Q: What do you know about Adoré in the old Pelican Larry’s spot on Davis Boulevard near Santa Barbara? – Pam Conley, Naples
Q: I read about Casa Cotzelli’s second restaurant in your column. When is the restaurant opening? – Toni Zingales, Naples
A: Adoré Bar & Cucina and Casa Cotzelli East recently opened in East Naples, joining Papa Joe’s Trattoria, which just debuted in North Naples. These local restaurateurs with decades of hospitality experience all launched new Italian restaurants in the Naples area.
Adoré Bar & Cucina
A new Italian restaurant has incredibly transformed an anchor space of a retail strip that was home to Pelican Larry’s Raw Bar and Grill for nearly 20 years on the north side of Davis Boulevard east of Santa Barbara Boulevard.
Adoré Bar & Cucina quietly opened May 28 as the second restaurant in that same East Naples center for the Hoxhas, the Albanian-American family that launched GG Brunch Haus early last year. They relocated to Naples after operating a similar breakfast-lunch restaurant near Ann Arbor, Michigan, for many years.
When Pelican Larry’s closed last year, the Hoxhas knew they could do something special with that space, as well. The renovation process took nearly a year because the Hoxhas changed everything in the place from the kitchen to the restrooms and everything in between.
“I wanted to do something different that people can enjoy. I was really excited about what I could do, what I could bring,” said Albana Hoxha, who leads the local hospitality venture with her husband, Gezim “Jimmy” Hoxha, and their three children. “I saw the place and I wanted to do all the transformation the way I wanted. So, the people when they come here can say, ‘Wow!’ Everything you see is brand new.”
Adore Bar & Cucina and GG Brunch Haus are owned and operated by the Hoxha family, from left, Geraldo, Jimmy, Albana, Julian and Angelina.
Courtesy Hoxha family
Comparisons can be made to the attention to detail at both Adoré and GG Brunch Haus.
“I’m not doing the same food, but I’m doing the same process – freshly cooked, same thing I’m doing here,” said Albana, noting that those shared qualities include a friendly environment and traditional hospitality.
Hoxha wanted to provide the taste and feel of a Fifth Avenue South restaurant to East Naples. That started with asking GG Brunch Haus patrons what they wanted, said Albana’s son, Julian, who is general manager of Adoré.
“In the breakfast place, we met a lot of locals and we talked with them. This is something that they wanted in the location, as well,” he said. “We listened to what the people in this area wanted, we put our own touch and this is what came of it.”
Early guest favorites at Adoré include the bucatini carbonara, lobster ravioli and branzino, Julian Hoxha said.
“Our ossobuco is excellent also,” he said. “The risotto served with the veal shank is made in house, as well. That’s going to be very popular. It’s very nice and tender. It’s very good. It’s my favorite.”
Hoxha notes that all of Adoré’s meats and cheeses are imported from Italy, as well as many other items, including its wine and executive chef.
Albana Hoxha, though, may be the most popular import at GG Brunch Haus and Adoré. Guests feel as if they’re family when Albana welcomes them. She clearly enjoys what she and her family have created and wants to share it with others.
“Not just do business, but do tradition, do love,” she said. “I love what I do.”
Next step, maybe Pelican Larry’s Plaza will eventually be renamed Adoré Plaza – or how about Albana Plaza?
Adoré, 7785 Davis Blvd., is open 4 to 11 p.m. daily.
Casa Cotzelli recently launched its second location in the former BurgerFi space in the Shops at Eagle Creek.
Tim Aten
Casa Cotzelli
Speaking of second opportunites, Casa Cotzelli builds on the success of its first location within Island Walk in North Naples with the June 23 launch of Casa Cotzelli East in the Shops at Eagle Creek in East Naples.
The second home is in the inline end unit that formerly was home to BurgerFi in the center anchored by Lowe’s, Fresh Market and Staples near the southeast corner of U.S. 41 East and Collier Boulevard. Featuring freshly made old-school Italian cuisine, the fine-dining restaurant is co-owned by Gabriele Cotza and Filippo Butelli.
