After watching a wonderful sunset at Bonita Springs, my honey and I ventured out to the Ritz to finish off our anniversary adventures with a lovely dinner. I must say in advance that Bites made this anniversary experience very memorable. Thanks! Located in the beautiful Ritz Carlton lounge, it was a tad hidden but not too hard to find. Really. From the entrance, you keep walking straight. You may think you just found a fancy lounge, but once seated, you do see the Bites menu as your placemat. Don’t expect a separate room or big sign of the restaurant, simply go straight ahead! I don’t normally drop names in reviews, but I must for they have made that evening so memorable. Jordan was a nice receptionist who sat us down to our table, and then we were greeted by Franz, the friendliest server who was very attentive to our needs(he even offered to take many pictures of us with our food), and Joseph our waiter, who had every ounce of patience dealing with our many questions about the menu and as a team, they all made sure our night went well. Now onto the tapas-styled Bites: 1. Truffle Salmon Spread: No kidding about the truffle! This has been the strongest truffle menu item I have ever tasted, and I do love truffle! So if you like your truffle strong, do get this bad boy. It was my favorite dish and I think it was just an appetizer! 2. Burrata: I don’t know what they did but this beautiful ball of cheese was on point! It nicely paired with the glazed poached pears. This would be a great savory-sweet pairing of you’re leaning more towards the sweet and light side. 3. Chorizo Stuffed Dates: This sausage is usually salty but the dates and the special orange sauce tones it down and mixes well with the flavors. This would be a great savory-sweet pairing of you’re leaning more towards the savory side. 4. Bison Chili Cheese Fries: This wasn’t my favorite, but it does have the flavor and even the texture I like in a chili cheese fries BUT it didn’t have enough cheese. And we went big with dessert: 1. Bread Pudding: I’m used to sticky bread puddings that resemble monkey bread or cinnamon buns in terms of glazed sweetness, but this bread pudding was lighter, creamier, and milky! It doesn’t feel too heavy compared to the other desserts we ordered. 2. Apple Rice Pudding: I loved the rice pudding, but the apple chunks at the bottom seemed too sweet and tart for me, so to balance it off, I had a ratio of one little Apple chunk and a whole lot of rice pudding on my spoon. This may have been my honey’s favorite. They came in the cutest glass ramekins, and because they came in threes, we had decided to take home the last one. I’ll get into it later, keep reading! 3. Complimentary slice of Chocolate Cake: WOW! This was the most decadent, rich chocolate cake I have ever had. Joseph brought this to our table with a candle and a chocolate that said«Happy Anniversary,» and this was the cherry on top for our Bites experience. I can’t look and eat another slice of chocolate cake the same way. If you are the biggest chocolate fan of life, you WILL enjoy this and probably won’t share haha. 4. Coffee: They served it in some fancy coffee press contraption that was new to me. It was also our savior from the potential food coma we may have had to endure on the long ride home late at night. Definitely a must after a long, wonderful meal! We did not finish all the bites and desserts so they packed it for us in such pretty black and gold to-go boxes. I recycled one of the boxes when I got home to store the beautiful shells I found at the beach that day. To my surprise, they even packed the last rice pudding with the cute glass ramekin! Did not expect them to pack some glassware, but I still have it with me as a reminder of the amazing service and anniversary I had that day. And it makes for a great dessert shooter! Other important notes to add: FREE valet if you keep the receipt so they can validate it, and LIVE entertainment on Tuesday nights. We went on a Tuesday night, and this performer was great. His music added to the good vibes of our anniversary dinner. Again, thank you Bites for an amazing time. We’re looking forward to visiting again as they change their menus seasonly, though I would hope the truffled salmon spread stays all-year-round!
Carol M.
Tu valoración: 5 Long Beach, CA
Bites what an amazing experience; great service indicative of the true Ritz experience! this is my second night dining on property and the piano player adds to this unique experience
John S.
Tu valoración: 5 Naples, FL
I’ve been to all Ritz restaurants multiple times but this is hands down my favorite. Spend a lot or a little. Get 10 things or 2. Everything is delicious but my favorite is the pork belly sliders and obviously the raspberry cake. Coffee is for closers? Bites is for closers.
Alexandra G.
Tu valoración: 3 Naples, FL
Wonderful staff and enjoyable drinks, the menu is innovative and has true potential but the number one flaw is that the quality of the food is inconsistent. With such a polite and attentive staff and all that is expected of living up to the standards of the ritz carlton, I have high hopes that they can straighten out the kinks in the kitchen and serve food that is consistent and up to par with what is expected of a fine dining experience. The beet salad is nice and flavorful along with their chicken and biscuits!
Jeff C.
Tu valoración: 5 Andover, MA
My wife and I went to Bites for the first time to celebrate my birthday a couple of years ago. Since then we have made this a tradition for both of our birthdays, our anniversary and last night Mothers Day! The service continues to be very attentive and the staff does a great job welcoming you back. We had the pastrami sliders, yoshida peppers and tuna tartare. Each delicious and packed the incredible 7 layer chocolate cake to go. We’ll be returning …
John S.
Tu valoración: 5 Santa Clara, CA
Reasonable prices and great variety of small plates to share accompanied by live music
April A.
Tu valoración: 4 Blue Bell, PA
We always enjoyed a light dinner here, when staying at the Ritz. This place is conveniently located right inside the main lobby, so there’s lots of action going on around you, but it’s not distracting. Tapas menu… all small plates. Tried most of the dishes, after a few visits, and liked everything, esp the shrimp. Good wine selection. Good service. Perfect if you don’t want a full course meal. Probably not the best choice for small children.
