Lunch hour at Hurricane Charley’s Sushi, Raw Bar & Grill in Punta Gorda would usually be bustling with activity in the dining room and out on the deck, but business has slowed due to the hotel next door. 

General Manager Bob McCurry sat at the indoor sushi bar and glanced through windows at the thatched-roof Hunker-Down Deck. 

“The outdoor bar would normally be packed,” he said. 

On Tuesday, Aug. 15, one man was ordering at the bar, and although some tables were filled on the deck, it wasn’t packed. 

Inside, several groups sat together in a dining area smaller than the adjoining one that is now used for storage. 

The large dining area whose common wall is shared by the hotel, suffered severe hurricane damage, and that dining area cannot be used until repairs are made, McCurry explained. 

Although the restaurant, which has a catering business and adjoining ballrooms, has booked events since Hurricane Ian, the number of bookings has dwindled. It’s all because of the property owner’s Punta Gorda Waterfront Hotel & Suites, which suffered extreme storm damage and has not yet been repaired. 

Hurricane Charley’s leases the restaurant from the hotel’s owner and has 10 years left on its present lease. 

McCurry said when some drive up to the restaurant, they decide not to book their event, even though the restaurant is still catering events in its ballrooms to the right side of the restaurant, away from the hotel. 

Weddings, celebrations of life, birthdays, baby and wedding showers, dances, and other events have been catered and held on the premises since Hurricane Charley’s opening in January 2014—10 years after Hurricane Charley slammed the area, hence the establishment’s name.   

Its lobby area has one wall devoted to Hurricane Charley messages. Guests pass a blue baby grand piano on their way to the hostess station. 

Some 30 dining awards bestowed on the restaurant since its opening are on display, and there are vintage photos of Punta Gorda on another wall. 

Inside Hurricane Charley’s, it’s difficult to see any signs of damage unless customers take a walk around to the back or are driving over the U.S. 41 southbound bridge. From the bridge, damages to the roof of the hotel’s two-story section and a battered Hurricane Charley’s sign are visible. 

Pulling into the parking lot, the entrance to the hotel at the far left of the property is in shambles, with torn off siding, both at the front and the rear of the hotel. 

McCurry said those wanting to book an event realize the hotel is abandoned and that their guests won’t be able to stay on the premises. But inside the restaurant, it’s business as usual, despite the damage. 

Those familiar with the restaurant’s extensive menu and specialty recipes has people coming to dine and gather for events, anyway, but volume is not what it was before the storm, McCurry said. 

One local group, Fresh Jersey Tomatoes, has reserved tables for at least 30 for their monthly get-together in September. 

Four events were recently booked for August. 

The city of Punta Gorda is being proactive. It sent a Notice of Violation letter July 16 to the hotel’s owner, Ron Asmar, of Southfield, Michigan, according to the case report, which can be viewed on the city’s code compliance website. 

The letter was returned on July 18, marked undelivered, as the recipient refused it, according to code compliance. 

In the code compliance report, it referred to the city’s building department which deemed the two-story portion of the hotel unsafe. 

The inspector wrote there is “stagnant water in the pool and wild overgrowth of vegetation on the right of way along the Harborwalk.” 

The city’s Harborwalk runs more than two miles along the Peace River and behind Hurricane Charley’s. 

As of Aug. 7, a building permit for repairs or a demolition permit had not been approved, nor had the pool been cleaned or maintained, according to the code compliance case report. 

The hotel’s owner had until Aug. 11 to respond to the city’s violation notice. 

In the case report, on July 21 the inspector did speak with the site’s property manager who said “they never received the notices.” 

Punta Gorda Assistant City Manager Melissa Reichert responded to questions from Gulfshore Business and said the case will be heard by the Code Enforcement Board at the Aug. 30 meeting. 

The hearing will include addressing the tall grass and weeds, stagnant pool water, blight and the “unsafe, two-story building,” among other issues. 

Meanwhile, the concern of McCurry and his staff is that if the two-story hotel portion is demolished, it could impact the restaurant as the damaged, larger dining room shares a common wall with that portion of the hotel. But the locals keep coming to Hurricane Charley’s, as well as first-time visitors who’ve heard about the iconic restaurant. 

And then there is the sushi. Hurricane Charley’s employs five professional sushi chefs who can be seen making their creations behind glass at the sushi bar. 

As McCurry was being interviewed, sushi chef John Dazzo was at work creating some diners’ rolls and bowls. 

In addition to sushi and its signature rolls, the restaurant offers favorite American fare, such as steak, fresh seafood, pastas, pizza, flat breads, salads, custom bowls, Louisiana favorites, such as gumbo, tacos and one of its fan favorites smoked gouda mac and cheese. 

There also are raw bar items and a kids’ menu. 

Hurricane Charley’s has live entertainment every day, afternoons and evenings, and many of its performers have followings of their own. When musicians hit the stage, the crowd grows outside at Hunker-Down Deck. 

McCurry vowed Hurricane Charley’s is here to stay, and once improvements next door and to his restaurant are made, his comeback from Hurricane Ian should be bigger and better than ever. 

Hurricane Charley’s Sushi, Raw Bar & Grill is at 300 West Retta Esplanade right off southbound U.S. 41. Hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. It is closed Mondays until Labor Day, after which it will be open seven days a week.