By land, by water: Bimini Basin Seafood & Cocktails serving up bites, sips and fresh favorites in the South Cape
A new waterfront restaurant of Phelan Family Brands has opened in Cape Coral.
Bimini Basin Seafood & Cocktails opened its doors on Saturday, Feb. 28.
“We have been extremely busy,” Grant Phelan, of Phelan Family Brands, said. “We still have some kinks to work out, but we are very excited about being in Cape Coral and having Bimini Basin open.”
The new restaurant, which also offers boater access, is at 458 Tudor Drive and is open from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week.
“Whenever I think about the name Bimini, I think about the Bahamas, Bimini in the Bahamas,” he said. “I wanted to open a large open-air restaurant that serves casual seafood in a waterfront relaxed casual environment. People can come by in their boats, wear their swimsuits. Come in at night with collar shirts and a nice pair of khakis and enjoy what Southwest Florida is all about – outside dining with the beautiful weather that we have.”
Bimini Basin Seafood & Cocktails has 30 designated boat slips, on a first-come, first-served basis, as well as a big parking garage across the street from the restaurant. There is also valet and street parking available.
Phelan said they do not take reservations for the slips, but they have not filled up yet.
“They can come in with boats of any size. There is plenty of water, lots of depth and more than enough parking for boats. We have dock attendants to help catch lines and tell you where to park,” he said. “We are just excited to be in Cape Coral. There are so few restaurants that you can go to by boat.”
To get there by boat from the Caloosahatchee turn north between channel markers 85 and 86 to enter Bimini Channel. Proceed north up the channel until you reach Bimini Basin. The restaurant is on the north side of the basin.
The menu has an assortment of seafood offerings, with many enjoyed among their other restaurants including Pincher’s, Deep Lagoon Seafood, Hogfish Harry’s and Keewaydin’s. Phelan said they took the most popular dishes from each of the menus and incorporated them into the offerings at Bimini Basin.
Those items include the cheesy crab dip from Pincher’s, hogfish sandwich from Hogfish Harry’s, chili rub tripletail from Deep Lagoon Seafood, and miso glazed Chilean sea bass from Keewaydin’s.
There is also a 6-ounce filet and 16-ounce T-bone from Chops and baby back ribs from Texas Tony’s Rib & Brewhouse.
“We tried to take the best concepts,” he said. “So far, it has been great.”
The restaurant offers food happy hour — Bimini Bites — from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and a drinks happy hour – Bimini Sips — from 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Phelan said reservations are strongly recommended for the restaurant.
“The bar is always first-come, first-serve,” he said.
There are some additional perks in the works for the restaurant.
The goal is to offer live music on the weekends, and Phelan said they are working towards having tables down at the waterfront by the docks.
“We want it to be fun, casual, boater’s paradise — a beautiful place that people can come and relax and enjoy some signature cocktails and eat great food and enjoy Southwest Florida,” he said. “We have seen dolphins, tarpon, snook, redfish, and pelicans. The sunsets are incredible each night. It’s a beautiful spot to sit and relax.”
For more information, visit biminibasinrestaurant.com.