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by Manos Angelakis.
 The gulf coast of Florida, though a favorite destination for “snowbirds” has very few real luxury resorts. Less than one year old, the Marco Beach Ocean Resort at Marco Island, near the city of Naples, tries to correct this deficiency. I consider it a superior four-star property, though with a few minor changes it could be easily made into a five-star resort, especially since the service is at five-star level.
I visited the hotel in early December 2002, almost a year after it had opened.
 The outside is a modern-looking structure but the interior is designed in an Italian Renaissance architectural style. A beach-front property on a white sand crescent-shaped beach, it is a 12 story building that boasts 87 one-room and 16 two-room suites, all with balconies or garden  terraces with glorious views of the sunset on the Gulf of Mexico. The suites are all located from the fifth floor up, with the lower floors used for lobby, offices, function rooms, business center and an excellent Spa that offers massage and beauty treatments and a well equipped exercise center, as well as steam-rooms, saunas and other amenities.
I spent some time in the sauna, a very spacious room -- good for at least a dozen persons, thought I was the only one there, and then had a massage. Kerry Ann Fagan, the massage therapist, was extremely good. By the time she was finished pounding, kneading and bending limbs I felt really relaxed and mellow. Then an aesthetician named Lillian gave me a facial, something my wife has been after me to do for the last few months.
Paul TeCroney, the chief concierge, is a very resourceful person. He has very useful contacts with the best services in the area and, through him, I arranged my transportation and transfers to and from the property, which is approximately 40 minutes from the center of Naples and one hour from the airport at Fort Myers. Jay Hill is an excellent driver and I would unhesitatingly recommend his Royal Floridian Transportation company.
There is maid service twice a day, and after turndown, in the evening, there were handmade chocolates in a tray next to the cooler with both still and sparkling Italian mineral water by the bed side, and a perfect orchid graced my pillow. The two bedroom suites are very large, with a large bathroom with both a glass-enclosed shower stall and a sunken bathtub for the master bedroom and a smaller one for the second bedroom, both featuring bath- and shower products by Molton Brown, silk-and-terry bathrobes and slippers, with a full kitchen for those inclined to make their own meals. But if you do, you would be missing the spectacular cuisine of executive chef Alberto Varetto, the guiding light of Sale e Pepe, the resort’s dining room.
 The beautifully designed and decorated in Tuscan hill-country style room is divided into numerous intimate nooks and crannies by half-walls, so considerable privacy is achieved. Tapestry upholstery covers the very comfortable armchairs. A beautiful mosaic medallion, reminiscent of Roman villas, delimits the bar area from the rest of the room and the walls are decorated with frescoes and outsized faïence portrait plates. The bar area also serves as the breakfast buffet in the morning. The bar is well supplied and among the other potables they had on hand 20, 30 and 40-year old tawny ports from Taylor Fladgate. The 30-year became my aperitif for the evening. The cellar, visible as you enter the restaurant through a carved stone portal, contains about 1500 bottles, both top Italian and American vintages. Guests can dine either indoors or outdoors as there is an extensive verandah overlooking the beach and the Gulf of Mexico.
The service is highly professional befitting a five-star property. They brought and removed plates and glasses, changed silverware as needed and kept the rhythm of the meal, anticipating needs without being asked. They were there without being obtrusive.
Chef Varetto, originally from Torino, is handsome like a movie star and a master of both traditional and contemporary culinary skills. His sophisticated dishes are prepared from market fresh ingredients and he imports directly from Italy some of his basic staples. He makes his own fresh pastas, sausages and cheeses every day. He changes the menu based on seasonal availabilities. The expansive dinner menu features signature dishes that include pasta, seafood and meat entrees. But to really test his ability, we asked for a tasting menu paired with complementary wines; we were not disappointed.
Adjoining Sale e Pepe is Toulouse, a bar and lounge in early 20th-century-Paris style, named after the famous painter, with a large oil-painting combining five of Lautrec’s paintings of the Moulin Rouge above the marble, granite and onyx bar. Later in 2003, a French restaurant will open as the hotel’s second dinning room.
Phillip Starling is the managing director and his hands-on managing style is the reason the hotel is so well run. His eye for detail is exceptional, as he makes his daily rounds ensuring the clockwork-smooth operation.
 For golf and/or tennis aficionados, hotel guests have privileges at Fiddler’s Creek, a gated community created and operated by the Gulf Bay Group of Companies, the parent company  of Marco Beach Ocean Resort. A magnificent 18-hole championship golf course meandering through subtropical scenery, designed by Arthur Hill, is just minutes away from the Marco Beach Resort. The Club and Spa at Fiddler’s Creek, is also the home of Caxambas another five-star restaurant available to the guests with American and American/Asian fusion cuisine. The evening we dined there, Kenneth Gilbert, the Executive Chef, was away but in the capable hands of Executive Sous Chef Rey Eugenio, the tasting menu showcased the kitchen’s capabilities.
The Amuse Bouche came on lovely Japanese style oblong trays and it was an interesting combination of tastes. The primo piatto, Barbecued Alligator Spring Roll with Fried Green Tomatoes was unusual enough to pique our curiosity. The second course, Pan Seared Diver Scallop with Udon Noodles and Bok Choy Confit was an exceptional interpretation of a traditional Asian dish. Both courses were accompanied by a 1998 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc. The third course, a Franchaise of Turbot with Melted Tomatoes and Crisp Basil was accompanied by a 2001 Pinot Grigio, Augustan, DiMagre. To cleanse the palate for the main course, an Intermezzo of Pineapple Sake with Blueberries was served. The main course was a Veal Porterhouse with Oven Roasted Potatoes and Foie Gras, a really tasteful and fork-tender wood-grilled veal accompanied by a Charles Krug, Carneros, 2001 Pinot Noir. I don’t want to quibble, but I think a slightly older Merlot would have been preferable. There was a pre-dessert, and a dessert course. I had the Cabrales Cheese Soufflé, rich enough to need the 1999 Orange Blossom Muscat served with it. Perhaps, the Caxambas Baked Alaska that another person at our table had, might have been a slightly lighter selection.
 If all that good eating worries you about the state of your waist-line, do not fret. The Spa at Fiddler’s Creek is very well equipped with cardiovascular and weight-training equipment. For swimmers, there is a beautiful lagoon-style pool with waterfalls and a hot tub in a secluded pavilion overlooking tropical gardens. And for those wishing some personal pampering, European beauty treatments for both women and men using Yon-Ka Paris products.
The Marco Beach Ocean Resort and Fiddler’s Creek are together a sybaritic paradise on Florida’s Gulf Coast.
© February/March 2003. All rights reserved.
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