Sensational Naples Restaurants You Do Not Want To Miss

Foodies will be the first to tell you: Naples has a truly remarkable dining scene. Offerings range from beach-bar casual to plush places ideal for special occasions. Fortunately, a visit to Florida’s Paradise Coast a special occasion in itself.

So make the best of it by doing a deep dive into the city’s culinary excellence. Consider this article a starter kit for your dining adventure on Florida’s Paradise Coast. We’ve picked out seven restaurants in Naples that run the gamut from perfectly posh to Old Florida-style — all within the city limits.

These seven just scratch the surface.

THE FRENCH BRASSERIE & RUSTIQUE

Around here, we just call it “The French,” and you should feel free to do so as well. Located on downtown’s 5th Avenue South, the city’s hub of fine dining, this restaurant offers classic French cuisine with modern creative twists. Chef Vincenzo Betulia is highly trained in the French culinary arts, and his menu includes such items as foie gras, beef tartare, poulet roti, duck confit and a version of steak frites that’s so good you may ask for a second order. The French’s large indoor dining room buzzes with energy, and is complemented by the more sedate ambiance of the outdoor courtyard.

21 SPICES

Chef Asif Syed — the former executive chef at Hilton Marco Island Beach Resort & Spa — has competed on The Food Network several times, including on Guy Fieri’s Grocery Games and Alton Brown’s Cutthroat Kitchen. Chef Asif also "Beat Bobby Flay" in a tandoori chicken challenge on the celebrity chef’s competition show. That acclaim and a life-long dream to run his own restaurant inspired him to open 21 Spices by Chef Asif in December of 2015. It’s a beautiful high-end restaurant that deftly blends traditional and contemporary Indian cuisines, and is located in East Naples, just four miles from downtown.

BROOKS BURGERS

How’s this for a credential? TripAdvisor ranked Brooks Burgers the No. 2 burger joint in America in 2018. Founded in downtown Naples in 2010, the diner-style restaurant’s aim is to serve a premium burger at an affordable price — and Brooks Burgers succeeds on all counts. The menu offers 17 specialty burgers (Rylee’s Ragin Cajun, Fig and Fine), along with a classic version, and also includes an array of other sandwiches and a half-dozen hot dogs. The restaurant uses premium Black Angus beef, and offers veggie and turkey burgers as well. There’s a second location near Vanderbilt Beach, eight miles north of the flagship. 

THE CLAW BAR 

Located in the Bellasera Resort downtown, The Claw Bar is prized for its East Coast Oysters and shellfish towers. But there’s so much more. For example, the St. Augustine Stew is a seafood lover’s delight, with shrimp, crab, lobster, bay scallops, Gulf fish, mussels and more.

The Claw Bar excels at stone crab, a local delicacy in season from October 15 to May 1. During the rest of the year, it serves rock crab claws from Scotland. The restaurant’s plush indoor dining room is complemented by covered outdoor seating. The affiliated London Club next door offers a reservation-only dining experience with top-shelf live jazz. It’s open only on Friday and Saturday nights.

THE CONTINENTAL

The full name is D’Amico’s The Continental American Provisions and Craft Bar. But please feel free to simply call it The Continental. As befitting its name, expect white-tablecloth refinement. The combination steakhouse and Parisian bistro on downtown’s historic 3rd Street South is owned by two brothers, Larry and Richard D’Amico, who have been restaurateurs of distinction in Naples for many years. These people take their steak seriously. The restaurant serves prime black angus, American and Japanese Wagyu, and Italian Piedmontese beef.

Surrounded by wrought iron that’s draped in bougainvillea, The Continental offers superb al fresco dining — so much so that Open Table named it one of the Top 100 Destinations for Outdoor Dining in the U.S. The Continental also features a 30-seat cocktail bar with live entertainment. They’re some of the most sought-after seats in town.

DORONA

Dorona bills itself as a restaurant that serves “Italian-inspired comfort food,” which means an enticing array of pastas, as well as fine steaks, a few seafood dishes and even Venetian Calf’s Liver with onions and polenta. Dorona is owned by Fabrizio Aielli (who is the executive chef) and his wife Ingrid Aielli. The couple also owns Sea Salt, one of The Paradise Coast’s most celebrated restaurants. Dorona builds on that legacy in an easily accessible location in a shopping center less than three miles north of downtown. The spacious and airy restaurant, which has indoor and outdoor seating, features several long tables that are ideal for large parties. 

CAPRI FISH HOUSE

Capri Fish House is off the beaten path in Isles of Capri, about a half-hour drive south of downtown. Covered by a large thatched roof, with a funky ramshackle feel, it’s the kind of place you wouldn’t have been surprised to see Jimmy Buffett lounging around. The Fish House offers lovely views of the southern end of the Rookery Bay National Estuary. And then there’s the food, with an emphasis on — you guessed it — fresh fish and shellfish, with fried fish baskets you’ll tell your friends back home about. We’re also fond of the Broiled Seafood Casserole.

If you take a day trip to the Everglades, Capri Fish House is an ideal stop to make afterward, whether you’ve visited the Museum of the Everglades in Everglades City, or stopped into a funky little island town called Chokoloskee and visited Smallwood’s Store, as authentic an Old Florida experience as you’re liable to get. You can continue in that vein at Capri Fish House.

Here’s a few more sensational Naples restaurants you do not want to miss:

For steak: Chops City Grill and Jimmy P's Charred.

For lunch: Sunburst Cafe, Alice Sweetwater's Bar & Grille  and Larry's Lunch Box.

For breakfast: Here’s a rundown of restaurants that specialize in the first meal of the day.

Craving a sophisticated drink in sophisticated surroundings? Try these cocktail bars: Bar Tulia, Lola 41, Sidebar, Seventh South Craft Food + Drink, The Vine Room.

Naples has such a fertile foodie scene that it would take weeks to make some decent headway. Consider these can’t-go-wrong restaurants a launchpad for exploring Naples’ diverse culinary offerings.