Dining Guide
A selective guide to Naples-area restaurants, encapsulated from previous reviews by Chelle Koster Walton, NI's food and wine editor.
Restaurant: A Table Apart
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Asian, Italian and other global influences
Atmosphere: Cozy and refined, but a bit noisy
Service: Well-timed, a well-oiled team
Price: Appetizers $4-$11; lunch entrées $9-$14, dinner $15-$32
Address: 4295 Bonita Beach Road, Bonita Springs, atableapart.com
Telephone: 239-221-8540
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: May/June 2009
Bonita Beach Road has always been a dine-out corridor, but the orientation has been changing from casual roadside eateries to small boutique restaurants with a flair for creativity. A Table Apart bills its cuisine as “global.” The reasonably priced menu lives up to the tagline with influences from various cultures, but heavy on the Italian and Asian—sometimes together.
Restaurant: Alexander’s
Hours: Lunch Monday-Friday; dinner daily
Food: Continental and American, with global influences
Atmosphere: Modern café style
Price: Lunch $7-$13; dinner appetizers $3-$10, entrées $13-$23
Address: 4077 Ninth Street North, Naples
Telephone: 239-262-4999
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No, but will accommodate
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: March 2002
Alexander’s satisfies cravings for the both hearty and heart-healthy.
Restaurant: Amore Ristorante
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Italian
Atmosphere: Warm, elegant touches belie its strip mall storefront; a few outdoor tables
Service: Entertaining and paced for slow, leisurely dining
Price: Appetizers $6-$13; pastas and entrées $14-$33
Address: Neapolitan Way, 4681 Ninth Street North, Naples, amoreristorante.com
Telephone: 239-643-2201
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: December 2009
Every neighborhood should have its own cozy Italian restaurant where residents can escape for the span of a meal to a genuine and genuinely friendly corner of the Old World. The Neapolitan Way neighborhood has Amore Ristorante. It fits the bill with a warm harvest-gold setting, low lights, soothing Italian music and hands-on service from the owners.
Restaurant: Andre’s Steakhouse
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Steak
Atmosphere: Uncomplicated in decor, with a bit of Swiss chalet flair
Service: On top of everything and extremely helpful
Price: Dinner appetizers, $2.50-$14; entrées $15-$29 per person
Address: 2800 North Tamiami Trail, Naples (also in San Carlos Park and Marco Island)
Telephone: 239-263-5851
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: November 2003
Andre’s earns its kudos and longevity through sheer know-how and top-quality meat.
Restaurant: Angelina’s Ristorante
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Modern Italian
Atmosphere: Lush, dramatically lit and inviting
Service: Perfectly in tune
Price: Appetizers $7-$13, pastas/entrées $15-$39
Address: 24041 South Tamiami Trail, Bonita Springs, angelinasofbonitasprings.com
Telephone: 239-390-3187
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: December 2008
Angelina’s proves it is possible to improve upon America’s favorite comfort food.
Restaurant: Anthony’s Trattoria
Hours: Lunch Monday-Saturday, and dinner daily
Food: Italian
Atmosphere: Unpretentious and casual, with outdoor seating
Service: Slow at times
Price: Lunch $2-$8; dinner appetizers $5-$8, entrées $11-$19
Address: 28340 Trail’s Edge Boulevard, Bonita Springs
Telephone: 239-947-2202
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: April/May 2000
Anthony’s offers hardy, earthy fare, the stuff of huge Italian family feasts.
Restaurant: Arturo’s
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Italian
Atmosphere: Large, lavish, Romanesque dining rooms and informal patio seating Service: They treat you like family
Price: Appetizers $4-$10, entreés $15-$39
Address: 844 Bald Eagle Drive, Marco Island; arturosmarcoisland.com
Telephone: 239-642-0550
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: March 2006
Arturo’s lives up to its motto, “The art of fine Italian food and fun.”
