What are the best restaurants in/near Lakewood Ranch? (Port Charlotte: transplants, Valentine's day)

[beach43ofus]

I think the land & lease prices are too high in LWR for a Mom & Pop type restaurant to go in.

Just South, there was Chaz Bistro, but he moved out to a move visible location along 41 in Venice.

Linger Lodge is temporarily closed, & could be made into something special...I love their view off the rear deck.

Somebody should use an existing restaurant, or banquet space, in an underutilized golf course clubhouse & convert it into open a great restaurant. There'd be plenty of parking from 4PM on, nice vew, quiet & safe, structure is already there...they all just lack drive-by visibility, so you'd need a big advertising budget to launch it. They'd have to select a public, or semi-private golf course property to pull it off. I often wonder why there are not some excellent restaurants in golf course clubhouses that are not private country clubs.

Because land and leases are so costly in LWR, a restauranteur should look to convert an older existing structure, or currently under-utilized space.

[AkaniLTD]

It's a real shame now.


Few people remember great places like the Bomb Squadron for instance. My family ate there all the time, not gourmet at all but damn good food and not a rip.


Moores Stone Crab LBK
Golden Buddha...lol
Picasso
Ping's chinese...damn good
Chez Sylvie
Shenkels LBK
Hillview Grill
Bellini
Tail o the Pup
Broadway Bar - best pizza in town
Brenton Reef


Nay, this town had a bunch of locally owned pretty damn good places to dine.


Today's offerings don't match up well at all! I can think of a ton since I was17-18?

[MOforthewin]

Originally Posted by beach43ofus

I think the land & lease prices are too high in LWR for a Mom & Pop type restaurant to go in.

Just South, there was Chaz Bistro, but he moved out to a move visible location along 41 in Venice.

Linger Lodge is temporarily closed, & could be made into something special...I love their view off the rear deck.

Somebody should use an existing restaurant, or banquet space, in an underutilized golf course clubhouse & convert it into open a great restaurant. There'd be plenty of parking from 4PM on, nice vew, quiet & safe, structure is already there...they all just lack drive-by visibility, so you'd need a big advertising budget to launch it. They'd have to select a public, or semi-private golf course property to pull it off. I often wonder why there are not some excellent restaurants in golf course clubhouses that are not private country clubs.

Because land and leases are so costly in LWR, a restauranteur should look to convert an older existing structure, or currently under-utilized space.

Had a good meal today at Fisherman's Village. Village Fish Market was really good today! One of the better meals I had there in awhile. The Gulf grouper fingers were really fresh! Last 3 times I ate at Lock & Key out in Manasota Key the grouper didn't taste fresh and my fried Oysters were soggy like a day old.

Had a good meal at Outback last week. Despite low staffing and having to wait despite half the tables were not occupied due to staff shortages, the food was still very good. Steak cooked very rare which is how I like it and was a good cut of meat for a change.

This is what I don't understand.

Basically, eventually nearly everything will be big business. Small businesses can't afford these high leases that property owners demand.

Like malls. Around here ALL the malls have a lot of vacancies. yet they keep raising rent and more tenants leave. Here in Southwest FL I see it a lot.

Sarasota Square, Edison Mall, Port Charlotte, Miramar mall, Gulf Coast Town Center which has beautiful buildings is about 50-60 percent vacant as well when I was there back in June. I was at Tampa Premium Outlets a few months back. A good number of vacancies. I went a year without going there and some of the stores I looked for because I wanted to buy something were gone! When that opened 5 years ago nearly every space was filled.

I don't understand their business model.

You have vacancies. Why not lower the rent to retain and attract new businesses? Rather than being have vacant and getting NO revenue at all. Even if you lower rent 20 percent but bring in and keep businesses you're making more profit than rather sitting vacant.

Down here Publix has been buying strip malls. They jack rent up BIG time and businesses end up leaving. IN return you have empty stores that just sit there and bring them in no money.

They just bought the plaza at the one I work at part time. Lost two tenants. One was a huge doctor walk in clinic that is now just a huge vacant eye sore.

My friend on the east coast lives by a strip mall Publix just bought. UPS store, Chinese place, CVS, Tmobile all moving out of there and down the street due to rent being jacked up. usually strip malls is for small businesses. Jacking the rent up 300 percent just prices small businesses out. Heck it even drove these big companies out of there.

I think in the Publix case they don't have to pay rent for their stores now, and somehow will use it as a tax write off with the loss of rent revenue.

[joshan]

Well said MO. There has to be some reason somewhere... Basic laws of supply and demand should be in effect here, right.

[beach43ofus]

Even though strip mall and major mall spaces are empty, doesn't always mean the landlord isn't being paid. Tenants typically have to sign a 2 or 3 year lease, and personally guarantee the payments with tangible assets as collateral (like the equity in your home).

