Popular Naples restaurant temporarily closes, encourages everyone to stay strong

It’s a reality many restaurants and stores are facing: shut down to stay safe or stay open and take a risk.

Spanky’s Eatery and Spirits made the choice to temporarily close, but it has a message for everyone here in SWFL: Stay strong.

The owners of the Collier County restaurant are no strangers to times of hardship.

“We endured the wrath of Hurricane Irma and came back very strong and this is another challenge for us and employees, but we will come back strong again,” said Ted Monty.

With the new guidelines to stop the spread of the coronavirus, they wanted to protect their employees and their elderly customers.

“In Naples, the population is older than on national scene, so it’s concerning for us and we want to make sure they are safe as well as our employees,” said Emily Monty.

They promise they will be Naples strong.

“It’s going to take a community as a whole to fight this and get everyone back where we need to be,” Emily said.

And this is all just temporary.

“Spanky’s has been a staple for 35 years and will be for a long time to come,” Emily said.

The restaurant says they will be open once it is safe for their employees and their customers. They’re urging other restaurants to stick with the governor’s guidance and stay at half capacity.