Restaurant: Au Paradis
Hours: Dinner Monday-Saturday
Food: French Floridian
Atmosphere: Intimate, homey
Service: Personable and perfectly timed
Price: Entrées $20-$30
Address: 11412 Tamiami Trail East, Naples
Telephone: 239-775-7667
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: Summer 2002
A secret garden with a sense of family, home and hearth.
Restaurant: Aura
Hours: Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily
Food: New American
Atmosphere: Totally original and chic
Service: Attentive
Price: Dinner entrées $14-$28
Address: Naples Grande Resort & Club, 475 Seagate Drive, naplesgrande.com
Telephone: 239-597-3232
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full
It’s all about atmosphere. You get the feeling right away that this place is going to be fun.
Restaurant: Baleen
Hours: Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily
Food: Inventive seafood with global influences
Atmosphere: Handsome, Gulf-front ambiance
Service: Uneven timing, sometimes glitchy
Price: Lunch $9-$17; dinner appetizers $8-$17, entrées $20-$31
Address: LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort, 9891 Gulf Shore Drive, Naples
Telephone: 239-598-5707
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: December 2002
Big on flavor, variety and seafood with a spectacular Gulf view.
Restaurant: Bha! Bha! A Persian Bistro
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Middle Eastern
Atmosphere: Ottoman palace meets South Beach
Service: Attentive, but sometimes poorly timed
Price: Lunch and dinner appetizers $7-$14; lunch entrées $10-$17; dinner entrées $20-$26
Address: Pavilion Shopping Center, 847 Vanderbilt Beach Road, Naples, bhabhapersianbistro.com
Telephone: 239-594-5557
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: March 2008
For more than a decade, Bha! Bha! A Persian Bistro has been awakening palates with Middle Eastern peasant dishes and modernized spin-offs.
Restaurant: Bamboo Café
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: French
Atmosphere: Intimate Parisian bistro with art nouveau sconces and tobacco-stained walls
Service: French, friendly, helpful and well-timed
Price: Appetizers $6-$15; entrées $19-$29
Address: 755 12th Avenue South at Crayton Cove, Naples
Telephone: 239-643-6177
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full liquor
Full Review: May/June 2004
Bamboo Café is a series of pleasant surprises with a healthy, home-cooked approach.
Restaurant: Bay House Restaurant
Hours: Dinner Monday-Saturday
Food: Seafood with global treatments
Atmosphere: New England nautical with mangrove river views
Service: Well-timed, but not particularly forthcoming
Price: Appetizers $5-$12; entrées $18-$30
Address: 799 Walkerbilt Road, Naples
Telephone: 239-591-3837
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: February 2007
Bay House, above all, delivers what its succinct but well-conceived menu promises.
Restaurant: Bayview Restaurant
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Creative American
Atmosphere: Mediterranean milieu with lively bar and harborside patio
Service: Quick, unfussy, good-natured
Price: Appetizers $5-$19; entrées $16-$25
Address: The Esplanade, 740 North Collier Boulevard, Marco Island
Telephone: 239-389-4511
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: July/August 2004
Vivacious and versatile, the menu eschews Italian persuasion, presenting a large, interesting and varied selection.
Restaurant: Bice Ristorante
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Authentic Italian
Atmosphere: Sleek and modern—all mahogany, white linens and mirrors (outdoor seating for smokers)
Service: Italian, professional and decorous
Price: Lunch appetizers $6-$15, entrées $8-$13; dinner appetizers $9-$15, entrées $16-$32
Address: 300 Fifth Avenue South, Naples
Telephone: 239-262-4044; bicenaples.com
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full liquor; $15 wine corkage fee
Full Review: January 2005
Bice bites the Italian competition with a taste of long-simmered heritage.
Restaurant: Bistro 821
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Creative, well-rounded selections of contemporary cuisine
Atmosphere: Modern, chic, bustling with kitchen on show
Service: Personable, knowledgeable and efficient
Price: Appetizers $4-$13; entrées $18-$29
Address: 821 Fifth Avenue South, Naples
Telephone: 239-261-5821, bistro821.com
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: Summer 2003
Bistro 821 is the maverick of Fifth Avenue South, the menu benefits from an injection of fearless creativity.
