Boca Raton is getting a brand new retail complex called Uptown Boca, which will be filled to the brim with new places to eat and hang out. Located just east of 441 on Glades Road, this upcoming plaza is only a five-minute drive from Olympic Heights, so OH students can expect plenty of new spots to check out with their friends when they aren’t hitting the books.

A few popular fast-food places have already opened in Uptown Boca, including Chick-Fil-A and BurgerFi. Both favorites among OH students, these two are great places to grab a bite to eat. Additionally, BurgerFi has vegetarian options for those who do not eat meat. 

For those looking for a healthier place to dine, Uptown Boca has it covered. Two healthy restaurants are opening in this plaza. One is Bolay, a chain in which customers can build their own bowls of healthy vegetables, proteins, and more. Bolay is a popular choice among students, so its arrival will bring delicious, healthy choices even closer to OH students.

The other healthy option, which recently opened its doors to customers, is Just Salad. Similar to Bolay, customers are given the opportunity to build their own salads from a variety of fresh toppings and dressings. Students have already begun to opt for lunch at Just Salad while they are out deciding where to eat.

OH sophomore Sami Levick was recommended to try Just Salad by a friend, and went there for lunch after school. “The restaurant had a nice atmosphere and the salad was pretty good. It’s a great place to go with friends,” Levick said.

The “build your own” style of Bolay and Just Salad is a trend that continues on to Olive U, a Mediterranean eatery coming to the plaza. Students can create their own dish based on classic recipes, including options such as tzatziki sauce, hummus, falafel, and gyro. 

Mediterranean food is one of the many different cuisines that Uptown Boca will be offering to its patrons. More types of cuisine coming to Uptown Boca include Asian cuisine at Zen Sushi and Robata Grill and Italian cuisine at Lynora’s. Both are set to become great spots to sit down and have a nice meal with friends, family, or a significant other.

Foodies looking for a new, alluring meal will be enthused to experience the elevated menu at The Naked Taco, which, ironically, dresses up its menu with gourmet-style tacos. Some students may have dined at one of its other locations and tried one of many taco variations, from buffalo chicken tacos for meat lovers to General Tso cauliflower tacos for its vegetarian customers.

Another foodie-friendly restaurant coming to Uptown Boca is Lazy Dog. This soon-to-be hotspot features a wide selection of entrees. However, what sets this restaurant apart is their  “TV Dinners,” pre-made meals frozen in “retro-style” trays. With take-home meals such as meatloaf and chicken pot pie, students and parents will be drawn to the 80s nostalgia Lazy Dog provides.

Not only are the upcoming retail tenants of Uptown Boca great places for students to spend time, but they also will bring job opportunities to students looking to earn some extra cash. OH sophomore Lydia Barakat is currently applying for jobs and sees the benefits of working at this local retail complex.

“I applied to Just Salad at Uptown Boca for the pleasure of having a job close to home and school,” explained Barakat. “Plus, it looks like a great place to work because of the clean food and nice employees.”

Uptown Boca will be packed with restaurants for students to hang out at, but it also will feature a brand-new movie theatre, Silverspot Cinema. With the COVID-19 vaccine now rolling out to kids ages 12-18, the OH demographic will start participating in activities they did pre-pandemic, one of which being to see a movie in-theatre.

Locals were devastated at the closing of Boca’s Regal Shadowood 16 theatre, which was forced to shut its doors during the pandemic. Streaming apps facilitated movie-watching for a while, but nothing is like the experience of seeing a movie in theatres.

The last addition to the Uptown Boca complex that students may not hang out at but will find intriguing is the Amazon Fresh grocery store. Taking the place of the formerly expected tenant, Lucky’s Market, this Amazon-run market will be the company’s first Southeast opening. 

Students may be enticed by the high-tech shopping experience promised by Amazon. One expected feature is the utilization of Alexa shopping lists. Customers can use the Amazon app to choose the items they want and locate them in the store.