Venice

Salty Neighbor Bar & Grill Opening in Venice Village Shops

The neighborhood sports bar will feature dozens of TVs, Cuban sandwiches, and handcrafted burgers.

Image courtesy of Salty Neighbor Bar & Grill.

VENICE, FL — Salty Neighbor Bar & Grill is planned for the former Rib City space at 4187 S Tamiami Trl, Venice, FL 34293 in the Venice Village Shops plaza. Owner Edwin Morales told Business Debut the veteran-owned sports bar is targeting an Oct. 1 opening, with the timeline currently set for late September or early October.

What to Expect

Morales described Salty Neighbor as a neighborhood sports bar with 65-inch TVs throughout the restaurant for NFL Ticket and other sports packages.

The restaurant will have 144 seats inside, including a 30-seat bar, with another 20 seats outside, Morales told Business Debut. The bar will be full service, with beer on tap and a setup designed for a short draw from the cooler to keep beer cold.

“It’s going to be like a Cheers,” Morales told Business Debut.

The menu will focus on American bar food with Cuban influence, Morales told Business Debut. Guests can expect Cuban sandwiches, handmade gourmet burgers made with brisket and ground beef, salads, wraps, kids meals, cheesecakes and Cuban flan.

Salty Neighbor will also serve chicken wings, chicken chunks and pork chunks sold by the pound. The chicken can be tossed in sauces such as garlic Parmesan, hot, mild, barbecue and teriyaki, Morales told Business Debut.

Morales is a retired U.S. Navy veteran and said Salty Neighbor will offer 10% off for veterans and first responders. He also plans to build community ties through menu items connected to local police, fire and school groups, with a portion of sales from select items going toward local causes.

Ownership Background

Salty Neighbor will be Morales’ first independent restaurant, though he is already a local business owner. Morales told Business Debut he is a partial owner of two Marco’s Pizza locations in Fort Myers and Cape Coral.

He also operates an Airbnb in the area, a beach house with a pool that he has rented to visitors and snowbirds since 2020, Morales told Business Debut.