Food & Drink in Golden Gate

Famed course architects Dick Wilson and Joe Lee artfully incorporated more than 50 sand traps, ponds, and diverse tree lines into Quality Inn & Suites Golf Resort’s 6,570-yard course. The course’s first hole is also its most difficult, so clubbers would benefit from a brief warm-up session at the course’s practice green and lighted driving range. An onsite pro shop maintains a wide selection of golf equipment and apparel, and a staff of PGA professionals orchestrates private, group, and undercover golf lessons.

On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, live music enchants diners as they enjoy a meal of traditional grill fare by the pool or at the garden terrace of T. A. Fitzgerald’s Restaurant & Spirits. Meanwhile, the casual eatery’s indoor accommodations feature a wide-screen TV with a satellite feed to help guests keep abreast of faraway sporting events without having to use their putter as an AM radio antenna.

Course at a Glance:

• Designed by Dick Wilson and Joe Lee
• 18-hole, par 72 course
• Length of 6,570 yards from the farthest tees
• Course rating of 71.5 from the farthest tees
• Slope rating of 125 from the farthest tees
• Four tee options
• Scorecard

For more than a decade, Pelican Larry’s has sizzled and slurped freshly caught fare amid lively music and entertainment. Pelican Larry’s menu makes a salivary splash with savory salads, sandwiches, and stomach quenchers served fresh from the sea. Salty scents and crunchy breading inundate the tongue in every bite of raw, steamed, still swimming, or flaky fried fish. Steer jaw jets into a platter of a dozen steamed clams ($10.95) or a half-pound of steamed shrimp ($8.95), or immerse incisors in a jerk chicken salad ($9.95) or pineapple salsa-topped mahi tacos ($11.95). DJs provide entertainment on weekend evenings starting at 10 p.m., while live music resonates through the Davis Boulevard location after 6 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays, shining a bright beam into the ear tunnels of auditory adventurers.

A Little Tacky Tiki Bar and Grill's doors swing open to reveal plates piled high with freshly caught seafood, specialty burgers and sandwiches, and a full bar dispensing cooling libations. The crab cake sandwich locks a grilled crab cake inside a toasted roll with chili mayo ($15), and diners can practice their fine motor skills by picking apart beer-steamed shrimp dusted with Old Bay ($9/half lb.). Baskets of fried flounder ($14) or bay scallops ($14.50) cradle batter-encrusted treasures like the hope chest of a chef, and patrons splash gleefully through a pot of mixed steamed seafood brimming with mussels, clams, shrimp, and scallops cooked in a garlic-white-wine sauce ($17). The eatery's bartenders dispense a variety of cocktails, beers, and wines beneath televisions and the rainbow of memorabilia that festoons the walls.

Following the Argentinean and Uruguayan steak-house tradition, Martin Fierro Restaurant’s menu slings made-to-order steaks, grilled and hand seasoned over an open fire in plain sight of patrons. Tongues sink slowly into warm, dairy-inspired dreams on an appetizer pillow of grilled provolone cheese ($8.99) or flip to the pillow's cold side with a chilled ceviche of fresh seafood cubes, cooked by lime and lemon juice ($8.99). A half-pound Angus beef hamburger adds Argentinean flare to any free weight set with toppings of bacon and fried egg ($8.99), and the salmon al fettuccine tangles its garlic-hinted fish filet in a net of fettuccine bated with smoked salmon cream ($14.99). As appetizers and midcourses wane, patient incisors quiver at the meaty tableau of a juicy new york strip loin sizzling on the grill alongside its asparagus and green-pepper brethren ($17.99). In Martin Fierro Restaurant’s quaint dining room, rustic wood paneling complements an array of South American wall accents, stretched furs, candles, and a shingled indoor tiki roof. Amid offerings of South American wines and beers, customers are encouraged to carouse with friends, though balloon animals are discouraged from carousing with kebab skewers.

The differences between Naples, Florida and Naples, Italy probably far outnumber the similarities. But during a visit to Moravela's, it's easy to forget that the distance between the two cities is some 5,000 miles, or approximately the length of 120,000 mozzarella sticks. The restaurant brings a slice of Italy to southwestern Florida, serving up gourmet pizzas and classic Italian dishes.

Chefs churn out veal, pasta, and seafood specialties for lunch and dinner throughout the week, including one particular dish that features clams, mussels, calamari, and whitefish all on the same plate. Additionally, the kitchen uses the freshest ingredients available to top more than a dozen different pizzas, such as the bianca, a pie built around garlic and three different types of cheese.

Natural light floods through full-wall windows onto an elaborate tree mural, where a golf-bag-toting monkey stands watch over a fully stocked bar. While jukebox tunes stream from the speakers, americanized sushi rolls, veggie-packed stir-fries, and cheesy hand-tossed pizzas unite to form an edible decor. Marinara-slathered pastas steam beside turkey and prime-rib sliders and deli-style sandwiches. Frosty brews can be sipped in a steel-grey banquette while the wall murals please the eyes with such naturally occurring fauna as flowers, bushes, and neon ATM signs. Blue Monkey Bar also hosts weekly events such as live music and Sunday NFL Ticket.