Prime Mover

At SeaHawk Prime, David Burke Channels Decades Of Experience Into An Inventive New Chapter In South Florida

by

Chef Profile

David Burke vividly remembers the kitchens that shaped him. The renowned chef, who has owned and operated more than 25 restaurants throughout his career, came up in a culinary world far removed from today’s glossy, personality-driven industry.

“It was a dog-eat-dog, competitive world,” Burke says. “Cooks weren’t in it for the pictures or fame — no one called you ‘chef’ on the street. You had to have grit and know-how to work as a team. If you didn’t carry your weight in the kitchen, you were out.”

The 64-year-old first caught the culinary bug as a teenager in New Jersey, when he landed a job at a local restaurant. From there, Burke attended the Culinary Institute of America before continuing his training at École Lenôtre, the French school founded by celebrated pastry chef Gaston Lenôtre. 

Upon returning to the U.S., Burke quickly made his mark on New York’s restaurant scene. At just 26, he became executive chef of the legendary River Café, where he earned a three-star review from The New York Times. During his tenure, he became the first — and remains the only — American to receive the Meilleurs Ouvriers de France Diplome d’Honneur, one of France’s most prestigious distinctions for culinary excellence. 

He went on to help open Park Avenue Café and later became vice president of culinary development for the Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group. Over the decades, he has built a wide portfolio of restaurants across New York and New Jersey.

His expansion into South Florida began with the January opening of SeaHawk Prime by David Burke, one of two Burke concepts at Nautilus 220 in Lake Park. Next door, The Birdie by David Burke offers a more casual dockside setting with a full bar, big-screen televisions and three professional golf simulators.

Burke’s creativity extends beyond the dishes he makes. Part chef, part entrepreneur, part inventor, he holds several patents designed to improve the way food is prepared and presented. 

“I like to look at what someone is doing and try to work smarter,” he says. “Sometimes simplicity is better.”

He is proudest of his patented Himalayan-salt-dry-aging process, which he says, “changed the way people eat meat.” At SeaHawk Prime, meat is aged in a room lined with pink Himalayan salt bricks, creating a controlled environment that draws out around 20% of the beef’s moisture, concentrating natural flavor, increasing tenderness and promoting a richer, more pronounced umami character.

Burke balances technique with a sense of fun. Thick, maple-glazed strips of DB’s OG Clothesline Bacon arrive suspended from a miniature laundry line, accompanied by scissors for snipping off portions. His Pretzel Crab Cake Raft, served at several of his restaurants, sandwiches crab between rows of crisp pretzel sticks resembling small watercraft.

“It is a seriously good dish but looks like a raft,” Burke says. “We had to consider the pretzels, as they can be cooked and stay crisp. It was a lot of technique, putting it together with the flavors. If done correctly, it is brilliant, beautiful and playful.”

SeaHawk Prime’s menu is intended to make an impression. Diners can order dry-aged steaks “Sweet Melissa Style,” topped with an Alaskan king crab leg and citrus wine butter. Other inventive pairings include the Pork Chop & Jersey Shore Clams Casino, served with bacon, peppers, arugula and scampi sauce, and the DB Signature Roasted Chicken, a partially deboned bird arranged so the dark meat rests above the breast, allowing its juices to baste the leaner meat as it roasts.  

“SeaHawk Prime is a modern steakhouse, so it is not the standard steak-and-potato house,” Burke explains. “When you look at the different menu items, they are designed and styled.”

SeaHawk Prime occupies the ground floor of the luxury waterfront development, which overlooks the Lake Park Harbor Marina and Intracoastal Waterway, and Burke’s instinct about the location appears to have been correct. On any given night, the 221-seat restaurant buzzes with patrons. 

Leading the kitchen is chef Pedro Avila. “Chef Pedro has worked for me in several locations and for many years,” Burke says. “He knows my voice, and we build together, just like writing a song. He may start it, and I edit it to my voice.”

Aside from his many restaurants, Burke has authored two cookbooks and appeared on “Top Chef Masters” and “Iron Chef America.” He considers the losses and criticism that come with competition as instructive as the victories. 

“If you are not being criticized, you are not doing it right,” he says. “Constructive criticism is always welcome, because we learn from it. Negative or unfounded criticism, we have to brush to the wayside. We are human, and mistakes are made. Understand that you will make mistakes, and it is OK.”

Looking back, Burke credits mentors including Waldy Malouf and Charlie Palmer with teaching him organization, discipline and the importance of staying one step ahead. He now hopes to provide similar opportunities through the David Burke Scholarship at Brookdale Community College in Asbury Park, N.J., which covers tuition for one culinary student and one hospitality student each year.  

In 2025, Burke became the first restaurant chef inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame. But, even after decades of accolades, he remains focused on what comes next. 

“I want to stay in the game,” he says. “It isn’t about proving anything to anyone. I just want to keep going.”

Chef David Burke’s Popovers 

Yields about 5–6 popovers 

INGREDIENTS

• 3 eggs

• 31/3 cups milk

• 2½ tablespoons horseradish

• ½–1 small garlic clove, minced

• 1½ cups all-purpose flour

• 2 teaspoons salt

• Grated Swiss cheese, for topping

• Everything seasoning, for topping

PREPARATION 

Combine eggs, milk, horseradish and garlic and blend with an immersion blender. Add the flour and salt, mixing until smooth. Let rest for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.

Generously coat a popover pan with nonstick spray. Pour the batter into the cups, leaving room to top each with grated Swiss cheese and everything seasoning.

Bake at 350°F for about 45 minutes. Rotate the pan after 40 minutes and continue baking until the popovers are golden brown and very firm to the touch. Do not remove them too early, or they may collapse.

The finished popovers may initially seem almost overcooked. Once removed from the pan, they will soften slightly while retaining their shape.