Restaurant: Bleu Provence
Hours: Dinner Monday-Saturday
Food: French nouvelle
Atmosphere: Bright (sacre bleu!), intimate and charming inside, patio seating outside
Service: Authentically French, but not snobby
Price: Starters $7-$19; entrées $17-$34
Address: 1234 Eighth Street South, Naples
Telephone: 239-261-8239
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: February 2000
The restaurant’s flavors speak eloquent French, but are infected by the neighborhood’s joviality enough to rub out any of the stiff snobbery one might fear from a French café.
Restaurant: Blue Water Bistro
Hours: Dinner nightly
Food: Seafood, bistro-style
Atmosphere: Large, flashy, tightly packed dining room, plus lots of patio seating
Service: Helpful and professional; at times too busy to be timely
Price: Appetizers, $5-$16; entrées, $9-$30
Address: Coconut Point Mall, Estero; gr8food.net
Telephone: 239-949-2583
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: July/August 2007
Blue Water Bistro does fish with bite.
Restaurant: BrickTop’s
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: American
Atmosphere: Cozy booths gathered around an exhibition kitchen, rotisserie and grill
Service: Extremely accommodating
Price: Appetizers $8-$13; sandwiches and entrées, $9-$34
Address: Waterside Shops, 5555 Tamiami Trail North, Naples; bricktops.com
Telephone: 239-596-9112
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full, but limited
Full Review: December 2006
The sleek wood handsomeness sparks expectations of exacting perfection, while the pervading aroma of meat over the fire appeals to primeval appetites.
Restaurant: Café Cibo
Hours: Lunch Tuesday-Friday and dinner daily
Food: Italian
Atmosphere: Simple and stylish in black and white
Service: Knowledgeable and well-timed
Price: Lunch salads, paninis and entrées $6-$14; dinner entrées $15-$36
Address: 12901-16/17 McGregor Boulevard, Fort Myers
Telephone: 239-454-3700
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: July/August 2008
Café Cibo’s popularity among Italophiles, including Neapolitans willing to make the drive north, has caught up with its increased size. Small wonder, because Cibo gives you everything you want in a fine Italian restaurant, including reasonable prices and excellent service.
Restaurant: Café de Marco
Hours: Dinner daily (closed September, and Sundays from Easter to Christmas)
Food: Continental with some tropical nuances
Atmosphere: Cozy cottage
Service: Knowledgeable and obliging
Price: Appetizers $7.50-$25; entrées $16-$29
Address: 244 Palm Street, Marco Island, cafedemarco.com
Telephone: 239-394-6262
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: February 2009
Café de Marco celebrates its silver anniversary in 2009 with much the same menu it has perfected since the beginning. A steadfast kitchen and snug historic cottage setting add to the recipe that has kept this an endearing Marco Island tradition.
Restaurant: Café Lurcat
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: New American
Atmosphere: Contemporary with sweeping staircase from first-floor bar to high-ceilinged dining room with outdoor balcony seating
Service: Competent and professional
Price: Appetizers $6-$13; entrées $17.50-$36
Address: 494 Fifth Avenue South, Naples
Telephone: 239-213-3357
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No, but serves burgers and grilled-cheese sandwiches
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: December 2004
The familiar and the exotic: Café Lurcat deftly balances comfort with intrigue.
Restaurant: Campiello Ristorante
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Interpretive Italian
Atmosphere: Like an Italian plaza
Service: Top-level in terms of timing and assistance
Price: Lunch and dinner appetizers $8-$18; lunch entrées $10-$19; dinner entrées $12-$44
Address: 1177 Third Street South, Naples, campiello.damico.com
Telephone: 239-435-1166
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: January 2008
Live; laugh; eat; repeat. Campiello lives its gustatory motto to the fullest.
