North Naples will no longer be the home of Naples Coastal Kitchen, as it closed the doors at its original location Dec. 30 and will reopen in Bonita Springs on Jan 5.

The restaurant first opened in 2017 on the southeast corner of U.S. 41 and Wiggins Pass Road in North Naples. Now, it will operate in the Prado at Spring Creek retail center off U.S. 41, where Cirella’s Italian Bistro & Sushi Bar operated for almost 17 years before closing in May.

Owner Stuart Bell planned to buy the restaurant from the owner of Cirella’s to pursue his own Italian concept, but went back to his original plan to move Naples Coastal Kitchen into the space.

The interior of the restaurant has been transformed—from a gold and brown atmosphere with photos of Italian vineyards to white walls and ocean-blue booths with white oak tabletops—to create a coastal vibe. On the walls are paintings of the seaside and other forms of beachy art that will be for sale. The bar is in the same spot as at Cirella’s, just renovated to match the Coastal Kitchen theme.

The relocation will result in quite an expansion for the restaurant, with a kitchen four times as large and a total of 180 seats for customers.

Executive Chef Hector Hidalgo will continue his more than 20-year journey in Southwest Florida at the new location. Before arriving at Naples Coastal Kitchen, he worked at Oyster House Restaurant in Everglades City, which was destroyed by Hurricane Irma in 2017. Prior to that, he was chef at the former Randy’s Fishmarket Restaurant and Fish Crazy Restaurant & Grill in North Naples.

Catering to fans of Cirella’s offerings, Hidalgo has created more than a dozen Italian dishes to add to Naples Coastal Kitchen’s extensive seafood menu. These dishes will include linguine with clams, angel hair with garlic and olive oil and chicken marsala. Coastal Kitchen’s seafood offerings will remain the same with favorites such as jumbo lump crab cakes and a grouper sandwich, which can be served grilled, fried or blackened.

This isn’t the first Naples Coastal Kitchen location in Lee County: A second location opened in Gulf Coast Town Center in 2018 but closed in 2020. Although Naples Coastal Kitchen will now be solely based in Bonita Springs, Bell isn’t planning on changing his restaurant’s name.

“Sometimes I wonder if we should just put ‘Coastal Kitchen,’ but the Naples lends quality, and that’s what we’re known as anyway,” Bell said.

Nick White, who will manage the location, said being in Bonita Springs will bring even more customers to the restaurant than before.

“A lot of the people that used to come to Cirella’s have started going to Naples Coastal Kitchen after they closed just to check us out,” White said. “I think that that’s going to show when we open.”

Bell said he is looking to continue expanding the Coastal Kitchen brand, and even opening locations outside of Florida, such as his home state of Minnesota.

“I think it will work. There are hardly any seafood options up in Minnesota, and I think the whole menu here is kind of geared toward a snowbird,” Bell said. “We even have walleye on the menu.”

Bell owns more than 10 fast food franchises in Minnesota, as well as the Voyagaire Lodge & Houseboats resort and a food manufacturer business known for creating tater kegs. He previously owned three Tropical Smoothie Cafes in Southwest Florida.

Naples Coastal Kitchen, 25265 Chamber of Commerce Drive, will be open from noon to 8:30 p.m. daily and offering early dining food specials from noon to 5 p.m. with happy hour from 3 to 5 p.m.

—Owner Stuart Bell, on plans to keep the name Naples Coastal Kitchen despite moving to Bonita Springs