Indholdsfortegnelse for January 2021 i Naples Illustrated

Mother-daughter duo Olga and Leeza Arkhangelskaya founded East West Fine Art 20 years ago, with the goal of creating a gallery that was more than just a selling space. In January of last year, East West launched a program to allow artists and clients to get to know one another in a casual setting. Initiatives like these, however, were temporarily put on pause due to COVID-19. “When the Corona crisis hit, like every small business, traffic into the gallery fell,” says Olga. “While we were temporarily stunned, we were not deterred.” Instead, they set up an online gallery and virtual studio to keep the interaction going. “This made it easier for our clients to get acquainted with Southwest Florida’s best artists—to view their new works, write to them, ask questions,…

Ever wanted to go giraffe spotting? Or gaze upward at some snowy mountain peak? Or watch a rocket lift off from Cape Canaveral? You can. Just climb into the back seat of Land Rover’s Defender SUV and look up. Yes, you’ll get a pretty unlimited skyward view through the panoramic glass roof. But the icing on the celestial-vista cake is the Rover’s socalled safari windows. These long, slender strips of glass—one on each side—are set in the curvy roof just above the rear doors. No big deal, right? They’re just windows. But with today’s exhaustive safety requirements and strict roll-over protection rules, they’re a nightmare to create. So why did the engineers at Land Rover design, develop, and include them in this new Defender? One word: authenticity. They’re there because…

Beginning in mid-March, the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc in Collier County. The culinary industry was hard hit, but the virus had an effect on almost every segment of the population. Despite being walloped, restaurants stepped forward to help, and in many cases their efforts supported the health-care workers and first responders who were on the front lines of the crisis. While this may not be a complete accounting of everyone who contributed, it illustrates how interconnected we are in good times and bad. Sails Restaurant spearheaded the effort in early April, when it partnered with William Raveis Real Estate to deliver meals to healthcare workers. It started with 150 per day and quickly escalated to 300, with the goal of providing 3,500 meals to NCH Baker. Bill’s Café received a…

Many countries make brandy from fermented grape pomace, but Italy has elevated the distillation of grappa to a high art. Over the past few decades, boutique producers have refined the formerly harsh digestif into a drink that pairs well before, during, and after a meal. Grappino, the fourth restaurant from the Aielli Group, is a celebration of grappa in all its forms. It features one of the country’s largest grappa bars with a selection of more than 100 bottlings, some of which are mixed into a series of innovative craft cocktails. But Grappino also honors the rustic cuisine of Italy. The menu focuses on variations of comfort foods from many regions of the country, presenting diners with an almost dizzying array of choices. Interested in pasta? “There are 13 different…

RIDGWAY BAR & GRILL How much do they love your dog at Ridgway’s? Enough that the staff will greet regular canines by name, and so much that the bartenders are ready with a water bowl and a treat. Pets are allowed in any of the outdoor areas (front porch and garden), and the courtyard will typically be packed with companion animals on the weekends. (ridgwaybarandgrill.com) RUNNER-UP: EJ’S BAYFRONT CAFÉ At EJ’s, dogs are simply part of the customer base on the patio, as the stack of puppy bowls will attest. The staff regularly provides water, shade, and a special degree of attention to four-legged friends, and they are knowledgeable enough to recommend local pet-friendly destinations to visitors. (ejsbayfrontcafe.com)…

After slogging through almost a year of COVID-19 and its ill effects on their businesses and community, three Naples hospitality superstars seize a lighter moment to gather in a gorgeous home for a savory and sweet tasting dinner, accompanied by delicious wines. The first to arrive, with the sun bouncing off her shiny dark hair, is Liset Zelaya, a 10-year sommelier at Sea Salt. “Who doesn’t get excited when the guest with the booze shows up?” she jokes. Zelaya was introduced to Naples during childhood winter vacations, escaping the chillier climes in Toledo, Ohio. “After college, I vowed I’d never suffer another winter again and moved down here in January 1998.” She still has a fondness for Ohio, mostly revolving around family memories that inspired her career path. “My mother…

The Naples Winter Wine Festival has raised $212 million for underserved children in Collier County over the past 20 years—money that the Naples Children & Education Foundation passes directly to grant recipients. Traditionally, the funds were raised during a gala weekend that included a live auction at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort and vintner dinners at the homes of festival trustees. This year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the festival is centered around an hour-long fundraising documentary that will air on Saturday, January 30. The program will spotlight the safety net that NCEF has built for local children by featuring inspirational success stories and personal insights from parents and beneficiaries. Members of the community will be able to make a pledge of support throughout the broadcast to help continue the mission…

