featuring $5 margaritas and $5 martinis all night long.
“We think that will be a big hit,” he says.
Will’s 55 will be open from 5 p.m. to closing seven days a week with dinner served from 5 to 9:30 p.m. The bar and late-night menu will be offered later into the evening.
A year from now, Collins says he is hopeful that Will’s 55 will be a destination.
“I hope we have a reputation as a restaurant that has the best service in town. I hope people come here because they know they are getting something different. I want them to come here for the best atmosphere and best staff in Vero,” he says.
