Margarita Grill to be rebuilt as tiki-type Lazy Parrot

Margarita Grill closed and will become The Lazy Parrot.

The Margarita Grill in south Fort Myers is being partially demolished and will become The Lazy Parrot, a tiki bar and grill.

"There is a need for this in that area because people don't like to have to drive these days," said Jeff Gambiano, the owner of the Buddha Bar & Grill in south Fort Myers. "People want an environment where they can relax and enjoy themselves."

Gambiano is expanding his bar and grill business further south by opening The Lazy Parrot and offering patrons a new venue to listen to live music.

"The two venues will be totally different but they will both have live music and a nice atmosphere," said Gambiano, who has run the Buddha Bar & Grill for more than a year.

"There aren't a lot of tiki bar places where people can enjoy the outdoors ... it is Florida after all."

Gambiano is rebuilding the 8,000-square-foot Margarita Grill building to include a new 80--by-50-foot tiki bar, new bars and a glass wall that will open to connect the inside with the outside seating.

"We want this to be something very unique and that's why we are adding the glass wall, people can smoke outdoors and hear the music," he said about the restaurant that will employ 30 to 35 people. "We will be putting more focus on a huge outdoor tiki bar in the front."

The remodel will also include changing the existing entrance

to the building and moving it near the parking area.

"There will be major changes, new bathrooms and all brand new bars," said Gambiano, who had been looking for a space to open the tiki bar for a year. "Our hope is to catch the second half of season."

The Lazy Parrot is expected to open in January 2008 and Gambiano said it will be unlike anything people have seen before.

"The food will be island fare ... fruity drinks at the bar," Gambiano said. "We will have anything that you'd expect at a full-scale night club and at a tiki bar."