Saxon Opens Inside Sweetwater Bar & Grill In Boynton Beach, Offers Clever Cocktails With A Rotating Themed Experience

The team behind Sweetwater Bar & Grill in Boynton Beach has opened up a new bar concept right next door.

To enter, walk into the original Prohibition-era gastropub and then step through the large portal—a literal hole in the wall—that leads into Saxon.

The new bar opens March 24 and will keep the hours of 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday for the time being.

"It'll be the laboratory of Sweetwater, where we test out and try all of our innovative concepts around cocktails," co-founder Clint Reed said.

Since owners Reed and Sean Iglehart came together to found Sweetwater five years ago, they've racked up accolades—including Best Cocktail Bar in Palm Beach County—for the Boynton Beach haunt. Saxon was born out of necessity, Reed explained.

"There was upward of a one-hour wait around the summer," he said. "We were so busy that we just frankly need the space."

The two bars together now encompass 3,000 square feet. Reed expects guests to filter in through Sweetwater and head into Saxon as things get busy, much like they did during Saxon's "dress rehearsal" last Saturday night.

With countless chandeliers, long driftwood pieces, and stag antlers adorning the space, Saxon takes guests back to 1920s Western Europe, around the height of old-school cocktail culture, Reed said.

"Saxon is brighter, more elegant of a space," he said. "Sweetwater is more of a sexy dungeon, if you will."

Walking into Saxon, guests might feel like they're in an episode of British drama series "Downton Abbey," Reed notes—but that could all change, as they play around with future themes, which will rotate on a seasonal basis.

"One of the ideas we may have coming up: What were they serving on the Titanic?" Reed said.

Unlike at Sweetwater, where guests can choose from over 70 different specially developed cocktails, the cocktail menu at Saxon will focus on a smaller seasonal selection based on the rotating themes.

"We wanted to be more concentrated and provide more of that thematic experience that's not so overwhelming," Reed said.

Saxon will serve brandies, cognacs, apéritifs and other liquors that were more prevalent when cocktails were first invented. The first themed cocktail menu will also include such whimsical creations as the Fox Trot—Irish whiskey, sherry, lavender liqueur and lemon oil—served in a wooden box filled with moss.

"We don't want to be pretentious, but we definitely want people to walk away with the immersive experience," Reed said.

The two bars will be offering the same food menu on both sides and will launch brunch in two weeks. The reserved-seating brunch ($100 per person) will consist of an eight-course tasting menu with mimosas and bloody marys.

Saxon (accessible through Sweetwater); 1507 S. Federal Highway, Boynton Beach