Restaurant: Chops City Grill
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Fine steaks and seafood with an Asian flair
Atmosphere: Sophisticated, with a large, open dining room
Service: Well-timed, but not always overly accommodating
Price: Appetizers $6-$9; entrées $15-$32
Address: 837 Fifth Avenue South, Naples
Telephone: 239-262-4677
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Three entrées available
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: November 2002
The food clinches the deal, playing double duty with the name Chops to create a coalition of fine grilled cuts and chopstick cookery.
Restaurant: Cilantro Tamales
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Modern Mexican
Atmosphere: Cozy with bright yellow sponged walls and handsome pottery
Service: Friendly, knowledgeable, efficient
Price: Appetizers $1-$6, entrées $6.50-$12
Address: 10823 Tamiami Trail North, Naples
Telephone: 239-597-5855
Reservations: No
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: January 2004
A Mexican dining experience that’s as authentic as it is creative.
Restaurant: Charlie Chiang’s Restaurant & Lounge
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Asian
Atmosphere: Modern Eastern indoors, patio dining outdoors along the Cocohatchee River
Service: Extremely welcoming; competent and helpful throughout the meal
Price: Appetizers $2 and up; entrées $8-$37
Address: 12200 Tamiami Trail North at Doubletree Guest Suites, Naples; charliechiangs.com
Telephone: 239-593-6688
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full liquor
Full Review: September 2006
Harmony and creativity are palate-pleasing at Charlie Chiang’s
Restaurant: Coast
Hours: Breakfast and dinner daily
Food: New American
Atmosphere: Open, airy and urban upscale with outdoor balcony seating
Service: Friendly and spot-on
Price: Appetizers $9-$16, entreés $18-$34
Address: Edgewater Beach Hotel & Club, 1901 Gulfshore Boulevard North, Naples; edgewaternaples.com
Telephone: 239-403-2000
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: October 2006
Coast, despite its uncomplicated name, is anything but simple.
Restaurant: Côte d’Azur
Hours: Dinner Tuesday through Sunday
Food: South provincial French
Atmosphere: Charming, but tightly packed
Service: French in accent, efficient
Price: Appetizers $8-$18; entrées $30-$36
Address: 11224 Tamiami Trail North, Naples; cotedazurrestaurant.com
Telephone: 239-597-8867
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: February 2008
Côte d’Azur’s earthy and salty flavors capture Provence’s essence in its intriguing blend of country fare, exotic ingredients and slow-cooked goodness with a menu that executes French technique with perfection and joie de vivre.
Restaurant: Escargot 41
Hours: Dinner Monday through Saturday
Food: Classic French
Atmosphere: Lacy tablecloths atop burgundy linen, formal table settings, intimate appeal
Service: Perfect table service
Price: Appetizers $6-$95; entreés $24-$37
Address: Park Shore Shopping Center, 4339 North Tamiami Trail, Naples; escargot41.com
Telephone: 239-793-5000
Reservations: Recommended, with up to a month wait in season
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Wine
Full Review: April 2006
Escargot 41 does French cuisine classically and flawlessly.
Restaurant: EVOO Market & Bistro
Hours: Lunch daily except Sunday; dinner daily
Food: World cuisine
Atmosphere: Sleek, modern bistro style, with tall ceilings to lend spaciousness to an otherwise small room
Service: Competent
Price: Lunch entrées $10-$18; dinner entrées $20-$39
Address: 13240 Tamiami Trail North; evoomarket.com
Telephone: 239-444-2020
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: May/June 2007
World cuisine, with global inspiration and sauces that do more than moisten fish and meat—they perfect it.
Restaurant: Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Steaks
Atmosphere: Muted light, dark wood and club intimacy
Service: Over-the-top and on top of things
Price: Appetizers $7-$24; entrées $21-$36
Address: 8985 Tamiami Trail North, Naples
Telephone: 239-598-2424
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: February 2005
Fleming’s transcends “steakhouse” in even its most overindulgent context. Expect a dining experience unlike many in Naples.
