Fresh and Fun

The restaurant at the Sandy Butler Market in Fort Myers has a new name and is debuting it's new menu with a wine dinner this week. The space has been expanded, brightened and turned into the more casual, Shoals Restaurant and Wine Bar. At first I was disappointed to see my favorite fountain has been removed from the gazebo but it does allow more room to party. And a lovely chandelier has been added for that extra touch.

I was able to sample some of the new menu items recently along with Shoal's new private label wine and want to tempt your taste-buds a little today. We began the evening in the market with the Italian Delight cheese tray ($14); Butler-made Mozzarella, Fontina, Provolone and other goodies

My favorite appetizer was the Corriander-Crusted Ahi Tuna ($14) with Wasabi Avocado Mousee and citrus glaze. It was creamy with just a hint of heat and a touch of sweet from the glaze; it went nicely with the Shoals Sauvignon Blanc. The wine was also smooth with the Seared Diver Scallops in Lemon Coconut Curry Sauce.

We tried a pasta duo of Tagliatelle and Farfalle Carbonara. The egg pasta is imported from Italy for The Butler. I particularly liked the Carbonara with the Shoals Merlot.


The meat course included a perfectly cooked Pork Tenderloin ($14) and Filet Mignon with a Keylime Bearnaise; there was a lot of tarragon in the sauce and I liked it. My favorite, however, was the Hogfish Snapper ($25); seared crisp with lemon olive oil.

Dessert was decadent with a dense and delicious Banana Fosters Cake ($4) and a Key Lime Tart ($6) with rich custard and the right amount of 'tart' for me.

You can try many of these dishes this week (Wednesday, 2/29) at the Shoal's Premier Wine Taste. The $40, three course menu pairs new dishes with Shoal's new wine.
**Click here for my review of Shoal's Wine.

Reinvention

Every now and then we need to reinvent ourselves, personally and professionally. The Sandy Butler Gourmet Market and Restaurant (on the way to Fort Myers Beach, FL) has just gone through their own reinvention.The restaurant now has a name, Shoals Restaurant and Wine Bar, and a private label wine to match.

I got to try all five varietals this week. The Sauvignon Blanc was acidic, with citrus and pineapple flavors. Maybe some caramel apple on the finish. Thumbs up!

The Chardonnay from Mendocino had a little oak and smoke on the finish but was much brighter than I was expecting. The Pinot Noir was light and easy to drink with red cherry notes.

The Merlot was not as jammy as I was anticipating. I got some smoke and bacon flavors along with currant and black fruit. The Cabernet Sauvignon also comes from the North Coast and it was easy drinking with mild tannins, cherry and toast.

All are great values at $7 a glass in the restaurant and under $20  a bottle in both the restaurant AND the market. In fact, Shoals has an entire list of wines in the restaurant, at retail pricing. Anyone who has had a dinner bill where the wine costs outweigh the food will greatly appreciate this. Shoals's still has a reserve list with specialty wines such as Trilogy and Silver Oak Alexander Valley, with a more typical restaurant mark-up. But that mark-up is still less than most establishments in Southwest Florida. The wine pricing along with the great new dishes at Shoals put this restaurant on top of the list of great values in the area!

There will be a three-course wine dinner ($40) to introduce the new wines and menu items on February 29th. Make reservations at 482-6765. I'll have more on the new menu soon.