Best of the Gulfshore 2006

Best Outdoor Bar

Gumbo Limbo at the Ritz-Carlton (Naples)

Finalists: Brick Bar (Fort Myers); Charley's Cabana Bar at Sanibel Harbour (Fort Myers); Sunset Bar at the Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club (Naples)

It's no mirage: There really is an upscale tropical bar amid the mangroves on your way to the beach from the Ritz, Gumbo Limbo, a favorite gathering place for visitors and residents alike. There's water, water everywhere, and well-stocked bars for drinks at the harborfront Charley's Cabana Bar and the Gulf-front Sunset Bar; both are excellent places to watch the sun's nightly show. If city life is more your style, head for downtown Fort Myer's hip Brick Bar, where you'll find a young professional crowd living it up.

Best New Restaurant

Nektar (Naples)

Finalists: Café Cibo (Fort Myers);

Wylds Café (Bonita Springs)

Have our Southwest Florida palates grown increasingly sophisticated or is a new crop of ambitious chefs satisfying a taste that was already here? It's a question best mulled over while you sip Nektar's signature, vodka-based cocktail and enjoy the restaurant's tantalizing Mediterranean cuisine. Mediterranean flair is also on display at Fort Myers' cozy Café Cibo, while the tapas at gourmet café Wylds go down nicely with an international selection of brews.

FOOD AND WINE

Best Caterer

Wynn's (Naples)

Finalist: Jamie & Jacob (Bonita Springs)

Smart Gulfshore hostesses don't get chained to the kitchen during a party-they call in the pros. Classic hors d'oeuvres done right and decades of solid service are what you get from Wynn's, while pleasing presentations and gourmet riffs give Jamie & Jacob's fare an added touch.

Best Wine Shop

Tony's Off Third (Naples)

Finalists: Bacchus (Naples);

Naples Tomato (Naples)

Pretend it's your own personal vineyard: At Tony's Off Third, the pastry treats and gourmet lunches share space with a remarkable wine selection. Newcomer Naples Tomato offers a fresh and thoughtful wine collection at its north Naples restaurant, and spectacular vintages are a specialty at über-hot Bacchus of Naples.

Best Spirits

Total Wine (Fort Myers)

Finalists: Gulf Points Liquors (Fort Myers); Haskell's Wine & Spirits (Naples)

We've all heard of picky eaters, but what about picky drinkers? Yep, they're out there, and if you think they're coming to visit you, get yourself to the giant Total Wine warehouse in Fort Myers, where you'll find solid spirits among the eponymous grape. Scarce scotches and elusive gins are also all in a day's work for the staffs of Fort Myers' Gulf Points Liquors and Naples' Haskell's Wine & Spirits.

Best Gourmet Grocer

The Fresh Market (Fort Myers and Naples)

Finalists: Blue Pepper (Fort Myers); EVOO (Naples)

Too much time spent with the Food Network? We understand, and so does The Fresh Market, where the shelves full of hard-to-find ingredients are a foodie's dream, as are its just-picked produce and prime meats. The cult of pure foods and fun times is alive at Fort Myers' Blue Pepper and Naples newcomer EVOO, named for good and good-for-you extra virgin olive oil.

Best Bakery

Tie: Mason's (Fort Myers);

Mikkelsen's (Naples)

Finalist: Tony's Off Third (Naples)

Feel the love: The daily bread is a family affair at both downtown Fort Myers' Mason's and Naples' Mikkelsen's, now in an expanded location. Snackable pastries and creamy cakes fuel Third Street South's window shoppers at Tony's Off Third.

SHOPPING

Best New Shop

Tiffany & Co. (Naples)

Finalists: Devonia Antiques for Dining (Naples); Eva at Studio 15 (Fort Myers)

Call us easily pleased. Just the sight of one of those iconic blue Tiffany's boxes is enough to get our hearts pounding, never mind the intricate and well-made baubles that might be inside. Time travel made easy: some of Devonia's unusual fine china pieces have centuries of past history behind them, and Eva at Studio 15's up-to-the-minute designs keep stylish women moving fashion forward.

Best Window Shopping

Old Naples

Finalists: The Promenade at Bonita

Bay (Bonita Springs); Village at Venetian Bay (Naples)

Naples' dozens of art galleries attract scores of interested onlookers, but it's high art of a different kind that draws browsers to the shops and boutiques of Old Naples' Third Street South and Fifth Avenue South to admire glittery jewels, fashionable ensembles and more. Conspicuous consumption-or visible yearning-is made good for you at The Promenade at Bonita Bay and the waterfront Village at Venetian Bay, as the flowing layout of each makes walking past dozens of boutiques a breeze.

