Urban Reef to Open in Downtown Sarasota

URBAN REEF is proud to announce its grand opening, infusing a fresh vacation atmosphere into the heart of downtown Sarasota. The Reef is cooking up fresh tropical cuisine with an edgy twist, nightly live entertainment and a wide range of special events. URBAN REEF is owned and operated by the two-generation Sarasota family of Larry and Kathy Heinzerling and Eric and Andrea Zito. The grand opening is set for Thursday, November 12th, with a soft opening on Monday, November 2nd.

With inspiration from traditional Floribbean cuisine, Urban Reef has developed a menu with that is unique to Sarasota, bringing the beach into the city with fresh, local seafood. Common ingredients in the URBAN REEF kitchen are bold and modern, featuring stars such as curry, coconut, coffee, pumpkin, cilantro, and ginger. For starters, URBAN REEF offers Caribbean inspired appetizers, featuring:

--Deep Fried Barbados Style Fish Fritters with House Tarter --Massa Corn Slow Braised Pork Tamale Cakes, Chipotle Chocolate Sauce, Sour Cream & Pineapple Pickled Ginger

Featured dishes from the URBAN REEF dinner menu include:

--Crispy Skin-on Snapper, Pineapple Slaw, Coconut Red Curry and Mango Salsa --Pan Seared Grouper, Spinach Lump Crab Stir Fry, Coo Coo Cake and Peppercorn Beurre Blanc --Coffee Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Goombay Smash Yucca Sweet Potatoes and Apple Jus

URBAN REEF offers live entertainment both upstairs and downstairs, including a vast array of talent from local DJ's, singers, bands, and karaoke performers. There are several events planned to round out the holiday season, including special industry nights, block parties and charity functions, including a benefit in early December for Daxton Cole Blanford, a nine month old baby with stomach cancer. All cover charges from the benefit will go directly to the Blanford family. “We love our community,” said co-owner Eric Zito. “We want nothing more than to add to our growing town and for our town to love us right back.”

Join the URBAN REEF family on Thursday, November 12th, for a fabulous grand opening weekend with great entertainment, food and drink specials, and prize giveaways. For more information, please call (941) 365-5181.

ABOUT URBAN REEF: Urban Reef is located at 1888 Main Street, on the corner of Links and Main in the heart of downtown Sarasota. The restaurant is open Monday through Saturday for lunch from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm, and again for dinner from 5:00 PM - 11:00 PM. The bar is open until 2:00 am Monday through Saturday. Dinner prices range from $15-$24 a dish. For more information, please call (941) 365.5181.

National Parkinson Leader Comes to Sarasota

Dr. Michael Okun, MD, Medical Director for the National Parkinson Foundation, will visit Sarasota this weekend to tour the Neuro Challenge Foundation (NCF) Parkinson Comprehensive Care Center and to meet with NCF leaders. Dr. Okun has taken a special interest in the Sarasota based foundation, where more than 1,300 Parkinson patients annually receive counseling and recommendations on a broad array of treatments designed specifically for Parkinson Diesease. The Care Center is part of an elite group of Parkinson Disease centers, due to its large caseload and its geographic location outside of a university setting.

Dr. Okun will also participate in the first annual Neuro Challenge Foundation Charity Golf Tournament this Saturday at the Heritage Oaks Golf and Country Club. All proceeds from the scramble format tournament will benefit Neuro Challenge Foundation, a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to improving the quality of life of people struggling with Parkinson Disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.

Dr. Okun will be the guest of Neuro Challenge Foundation Medical Advisor Dr. Dean Sutherland, MD, PhD and will speak to NCF Foundation supporters at a dinner following the golf tournament. Both doctors are at the forefront of Parkinson research and support services. The mission of Sarasota’s Neuro Challenge Foundation is unique and local, yet consistent with the message of the National Parkinson Foundation: to improve the quality of care for people with Parkinson’s disease through research, education and outreach.

