Table Matters

It’s still possible to escape piled-up paperwork, constant

e-mails and endless phone calls, and visit what first attracted you to

Southwest Florida—the beach. Even if just for a one-hour lunch, the Turtle Club

at Vanderbilt Beach Resort in Naples will put that busy schedule into

perspective and satisfy your appetite.

What we ate: Tropical beachside fare—house chowder ($3.95 a

cup), Pommerey chicken salad ($6.95) and Low Country grilled Gulf shrimp and

scallops ($13.95). Lunch selections include creative salads and an assortment

of sandwiches and seafood dishes.

The setting drew us to the Turtle Club, but the food will

keep us coming back. A cup of the house chowder, full of potatoes, shrimp and

fish, made a nice start. Served with thin, round wafers, it was creamy and

rich, and not overloaded with spices.

The Pommerey chicken salad, which came on a flaky croissant,

featured chunks of chicken in a light mayonnaise sauce topped with a slice of

tomato and onion. Seasoned fries and a fresh wedge of pineapple completed the

dish.

The grilled Gulf platter was delicious—six plump scallops

and shrimp nestled up to a bed of rice and green beans. Not overdone or

over-seasoned, the seafood had a juicy, wood-grilled taste.

Executive chef Tony Newton presents each entrée on colorful

plates, although it’s difficult to tear your eyes away from the swaying palms

and the boats nearby to notice that. Other tempting dishes include a

Mediterranean grilled chicken salad ($9.95), mesquite smoked turkey club

($7.95) and fresh salmon fillet ($12.95).

We completed our lunch by sharing the Turtle Club Chocolate

Nemesis ($7.95), a four-layer chocolate cake drizzled with chocolate sauce. The

dessert was formidable—so large and rich that the two of us probably could have

split it with the next table. Other desserts include a white chocolate carrot

cake, banana split sundae, key lime chiffon pie and wild berry tart ($4.95-$7.95).

Atmosphere: Relaxed Gulf-front retreat. As you walk through

the resort’s courtyard leading to the Turtle Club, the flowering hibiscus and

palm trees with the white sand beach and blue of the Gulf beyond all remind you

why you live here. You can dine indoors, where the dark wood tables, shuttered

windows and framed fish prints beckon you to relax, or outdoors under an

umbrella-covered table. It was a wise decision to convert what was once the

site of a shuffleboard court into the mellow 180-seat restaurant.

Service: We arrived at noon and were seated immediately.

During season you may need to be prepared for a short wait, especially for a

spot on the beach.

Our attentive server probably wished we were as attentive to

the menu as we were to the view. In fact, she returned three times before we

finally diverted our eyes from the spectacular panorama to decide what to eat.

Power Quotient: More brief attire than briefcases. Families,

shorts-and-T-shirt-clad couples and Naples Trolley riders (there’s a stop at

the resort) took advantage of the reasonably priced lunch and fabulous view,

although a few in business attire cozied up to the bar. “We do get quite a bit

of the business crowd here,” says general manager Roy Newsome. If you want to

step away from the hectic pace of the office and join the tourists for the

afternoon, this is the place.

Turtle Club

9225 Gulfshore Drive N., Naples. (239) 592-6557. Lunch:

11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Dinner: 5-9 p.m. daily and until 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Credit cards. Valet parking. Reservations taken for dinner.