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Dining Trend-Setters in the Naples Area
SEA SALT
1186 Third St. S., Naples
239-434-7258
Chef: Fabrizio Aielli
Meals served: lunch and dinner
Culinary style: Open-minded New World Venetian
Best for: Culinary thrill-seekers, sea-salt tasting, new menus daily
Personality: Coral limestone walls, lively bar, sidewalk bustle
Signature dish: Rock-salt crusted Mediterranean sea bass
Best splurge: Chef's Table: 10 - 15 courses for eight to 10 people
Overheard: "I try to do what no one else in Naples is already doing. I do what is my vision in food."
NAPLES TOMATO
14700 Tamiami Trail N., Naples
239-598-9800
Chef: Matt Serfass
Meals served: lunch and dinner
Culinary style: Italy with a Southwest Florida kick
Best for: Girls night out - gather around the Enomatic debit-system wine dispenser, lounge on couches and nosh grandly
Personality: Warm yet edgy - black granite table tops, exposed ductwork, fresh-made mozzarella bar
Signature dish: Classic lasagna
Best splurge: Truffle melange raviolinni Bolognese
Overheard: "We make everything from the mozzarella to the pasta to the tiramisu fresh every day."
LITTLE BAR RESTAURANT
205 Harbor Dr., Goodland
239-394-5663
Owner: Ray Bozicnik
Meals served: lunch and dinner
Culinary style: Local latitude, regional romantic, naked simplicity
Best for: Boating in for lunch and live weekend tunes
Personality: Pieces of boats, mansions, a pipe organ, and an optometry office went into the making of this eclectic waterfront fun house
Signature dish: Voodoo (blackened) mahi with Florida avocados and key lime creme sauce
Best splurge: Stone crab claws _ right from the source
Overheard: "It's really important to cook with a lot of feeling and to ask - is it fresh? - is it delicious? - is it wonderful?"
 The Turtle Club Restaurant
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THE TURTLE CLUB RESTAURANT
Vanderbilt Beach Resort, 9225 Gulfshore Dr. N., Naples
239-592-6557
Chef: Jay Schrednitz
Meals served: lunch and dinner
Culinary style: Spontaneous, simple, yet elegant at times
Best for: Sunset dinners
Ambiance: Casual grace with a Gulf view from indoors; toes-in-the-sand outdoors
Signature dish:Toasted coconut crab cakes with lemon-chive aioli and preserved lemons
Best splurge: Oak-grilled beef tenderloin and butter-poached cold-water lobster
Overheard: "What I do to make The Turtle Club stand out is what every chef here has done - I do the best I can with the ingredients I have chosen on a daily basis."
FOOD & THOUGHT
Gateway Plaza, 2132 Tamiami Trail N., Naples
239-213-2222
Owner: Frank Oakes
Meals served: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Culinary style: Fast and affordable certified organic home-cooking
Best for: A lunch that won't weigh you down
Ambiance: Part whole foods mart, part cafeteria with flower-showered patio seating
Signature dish: Organic turkey dinner Thursday nights October through July
Best splurge: Strawberry Love Cake (when available)
Overheard: "I don't know anyone who's as militant as we are about using organic. The food always tastes better because we use only organic, and we let the food do the talking."
BISTRO SOLEIL
Olde Marco Inn, 100 Palm St., Marco Island
239-389-0981
Chef: Denis Meurgue
Meals served: dinner
Culinary style: French with a Florida kiss
Best for: Fine cuisine that's priced affordable enough to indulge often
Ambiance: Gracious Victorian Olde Marco Inn with its cranberry glass chandelier, Audubon prints and live piano
Signature dish: Roasted black grouper topped with blue crab meat draped with a light lemon butter caper sauce
Best splurge: Homemade warm apple tarte tatin with vanilla ice cream and balsamic vinegar reduction
Overheard: "I work to strike a balance between classical French cuisine and a comfortable and inviting dining experience."
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