Mike H.
Tu valoración: 3 Feasterville-Trevose, PA
Went for dinner. Expected more from a Ritz restaurant. Servers were too busy to start the meal, but freed up later. Once they freed up, the service was outstanding. Food is small plates, we had artichokes lemon aioli, adult fries duck confit cheddar pickled onion, BBQ pork sliders, baked Brie, ceviche tacos cobia. All were very good, but just wasn’t the experience we expected for the $$ at a Ritz location. Would go there again if we stayed at the Ritz, but wouldn’t go out of my way to go there. Live music was enjoyable
Noelle H.
Tu valoración: 5 San Francisco, CA
Who knew you could eat the Ritz AND have it be affordable? Thanks to Bites, you can! The concept here is tapas, and all the dishes range from about $ 5-$ 14. It’s very affordable compared to a lot of other tapas places in town. The menu is easy to read with the different categories shown as someone mentioned earlier. The food is a fusion of different cuisines, from shrimp pot stickers to osso bucco. I’ve tried many of their dishes and each and every one has had a beautiful presentation and exploding flavors. My favorites are the ahi tuna and the crab crack hush puppies. The service is very friendly and attentive. The deserts are simple scrumptious!!! Get the chocolate fondue(they make their own marshmallows!!!) The portions are a good size, not too small and not too big. Some nights they have live music with a jazz singer and a piano. This is a great place to have a nice romantic dinner, even if you’re on a budget!
Jamie R.
Tu valoración: 5 Naples, FL
Nine of us hurried in to this warm lobby to the sound of a lilting jazz singer and grand piano. Our favorite waitress was off for the evening but her excellent trainer, Jonathan, was efficient and charming. Not every lady started as an eager tapas participant. But after the first plate was passed, each one was a raving fan. The menu is divided by food category, with 43 selections shown under picture icons for beef, chicken, fish. seafood, veggie, cheese, and desserts. Plates hold three of the selected item, and are priced from $ 6 to $ 14. We each ordered two plates, plus three dessert tapas. Not only were we fully satisfied, our group succeeded in sampling about half the menu, Mongolian beef with green pea curry was a standout, as were the crabcake hushpuppies. The butternut squash soup was the only item that was not as easily divisible for sharing as the others, and came with a little too heavy-handed dose of nutmeg. The Ritz Carlton stepped into this decade by offering tapas without altering their elegant setting. Much appreciated!
Aaron F.
Tu valoración: 2 San Francisco, CA
I took my mother and grandmother to tea at the Ritz over the holidays(weekends starting at 1PM). Being the Ritz and charging $ 25/person, we had high expectations for the service, tea and food. Unfortunately we left disappointed. The basics were good. The tea itself was made perfectly and served with a 3-tier platter of tea sandwiches, a variety of sweets, and scones with cream. They let us choose 2 teas. They were surprisingly out of our first choice, English breakfast. We were shocked to find that the bread on some of the sandwiches was stale. We also had an issue with the server because we do not eat pork(we told them this when we made the reservation). When the food showed up, it had four types of tea sandwiches: cucumber, egg salad, smoked salmon, and prosciutto. When we said we don’t eat pork, the server gave us an attitude, visibly went to the front of the restaurant to see if there was a note on our reservation(in essence challenging our claim that we told them), and then returned with a sandwich platter ½ the size. The new platter had just cucumber and egg salad(2 sandwiches per person, versus the 4 we’d just had). When we asked for the salmon back, she came back with another plate, tossed it on the table, and said«there you go — now you got extra» and stormed off. This was FAR from the service we expected from the Ritz. The first sandwich platter looked spectacular, and their minimal efforts to fix the situation didn’t compare. We called weeks in advance to make a reservation but were put on a waiting list. They were nice enough to squeeze us in at 3:30PM. But nobody else was being seated at this time, and immediately after seating us they started setting up for the next meal. Different waiters came by every 5 minutes asking if they could clear our table, even during our first cup of tea before the food arrived. Not the relaxing tea experience we signed up for. It’s a fun activity during your Naples stay, but don’t expect good service or to be wowed by the food, especially when it totals $ 130 for 4-people(with tip).
Jonathan S.
Tu valoración: 5 New York, NY
I love this place. There’s isn’t a better late night date spot; very romantic. Great deserts, great coffee… good jazz… beautiful surroundings with an ocean view. And since it’s in the lobby, it’s great for people watching. Best espresso I’ve had in Naples was here.
Jorge P.
Tu valoración: 5 Miami, FL
Brazilian jazz in the background, exotic flowers & a spacious, luxurious spot in the lobby of the Ritz Carlton was a perfect restaurant to celebrate a special anniversary. Loved the tapas concept, taken to an elevated gourmet standard. Try the Moroccan lamb and end with the dark chocolate fondue. Stay away from the lobster roll that tasted like tuna salad on boring roll. We can’t wait to return!
M S.
Tu valoración: 4 Tarpon Springs, FL
Very good tapas selections in the evening. It’s in the Ritz lobby and gets crowded. Tuna carpaccio, steak tartar, and other great selections. Skip the lobster rolls, which are like tuna salad on an odd tasting roll, and the chicken livers, which are too sweet. But most things on the menu are tasty bites that you can combine for a nice, fun meal.
M D.
Tu valoración: 5 Boston, MA
An EXCELLENT restaurant located in the lobby of The Ritz Carlton. The food was superb, as was the service. You must try all the tapas on the menu. Desserts were excellent as well. Try the panna cotta.