S.W AND RICH HERMANSEN
Staff Writers
wine@lbknews.com
For those who have heard of the destruction caused by Hurricanes Helene and Milton in shore points around Sarasota Florida
but have not had a chance to take a look at the recovery so far, we have generally encouraging news about the food and beverage sector in St Armand’s and Lido Key. True, a few favorite venues have either closed permanently or have uncertain futures, but many have reopened or have a reopening date in sight.
In the days following Helene’s storm surge flooding of St Armand’s and Lido Key on October 26, 2024, many residents feared the worse. Sea water and sludge remained in the streets. Debris covered higher ground and drifted into ponds on lower ground. Flooding of the lower floors of retail buildings in the center of the Circle did not bode well for the future. The eye of Hurricane Milton brought high winds and flooding to the area a week later. Things looked desperate.
The hot, swampy weather following the storms, including record high Gulf temperatures during November 2024, quickly progressed into the early days of the dry season. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) helped moved mountains of debris from flooded streets, businesses, and homes off-island. Sarasota County storm drainage management remained hapless in the face of anything more threatening than a thunderstorm. Acting in their own interests, two of the more popular food and beverage venues in an area prone to flooding did not hesitate long before beginning rapid recovery efforts. Several times during the past few years, flood water has breached the Columbia Restaurant, Sarasota’s oldest restaurant. The muck out drill has become familiar to the Gonzmart family owners of the Columbia. Generations of the Gonzmart’s have lived through Gulf Coast hurricanes and tropical storms in Tampa; as soon as the flood waters recede, the restaurant staff and contractors sweep the muck off the tile floor into the street and set up high fans to dry out the interior. Across the street, Rafael Miccio and Eleonora Lodi have a crew of younger family and restaurant staff members clearing the area in front of the Venezia Italian Restaurant for sidewalk tables. Inside, construction workers removed, scraped out behind, and replaced concrete wainscot panels. Within weeks, both restaurants had ramped up to near peak capacity.
Other restaurants in the vicinity began to open soon after. Seven and a half months after Helene and Milton, the food and beverage sector on St Armand’s – Lido Key has filled in most of the old pieces. Starting before the bridge to Long Boat Key at New Pass on City Island near Ken Thompson Park and Mote Marine, the Old Salty Dog Restaurant (great fried shrimp, grouper filet, and edamame medley side) and the New Pass Grill and Bait Shop have resumed waterfront dining. Proceeding south on Boulevard of the Presidents, Speak’s Clam Bar (happy hour baked oysters on the half shell), Blu Kouzina (Greek, Moussaka), Lynch’s (Irish beer, whiskey, and stew, and hamburgers), Venezia (pizza and pasta), and Daquiri Deck (sports bar) are operating at full capacity. Following Benjamin Franklin south to Lido Beach, the Lido Island Grill at the Pavilion serves appetizers, sandwiches, and seafood dishes during the day to beachgoers. At the Lido Beach Resort, the pool bar crowds have returned and the elegant Drift Restaurant on the 7th floor has a full bar and tables at windows overlooking the beach and the Circle. At the Ritz-Carlton farther south and down a walkway, the Lido Key Tiki Bar opens a path to the beach.
Retracing northward on Ben Franklin, we found the poolside of the bar at the new Cirque Lido Key Beachside hotel added tables around the pool. Across the small lobby in the restaurant, booths offer diners lush cushions and curtains in a circus-themed, private setting. The Cirque has not only restored a venue damaged by the hurricanes. It improves dramatically what was there before.
Farther northward at the intersection of John Ringling and S Washington Dr., one of the more heavily damaged areas by the Helene Tidal surge and formerly the site of Tommy Bahama’s restaurant, the very popular Kilwin’s Ice Cream and Candy shop next door, now temporarily closed, has posted a sign announcing that the shop will reopen. Good news for the Circle. In the meantime, the River Street Sweets ice cream and candy store is serving similar treats to children who are exploring the Circle.
The path continuing around John Ringling and other sectors of the Circle has more to show us. We will continue the story of the St Armand’s -Lido Key recovery next week.
S. W. Hermansen has used his expertise in econometrics, data science and epidemiology to help develop research databases for the Pentagon, the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Agriculture, and Health Resources and Services. He has visited premier vineyards and taste wines from major appellations in California, Oregon, New York State, and internationally from Tuscany and the Piedmont in Italy, the Ribera del Duero in Spain, the Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale in Australia, and the Otego Valley in New Zealand. Currently he splits time between residences in Chevy Chase, Maryland and St. Armand’s Circle in Florida.
Rich Hermansen selected has first wine list for a restaurant shortly after graduating from college with a degree in Mathematics. He has extensive service and management experience in the food and wine industry. Family and friends rate him as their favorite chef, bartender, and wine steward. He lives in Severna Park, Maryland.