For the final season of HB’s on the Gulf at the Naples Beach Hotel and Golf Club, chef Jonathan Hornyak has composed a menu designed to provide an exceptional guest experience. Hornyak started his restaurant career at Mary’s Bistro on Mackinac Island in Michigan. Rather than attend culinary school, he began as a dishwasher and climbed up the ladder until he became a chef. He arrived in Naples 10 years ago and worked at the Naples Yacht Club and the now-defunct Citrus Restaurant before starting at the hotel in 2013. HB’s on the Gulf will be serving breakfast for the first time, featuring items such as brioche French toast and jalapeño cheddar biscuits with chorizo gravy. Lunch begins with small plates and salads and continues to entrées such as blackened…

One of the easiest ways to enhance flavor in lieu of salt and butter is with fresh herbs. Companies like Rise Gardens (risegardens.com) are growing in popularity thanks to lush offerings designed to blend seamlessly with your living space. To start a DIY herb garden, follow these tips from Joel Toledo, owner of Green Door Nursery in Naples. (greendoornursery.com) Skip the seeds. Why spend time babying seeds when someone else can do the hard work for you? Small plants are easier to work with because they have hardened off and the roots are already established. Opt for the holy trinity of herbs: basil, rosemary, and thyme. “Those do well no matter where you put them,” says Toledo. Source locally. Tempting as it may be to run into a big-box store,…

SEE CLEARLY WHO: Quigley Eye Specialists WHAT: VIP Grand Opening of the Q iLasik & Med Spa in Naples DETAILS: Special guests gathered to celebrate this new business venture, which provides advanced aesthetic services, the area’s first dry eye spa, and the new iLasik procedure. GOING SWIMMINGLY WHAT: Hogfish Harry’s VIP and Media Grand Opening Reception WHY: To introduce media, hotel concierges, and social media influencers to this new, tropical-inspired seafood restaurant DETAILS: Restaurateur Jerry Alajajian and fiancé Dayle Westover are focusing on a Southwest Florida favorite, hogfish, as the staple dish, along with classic seafood dishes and other entrees, soups, salads, appetizers, shareables, and desserts created by veteran Naples executive chef Everett Fromm. WHERE: Parkshore Resort, Naples…

Chinoiserie design has been popular across the Western hemisphere for centuries, but its origins can be traced to seventeenth-century Europe. The term “chinoiserie” is derived from the French word for Chinese; it denotes a form of decorative art inspired by Chinese techniques, themes, designs, and motifs. European aristocrats were particularity taken with the chinoiserie aesthetic, with it making a notable appearance in the Trianon de Porcelaine at Louis XIV’s Palace of Versailles. As trade between Europe and China began to flourish, so too did chinoiserie, which reached its peak in the mid-eighteenth century. It saw a resurgence in the 1920s in conjunction with the rise of Art Deco and has also gained a foothold in today’s design lexicon. While it has evolved over time, chinoiserie remains a light and airy…

If West Palm Beach is the gateway to the Palm Beaches, then the Hilton West Palm Beach is your key to it all. Since opening in 2016, the Hilton has gained a reputation as a hot spot for visitors and locals alike. Although connected to the Palm Beach County Convention Center via a convenient covered walkway, it breaks the “convention center hotel” mold through a commitment to welcoming public spaces, interiors and art inspired by the city’s coastal vibe, and a food and beverage program anchored by a stellar grill house. Nestled in downtown West Palm Beach, the Hilton is within walking distance to many restaurants and activities, such as the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, the Rosemary Square retail and entertainment complex, and the city’s vibrant waterfront, which…

Sunlight, wild herbs, sea salt, olive oil, pristine fish, intensely flavored produce, and sumptuous wines—there are so many reasons to love Provence that we can barely remember half of them. When Lysielle and Jacques Cariot arrived in Naples in 1997, they brought their heritage with them, and Bleu Provence was born two years later. The restaurant has expanded significantly over the years, but the atmosphere and cuisine have remained basically unchanged. Lysielle is the chef, Jacques runs the wine program, and these days their sons oversee the dining room. While many of the dishes are traditional (think snails, frog’s legs, bouillabaisse, and coq au vin), they are executed with a lightness of touch that seemingly makes them float on air. Over the years, the Cariot family has become deeply rooted…