SERVICES

Best Florist

Ruth Messmer (Cape Coral and Fort Myers)

Finalists: Fifty50 (Naples); Twigs (Naples)

Need to say it with flowers? Whether the sentiment is "I love you," "I'm sorry," or "Thank you for attending our event," Ruth Messmer Florist has been creating classic arrangements for the Gulfshore for more than 40 years. A little bit edgy and a whole lot breathtaking, the works of Naples' Fifty50 and Twigs are guaranteed to get noticed.

Best Salon

Tie: Red (Fort Myers); Robert of Philadelphia (Bonita Springs and Naples)

Finalist: Top It Off (Fort Myers)

The lady in red is easy to spot; but to ID the lady who just came out of Red, a Fort Myers salon and spa, look for the one with the happy glow and subtly shimmering highlights. There is a real Robert of Philadelphia, and his clients know that the stylist hires only the best for his Gulfshore salon empire, insisting his staff stay up on the latest hair dos and don'ts. If you want to feel like a queen-or king-for a day, head to Top It Off, where some of the Gulfshore's best-known coifs are cultivated.

Best Spa

Tie: EuroSpa (Naples); Sanibel Harbour Resort & Spa (Fort Myers)

Finalists: LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort (Naples); Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club (Naples)

Sometimes you've got unlimited time for pampering and sometimes you need to put your soothing on the fast track; either way, relaxation is within reach with the sophisticated, innovative beauty treatments of EuroSpa or the over-the-top indulgences of Sanibel Harbour's spacious resort spa. Visions of afar are made easy with the Balinese treatments of LaPlaya's spa, while the Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club spa's citrusy facials and Old Florida atmosphere ground you firmly in the Gulfshore.

Best Place for a Green Thumb

Garden District (Naples)

Finalists: Driftwood (Estero and Naples); Scrivner's (Fort Myers)

The true hobbyist knows there is no pastime that can't benefit from the purchase of cute accessories, but this is especially true of gardening. Have we got the place for you: Naples' Garden District is serious about both its botanicals and its fetching and upscale statuary. Stump the expert? It's not likely at Driftwood or Scrivner's, where plant gurus have been fielding gardeners' questions for decades.

Best Place to Work Out

NCH Wellness Center (Naples)

Finalists: Curves (Bonita Springs,

Cape Coral, Fort Myers and Naples);

Omni (Fort Myers)

They're serious about this "get-healthy-and-live-right" thing-why else would the powers-that-be at NCH Healthcare System pour so many resources into their state-of-the-art north Naples Wellness Center, soon to be complemented by an equally impressive one near the Naples Community Hospital campus? You can go at your own pace at low-key Curves or boost barbells with the big boys and fit girls at Fort Myers' see-and-be-seen Omni.

ATTRACTIONS

Best Place to Take Kids

Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens (Naples)

Finalists: Imaginarium (Fort Myers); Naples Pier (Naples)

Sure, a trip to the zoo is fun, but in the words of Bill Cosby, if they're not careful, your kids might learn something before they're done. This is especially true at the nonprofit Naples Zoo, where educational and research programs have turned the once-small animal attraction into a zoological gem. A schedule of high-profile, interactive exhibits makes Fort Myers' Imaginarium exciting every time you visit, and kids never tire of the fishing, sand-combing and concessions at the Naples Pier and its surrounding beach.

Best Place to Take Visitors

Any beach at sunset

Finalists: Edison & Ford Winter Estates (Fort Myers); Old Naples

You can't compete with Mother Nature, so no matter what stops you've pulled out for your visitors-scoring scarce tickets or impossible reservations-they're still likely to be most awed by the colorful nightly show over the Gulf. (Just nod when they say they've seen the sunset's fabled green flash.) Already one of the country's best-loved historic attractions, the Edison & Ford Winter Estates is attracting even more visitors with its revamped gardens and preservation efforts, and visitors who want to see our equivalent of the world's most exclusive shopping districts will want to stop at Naples' Fifth Avenue South and Third Street South.

Best Nature Attraction

J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge (Sanibel)

Finalists: Anywhere in the Everglades; Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary (Naples)

We applaud the way the federally managed J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge has provided a habitat for Sanibel's native birds and mammals and preserved a rare sense of wilderness. Mainly, though, we just get excited when we see raccoons and alligators on the attraction's self-guided drive. Collier County is the western entrance to the mighty Everglades, home to elusive big cats and even scarcer blossoms. Also in Collier, Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary offers the world's largest stand of bald cypress and the chance to see nesting wood storks from a well-maintained boardwalk.