Welcome to the Island Grill 
Mango Mania Award Winners 2009 & 2010

The Island Grill offers a casual and relaxing atmosphere and is a family run restaurant specializing in American comfort food. Stop in today for Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner.  We offer daily specials as well as our signature menu items.  
 
Beer and Wine available.  
 
Located at 9856 Stringfellow Rd, St. James City, FL 
 
To call ahead or place pick up orders: 239.282.5502

 
 
 
We look forward to serving you Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner! 

Island Grill Wins MangoMania's Best Dessert Contest
By MARIANNE PATON, pineisland@breezenewspapers.com
POSTED: July 22, 2009
Local chefs put their culinary skills to the test earlier this month during the MangoMania food contest. Dishes featuring mangos ranged from appetizers to desserts and were sampled by celebrity judges who determined the winners of the event.
Earning two ribbons was a newcomer to the contest, the Island Grill, which took first place in the desert category and a second place for a unique entree. The winning dessert was a mango cheese cake created by the lead cook at the Island Grill.
According to Island Grill chef Bob Mattia, his dessert is a light cheese cake on a graham cracker crust topped with freshly sliced mangos and a mango glaze.
"We are now serving the cheese cake at the restaurant and it has become very popular," said Mattia. "I like to tell my guests that, like everything else I prepare, what makes the cheese cake special is that it is made with love."
According to Lisa Benton with the Greater Pine Island Chamber of Commerce, the cheese cake was such a big hit, it has inspired a new category for judging in future food contests.
"When we were clearing the dishes away at the judging table, Robert Van Winkle from NBC-2 said don't take the cheese cake away, so next year we will have a category called 'don't take that away' for submissions to the MangoMania food contest that are just that good," Benton said.
The second place entree prepared by Mattia was a shrimp salad wrap.
"I made the wrap with local shrimp, mangos, fresh chives, basil and sour cream wrapped in the tomato basil tortilla," said Mattia. "The only thing I regret is that we were not able to attend the event, but this was good exposure for the restaurant."
New to the island, the Island Grill opened for business on March 10 offering breakfast and lunch six days a week. Prior to opening, the restaurant, formerly Capt. Mike's Island Cafe, was closed for more than eight months.
"Last summer, the company I worked for was down-sizing and I found myself out of a job. We used to come to the island quite a bit to eat at the Dock, before it was Capt. Mike's and when I found that the restaurant was closed I immediately called my brother Bob," said owner Ron Mattia. "He thought re-opening the restaurant was a great idea and after several months of cleaning, repairing and replacing everything in the place, we opened for business."
After retiring from years on the road as a tractor trailer driver, Bob Mattia was employed as the kitchen manager of Howley's Restaurant in West Palm Beach. He later became a breakfast cook before agreeing to man the kitchen at the Island Grill.
"Our goal is to prepare meals that make people feel like they are guests at our home. We specialize in comfort foods like meatloaf and turkey open-faced sandwiches, salads, homemade soups and homemade pies," said Mattia. "We want our customers to come in, bring the newspapers, enjoy a cup of coffee and a meal and leave here satisfied and happy with their experience."
While new to the island, the Mattias have wasted no time getting involved and in addition to participating in the MangoMania cooking contest, they are also members of the Greater Pine Island Chamber of Commerce, participated in the July 4 parade and contributed to the island fireworks show that also took place on Independence Day.
The Island Grill is located in the Winn-Dixie shopping center between CVS Pharmacy and Domino's Pizza. It is open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday. For more information, call the restaurant at 282-5502.

