Buck & Rider seafood restaurant replacing Brio at Waterside Shops 

Buck & Rider seafood restaurant is expanding beyond its Arizona base to replace the longtime Brio Tuscan Grille at Waterside Shops in Naples. 

Hi Noon Hospitality, the Scottsdale restaurant management group behind Buck & Rider, plans to make a significant financial investment in the property as part of its commitment to the Gulf Coast region. The restaurant’s target opening date in Naples depends on the timeline for Brio and Waterside Shops. 

“It really depends on when we can get the building, but I am really, really pushing for November [2026] or fourth quarter of next year,” said Adam Strecker, CEO and founding partner of Buck & Rider. 

Brio continues to operate in Naples and its lease runs until next spring, but because its parent company filed for bankruptcy Aug. 18, the location may be available before then. It is the second Chapter 11 bankruptcy case in five years for Orlando-based Bravo Brio Restaurants LLC, which owns the popular Italian restaurant chains Bravo Italian Kitchen and Brio Tuscan Grille. The company’s Bravo location at Mercato in North Naples closed in early July ahead of Violi Mediterranean restaurant’s plans to open there this fall. 

Waterside Shops referred questions regarding Brio’s local timeline to its company, which could not be reached for comment. 

“At this time, we don’t have any information to share regarding Brio at Waterside Shops. Should there be an update, it will come directly from the restaurant or through an official announcement,” emailed Chelsea Pittman, manager of events and merchant relations for Waterside Shops. 

At least two other major restaurants are coming to Waterside Shops within the next year. Eddie V’s Prime Seafood is already under construction in a redeveloped outparcel space on the southwest corner of the center. Restoration Hardware is expected to break ground soon for a gallery with an RH restaurant at the site of the former Nordstrom store on the mall’s northwest corner. 

“We are honored that Buck & Rider has chosen to establish its first location outside of the Southwest here at Waterside Shops,” said Nate Forbes, managing partner of The Forbes Company, the Michigan-based owner of Waterside Shops. “The addition of Buck & Rider to our portfolio is testament to our dedication to bringing first-to-market and best-in-class shopping and dining to this region and continuing to serve as a top destination on Florida’s Paradise Coast.” 

Introducing Buck & Rider 

Buck & Rider’s launch in the Naples area will be a homecoming of sorts for the brand’s founder. Strecker lived for nearly a year in Naples when he helped launch BrickTop’s Naples restaurant at Waterside Shops in 2006, the same year Brio opened at the open-air mall. “I know it really well and it’s a great spot,” he said. 

Not knowing when the space will become available, the Buck & Rider team already is actively working on finalizing the Naples restaurant’s design and getting it approved by Collier County planners, Strecker said. The project is being led by Austin-based Michael Hsu Office of Architecture with Naples-based MHK Architecture providing local expertise and vision. Renderings are not available yet, but the reimagined space looks to feature a seamless flow between indoor and outdoor areas to create an elevated and inviting atmosphere. 

“We just started the design process about two weeks ago, and we just finalized the lease about a week ago,” said Strecker, who anticipates needing seven to nine months of buildout time for the Naples restaurant.  

Expect an extensive remodeling of the space Brio has occupied for nearly 20 years. 

“We’re going to gut the entire thing. We’re going to take it all the way back to the studs. We’re not going to keep anything,” Strecker said. “We’re going to redo the floors, redo the patio. We’re still going to keep the patio, but we’re going to open up the entire front of the building, so it feels more like an indoor-outdoor restaurant. One of the fun things we do is we have a completely open kitchen.” 

Strecker knows local seafood. When he previously lived five years in Miami and ran the Houston’s restaurant in Coral Gables, he used to spend days off sportfishing for bonefish and tarpon in the Keys. But stone crab claws are his favorite Florida seafood. 

“I’m addicted to stone crabs,” he said. “I love yellowtail snapper. You can’t go wrong. Stone crabs, yellowtail snapper, grouper, I love them all.”  

Not only will those seafood choices be on the menu at the new Naples restaurant, but they are on the menu at the three Buck & Rider locations in Arizona. “We’re probably the only restaurant in Arizona that has yellowtail snapper on its menu every day,” Strecker said. “We fly it in from Key Largo fisheries every single day.” 

The restaurant group also flies in seafood daily from around the world, such as hamachi from New Zealand and cold water oysters from Alaska or Washington state. “We go straight to the importer,” Strecker said. “We try to only use sources who have their own boats. So, I don’t have to worry about the freshness of the seafood because it comes straight from the boat to the airport and we’re picking it up at the airport.” 

For a restaurant concept especially known for its expansive raw bar, the menu in Naples will have much more Gulf seafood.  

“From what we can get off the boat locally, we absolutely are going to do that, too,” he said. “So, the seafood will be incredibly fresh.”  

Buck & Rider’s menu offers other seafood dishes such as shrimp scampi risotto, diver scallops, mussels and crab cakes. The brand also features its own B&R Reserve Black Angus steaks, which can be paired with seafood for surf-and-turf options. The menu includes shareables, sushi rolls and salad selections; and a full bar serves signature cocktails, wine, beer and sake. 

The name Buck & Rider originates from the marine term that describes a male and female crab intertwined during mating. This is considered a sign of good luck in the crabbing industry.  

As luck would have it, the Naples launch is notable for Arizona-based Hi Noon Hospitality, the management company for Buck & Rider, Ingo’s Tasty Food and Pinyon, a new Mediterranean concept set to launch in Scottsdale this fall. 

“This is probably the biggest single move from opening day one for us because we’re going out of state for the first time,” Strecker said. “I’m actually planning on getting a residence over there.” 

The company also is scouting for future Buck & Rider locations on the Gulf Coast’s Sarasota and Tampa areas.  

“So, we want to have a big presence over there,” Strecker said. “It’s a really big deal for us going out of state. I love the water. I want to be by the water. Obviously, I’ve been living in the desert for the last 15 years. I plan on getting a boat, having a residence there and being a big part of the community.”