Those leases are impossible to just walk away from, and say your restaurant went under. The owner is personally on the hook, so the restaurant bankrupcy won't stop the owner from making lease payments. Those leases are brutal, & they have an army of lawyers to back them up.

This is why so much of the restaurant biz is going to chains, some local chains, some regional, and some national. Very few independent restaurant owners make it past their 3rd year.

Aside from the UTC Mall area, & maybe 4 places on Main st. LWR, LWR is a restaurant desert....especially when you take chains out of the equation.

[MOforthewin]

Originally Posted by beach43ofus

Even though strip mall and major mall spaces are empty, doesn't always mean the landlord isn't being paid. Tenants typically have to sign a 2 or 3 year lease, and personally guarantee the payments with tangible assets as collateral (like the equity in your home).

Those leases are impossible to just walk away from, and say your restaurant went under. The owner is personally on the hook, so the restaurant bankrupcy won't stop the owner from making lease payments. Those leases are brutal, & they have an army of lawyers to back them up.

This is why so much of the restaurant biz is going to chains, some local chains, some regional, and some national. Very few independent restaurant owners make it past their 3rd year.

Aside from the UTC Mall area, & maybe 4 places on Main st. LWR, LWR is a restaurant desert....especially when you take chains out of the equation.

Yep. Usually you gotta keep paying the lease until another tenant is found. And the locally owned places you do see are ones typically that have been there for years. Most new places are big chains. Really sad.

If you ever watch kitchen nightmares even the places Gordon turns around and rebrands typically still don't make it. On that show a lot of them are not bad cooks but cut corners so bad in order to survive and leads to crap food.

[AkaniLTD]

Originally Posted by beach43ofus

.

Aside from the UTC Mall area, & maybe 4 places on Main st. LWR, LWR is a restaurant desert....especially when you take chains out of the equation.

Yes yepper....that's why LWR in toto has misleading character - one one hand we allegedly have lots on monied house buyers, but clearly low demand for great places for great food. It doesn't match up one bit.
All that glitters is not gold.


Upscale houses, gated communities - but no upscale eateries to speak of within the Ranch.


Main Street? nay, maybe Grove or the Paris Bistro....but pieces of crap like Pinchers? lol Casa Maya??
Ed TAVERN ??? McGrath's ???? Station 400???? THIS STUFF IS MOSTLY CRAP.


Only a couple of decent places such as Apollonia and Lucky Pelican...maybe...


Lakewood Ranch is smoke and mirrors in this regard....mostly blowing smoke.UPSCALE it ain't.

[stvlg1]

Sarasota is definitely no foodie paradise. Ft Myers for being a tourist town
has a great food scene. I think Sarasota is just in transition period that may never
reach its full potential because the influx of people is outpacing the ability
to serve them.

[MOforthewin]

Originally Posted by stvlg1

Sarasota is definitely no foodie paradise. Ft Myers for being a tourist town
has a great food scene. I think Sarasota is just in transition period that may never
reach its full potential because the influx of people is outpacing the ability
to serve them.

Ft. Myers is okay but even then everything seems to be bar type food for the most part.


Anywhere by the water tends to have better seafood though.


I think the issue also with many parts of Florida is you have people from all over so they have different tastes. So it's hard to find that target.


It makes sense why so many pubs, and bar type food being tourist areas. When on vacation you typically don't eat healthy or 4 star dining every night. Other than seafood, most of these places are the burgers and wings type pubs that seem to dot the area. We do have a couple good italian places with good Pizza though.


I'm from St. Louis and the food down here except Seafood doesn't even come close. Up there you have MUCH more fine dinning than down here. I'm sure Miami and Tampa have better dinning.


Major cities are also less touristy and more locals who will spend money on better dinning. If you're on vacation and have kids with you you're not going to be going to a place that serves $50 steak meals per person.


I know in my area of Southwest FL a place like that wouldn't last long. Bar type food seems to be popular that is about $17 a meal.

[Avalon08]

Originally Posted by joshan

Akani is correct, I got the name wrong haha. But the review stands

But wow, you really hit Akani in the old wheelhouse, I know he/she is a "new poster" but will you look at the bevy of restaurants he/she has been to!! Even knows which corporate group owns them! A treasure trove of industry info.

As for the quality declining, hmmm, now that I think of it: Since Covid, I have ordered a lot from the Bonefish right down the street. Yes, it's a chain but you can always count on consistent good quality, right? Well, not anymore. The last meal I got, the broccoli was soggy and the shrimp tasted lousy (and I had ordered that dish before so I knew how they were supposed to taste). Yah, I should've complained, but I just didn't feel like it. I just won't order from them again.

I have tried Michael's on East (it was either Thanksgiving or Christmas) but whatever I had, it didn't impress me that much. Also tried Harry's Continental on LBK -- same. The only "gourmet" place I've really found to be good is Beach Bistro, but that's on AMI, not in LWR.