Restaurant: Food & Thought
Hours: Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily, except Sunday
Food: Homemade organic
Atmosphere: Inside and out of a health food store
Service: Cheerful counter service
Price: $6.95 for sandwiches/wraps and daily entrées
Address: Gateway Plaza, 2132 Tamiami Trail North, Naples; foodandthought.com
Telephone: 239-213-2222
Reservations: No
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: None
Full Review: October 2008
It’s thoughtful that a restaurant would strive to serve the best possible food for our good health. But it’s even better that Food & Thought’s dishes reflect the kind of creative thinking that raises them above typical health-food juice-bar fare.
Restaurant: The Grill
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Fine steaks and seafood
Atmosphere: Intimate, marble fireplace, mahogany, crystal chandeliers, white linen, fresh rosebuds
Service: Black-tie, exact, measured
Price: Appetizers $12-$200 (caviar), entrées $37-$49
Address: The Ritz-Carlton, Naples, 280 Vanderbilt Beach Road
Telephone: 239-598-3300
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: December 2005
For seriously special occasions, The Grill at The Ritz-Carlton, Naples cannot be topped.
Restaurant: Handsome Harry’s Third Street Bistro
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Fine American and Italian
Atmosphere: Part steakhouse, part bistro—stylish and exceedingly classy
Service: Friendly and generous
Price: Lunch and dinner appetizers $6-$15; lunch sandwiches and salads $8-$16; dinner entrées $18-$48
Address: 1205 Third Street South, Naples; handsomeharrys.com
Telephone: 239-434-6400
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: March 2007
Handsome Harry’s Third Street Bistro lives up to its name. The food is as smart as the place is pretty.
Restaurant: IM Tapas
Hours: Dinner Tuesday-Saturday
Food: Spanish
Atmosphere: Long, narrow dining room with well-spaced tables and candlelight
Service: Team service with Mary in charge; friendly, but don’t be in a rush
Price: Appetizers and tapas $5-$20; specialties $25-$38
Address: 965 Fourth Avenue North, Naples
Telephone: 239-403-8272
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: November 2009
Tapas, like most things when introduced into the American culture, have become a diluted interpretation of their Spanish origins. Fortunately, places like IM Tapas keep the Spanish tradition intact. The restaurant is the real thing—a place to dine, unhurried, on the finer things español.
Restaurant: Le Lafayette Restaurant
Hours: Lunch Monday through Saturday, and dinner daily
Food: Classic French
Atmosphere: Popular patio seating in a garden setting under an awning; indoor seating has less atmosphere and more formality
Service: A study in perfect teamwork
Price: Lunch $8-$38; dinner appetizers $7-$22, entrées $28-$46
Address: 375 13th Avenue South, Naples, lelafayette.com
Telephone: 239-403-7861
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Wine
Full Review: October 2007
Le Lafayette Restaurant is a swoony, melt-into experience from start to finish.
Restaurant: Lemonia
Hours: Breakfast and dinner daily
Food: Tuscan with style
Atmosphere: Casual elegance with indoor and balcony seating
Service: Entirely helpful and on-the-spot
Price: Tapas and appetizers $4-$16; entrées $24-$42
Address: The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples, 2600 Tiburón Drive, Naples
Telephone: 239-593-2000, 800-241-3333
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: August 2006
Lemonia dissolves the notion that dinner at The Ritz will break the bank and the diet. Its latest menu features Tuscan cuisine prepared with the simple goodness and exactness of technique that defines the tradition.
Restaurant: M Waterfront Grille
Hours: Lunch Monday-Saturday; dinner daily; Sunday brunch
Food: Eclectic
Atmosphere: Indoor and outdoor seating with lots of window; open design means noise indoors
Service: Attentive, but a bit off on timing
Price: Appetizers $8-$12, pasta/entrées $18-$49
Address: Venetian Village, 4300 Gulf Shore Boulevard North, Naples, mwaterfrontgrille.com
Telephone: 239-263-4421
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: March 2009
M Waterfront Grille brings new life to the former Maxwell’s in Venetian Village with presentations that create a sequence of taste sensations from one dish.