The Island Grill at the Winn-Dixie shopping plaza is making a name for itself in the area as the winners of this year's MangoMania dessert contest. Pictured are Island Grill chef Bob Mattia, servers Joe and Ryan Mattia and owner Ron Mattia.
Link to Article:  http://www.pineisland-eagle.com/page/content.detail/id/501942/Island-Grill-wins-MangoMania-s-best-dessert-contest.html?nav=5047

Wine Spectator awards and other news for foodies

karenFELDMAN cuisine@floridaweekly.com

 
Top-notch Cin Cin Gastro Pub falls victim to bad economy
I'd planned to write today about some great specials Cin Cin Gastro Pub was offering, but I'm too late: this stellar restaurant closed Saturday.
Cin Cin shifted concept from higherend Mediterranean to modestly priced gastro pub last spring. The change made sense in light of the ailing economy. Prices were lower, but the food remained fresh and creative. It boosted business, but not enough.
"People loved it, but there weren't enough of them," says owner Michael Peceri. "The economic recession in Lee County and the prognosis for it to continue into 2012 is the basic reason Cin Cin and our Executive Chef Scott Sopher cannot continue to provide the most creative, high quality cuisine. Compromising those standards is not a viable option."
While it's too late to save Cin Cin, I hope this serves as a warning to everyone who values independent restaurants, the passionate chefs and entrepreneurs who run them and the soulful food they serve. Yes, times are tough and we aren't eating out as much as we used to, but I urge you to make the effort whenever possible to support the mom-and-pop establishments you value.
YATES Mr. Sopher is an inspired chef; Mr. Peceri is an owner who never skimped on quality to fatten profits. I'm sure I'm not the only one who will miss them.
Wine Spectator announces annual restaurant awards
The much-sought-after Wine Spectator Restaurant Wine List Awards have just been announced in the magazine's Aug. 31 edition. This year, there are 33 Southwest Florida winners. That's two more than last year.
That doesn't mean these are the only wine-worthy local restaurants, but it does mean they are the only ones that applied for the award and met the criteria.
In all, 2,957 restaurants received the Award of Excellence, given to those that offer "a well-chosen selection of quality producers along with a thematic match to the menu in both price and style," according to the magazine. They typically offer at least 100 selections. Most of the region's winners received this award.
The Best of Award of Excellence went to 816 restaurants for "restaurants that clearly exceed the requirements of the Award of Excellence," Wine Spectator reports. These show great depth and typically offer 400 or more selections. In Southwest Florida, these included Bleu Provence, Escargot 41, The Grill, Naples Tomato, all in Naples; and Sale e Pepe in Marco Island.
Mangomania-cheesecake The Grand Award — for restaurants "that show an uncompromising, passionate devotion to the quality of their wine programs," offering 1,500 or more selections — went to 72 establishments, the closest of which is Bern's Steakhouse in Tampa.
Local restaurants new to the list this year are Angelina's, Baleen, Capital Grille, The Grape, Olio on Naples Bay, Sea Salt and Tastings. Posthumous recognition goes to Ruth's Chris and Trilogy in Naples.
Following is the list of all the area restaurants that made this year's list: Boca Grande: The Temptation Bonita Springs: Angelina's and Chops City Grill Captiva: Keylime Bistro Estero: Blue Water Bistro, The Grape and Ruth's Chris Steakhouse Fort Myers: Tastings Marco Island: Arturo's and Sale & Pepe (Marco Island Beach Resort)
