What began as a proposal for a beer garden in the Victoria Square space between two buildings near the corner of Central Avenue and Goodlette-Frank Road has grown into a multifaceted hospitality project that includes a new restaurant lounge with a speakeasy that opened over the weekend in Naples.  

“After the hurricane, one project morphed into five,” said Marty Kenney, who co-owns the new businesses with Christopher Shucart and Christopher Lee. “A three-year project morphed into one year and five concepts. It was supposed to be three years and four or five concepts.”  

Real estate developer Shucart owns the property and co-owns District and the other businesses planned there. Lee, who was managing partner of Truluck’s in Naples, was brought aboard as managing partner. They also hired Executive Chef Brad Moss, who previously helmed the kitchen at Truluck’s.  

“So, it’s a highly elevated experience,” Kenney said.  

Plans for a mostly outdoor space expanded to incorporate the former indoor space of The Wine Store, which didn’t reopen after Hurricane Ian last fall. That square footage at 1200 Central Ave. is now the District lounge and Staff Only speakeasy.  

The new venues are at the end of the retail strip in the Naples Design District that also is home to The Bowl and Yacht Club Subs. District’s social media and website describe it as having seductive vibes, an intimate ambiance and a wild decor “where desires are savored and curiosity is the ultimate aphrodisiac.”  

“District is Sidebar with tapas,” said Kenney, who also co-owns Sidebar, a stand-alone upscale lounge and bar that opened a few years ago at 505 Fifth Ave. S. He considers both “super loungey.”   

District serves shareable small plates—meat and cheese boards and items such as steak tartare, beef carpaccio, shrimp, caviar, ahi tuna, vegetables and desserts—designed to pair well with craft cocktails. The lounge is open daily from 4:30 p.m. to midnight.  

District features a few surprise elements, including a secret back room.   

“We have a true speakeasy in the back,” Kenney said. “You don’t even know it’s there. It’s hidden.”  

Shucart explains how guests are ushered into the Staff Only speakeasy, which mysteriously begins beyond a garden effect outside and inside the restrooms, which also feature fun sayings written in neon lights.  

“You come into the bar or you sit down at a table, couch, whatever, and you ask the server or the manager, ‘Are you hiring?’ and they will come back and say, ‘Here’s an application. Fill out the application.’ And then the manager or somebody will come over and say, ‘Come back this way. We’ll complete the application process,’” he said.  

Then, guests will be ushered through a curtain to the back of the house, which has a time clock on the wall next to a “Staff Only” door.   

“You’ll clock in. We’ll give a little overview. You know, Elvis is in the building, Gandhi (with their names on timecards in an adjacent rack). And then, we’ll go back here,” Shucart said as he opens the “Staff Only” door to reveal a little room with seating, a small bar and wine lockers.   

The speakeasy space used to be the wine locker room for The Wine Store. Staff Only was designed to be discreet from District.  

“This is a whole different vibe. The music’s different. The feel’s different,” Shucart said.  

A fake bookcase on the back of the closed door completes the mood of the secret room. “How fun is that? You can’t even tell you’re in here, right?” he said.  

Ironically, the outdoor bar area planned first will be ready last. Expect an outdoor vibe with a full liquor bar and live music. Kenney describes The Mini Bar as “kind of like Lake Park Diner with a bar.”  

“We were doing the outside bar or outside restaurant, The Mini Bar, and then the storm happened, and Bruce (Nichols) wasn’t able to reopen (The Wine Store),” Shucart said. “So, our plans got accelerated. We got a one-time shot to be able to do what we wanted to do. It just came earlier. So, we had a tiger by the tail and just kept riding.”  

The outdoor cabana bar will be in a turfed area with ipe hardwood pavers. The Alley and The Kitchen are the other two unfinished parts of the overall project that will connect to The Mini Bar behind District. “Everything else is under construction still,” Kenney said.  

“I can’t verbalize it. It’s hard to explain,” he said. “No one’s ever done this in Naples. It’s going to change the game. I’m not saying that because I own it. No one has this type of venue. You know what I mean? It’s going to literally be like five different genres in one. This is definitely going to be crazy.”  

Next to The Mini Bar, a structure with a full kitchen, appropriately named The Kitchen, eventually will host a weekend brunch. A cut-through from 12 Street South will be called The Alley.   

“Remember the Beach Club on Sundays? We’re going to bring it back. Everyone in town is nostalgic for the Beach Club,” Kenney said. ”So, we’re going to do like heavy brunch Saturday and Sundays, and then transition into Beach Club Sundays with guys strumming a guitar.”  

A classic Volkswagen bus will be parked parallel to Central Avenue at the end of the property. “That’s actually the backdrop of our live entertainment,” Shucart said. “So, all the live entertainment and the AV systems will set up this side of the VW and play this way. The music will be piped in through the whole speaker system. Yeah, it’ll be neat.”  

The new venues have more than 75 on-site parking spaces and a new parking garage is planned next to the new Gulfshore Playhouse under construction nearby.  

“We’re shooting for October,” Shucart said. “We’ve got the umbrellas. We’ve got the tables. Everything’s ready just to place in. Our food service equipment is done and our hoods are up. We’re on the cusp.”