Alexander’s Restaurant is an eponymously-named restaurant in Naples, FL owned by long time Naples culinary fixture, Chef Alexander Bernard.
Chef Bernard has been practicing his craft locally for over 30 years starting Alexander’s over 20 years ago.
As you approach the entrance to the restaurant there is a beautiful outdoor dining area.
Having never dined here before, the ambiance of the outdoor and indoor dining areas made my dining companion (DC) and I that much more eager to try Alexander’s fare.
Some very good bread was brought out before our order, made even better with the addition of whipped butter with chives.
My DC has a sweet tooth and ordered the wild mushroom and cashew strudel. It was absolutely delicious. Each bite of perfectly cooked Brik pastry yielding it’s buttery flakiness to a filling of creamy cashews, herbs and sautéed mushrooms. Caramelized apples accompanied the strudel which was finished with a balsamic reduction.
I am a fool for roasted beets, so the roasted beet and goat cheese salad looked worth a try. Mixed greens were topped with roasted beets, toasted walnuts, Granny Smith apples and a dollop of goat cheese. The salad was finished with a walnut vinaigrette. The crunchiness of the walnuts complemented the beets and greens. The flavors of these seemed to meld almost perfectly with the tanginess of the goat cheese and green apples. Another very good dish.
We decided to split an order of lettuce wraps. Crispy Duck, which really refers to the skin, pickled red onion and ginger were served as fillings for leaves of romaine lettuce. Hoisin and peanut sauce were served as toppings. The peanut sauce was interesting. This restaurant’s version incorporates hoisin sauce and rice wine vinegar making it different from the traditional preparation. Dishes like this are great to share as it’s really hands on and fun putting them together.
After all these great starters, DC and I tried something from the “mains”. We decided on the Colorado lamb shank. This was a huge, almost 1 and 1/2 pound portion of lamb shank. Slowly braised for hours in veal stock and Mirepoix, it was seasoned with rosemary and garlic. The dish was served with caramelized butternut squash and Farro sweetened with dried cherries. This to me was the highlight of the evening, definitely enough for two and highly recommended.
The fare at Alexander’s is very good. It does not attempt to be “high art” but succeeds at being very solid, flavorful food prepared with quality ingredients The service is good and the atmosphere, well, just perfect for date night. Alexander’s will have you coming back for more.
That’s that for another post on forks!
Alexander’s Restaurant
4077 Tamiami Tr. N.
Naples, FL 34103
(239)262-4999
Alexander’s Website
All major credit cards accepted, kid’s menu, no valet parking. Closed Sundays.
Peter Horan, Southwest Florida Forks, posted on SouthFloridaReporter.com, Dec. 11, 2016. More food reviews on Southwest Florida Forks
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