NEWS

In the Know: Catch 41 restaurant closes in Naples

Tim Aten
Naples
Catch 41 Bar 'N' Grill closed Friday, Jan. 19, 2018, a few days after its first anniversary at the Ramada Inn in Naples.

Catch 41 Bar ‘N’ Grill closed Friday, a few days after its first anniversary at the Ramada Inn in Naples.

The local poolside restaurant and lounge had a promising start when it quietly launched Jan. 16, 2017, in the highly visible longtime restaurant space at the hotel on U.S. 41.

Chef David Lani, a Culinary Institute of America graduate originally known locally for his creations at 7th Avenue Social, hit the ground running with the Catch 41 team. Lani’s barbecued baby back ribs won the people’s choice award and the grand champion trophy at the Naples North Rotary Club’s annual craft beer festival in early March, less than seven weeks after the restaurant opened.

Cherry Wood Smoked Rum BBQ Glazed Baby Back Ribs with toasted Hawaiian rolls with garlic butter at the former Catch 41 Bar 'n' Grill at Ramada Inn in Naples.

Just two months later, the Catch team was voted first place by attendees to Restaurant Week’s First Bite menu release event. Lani and team presented a Wagyu beef tartare eggroll and tempura-fried Maine lobster with crispy honey walnut sauce, which they served in a Chinese takeout box with chopsticks.

“It had almost seemed it was going to be a success story. We had great food reviews. All was going well,” Lani said. “We were jumping off very well. The live music, great food and the casual atmosphere seemed to be a good recipe for success.”

Near the end of its first season, the restaurant had some management changes but then Hurricane Irma hit. Because of the hurricane’s threat and aftermath, Catch 41 temporarily closed from Sept. 6 to 23.

When the restaurant reopened, Lani was gone.

The chef and his girlfriend evacuated Florida to stay with family in Ohio during the storm. During the weeks away, Lani met the owner of Old City Prime steakhouse in Lima, Ohio, through a mutual friend who was working there.

“The place was amazing and stable and it was with a corporation that owns 15 restaurants,” Lani said. “I was made an amazing offer with lots of security and I felt it would be good to have support from her family. I took the position of executive chef, the crown jewel of the restaurant group.”

On Jan. 8, the restaurant was hiring for all positions. Then, about 10 days later, it abruptly closed without warning or explanation on its website or Facebook page

A sign taped to the glass door at the main entrance simply reads: "Catch 41 will be closed until further notice." A post on the Craigslist website last weekend revealed more of the story.

“Unfortunately, Catch 41 Bar ‘N’ Grill is out of business. The owners do not own all of the equipment/furniture in the building, but the items they do own will be available for purchase Wednesday 1/24 from 12-3 pm,” the classified ad reads in part.

Restaurant supplies listed for sale include outdoor furniture, tables, chairs and umbrellas, dishes and silverware, pictures and décor, and a flattop grill less than a year old, according to the ad.

Lawrence Merlino, who co-owned Catch 41 with Heather Leek through their B.Y.B.O. Group LLC, said Monday they had some issues in-house and differences of opinion with hotel management, but he said he could not elaborate.

“It’s an unfortunate situation,” he said.

Ramada Naples Property Manager Greg Nichols could not be reached for comment.

Merlino said he is looking to move Catch 41 to another location in Naples “once we get settled on a couple of things.”

The longtime hotel has seen a parade of restaurants in that spot at 1100 Ninth St. N. In recent years, it probably has been best known as Pate’s Steakhouse & Pub, which operated there for eight years.

Before Catch 41, the restaurant space also was briefly home to Jimmy’s Bait-N-Tackle Pub and Pompano Bar & Grill. The restaurant was Beau's Paradise Grill, Bobby Rubino's Ribs and other eateries when the hotel was previously branded a Holiday Inn for many years.