Sanibel Outlets redeveloper opens Edgar's steakhouse

Edgar Wilson II wanted to honor his father and reimagine the restaurant at The Dunes Island Club on Sanibel Island. With the debut of Edgar’s, he did both. 

The restaurant soft-opened March 6, drawing about 60 diners who watched the sun set across the greens of The Dunes Golf and Tennis Club, 945 Sand Castle Road. Edgar’s leans into luxury dining, with a full bar, a new piano and a rotating menu that on opening night featured a 16-ounce, $115 Chateaubriand; a 32-ounce, $110 porterhouse; a 12-ounce, $52 New York strip; and an 8-ounce, $58 char-grilled filet mignon. Other entrees included a $42 crab-stuffed grouper and a $35 chicken Toscano. 

Side items are ordered a la carte and were priced around $9. 

“We decided to up our game and create a steakhouse restaurant,” Wilson said. “We’ll be able to provide Black Angus meat and seafood that was caught yesterday or today. The beautiful thing is our chef drives right by Merrick Seafood. I’m a local guy. I like local providers, so I’m real happy about that.” 

Wilson named the restaurant for his father, also Edgar Wilson, who left a five-decade architectural footprint across Lee County. The Grove Avenue home where the younger Wilson grew up, the Lee County Administration Building downtown, elements of Bishop Verot High School and Church of the Resurrection of Our Lord at Summerlin Road and Cypress Lake Drive all carry the elder Wilson’s imprint. 

Some of his father’s work on Fort Myers Beach, however, did not survive the storm surge from Hurricane Ian in September 2022. That loss pushed Wilson to think bigger. 

“When Hurricane Ian came about, I saw what happened to my dad’s work at Fort Myers Beach and the devastation,” he said. “I set up Fort Myers Future to try to build back a little bit better than what Dad had done in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s. I mean, it was all good. But we weren’t prepared for Hurricane Ian.” 

Fort Myers Future bought The Dunes for $3 million in October, a purchase that included the restaurant. 

Edgar’s will be open Tuesday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for lunch and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. for dinner. K.T. Kustritz, community relations manager at The Dunes, said the restaurant will serve both public and private events, such as weddings and family reunions. 

Melissa Sanchez, a Florida Gulf Coast University graduate and Cuba native with almost 300,000 followers on Instagram, will be the resident pianist and music director.

Wilson also sees The Dunes as an amenity for Grande Calusa, the mixed-use redevelopment planned for the former Sanibel Outlets site. Grande Calusa is in line to receive a $20 million grant from Lee County through the federal government to help fund construction on the first phase of the project. 

“We’re getting ready to break ground on 200 units of workforce and affordable housing,” Wilson said. “And then eventually we’ll have a hotel, condos, apartments and restaurant/retail with a performing arts convention center. It’s going to be a unique little center before we get to the bridge to Sanibel. 

“We’re developing the condos. I’m thinking about, what kind of amenities can I give my buyers? In order to sell condos, which are still difficult, you have to have amenities. So, I was looking at golf courses.” 

John Biffar, a Fort Myers independent filmmaker who attended the soft launch, admired the bar, the decor and the menu. 

“Edgar has always had a great heart for the arts,” Biffar said. “I love his vision. I love him as a person. And that’s sincere. It’s about rebuilding resiliently. Edgar brings that energy into this place.”