August 2023 Fort Myers Beach Aerial Drone Video, Margaritaville And More Of The Island

As we approach 11 months since the landfall of Hurricane Ian, the rebuild continues. But the pace of construction varies greatly depending on where you are. In this Fort Myers Beach aerial drone video shot by Brian Kennedy on August 16th, 2023 it's very clear that while some areas are recovering, others look deserted.

The video begins on the end of the beach with Pink Shell. Some amazing work done there, it's good to see those pink umbrellas near the water. The big flurry of activity, of course, is at Margaritaville. They are far enough along with the Margaritaville Hotel that they're taking bookings for March 2024 on their website. If you want to be first, you'll want to jump on that, soon.

Lani Kai is really coming along. Diamondhead is open for business and you can even see people in the pool.

As you fly along the coast it's really surreal. Some places look fine, while others look abandoned. It's going to be a very long time before we get back to normal.

That's Leonardo Arms. You can see they've built an emergency seawall around the building to try to keep it from falling into the gulf. That condo building is clearly closer to the water than any of the other buildings around it. The thing is, it didn't use to be. There used to be a large beach behind that building. Fort Myers Beach is a barrier island, and the coastlines of barrier islands change. The sand that used to be behind Leonardo Arms is now somewhere else.

Most of us here in Fort Myers, Naples, and in general, Southwest Florida, are all from somewhere else. I moved here from Ohio 18 years ago and I guess I consider myself to be 'from here'. So,  don't think you need to be "FloGrown" to be a local. I do think you need to fully experience everything in town before you be considered local, however. So we took to Reddit to see what other Fort Myers resident think of the criteria needed to be a local.

According to Ok_Acanthocephala914 one thing you need to experience in this town to be a local is a hurricane. Well, with Hurricane Ian hitting last year, a lot of people can now check that box. I was at a St. John Neumann football game when Hurricane Katrina passed over Florida. Was without power after Wilma for 2 weeks +. Irma destroyed my roof. I can check that box several times.

Another Redditor, Apexblackout7, thinks you need to be here 20 years before you're really a local. That's a nice round number. But since going out to eat is such an integral part of Southwest Florida let's take a different route. So I asked Reddit.

Sadly, last year's hurricane wrecked some of our favorites. COVID took some, too. Remember Island Cow? That was amazing. And then there's others that only long time residents remember.  Neon_1984 reminded us of Downtown Fort Myer's French Connection that closed back in 2016. Others are coming back. Bubble Room's restaurant is closed but has plans to reopen early next year.

But there's still a lot of great places out there. So if you're a permanent resident of Lee County, these are the restaurants that you have to try at least once. I've been to some of these so often I've lost count. Here's the 11 that Reddit considers a must.

Family owned Italian restaurant on McGregor in Fort Myers. They've been there about 20 years so if you haven't been, you need to.

https://www.yelp.com/biz/taqueria-san-julian-fort-myers-6

Authentic tacos. It's as real as you can get. If it's your first time and you're unsure, go with the Al pastor.

This gem on Captiva was closed for a bit after the hurricane but is back now. A beachfront English Pub. An absolute must visit. Lee County is doing a thing right now where there's no bridge tolls on Sunday so that might be the thing to do.

Haney's Cafe is in San Carlos Park and has been open since 1995. This is my parent's favorite spot when they come to visit. My dad doesn't ask about going to the beach. My dad wants to know when we're going to Haney's.

https://www.farmersmarketrestaurant.com/

Southern food located on Edison Avenue. This place has been there since the 1960's. You want some old Florida? This is the place.

Many people have remarked that this is the best sushi they've ever had.

The hurricane really battered this place. Even left a boat at their front door. But Dixie Fish Co. is back. 100% worth the trip to Fort Myers Beach.

Don't miss out on this absolute gem in Cape Coral. Even when we talk about other lobster places, we end up talking about Lobster Lady.

Live music and that aquarium bar. I was worried about this place after the hurricane but they are back and better than ever.

Many snowbirds make this their first stop off the plane. Some of the best fried fish you'll ever have.

Shannon was amazing and everything on the menu is a tribute to him. If you're going to be in Cape Coral, this place is a must.