All Around the Underground: Gators Goes Bye Bye, Biddles On the Move and will the Pelican’s multiply?

Beverage Underground connects the Hospitality Industry in SW Florida and any 239buzz or information heard all around the underground can be submitted at info@BeverageUnderground.com

Chilly weather and fewer restaurants this season means that Hospitality Industry Professionals were pressed harder over the weekend. Valentine’s Day falling on a Sunday means extra weekend warriors at all types of outlets and typically its costs us all money… all around. In conversation this week with retailers, distributor reps and veteran service personnel all agreed that a mid-week Valentine’s Day helps the receipts for the week better than when it falls on Sunday. A long-time chef reminded us that Valentines on Sunday means his entire staff schedule gets a shuffle for two weeks in a row following a Super Bowl Sunday that convinced many places that being open on Super Sunday is like betting on the losing team.

R. J. Gators a Florida-based chain restaurant that first came to Southwest Florida in the late 80′s has closed their last remaining store in the area. It marks the first major casualty and closing of a full service restaurant at the Gulf Coast Town Center, but location had nothing to do with this one. The consistency of the local operators and the creativity and marketing of this concept failed to impress visitors to Gulf Coast from the start. When R. J. Gators first opened in Fort Myers in 1989 on Colonial Blvd it was considered out of town and on the way to I-75. The had immediate success prompting them to expand south. The second store opened in Bonita Springs in the mid-nineties and it was the biggest restaurant between South Ft Myers and North Naples. That location had some early success but catered more to families with a large ‘game-room’ and children’s menu and didn’t fit the demographic in Bonita. That location closed and became Duval Street, which has been closed and opened and then closed tight early last year.

Those weather concerns have made working outside a daily a weekly gamble this season and jobs that typically are highly seasonal like beach locations and golf courses have felt it since November. On a recent Ft. Myers Beach cruise on a stop at Junkanoo we ran into Neil Van Vliet who ran the Food & Beverage at the Lani Kai Resort for 21 years before leaving the business for a while. Neil has managed the bar and restaurant Junkanoo for 2 years now and we had great drinks, great food and the view is great at any temperature.

The rumor has been kicking around for a while but it looks like Pelican Larry’s will be crossing the Lee County line and bringing their party bar to the old Bourbon Street location in Estero. The original Pelican Larry’s is located on Pine Ridge but the most popular is their larger Immokalee Road location in North Naples.

Voda Lounge is still a few weeks away but excitement has stirred in the Promenade in Bonita and several groups have looked at the old Bennigan’s location there. Despite the rise of Coconut Point to the north and Mercato to the south three restaurants, Roy’s, Silverspoon and Molino’s have all been there from the Promenade first opened in 1999.

Just weeks ago Biddle’s Restaurant & Piano Bar announced they were closing their Sanibel Beach Place plaza…which really was in South Fort Myers and are moving up to the old Bennigan’s location across from the Bell Tower. After six years of Biddle’s being an anchor location they were unable to get a rent reduction and it resulted in a better opportunity for a good restaurant and bar. They will slightly change the name and adapt their great food and hospitality to accommodate the new clientele and traffic that the Daniels and 41 corridor has to offer. Look for the return of the favorites and even a new twist that may include sushi and other Asian influences. The new location will shuffle words to be called Biddle’s Piano Bar & Restaurant to reflect more focus on the bar and entertainment.