Cape Coral Waterfront Eateries Extend Welcome

BY JL WATSON • JLWATSON@NEWS-PRESS.COM • JUNE 11, 2010

With an offer of smoked salmon pizza, grilled beef tenderloin filled with fried oysters and yellowfin tuna poki, the menu at Marker 92 is a wave away from typical beach fare.

Yet, customers who come into the upscale restaurant, or hang out at the dockside Nauti Mermaid, are welcome whether they have their sea legs or are landlubbers. The two restaurants get their food from the same kitchen, which is staffed with 85 employees who are eager to give guests what they want.

“We’re about guest service,” said Gary Locke, director of operations and general manager.

Locke and the staff go out of their way to give guests a positive experience, often cooking a dish a different way or making substitutions for special diets. The idea is to give customers a feeling like they are on vacation, whether they are a guest in the hotel or a local who bicycled, drove or docked a boat in one of the slips right outside the restaurants.

The restaurants, which opened last November, feature menus heavy on seafood. The fresh catch of the day changes, based on what chef Jim Shiebler gets from local fishermen, but almost always includes grouper. The sea theme emanates from everywhere – inside, Marker 92 customers look out over blue water and green palms, with the comfort of full air conditioning. Outside, guests sit at the Nauti Mermaid bar, fans spinning overhead, breezes from the water wafting across the bar. On hot summer days, customers sitting outside sometimes order more cold drinks to make up for the intense heat.

The view has been a big draw for the area, Locke said.

“There are so few waterfront dining restaurants in Cape Coral,” he said. “It’s nice to have a unique Florida product that’s not a chain. You can watch dolphins and wildlife while you eat. It’s a really neat environment.”

Food and beverage director Darlene Smith said the business is growing as local residents discover the view and realize that the Tarpon Point area is open to the public.

“The majority of our business – about 80 percent – is local,” she said.

Smith credits Shiebler’s diverse menu with the restaurants’ success. One of Shiebler’s signature dishes, the fresh catch grouper sandwich, has become a go-to item for many customers.

“It’s our most popular item,” Smith said. “We’ve sold 15,000 since we opened.

Shiebler put a twist to a traditional grouper sandwich by topping it with slaw, wasabi avocado, and pepper jack cheese. Sweet potato fries round out the taste experience.

Customer Ron Gilmore stops in once or twice a week. He’s tried just about everything on the menu, but favors the French toast for breakfast and blackened grouper later in the day.

“All the food is good here,” Gilmore said. “The food is great and these are the most wonderful people you could know.

Gilmore said he is tempted to leave his condo and head to Marker 92 or the Nauti Mermaid because the views are unparalleled.

“Living here is like living on a cruise ship that never leaves port,” he said.

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IF YOU GO
• What: Marker 92 and the Nauti Mermaid
• Where: 5961 Silver King Blvd.
• Web: Marker92.com
• Reservations: 541-5600
• Hours: Marker 92: 7 a.m.-10 p.m. seven days a week. Nauti Mermaid: 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, weather permitting.
• Special occasions: Marker 92 is available for catering events and provides food for onsite events, including corporate meetings and weddings.

Marker 92 Favorites:
• Sunday brunch: $21.95, adults. $12.95, children ages 4-12
• Marker 92 benedict, featuring poached eggs with smoked salmon, English muffin, Vidalia onions, capers, Hollandaise sauce and hash browns: $12
• Marker 92 parfait with granola, yogurt, seasonal fruit, freshly-baked muffin: $7
• Cajun gumbo: $4/cup, $6/bowl
• Cobb “bartenders style” salad, $11
• Wood-fired pizzas, $9-$12
• Crispy pancetta-wrapped jerk-spiced shrimp, $19
• Grilled veal chop, $29
• Children’s menu, including burgers, grilled cheese, pasta, hot dog, chicken fingers or fruit: $6

Nauti Mermaid favorites:
Guests at the Nauti Mermaid can order anything from the Marker 92 menu. In addition, the Nauti Mermaid offers basket items, including grouper finger, seafood medley, burgers and grilled fish: $11-$13

The restaurants feature half-price sushi and pizza, and drink specials during happy hours, 4-6 p.m. and 9-10 p.m. daily.