Naples: Andre's Steakhouse, Baleen (La Playa Beach & Golf Resort), The Bay House, Bleu Provence, Café & Bar Lurcat, Campiello, Capital Grille, Chops City Grill, Escargot 41, Fleming's Steakhouse, The Grill Room (The Ritz-Carlton, Naples), HB's on the Gulf (Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club), Naples Tomato, Olio on Naples Bay (Naples Bay Resort), Pazzo, Ruth's Chris (closed), Sea Salt, Shula's, Stoney's Steakhouse, Trilogy (closed), Truluck's, The Turtle Club and Yabba Island Grill.
Restaurants on hiatus
Ellington's Jazz Bar and Restaurant on Sanibel has closed. Its Web site indicates it's moving, but the new location has not yet been announced.
Wyld's Café in Bonita Springs is closed for the summer. According to its Web site, it will reopen Oct. 1.
Mamma Pasta in Fort Myers is closed for vacation until mid-August.
The Robb & Stucky KitchenAid Culinary Center in Bonita Springs has closed for the summer and is expected to reopen in October.
Newcomers on the dining scene
Laurent and Krystelle Begue have opened Bon Appetit Bistro in Miromar Outlets. It's a casual French café serving sandwiches, salads, soups, quiches, homemade tarts and pastries and specials such as lobster bisque and beef Bourguinon. Coffee, espresso and wine are also available.
David O'Toole's Original Roadhouse has opened in the former Hops Brewery on U.S. 41. The menu features a wide range of American fare; the specialty is steak. It has a full bar. It's at 5043 S. Cleveland Ave., Fort Myers.
Sweet fun in the summertime
This year's Mangomania, Pine Island's celebration of all things mango, was held July 11-12 and was as fun-filled and tasty as ever. Among the competitions was the mango food contest, open to home cooks and professional chefs. Having served as one of the judges, I can tell you there were some excellent entries this year. Here are the winners:
Appetizers, professional: 2 Dudes Foods, Fort Lauderdale, coconut shrimp, first place; NTL Catering of Bonita Springs, second and third, with mango, shrimp and lobster salad and bronzed grouper nuggets with mango rice pilaf and banana, pineapple and mango coulis.
Entrees, professional: NTL Catering's panko-encrusted mahi with mango chutney sauce, first; The Island Grill, St. James City, second, with its Island Grill shrimp and mango wrap; and 2 Dudes Foods, third, with blackened tuna. Dessert, professional: Island Grill's mango cheese cake took the prize.
Dessert, amateur: Judy Batill, Cape Coral, first prize, with her Mamma Mia Mango Masterpiece; Tammi Russell of Cape Coral, second and third place, with mango glazed kolacky and mango- Key lime minis. Salsas/relish/chutneys (pros and amateurs): Margaret Loflin of St. Petersburg, first place, with Marco Island mango and black bean salsa; Wendy Hendricks, Fort Myers, second, with mango salsa; and Donna Fisher of Pine Island, third, mango chutney.
A familiar face returns to Cru
Shannon Yates has returned to Cru, where he's working the bar and greeting his friends and fans, who have been stopping in for drinks since he began work there July 13. "It feels good," says Mr. Yates, who birthed the restaurant some years back before leaving to re-establish Bacchus elsewhere in the Bell Tower Shops.
Meanwhile, William Fluharty has signed on as director of operations at Swanky Lifestyle, the parent company of Bacchus, Mad Takeout and Krafty Kuisine. A Fort Myers native, he has 10 years of restaurant management experience.
Whole Foods heads north
Whole Foods Market in Naples begins weekly delivery service to some parts of Lee County starting Aug. 1. Orders will be delivered to customers' homes. A delivery charge of $10 to $30 will apply, depending on distance. To register, contact the store at (239) 552-5100. KAREN FELDMAN / FLORIDA WEEKLY
Link to Article:  http://fortmyers.floridaweekly.com/news/2009-07-22/cuisine/087.html