“Many people confuse hogfish with hog snapper,” says Everett Fromm, executive chef at the new Hogfish Harry’s at Parkshore Resort. “It’s actually part of the wrasse family. It’s sweeter than mahi and as flaky as cod.” To create the menu’s namesake dish, Fromm first seasons the fish with paprika, salt, and white pepper. After grilling, the filet is placed on a bed of bamboo rice (green in color from the chlorophyll in young bamboo plants), and served with caramelized baby carrots in a reduction of fresh ginger and pineapple. “We want the ingredients to be the stars of each dish,” says Fromm. “Our mission is to tease customers’ palates and introduce them to things they may not have tried or even heard of.” (hogfishharrys.com)…

The Long Island wine industry has come a remarkably long way in a very short time. Louisa and Alex Hargrave planted the first vines on the South Fork in 1973; their winery is still there, although it was sold in 1999 and is now known as Castello di Borghese. The North Fork is where the action is, with 40 wineries and 3,000 acres of vineyards. In the beginning, it’s safe to say that few people took Long Island wine seriously; the bottles were mostly placed on local restaurant wine lists and consumed by summer residents of the Hamptons. Over time, experts began to realize that the maritime climate was perfect for Bordeaux grape varieties, and today the region is the third largest producer of wine grapes in the U.S. (after…

Lexie Verbruggen has been the owner and operator of Sweetified for 12 years. The native Michigander earned her degree in baking and pastry arts from the Secchia Institute for Culinary Education and moved to Marco Island in 2012 to escape the cold. She met her husband, David, who is a managing partner at Ridgway and Tony’s off Third, that same year. “We started dating in 2015 and married in 2017 and moved to Naples,” Verbruggen says. To her, Naples is beautiful year-round. “Even our medians are green,” she notes. Wedding cakes are a large slice of her baking business, so COVID-19 reception cancellations in the spring and summer of 2020 hit her hard. To pivot, she says, “we were able to overnight ship quite a few wedding cakes so our…

Bill Charbonneau, the founder and principal of Naples Nantucket Yacht Group, grew up in Massachusetts and enjoyed summers in Cape Cod, where he slept with the windows open to hear the foghorn from the nearby lighthouse. “We had a boat anchored in front of that house, and I have an idyllic remembrance of the sea,” he says. “I always loved it and wanted to be on it.” After graduating from Connecticut College, he worked in commercial and residential construction in the greater Boston area for almost 25 years. Then, a siren song pulled him to start something new: a charter yacht business he launched in 2005. He and his partners acquired boats together, and this joint-ownership model still propels the company today; owners share the yachts as assets, as well…

STYLE NOTES COLOR STORY: Chambray, faded, and indigo shades look fresh this season. ICE, ICE, BABY: Denim and diamonds make the perfect pairing for day or night. CLASSICAL NOTES: Opt for accessories that have timeless shapes and styles.…

ALL IN THE FAMILY Sherri DuPont of Collins Du-Pont Design Group addressed both form and function for this project. “The outdoor dining area of this residence needed ample seating for large family gatherings,” she explains. “The live-edge, solid-plank, teak dining table, illuminated by beaded chandeliers, comfortably seats eight, while sports lovers can enjoy games from hand-woven wicker barstools at the curved bar. The expansive, 13-foot, custom window seat adorned with colorful toss pillows doubles as a fliptop storage bench and allows plenty of overflow space for casual conversation. Stacking stone that clads the bar front and a built-in pizza oven wall perfectly complement the natural, organic feel of the wood-look tile, shell-stone floor, and stained-wood ceiling.” Bonita Springs (collins-dupont.com)…

Although born in Ghana, Andy Hyde spent his childhood shuttling back and forth between Germany and Chicago. His culinary apprenticeship included stints with luminaries such as Gordon Ramsay, Thomas Keller, and Grant Achatz. He came to Naples in 2014 to serve as executive chef at LaPlaya, launched his catering company two years later, and opened his first restaurant, Hyde N Chic, in late 2019. “I fell in love with Naples right away,” he says. “The climate is very similar to Ghana, and we have the same variety of fruits and vegetables here.” His 30-seat restaurant serves as the backdrop for what he calls “new immigrant cuisine,” a culinary melting pot based on the cooking of diverse cultures. “Fifty years ago, immigrants were mostly European, so the restaurants tended to be…

