Trail Cafe & Grill of Naples

Trail Cafe & Grill Strives for Menu Uniqueness
Naples eatery a breakfast, lunch mainstay
by Mark Marymont - special to news-press.com

09/12/2007
Ronald Dean and Vechil Echols are as interested in bringing imagination and flair to
the ambiance of their Trail Cafe & Grill as they are to the menu.

The grill, located in north Naples, features a range of eclectic antiques — a fancy
armoire, whimsical chef pigs, ornamental paintings — from their Dean-Echols Antique
shop in downtown Naples. But the real emphasis is on the food.

"We had a chain of gourmet food stores and delis, so we had a good idea of what we
wanted to do with this place," says Dean. "We went through a lot of our recipes and
figured out what would be interesting and fun. And, that's what really makes it
interesting for us, is having some really unusual things that we know people enjoy."

Trail Cafe & Grill in north Naples.
Specializing in breakfast and lunch, Dean acknowledges that many people like "the
traditional eggs, toast and potatoes. But we have innovative things, like razzleberry
stuffed French toast (encrusted with caramelized pecans and a cognac razzleberry
sauce), Georgia peach French toast croissant, and something like a lox and cream
cheese omelet. We try and be innovative and give people the quality they want."

Breakfast lovers can also partake of old-fashioned oatmeal and cherries jubilee
French toast along with more traditional omelets and buttermilk biscuits and gravy.
Same for lunch, which ranges from sandwiches, (chicken salad, club, grouper or
roast beef) to burgers and a lox and bagel plate.

They offer specials like a Key West Margarita salad — yes, it's a tribute to Jimmy
Buffett — that includes mixed field greens, mandarin oranges, red onions,
gorgonzola cheese and other treats. A London broil wrap or Portobello mushroom
sandwich can also turn up as a special.

While Dean and Echols put a lot of time into planning their menu, he laughingly
reports they didn't spend that long deciding to open the place, which had been a
Christian bookstore with a cafeteria in the back and, previously, a Middle Eastern
restaurant.

"I saw that this place was available and knew the agent and they said the seller was
very motivated," says Dean. "We looked here on a Sunday, and, in three hours, made
a proposal to buy it. Then, we opened in six weeks after a major remodeling. We
opened the doors Jan. 21, 2002, and we've been able to build a very loyal local
following and we get a lot of people during season".

Trail Cafe and Grill’s lox and cream cheese omelet ($9.99) This restaurant has a variety of exotic French toast dishes, but my vote
goes for this amazing omelet. It’s also made with capers, red onion and tomatoes and served with — can you believe — a bagel.
You also get hash browns or cottage fries, grits or fruit. If you don’t want the bagel, you have the choice of a buttermilk biscuit,
English muffin, marble or sourdough rye, whole wheat, white or multigrain bread. All you need is the New York Times and this is
nirvana. 12820 U.S. 41 N., Naples, 598-2480.