Restaurant: MiraMare Ristorante
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Northern Italian
Atmosphere: Indoors around the convivial bar, outside with a water view
Service: Authentically Italian and welcoming
Price: Lunch $7-$19; dinner appetizers $7-$18, entrées $15-$34
Address: 4236 Gulfshore Boulevard North, The Village on Venetian Bay, Naples; miramarenaples.com
Telephone: 239-430-6273
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: September 2009
Hail fresco! The difference between stellar Italian and just another Italian restaurant is ingredients that speak the language, such as the buffalo mozzarella on the Caprese-style salad at MiraMare.
Restaurant: Naples Tomato
Hours: Lunch and dinner Monday-Saturday
Food: American Neapolitan
Atmosphere: Part warehouse, part grocer
Service: Not up to par with the food
Price: Lunch entrées $8-$20; dinner appetizers $7 and up, entrées $17-$35
Address: 14700 Tamiami Trail North, Naples; naplestomato.com
Telephone: 239-598-9800
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Wine
Full Review: August 2006
Everything is pared down to basics, because the food is what Naples Tomato is all about.
Restaurant: Pazzo! Italian Café
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Italian
Atmosphere: Handsome, warm and modern with open bar and kitchen; sidewalk seating for smokers
Service: Slow with the bread and check, otherwise helpful and friendly
Price: Appetizers $5-$10, entrées $15-$28
Address: 853 Fifth Avenue South, Naples
Telephone: 239-434-8494
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full; bring-in wine allowed with restrictions and corkage fee (call first)
Full Review: February 2004
The tendencies are Italian, heavy on the Tuscan that is so au courant, but this is not your grandmother’s Italian.
Restaurant: Preston’s Steakhouse
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Steak and seafood
Atmosphere: Two small, elegant, club-like rooms with cove booths, exquisite molding and simple but elegant adornments
Service: Professional, helpful, well-timed
Price: Appetizers $5-$16, entrées $20-$45, $79 for porterhouse for two
Address: 109 Ninth Street South, Naples
Telephone: 239-435-1986
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: January 2007
Preston’s does steak, pure and simple.
Restaurant: Randy’s Fish Market Restaurant
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Seafood
Atmosphere: No frills, just some cheery Caribbean touches in the dining room and adjacent Tap Room
Service: Extremely helpful and good-natured
Price: Appetizers $5-$11; lunch entrées $7-$14; dinner entrées $15-$37
Address: 10395 Tamiami Trail North, Naples; randysfishmarketrestaurant.com
Telephone: 239-593-5555
Reservations: No
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: April 2007
Randy’s serves seafood the old Naples laid-back way.
Restaurant: Ridgway Bar & Grill
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Continental/American
Atmosphere: Purely Old Naples casual, with a fine edge of elegance, but slightly crowded
Service: A bit off timing-wise, but cordial
Price: Lunch appetizers $4-$12, entrées $9-$18; dinner appetizers $4-$15, entrées $14-$38
Address: 1300 Third Street South, Naples
Telephone: 239-262-5500
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: September/October 2005
Provides a comprehensive, balanced selection of Continental classics and purely Ridgway creations.
Restaurant: Ristorante Farfalla
Hours: Dinner Monday-Saturday
Food: Fine Italian
Atmosphere: Intimate, contemporary, handsomely appointed
Service: Accommodating but a little slow at check time
Price: Appetizers $5-$12, entrées $16-$27
Address: 21301 Tamiami Trail South, Estero; ristorantefarfalla.com
Telephone: 239-495-9912
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: November 2005
Ristorante Farfalla creates a flutter of Italian dining excitement.
