New in Panama City: Siren Restaurant & Cocktail Bar Opening Soon

PANAMA CITY, FL — Siren Restaurant & Cocktail Bar, a new Southern-rooted, globally inspired concept from longtime local chef and operator Kay Brackett, is planned for downtown Panama City at 474 Harrison Ave, Panama City, FL 32401, Brackett shared with Business Debut.

Brackett described Siren as her “siren era,” a more mature follow-up to earlier mermaid-themed concepts she has run in the area, and said the restaurant will sit in the city’s renovated downtown corridor.

What to Expect

The space will feature a 40-foot bar running the length of the narrow, historic building. Design plans call for red crystal chandeliers over the bar, with a palette of intense red and deep jade green. 

A long banquette will line the dining room to seat both small and large groups.

Brackett said she wants Siren to feel like “a kind of sexy restaurant” that reflects Panama City’s beach-town energy while drawing on her years working on cruise ships and living in England and Australia.

Menu and Vision

Brackett, an award-winning competition chef with three decades in the industry, described the menu as “Southern soul, global flavor.”

She plans to open with seven appetizers and seven mains on the menu.

Starters will include lemongrass chicken dumplings in the style of gyoza, crab cakes topped with fresh mango relish, lobster roll sliders served with clarified butter, and pickled shrimp served cold with crackers.

On the entree side, Brackett is planning her signature “Siren Song,” a classic French bouillabaisse with mussels, shrimp, and scallops, Moroccan meatballs over three-cheese polenta, a 72-hour braised short rib with demi-glace, salmon Oscar with Norwegian salmon, asparagus, hollandaise, and lump crab, and a squid ink pasta crowned with lobster meat and gremolata.

Bar bites will include a bologna pâté inspired by a popular smoked bologna sandwich from her other restaurant, The Grocery Kitchen and Tap Room, plus rosemary mixed nuts and caviar-stuffed olives.

The cocktail list will feature drinks such as the Mermaid’s Kiss martini with anchovy-infused vodka and Castelvetrano olives stuffed with crème fraîche and caviar.

Opening Timeline

Brackett said she is working through permits and build-out now and is targeting mid to late November for opening, pending approvals.