TACOS & TEQUILA CANTINA AT TWO LOCATIONS IN NAPLES AND ONE IN FORT MYERS. TACOS & TEQUILA SERVES “FUNKY, UNCONVENTIONAL TEX-MEX AT ITS BEST.” ALONG WITH TRADITIONAL VERSIONS SUCH AS CARNITAS AND AL PASTOR, YOU CAN INDULGE IN THE PO’BOY SHRIMP TACO OR THE T & T SIGNATURE TACO (CRISPY FRIED CHICKEN WITH SHREDDED LETTUCE, TOMATO, CILANTRO, PICKLED JALAPEÑO, AND QUESO BLANCO). WASH IT DOWN WITH A CHOICE OF NEARLY 100 SPECIALTY TEQUILAS. (TACOSANDTEQUILANAPLES.COM) RUNNER-UP: ROCCO’S TACOS WHEN ENTREPRENEUR ROCCO MANGEL OPENED THE NAPLES EDITION OF HIS POPULAR FLORIDA-BASED RESTAURANT CHAIN IN 2019, HE BROUGHT DISTINCTION AND ELECTRICITY TO THE MEXICAN CULINARY SCENE, WITH TABLESIDE GUACAMOLE, 300 TEQUILAS, AND TACOS FILLED WITH EVERYTHING FROM PLANT-BASED PROTEINS TO SLOW-ROASTED PORK. IT’S NEVER DULL WHEN ROCCO’S IN TOWN; HE’S BEEN KNOWN TO…

Tin City’s Monkey Bread Factory was born during the financial crisis of 2008. “People weren’t buying big-ticket items,” recalls owner Karen Haupt, “but they were still eating and drinking. Cinnamon rolls are one of my favorite things, so my husband and I wondered how we could do them better and create something unique.” The result can be described as a Cinnabon on steroids. The Haupts took monkey bread (traditionally eaten as a breakfast treat or sold at street fairs and festivals), baked it in a special mold resembling a Bundt pan, and filled it with homemade icing flavors such as banana, orange, coconut, and key lime. Mon “Key” Buntz were born. They’ve added other products over the years—notably Island Gold, which is puffed corn and pecans glazed with homemade butter…

Walking can lift your mood, especially if you walk with wonder, according to new research in the scientific journal Emotion. People who show lower activity levels tend to be less open, agreeable, and conscientious, but just 15 minutes of walking a day can foster positive emotions. “Walking enhances every aspect of our social, psychological, and neural functioning,” writes Shane O’Mara, author of In Praise of Walking: A New Scientific Exploration. “We need to make walking a natural, habitual part of our everyday lives.” Taking 6,000 or more steps per day can also prevent knee osteoarthritis, according to a study published in Arthritis Care & Research. An extra 1,000 steps daily can reduce knee problems by almost 20 percent two years later. Turn the page to discover walking paths around town. 1…

For many, the final decades of life offer opportunities that weren’t possible during the years devoted primarily to earning an income and raising a family. Volunteering, traveling, spending time with loved ones, and rediscovering old hobbies or finding new ones are all obtainable under the right circumstances. But seniors and their families often discover that locating appropriate housing to meet the demands of aging can turn out to be an unwelcome and emotionally wrenching decision. For that reason, Barbara McVicker, an eldercare expert, author of Stuck in the Middle: Caring for Mom and Dad, and host of the PBS television special of the same name, notes that it’s never too early to look ahead to when seniors will slow down and potentially require more health care. “If you run out…

FORE A GOOD CAUSE WHAT: Seventh Annual Chip in for DLC Golf Tournament SUPPORTS: Mental health and substance abuse services at David Lawrence Centers for Behavioral Health WHERE: Quail Creek Golf and Country Club, Naples RETAIL THERAPY WHAT: Sip & Shop SUPPORTS: Golisano Children’s Museum of Naples (C’mon) WHERE: Marilyn’s Boutique, Naples DETAILS: Refreshments, European clothing designs, and a virtual presentation by the French fashion house Loup-Maison, with a percentage of proceeds benefiting C’mon A DAY ON THE GREEN WHAT: 2020 Annual Chamber Classic Golf Tournament SUPPORTS: Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce WHERE: The Club at the Strand, Naples Visit our website at naplesillustrated.com Naples Illustrated and Palm Beach Media Group North, LLC. retain exclusive rights to all editorial and photographic materials used, which cannot be reproduced in any manner…