 
Local restaurants take home top prizes at MangoMania
By MARIANNE PATON, pineisland@breezenewspapers.com
Sweeping the professional category during this year’s MangoMania food contest were two Pine Island restaurants, Miceli’s Italian Restaurant in Matlacha and Island Grill in the Winn-Dixie shopping center. Taking first prize in the entree competition, Miceli’s presented the judges with a dish they call Bada Bing Shrimp with Mango Slaw. According to co-owner, Vinny Miceli, this was the first time his establishment had entered the competition at MangoMania.

“Last year we were unable to participate in MangoMania because we had just opened the restaurant, but we will definitely be back again next year,” said Miceli. “MangoMania was good exposure for us and not only was it a great event, but it was very well orchestrated and ran well.”

Bada Bing Shrimp and Mango Slaw instantly became a big draw to the Miceli booth once the winners were announced.

“Right after we hung out our winning banner we became so busy we even ran out of mangos for the slaw and purchased more mangos from the vendors at the event to keep up with the demand.”

According to Miceli, Bada Bing Shrimp is a regular menu item and he plans to add the mango slaw to the menu in the near future.

Taking first place in both the appetizer and dessert categories as well as finishing second in the entree category, Ron Mattia of Island Grill was very pleased with his wins.

“We were very pleased to have our mango cream pie win again this year. We are also very happy to have won in the appetizer category and take second for entree since this is the first time we had entered in those categories,” said Mattia. “We plan to enter again next year and will be spending the coming months trying out new mango recipes just for MangoMania. I am also grateful to the support from island residents. It is because of them that we continue to be successful.”

The appetizer prepared by Mattia for the contest was Mango Gazpacho and his dessert, Mango Cream Pie is a regularly featured item on the Island Grill’s specials menu. The Island Grill second place entree was Mango Chicken Salad.

The amateurs registered in the food contest were eligible for prizes in several categories. The following are the winners of this year’s contest:

— Mango bread - Judy Covert of Cape Coral with Mango/banana bread with cream cheese frosting

— Mango Salsa - Omaida Hernandez of Florida City with Surfside Mango Salsa

— Mango Cookies/dessert - Deb Amrine of Fort Myers with Tropical Paradise — Mango Preserves/jellies - Tied were Robin, Heather, and Ellie Ramming of Bokeelia with Rammin’ Jam and Cynthia Welch of Paradise Gardens, St. James City with Mango Strawberry Preserves

— Mango Dressing/marinade - Cynthia Welch of Paradise Gardens, St. James City with Mango Mustard

Another well received contest is the competition for the World’s Largest Mango. This year’s winners were Gary and Donna Schneider who weighed in a Lancetilla mango that tipped the scales at 4.2 pounds.

Among the sponsors of MangoMania 2010 was Around the Clock Fitness Center who, during the two-day event, held a fund raiser to benefit the Harry Chapin Food Bank.

“I would like to thank all of the supporters of MangoMania for their help in raising money for the Harry Chapin Food Bank,” John Phipps with the fitness center. “We raised enough for them to purchase over $1,500 worth of food for the local chapters.”

The fund raiser also included a raffle and the winner of the Grand Prize of a one-year free membership to Around the Clock Fitness Center was Sam Encleass of Cocoa Beach, second prize, a 6-month membership went to John Covert of Cape Coral and claiming the third place prize of a 3-month free membership was Elaine Williams of Lee County.
Link to article:  http://www.pineisland-eagle.com/page/content.detail/id/510239/Local-restaurants-take-home-top-prizes-at-MangoMania.html?nav=5051#

by drew sterwald • dsterwald@news-press.com • July 21, 2010
Mango maniacs win cooking prizes
I had the pleasure of judging the cooking contests at the annual MangoMania Fruit Fair.
Here are the winners in the professional category:
-Appetizer: Island Grill (chef Ron Mattia), Mango Gazpacho.
-Entrée: First place, Miceli's Restaurant (chef Trey Foster), Bada Bing Shrimp with Mango Slaw; second place, Island Grill, Mango Chicken Salad.
-Dessert: Island Grill, Mango Cream Pie.
Winners in the amateur category:
-Mango bread: Judy Covert, Cape Coral, Mango/Banana Bread with Cream Cheese Frosting.
-Mango salsa: Omaida Hernandez, Florida City, Surfside Mango Salsa.
-Mango dessert: First place, Deb Amrine, Fort Myers, Tropical Paradise Cheesecake; second place, Bonnie Buchholz, Naples, Mango Pie; third place, Judy Covert, Cape Coral, White Chocolate-Pecan-Mango Cookies.
-Mango preserves/jellies: First place (tie) - Robin, Heather and Ellie Ramming, Bokeelia, Rammin' Jam; Cynthia Welch, St. James City, Mango Strawberry Preserves.
-Mango dressing/marinade: First place, Cynthia Welch, St. James City, Mango Mustard; second place (tie) Omaida Hernandez, Florida City, Mango Vinaigrette; Errol Bishop, Brandon, Spicy Mango Sauce.
Gary and Donna Schneider of Pine Island Tropicals won the largest-mango prize with a Lancetilla that weighed 4.2 pounds.

Link to Article:  http://beta.news-press.com/article/20100721/ENT/7210325/1075/ENT/Dining-notes--New-owners-prepare-to-reopen-Ada-s