Restaurant: Roy’s
Hours: Dinner nightly
Food: Hawaiian fusion
Atmosphere: Smart and intimate
Service: Helpful and professional
Price: Appetizers $7-$16; entrées $21-$38
Address: 475 Bayfront Place, roysrestaurant.com
Telephone: 239-261-1416
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: December 2007
Roy’s Hawaiian fusion cuisine is perenially fresh and bold.
Restaurant: Sam-Bucco Bistro
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Mediterranean fusion
Atmosphere: Meticulous, warm, and refined
Service: Obliging and leisurely paced
Price: Appetizers $7-$11; entrées $18-$30
Address: 14700 Tamiami Trail North, Naples, sam-buccobistro.com
Telephone: 239-592-6050
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No, but will accommodate requests
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: October 2009
Sam-Bucco Bistro radiates the warmth and reflects the diversity of the Mediterranean.
Restaurant: Sale e Pepe
Hours: Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily
Food: Regional Italian
Atmosphere: Palazzo-style Renaissance replication with terrace seating Gulf-side
Service: Perfecto! Never rushed, never lacking
Price: Lunch $7-$19; dinner appetizers $9-$12, entrées $18-$29
Address: Marco Beach Ocean Resort, 480 South Collier Boulevard, Marco Island
Telephone: 239-393-1600
Reservations: Yes, for dinner
Children’s Menu: No, but will accommodate
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: September/October 2002
Sale e Pepe treats diners like royalty with regional Italian cuisine fit for a palace.
Restaurant: SeaSalt
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Inventive Italian
Atmosphere: Indoor and outdoor seating in a creative, limestone wall setting, with its own market
Service: Well-informed and engaging
Price: Appetizers $8-$16; lunch entrées $14-$19, dinner $22-$62
Address: 1186 Third Street South, Naples, seasaltnaples.com
Telephone: 239-434-7258
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: April 2009
SeaSalt crystallizes a new concept. The 70 different types of sea salt in-house for tasting, plus Chef Aielli’s Venetian birthright and penchant for Asian flavors, result in a truly unique experience that challenges the savviest foodie.
Restaurant: Shula’s Steak House
Hours: Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily
Food: Steaks
Atmosphere: Corporate boardroom meets the Miami Dolphins
Service: Well-timed, knowledgeable
Price: Lunch appetizers $4-$15, entrées $9-$80; dinner appetizers $8-$15, entrées $22-$150
Address: Hilton Naples & Towers, 5111 Tamiami Trail North, Naples
Telephone: 239-430-4999
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: May/June 2005
Words such as “handsome” and “prime” also describe Shula’s Steakhouse, but “rich” sums it up best.
Restaurant: Strip House
Hours: Dinner nightly
Food: Steak
Atmosphere: Intimate and sexy
Service: Right on
Price: Appetizers $11-$17; entrées $28-$51
Address: Naples Grande Beach Resort, 475 Seagate Drive, Naples; striphouse.net
Telephone: 239-598-9600
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: April 2008
If the tasteful nude photographs on the wall don’t clue you in, the velvet-flocked wallpaper and red curtains will. This steakhouse has taken the rich club look to a high-class bordello level. The obvious sensuality of the place plays well with the over-the-top luxuriousness of the menu.
Restaurant: Tanglewood
Hours: Breakfast and dinner daily
Food: Nouvelle Continental
Atmosphere: Casual elegance with exhibition kitchen and fountain views
Service: Well-timed and attentive but not quite up to par with the restaurant’s overall quality
Price: Appetizers $6-$12, entrées $18-$26
Address: Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa, 5001 Coconut Road, Bonita Springs
Telephone: 239-444-1234
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Half portions offered
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: March 2004
The dinner peaked immediately and never once dipped below top-shelf flavor and stellar quality with flair to spare.
