After a successful 11-year run in Naples, Lamoraga restaurant is permanently closing its doors this weekend.
Launched on April 14, 2014, at 3936 Tamiami Trail N., Lamoraga is known for its inventive vegan fare and upscale twists on Spanish dishes and tapas blending Andalusian cuisine with global influences. Gulfshore Life featured Lamoraga in January 2015 as one of the best new restaurants in the region. The restaurant’s last day is April 5.
Lamoraga owner Tom Nutten, who became a restaurateur after an NFL career, celebrates the local restaurant’s extended run that surpassed the lifespan of many other dining spots.
“I do not see this as a defeat. It was never supposed to be a forever thing for me in life. So, it was just a matter of time,” Nutten said.
The decision to close follows a tough year for the local restaurant industry.
“As you know, as everybody knows, it just has not been a great season in this industry in Southwest Florida,” Nutten said. “So, for me, the stars just aligned and then it was very clear that it needs to be done.”
Assuming sole ownership of Lamoraga eight or nine years ago, Nutten has made weekly treks from his Tampa home to Naples, but being an absentee owner has been rough on him.
“I’ve actually been doing this since we started building 12 years ago,” he said. “So, my body’s been talking to me the last four years that I’m getting old and my back is achy. I have a small child now, so all this time away I’m thinking ‘Why am I still doing this?’ So, I’ve been contemplating this move to step away for, I would say seriously, the last two years.”
The toughest part, Nutten said, is that the decision to close puts about 25 loyal employees on the street.
“It gets me emotional, and it sucks, but those are the decisions that you sometimes have to make. And, with everything in life, sometimes when you are made to make a decision you know you don’t want to, better things will happen to you. This is what I feel is going to happen to my staff because they are such great people and I vouch for every single one of them,” he said. “I couldn’t have been as successful as I have been without them.”
It was a staff decision that the last day of operation will be April 5, nine days shy of the restaurant’s 11th-year anniversary.
The contemporary restaurant was initially going to be a franchise of Lamoraga in Spain, but the local restaurateurs severed ties with the company before the Naples location opened. Nutten prides himself on creating something unique, a place he always would be drawn to while traveling with friends or family around the world.
“We were just different. I knew in Naples that there was only one Lamoraga. There’s nothing like it. If you want something different, if you want a different experience, you come to Lamoraga,” he said. “The biggest compliments I received as people are walking are ‘I feel like I’m in Miami’ or ‘This is like in Europe.’ It’s just different.”
Nutten looks forward to taking a breather from restaurant worries. Although he is checking off restaurant ownership on his bucket list, Nutten said he always has other irons in the fire.
“I’m just going to take some time,” he said. “I have so many other things in the works — some rental property, some other small businesses — and then just focus on family. Summer’s coming up; we’re going to do some traveling.”
Nutten owns the 1-acre restaurant property on U.S. 41 in Naples, which he plans to sell.
“I’m doing my due diligence right now,” he said. “I’m not in any rush.”