The name of the restaurant is comprised of Casa, meaning house or home in Italian, and Cotzelli, which is a portmanteau – a word created by combining two other words – blending the last names of the restaurant’s owners.
Casa Cotzelli is owned and operated by, from left, Filippo Butelli and Gabriel Cotza.
Tim Aten
Cotza is the chef of the restaurant, while Butelli runs the front of the house. The Italian natives – Butelli from Florence and Cotza from Milan – met years ago when they both worked at BiCE Ristorante in downtown Naples. Cotza also was employed at Sails Restaurant and they also both worked together at Molto Trattoria and Truluck’s – all along downtown Naples’ landmark Fifth Avenue South. Both grew up in Italian households and have decades of experience in the restaurant business.
They had to install all new kitchen equipment to convert a former fast-casual space into their upscale restaurant with a full bar running the width of the dining room. The plan was to launch the restaurant earlier this year to take advantage of the season, but Casa Cotzelli should still be busy serving a growing area where residents appreciate additional local sit-down destinations. While the general public has discovered the original that launched more than three years and continues to operate in the Island Walk gated community, the new location will give many more diners the opportunity to experience the local concept.
The dinner menu starts with antipasti and salads, and expands with pasta selections such as ravioli of the day, lasagna, tortelloni, bucatini, linguine and cavatelli with slow-cooked ossobuco ragu. Entrees include pistachio encrusted pork loin, Mediterranean sea bass, grilled salmon, a breaded bone-in veal chop and steaks from a 6-ounce filet mignon to a 40-ounce bone-in Florentine porterhouse. Lunch combos feature an appetizer or salad paired with a choice of pasta.
The new Casa Cotzelli, 12712 Tamiami Trail E., is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, but closed Mondays.
Papa Joe’s Trattoria recently launched in the former space of Zen Asian BBQ in Naples Park.
Tim Aten
Papa Joe’s Trattoria
Papa Joe’s Trattoria opened June 17 in the longtime space of Zen Asian BBQ in Naples Park. Seeking to attract more traffic to his restaurant space at 10823 Tamiami Trail N., Zen owner Mike Cardascia teamed up with Giuseppe “Papa Joe” Maffei for a major cuisine change.
“Our goal is to bring the flavors, hospitality and traditions of Brooklyn’s Italian neighborhoods to Naples,” said co-owner Maffei. “Every dish tells a story of Papa Joe’s family, tradition and passion for great food. We want guests to feel like they’re dining in an Italian home where everyone is welcome.”
Papa Joe’s Trattoria is owned and operated by, from left, Giuseppe “Papa Joe” Maffei and Mike Cardascia.
Tim Aten
Maffei, a patriarch of restaurateurs, shares decades of family recipes passed down through generations. In addition to classic New York-style pizza, Papa Joe’s extensive menu features traditional Italian and Italian-American specialties including freshly baked breads and house-made pasta and mozzarella. Entrees include Margherita pizza, chicken and veal parmigiana, lobster ravioli in cognac sauce and seafood specialties such as branzino, shrimp scampi, salmon oreganata and scungilli fra diavolo.
House specialties include Mama’s Lasagna, eggplant parm, chicken parm vodka and house-made short-rib ravioli. Pizza slices, bruschetta, calzone and stromboli are available for lunch 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.
Appetizers feature Papa’s meatballs, rice balls, stuffed peppers, baked clams, grilled octopus and eggplant rollatini. Desserts include cannoli, gelato, tiramisu and limoncello mascarpone. The restaurant also has a bar with beer and wine. `
Papa Joe’s L-shaped retail center is off 108th Avenue North on the western side of U.S. 41, across from Granada Shoppes. The restaurant is open daily for lunch and dinner from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The Tim Aten Knows weekly column answers local questions from readers. Email Tim at Tim.Aten@NaplesPress.com.
