Sandy Butler satisfies all manner of gustatory needs with style
REVIEW
karenFELDMAN cuisine@florida-weekly.com

It's a restaurant. It's a bar. It's a produce market, deli and bakery. The Sandy Butler is all of those things and more.

Stylish in appearance and imaginative in menu, this relative newcomer must be most welcome by Fort Myers Beach residents, who have seen the proliferation of food and wine purveyors cropping up in Fort Myers and Cape Coral.

That the establishment sits on the mainland side of town also means that residents of south Fort Myers have convenient access to the both the sprawling upscale market and the bar/restaurant that's open every day of the week. That it exists at all in a destination known for its casual - not to mention sometimes kitschy - ambience is apt to surprise first-time visitors.

Glass walls separate the restaurant and bar from the well-appointed and beautifully stocked market, while providing a tempting view at the same time.

My companion and I paid a visit on a sleepy weeknight when there were but a few souls at the bar and fewer still in the restaurant. Nonetheless, the hostess and our server were on their toes, greeting us warmly and tending to our needs as if we were rare and precious treasures. Come to think of it, given how slow the region's restaurant business is this time of year, that's exactly what we were.

PHOTO JERRY SMITH The management at the Sandy Butler has done an expert job of creating cozy sections by strategically placing paneled room dividers and plants throughout the space.

Although the dining room is large and has high ceilings with exposed pipes and beams, the management has done an expert job of creating cozy sections by strategically placing paneled room dividers and plants throughout the space. We sat at a table set near a wrought-iron divider that had small candles twinkling upon it, a large faux palm standing sentry at its side.

A glass of Porque No zinfandel, with its big, ripe cherry and raspberry notes tempered by just a hint of pepper, began to take the edge off of a busy, rainy day.

Wisely, the management keeps the menu relatively small during this slow season, enabling the kitchen to maintain a fresh inventory rather than attempting to be all things to all palates. Even in busy times, that's a formula that rarely works and winds up satisfying no one.

An appetizer of blackened sea scallops over a ginger caramel sauce proved delicious, the large scallops cooked just enough and balanced out by a sauce that tasted of both ginger and caramel without overwhelming the delicate shellfish and its savory seasoning.

A crab cake billed as sweet and spicy was also quite large, laden with big chunks of crab. I suppose that was the sweet part because the pink-hued sauce was fiery hot. Even my heat-loving companion found it too spicy for his taste, but I know there are some people out there with iron-clad taste buds who are likely to love this one. I thought this particular dish needed something more subtle to do justice to the fresh crab beneath it.

Both came with lovely fuchsia orchids on the plate, creating a colorful contrast to the white plates and black granite tabletops.

Because the appetizers were so large, it was a good thing we skipped the salads. For those who prefer to go green, there were three options: classic Caesar, mixed greens and one blending endive, spinach and bleu cheese.

From the four meat and four seafood entrees (plus one seafood special), we chose one of each.

The rack of lamb crusted with hazelnuts and Dijon mustard consisted of five chops, delicately seasoned and cooked just to a blushing medium. I couldn't discern the mustard but it blended well with the rich flavor of the meat. Sweet mashed potatoes and miniature squash as well as another fuchsia orchid rounded out the dish nicely.

My companion's grouper proved to be a large fillet topped with a sweet red pepper and balsamic sauce that complemented it well. The wild mushrooms that formed the bed beneath were somewhat chewy. Rice normally accompanies this dish, but because it contained bacon, my meat-shunning husband chose the sweet mashed potatoes also and found the combination to his liking.

Desserts - all made on the premises, according to our server - are as unusual as the entrees, with selections such as cayenne chocolate créme brulee and honey marshmallow brulee. We opted to share the chef's pastry trio, which consisted of a key lime tart, a small square of chocolate cake and a fruit tart. They were served cold - having been stashed in the refrigerator, no doubt, to keep them fresh - which wasn't the optimal temperature for any of them. My favorite was the fruit tart, with its creamy interior topped with ripe fruits. The chocolate cake proved too dry, likely owing to its chilly temperature.

You might expect that service should be smooth and personal on such a slow night and it was. However, it's been my experience that some restaurants slack off on slow nights. It was refreshing to find a place in which the staff knows that good service may be even more important when there are few customers on which to lavish it.

We finished too late to be able to be able to explore the appetizing market that adjoins the restaurant, but I won't make that mistake the next time. We'll shop first and dine after. ¦ If you go The Sandy Butler

17650 San Carlos Blvd., Fort Myers Beach; 482-6765

Ratings:
Food: three and a half stars  
Service: three and a half stars  
Atmosphere: four stars

>>Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday (limited menu available 3-5 p.m.), 11 a.m.to 11 p.m. Friday-Saturday >>Reservations: Accepted. >>Credit cards: Major cards accepted. >>Price range: appetizers, $3.95-$14.95; entrees, $23.95-$28.95 >>Beverages: Full bar. >>Seating: Conventional seating in the dining room, as well as outdoor tables and a large bar.

>>House specialties: white tuna carpaccio with guacamole, red caviar and olive oil drizzle; blackened sea scallops over ginger caramel sauce; grilled capon topped with sweet saffron sauce >>Volume: Moderate. >>Parking: Ample free parking in adjoining parking lot. >>Website: www.theSandyButler.com