Check-in for the tournament is at 11:00 am, followed by a putting contest and driving practice. Golfers have the chance to win cash and prizes on the course including $5,000 on a par 3 hole. The tournament begins at 1:00 pm and will end with a cocktail hour, dinner, raffle and the announcement of prizes, including a 42” flat screen TV, golf clubs, gift certificates and more. Registration for the tournament is $95 per player, and may be reserved by calling Mark Bisgeier at (941) 400-7867 or emailing golf@neurochallenge.org. Tickets for the dinner only are $35. “Bring your friends and enjoy an excellent day of play,” says Bisgeier. “And create some hope along the way.”About The Neuro Challenge Foundation: The Neuro Challenge Foundation is advised by Sarasota physicians Dean P. Sutherland, M.D., Ph.D., Bernard Feinberg, M..D. and Donald Negroski, M.D., and is dedicated to the fight against Parkinson Disease, MS and related neurodegenerative diseases. The Foundation, operated entirely through volunteer time and charitable donations, maintains a Parkinson Comprehensive Care Center in Sarasota, Florida. At the Center, patients and families receive advice on surgical and non-surgical treatments, counseling, health and fitness, home services and more. The Center offers a level of care that rivals major university medical centers. Patients seen at the Parkinson Disease Center have access to the latest information, medications, surgeries, diagnostic tests, rehabilitation services and alternative therapies. As a result, the reputation of the Center has grown by leaps and bounds, extending to the entire state of Florida and beyond.

About the National Parkinson Foundation: The mission of the National Parkinson Foundation is to improve the quality of care for people with Parkinson’s disease through research, education and outreach. Founded in 1957, NPF is a leading national organization with an extensive grassroots network of Centers of Excellence, chapters and support groups in the United States, Canada and internationally. Unique among the national Parkinson’s organizations, NPF is the only organization with a singular focus on improving the quality of care in Parkinson’s disease. Since 1982, NPF has funded more than $150 million in care, research and support services.

About Dr. Michael Okun, MD: Michael S. Okun, MD is Co-director of the Movement Disorders Center located within the McKnight Brain Institute and the University of Florida College of Medicine. Dr. Okun is dedicated to an interdisciplinary care concept, and since his appointment as the National Medical Director for the National Parkinson Foundation in 2006, he has worked with the 64 NPF Centers to help foster the best possible environments for care, research and outreach in Parkinson disease. Dr. Okun has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles, and has served as a reviewer for more than 25 major medical journals. He has been invited to speak about Parkinson disease and movement disorders in various regions throughout the world, and he is currently a faculty and founding member for SUPPORT-PD, which aims to bring functional Parkinson and Movement Disorders Surgery to “countries in need” around the globe.

Michael A. Gilkey, Jr. in AIA's 10 x 10

Sarasota Landscape Architect Michael A. Gilkey is excited to join a cast of ten designers as they present "10 x 10: Ten Slides by Ten Designers," and answer the question: What Inspires You?
Each designer will present 10 slides illustrating their inspirational sources. Each slide will be presented for no longer than 30 seconds, creating a fun, fast atmosphere for creative dialogue.

The 10 x 10 event is held quarterly by the Florida Gulf Coast Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. The show will take place at the Art Center of Sarasota this Friday, October 23 at 5:30 pm. Admission is $5 for AIA members and $10 for the public.

Marcy Chapman Featured in Style Magazine

Sarasota water media artist Marcy Chapman was featured in the October issue of Style Magazine, a Herald-Tribune Media Group publication. Writer Su Byron's interview with Marcy follows in its entirety.

Marcy Chapman began painting nearly 30 years ago as the result of a "happy accident," when she enrolled in a watercolor class because a guitar class was canceled. "The second I picked up my paintbrush, I knew I had found my thing," she says. After taking a variety of college art courses and workshops taught by noted artists, the former English teacher blossomed as a visual artist. Chapman went on to create a large body of work in a continually evolving style. She and her husband moved to Sarasota three years ago. "I couldn't be happier," she says. Her work can be seen at www.marcychapman.com.

How do you describe your recent work?
I call it contemporary impressionism or mixed water media presented without the visual interference of glass.

What's the advantage of leaving off the glass?
Clarity. Without the visual barrier of glass, the vivid colors of the painted surface are fully exposed. You can see the transparency and expression of light. You can also avoid those annoying reflections.

What landscapes inspire you the most?
I've always been an avid gardener and observer of nature. The tropical environment in Florida constantly inspires me. Gardens, individual plants and flowers, water scenes and birds all fascinate me and end up in my work.

Other than the natural world, what inspires you?
I'm interested in architectural structures and details: cottages, gates and fountains, especially.

Who are your principal artistic influences?
I love to paint the emotion I feel without being tied to a particular school or influence.

What's your take on Sarasota's visual arts scene?
A strong artistic presence enhances so many facets of this community. It's wonderful, positive and supportive. So many places call themselves an arts community. Sarasota is truly deserving of that name.