Sweet Tomatoes salad bar restaurant has returned to its original south Fort Myers location and announced its grand reopening June 1.
After the previous owner filed for bankruptcy and the global pandemic began, all 97 Sweet Tomatoes locations shut down across the country in 2020.
A new ownership group, ST Three LLC, bought the brand in 2020 and revived it April 1, 2024, reopening a restaurant in Tucson, Arizona.
A little more than two years later, location No. 2 is set to reopen at 14080 S. Tamiami Trail, just south of Volkswagen of Fort Myers.
“Fort Myers happened to be available,” said Marlee Lossing, the company’s Orlando-based, director of corporate affairs. “It was a great location in the past. To us, it was a no brainer. It’s a great spot, a great building, a great community.”
Sweet Tomatoes
David Dorsey
Tampa-based TWT: Restaurant Design, Construction and Development Co. did a complete interior gutting and reconstruction of the restaurant.
“We’re in our soft open phase right now,” said Lossing, who is aware that despite the “soft opening” distinction, there have been lines out the door each morning in Fort Myers. “It’s not necessarily very soft. Just through the power of social media, our guests have found out we’re open again.
“But we’re still in training. Our hours are a little bit variable based on training and availability.”
This Sunday, May 31, the Fort Myers location will close for the day, giving the team of nearly 100 employees and general manager Tommy Ford one last chance to rest the day before the official opening June 1.
From then on, Sweet Tomatoes will be open 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sundays.
“It’s a very exciting time,” Lossing said. “Our construction was fantastic. TWT, our general contractor, did a fantastic job. They worked side by side with us to get our store opened. They gave it a beautiful facelift. This location has been closed for six years. I’ve spoken to so many guests who used to come to that location. Or they brought their kids when they were little, and now they’re high school graduates.
“We’re expecting a very large crowd.”
Sweet Tomatoes
David Dorsey
Sweet Tomatoes used to have a North Naples location, as well, in Granada Shoppes on the southeast corner of U.S. 41 and Immokalee Road, but the company is not ready yet to announce future openings. Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen operated there for less than three years before closing earlier this year. That space is available again.
“There’s always a possibility,” Lossing said. “We are always exploring future markets nationwide. We’re not ready to announce any additional locations at this time. We’re not committing to how many the future holds, but we’re working hard to bring it to as many guests as possible.”
The salad bar costs $12.99 for lunch and $13.99 for dinner, with the dinner prices in place all day on weekends. The price includes the soup, salad and bakery bars, with beverages sold separately.
“We tried to make it a great value for our guests,” Lossing said.