Restaurant: The Turtle Club
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily
Food: Seafood and steak
Atmosphere: Multi-windowed with Gulf views and smart decor
Service: Friendly, knowledgeable and efficient
Price: Appetizers $6-$14; entrées $18-$27
Address: Vanderbilt Beach Resort, 9225 Gulf Shore Drive North, Naples
Telephone: 239-592-6557
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full liquor
Full Review: April 2004
Cleverly disguised as a casual resort beach club, the Turtle Club exceeds all expectations for dwelling in that vaunted culinary territory known as a local secret.
Restaurant: Truluck’s Seafood, Steak & Crab House
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Steak and seafood
Atmosphere: Casual indoor and outdoor seating with lively ambience and handsome appointments
Service: Tip-top—when the server arrived minutes late with a glass of wine, he took it off the check
Price: Dinner appetizers $7-$40, entrées $16-$35
Address: 698 Fourth Avenue South, Naples
Telephone: 239-530-3131; trulucks.com
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full liquor; $15 wine corkage fee
Full Review: March 2005
In a new generation of chain restaurants redefining dining experience, Truluck’s is a stroke of good fortune.
Restaurant: USS Nemo
Hours: Lunch Monday-Friday and dinner daily
Food: Seafood with an Asian persuasion
Atmosphere: Small with a stylish submarine theme; sidewalk seating for smokers
Service: Helpful and able, but a little slow at times
Price: Lunch entrées $8-$15; dinner appetizers $5.50-$14, entrées $13.50-$30
Address: 3745 Tamiami Trail North, Naples
Telephone: 239-261-6366
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Beer, wine and sake cocktails; bring-in wine allowed with restrictions and corkage fee (call first)
Full Review: December 2003
Finding this Naples seafood restaurant tucked into an inconspicuous strip center on the North Trails isn’t easy, but it is well worth the search.
Restaurant: Yabba Island Grill
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Floribbean
Atmosphere: Reggae-charged, colorful, open
Service: A bit green
Price: Appetizers $3-$8, entrées $7-$24
Address: 711 Fifth Avenue South, Naples
Telephone: 239-262-5787
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Full, specializing in rum
Full Review: Summer 2000
Island sea breezes blow gently through the menu, but so do gusts of new American meddling, resulting in a blend of creativity and folk cuisine, heavy on the creativity.
Restaurant: Verdi’s American Bistro
Hours: Dinner daily (closed during the fall; call ahead)
Food: Italian-American-Asian fusion
Atmosphere: Clean, simple bistro with one cozy dining room and another slightly larger
Service: Knowledgeable, friendly, perfectly timed
Price: Appetizers $7-$10; entrées $21-$39
Address: 241 North Collier Boulevard, Marco Island, verdisbistro.com
Telephone: 239-394-5533
Reservations: Yes, recommended
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: July/August 2009
Verdi’s serves elegance in a simple, friendly setting. Chef Verdi is Italian, but he calls his restaurant Verdi’s American Bistro, and the menu finds influences from Asia—and modern art. The unifying thread is freshness that is of the moment.
Restaurant: Vergina
Hours: Lunch Monday-Saturday, dinner daily
Food: Southern Italian
Atmosphere: Grand, neoclassic dining room with courtyard and street-side alfresco seating
Service: Authentically Italian, at times reticent and curt
Price: Appetizers $8-$11; entrées $15-$23
Address: 700 Fifth Avenue South, Naples
Telephone: 239-659-7008
Reservations: Yes, for dinner
Children’s Menu: No
Bar Service: Full
Full Review: September/October 2001
In an era of fusion and food experimentation, Vergina’s menu needs no translation, as long as you are familiar with classic Southern Italian cookery.
Restaurant: Wylds Café
Hours: Dinner daily
Food: Continental
Atmosphere: Modern and understated with white linen
Service: Top-notch
Price: Appetizers $4-$14; entrées $17-$25
Address: 4271 Bonita Beach Road; wyldscafe.com
Telephone: 239-947-0408
Reservations: Yes
Children’s Menu: Yes
Bar Service: Beer and wine
Full Review: November 2007
Wylds Café in Bonita Springs goes crazy with flavor.
