Three new food-and-drink venues are preparing to share their unique takes on classic specialties—waffles, croissants and bubble tea—at Entrada in Bonita Springs.
The passionate entrepreneurs and individual business owners behind Waffle Monkey, Wolfmoon Bakery and a bubble tea concept plan to debut their first local shops this fall in the new commercial center on the northeast corner of Old 41 and Bonita Beach roads.
Developer Steve Hovland is excited about the destinations he signed for Entrada, which also launched locations for The Bohemian Restaurant, Napoli on the Bay Pizza and The Rabbit Hole Kava Bar this year. Hovland feels fortunate to have snagged Waffle Monkey. “It’s really going to be a fun, fun space and they are going to put us on the map,” he said. “If you look at the menu, it’s nice and simple, but there’s something on that menu for everybody.”
Abraham and Elicia Bedell aren’t monkeying around. They are serious about launching the first location of Waffle Monkey in the United States. Not exactly a chain—yet, Waffle Monkey has two other locations, one each in Costa Rica and on Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands, where the casual dining concept began with tropical flair.
“We are really trying to bring the island vibe to this area. We really want that beachy, islandy vibe,” said Elicia Bedel. “It’s a breakfast-lunch concept. We will eventually do brunch on the weekends because we do have a beer and wine license.”
Bedell was familiar with Naples because she had family who lived here. “I love this area. We just wanted to set down some roots. Because of COVID, we knew this is where we wanted to be. We thought this concept would do well here. It’s going to be very kid-friendly, very fun, fast-casual.”
Expect conventional waffles as well as unique breakfast and lunch sandwiches with waffles replacing the bread or buns. “We’re basically going to do a waffle sandwich or a waffle burger,” Bedell said.
The concept’s most popular item is the original Waffle Monkey, a waffle with banana, honey and coconut. Other waffles are inspired by key lime pie or savory local flavors. “We have a lot of savory options,” Bedell said, mentioning eggs and bacon, a chicken-and-waffle cone and macaroni and cheese.
Beverages will include milkshakes, slushies, Costa Rican coffee and espresso, as well as Champagne or mimosas for brunch and some craft beers and prosecco.
The Bedells have a franchise agreement for more locations along the Gulf Coast. “This first one will be our flagship in Florida,” Elicia Bedell said. “We are going to start with this one and get this one open and running. Probably in about three to six months after this one is open, we’ll start looking into the possibility of opening up another one from the Tampa area south.”
Waffle Monkey will be on the southwestern end of Entrada with a large covered patio. Complementing it along Bonita Beach Road will be the adjacent Wolfmoon Bakery, operated by an artisan baker who Hovland describes as the cream of the crop and “passionate beyond passionate.” “She makes the best croissants I’ve eaten on this coast,” he said.
Argentina-born Clara Fasciglione, the founder and owner of Wolfmoon, launched her wholesale bakery business in January on the first full moon—or the wolf moon, as it’s notably called. After operating her own bakery in Argentina for wholesale, catering and private clients, it’s a dream come true for Fasciglione to open a retail bakery in Bonita. “I fell in love with Entrada immediately. I always knew it was the perfect place to be for me,” she said. “Many things have happened to me in synchronicity with this business. It’s been amazing.”
Fasciglione knew that the feedback and demand were there from operating late at night out of a commercial kitchen in North Naples to deliver her products to at least five local coffee shops, as well as fulfilling online orders shipped overnight. “It had a really good response from people,” she said. “I said this is a good sign for me to pursue the opening of the storefront.”
Possessing a strong interest in baking at a young age, Fasciglione followed that interest and, through practice and patience, honed a marketable skill. Although she baked dozens of products in South America, she specializes in French croissants here. “I want to do one thing and do it very well with varieties,” she said. Her bakery café also will serve quiche, sandwiches, soups and salads.
Meanwhile, after relocating this summer to Naples from New York, Jon and Lisa Armendariz are planning a bubble tea business in Bonita. Bubble tea originated in Taiwan as a flavorful milk and tea drink containing chewy tapioca balls. Initially planning on bringing a Bangkok-based boba tea franchise to Florida, the entrepreneurial couple will strike out on their own with a local mom-and-pop shop.
“We are making a huge change in lifestyle. We are very much excited about Bonita Springs,” Jon Armendariz said.
A professional photographer, Jon’s New York studio took a huge hit during the pandemic so he and his wife pivoted to create an apparel brand with reusable masks. From there, they created artisan market events in the Jackson Heights neighborhood where they lived in Queens.
While specifics for their bubble tea plans are not available yet, the couple plans to introduce a beverage concept in Bonita that they can expand to the Naples and south Lee County areas.
