The Doc Ford’s Sanibel Rum Bar & Grille and Doc Ford’s Fort Myers Beach, along with their Fort Myers Beach-based sister restaurant, The Beached Whale, are known for offering delicious food and drinks. Now those three restaurants are looking to serve up dozens of employment opportunities to qualified applicants looking for employment.

A group of hopefuls filling out applications

Nearly 300 candidates stopped by Doc Ford’s on Fort Myers Beach on Oct. 6 during an open employee search to fill out applications, deliver resumes, and meet with representatives from the three restaurants for pre-screening interviews pertaining to management, serving, hosting, cooking, bartending and kitchen positions. 

Everyone from experienced restaurant workers to unemployed career candidates open to a change turned up trying to make a good enough impression to rate further consideration. 

Doc Ford's Fort Myers Beach manager, Wade Craft (left), interviewing an applicant.

Wade Craft, a manager at the Doc Ford’s Fort Myers Beach location, plans to continue building the team that was on board when the restaurant opened in April. “We’re hoping to get the best of the best,” he said. “We have a great staff now and we’re looking to add to that. We’re a growing company, so there’s potential within the company. Not many businesses anymore will offer benefits. We offer a great working environment and a great opportunity for people to make money.”

Because so many people are looking for work right now, Beached Whale manager Pam Crenshaw recognizes what that means for her selection process. “We strive to hire the best employees that we can for long-term retention,” she said. “Fortunately for us, the market is very competitive, so we get our pick of people in the job market.”

Crenshaw, who puts a premium on personality, asked applicants to tell her a joke during their interview to see how they would respond.

Doc Ford’s Sanibel manager Elizabeth Harris noted that although her restaurant has exceptionally low turnover and only a few positions need to be filled, she is always on the lookout for hidden treasures who are “eager and willing” to work for a good company in an “amazing atmosphere” where customers are thought of and treated like family. “We’ll find a spot for you,” she says of top-notch candidates, and added that some employees can qualify for toll reimbursement and other benefits.

Judy Voelz recently moved to Fort Myers from Indiana, and she hopes to secure a bartending spot to supplement the income she’s receiving from her job at Tarpon Bay Explorers on Sanibel. “It’s a wonderful company,” she said of Doc Ford’s. “I’ve heard nothing but great things about them and I’m looking for the best people to work for. The competition (for jobs) is tougher, but we’ll see what happens.”

Chris, another bartending applicant, is dissatisfied with the financial limitations at his current restaurant job, and he hopes that Doc Ford’s or the Beached Whale can provide “better opportunities at a good company that’s secure.”

Marty Harrity, who is part-owner of the three restaurants, summed up what his company hopes to find in its potential employees; “We look for people that want good jobs with a good company that has good benefits,” he said. “They enjoy doing what they do and understand the meaning of hospitality, and that’s what this business is all about.”

Although a well-known song suggests “It’s not easy being green,” there are three popular local restaurants that are gladly giving it their best shot—and they’re succeeding.

Doc Ford’s Sanibel Rum Bar & Grille and the recently opened Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille under the Matanzas Pass Bridge and The Beached Whale at Fort Myers Beach have been making a concentrated effort to “go green” and do their part to preserve and protect the environment. All restaurants continue to recycle used items and they are replacing “unfriendly” products they pass on to patrons with more eco-acceptable substitutes.

The Doc Ford’s Sanibel staff has spent the past few months testing green cups and containers to find those that are both environmentally sound and customer friendly. They are phasing out plastic bags and providing reusable green ones with the Doc Ford’s logo, and automatic hand dryers have replaced paper towel dispensers in the restrooms.

Elizabeth Harris and Greg Barker of Doc Ford's are happy to be participating in the green efforts.

“We are on our way to being fully green,” said manager Jean Crenshaw. “We recently got rid of our Styrofoam containers and drink glasses. Now we have sugar cane pulp to-go boxes. They’re completely biodegradable, so we switched. Our to-go glasses are cardboard glass now—fully biodegradable. Even our garbage bags—we changed to a vegetable oil-blend garbage bag.”

The staff tried out several products to see which ones best maintained food quality. “It took a lot of research to find the right to-go boxes,” Crenshaw said. “Of course, they make plastic ones, but is everyone going to recycle them? A lot of take-out orders (on Sanibel) are from people on vacation, so they’re not set up to recycle, so we decided to go with these paper pulp to-go boxes.”

According to Crenshaw, going green has been a group effort that has involved the owners, managers and staff at all three restaurants.  ”We all team together and think of different ways to do things to help the environment,” she said.  “All of us definitely care, and (being) on coastal communities, I think we’re a little more environmentally friendly and we care a little more about our surroundings here. (Server) Kevin Filliowich and (hostess) Bette Roberts have been in the paper for their (environmental) efforts. They’re all about the earth and different things we can do, so they’re always coming up to us with ideas, things we can do to help make a difference.”

Crenshaw hopes that Sanibel businesses continue their efforts to protect the planet. “I think everyone on the island is doing their part,” she said. “There’s a lot more everyone can do, but I’ve noticed when I go into other places that other people are doing things. I don’t think that people feel pressure to do it; I think more or less the businesses want to help participate, they want to make things better, but hopefully, Doc Ford’s is a leader and making things better for the environment.”

The Doc Ford’s Fort Myers Beach and the Beached Whale locations have joined their sister restaurant on Sanibel in its going green campaign. “We’re recycling all of our bottles and all of our cardboard,” said general manager Dan Howes. “We’re trying to cut down on paper products and water waste and recycle when we can and buy recyclable products when we can. It’s the way of the future to be environmentally conscious. I think everybody should start looking to be that way, and our owners feel that way, and they want to help however they can.”

Marty Harrity and his wife, Brenda, are part-owners of the restaurants, and Harrity is pleased to see his establishments taking these eco-responsible steps.

“It’s the right thing to do,” he said. “We live in an environmentally-sensitive area, and it would just appear that everybody should join that kind of a bandwagon. We’ve been recycling trash and glass and cardboard for years. Now we even recycle our cooking oil. The used oil gets processed into fuel for the trucks that deliver the new cooking oil!  Again, as we look at what we do from a business standpoint, we try to do the right thing all the time.”
When the Doc Ford’s and Beached Whale teams researched Styrofoam replacements, they went with a more expensive container instead of one that cost less but didn’t preserve food as well.  “It’s a never ending program of just constantly looking at the stuff that you buy and making sure you’re making the right decisions when it comes to the environment,” Harrity said. “Anytime we look at a product, we look at how it can best suit the area and be environmentally friendly. But, it has to be consumer friendly also.”

As long-time Sanibel residents, Marty Harrity and his wife plan to continue to help an important cause that means a lot to them. “We’ve been a part of this community for 20 years,” Harrity said. “It’s a very special place and we want to make sure that it stays as special as it’s always been.”

Congressman Connie Mack IV (FL-14) was feted at a 42nd birthday celebration on August 10 at Doc Ford’s Fort Myers Beach, with a special surprise gift, presented by Marty Harrity, owner of Doc Ford’s.

Before a gathering that included some of Southwest Florida’s most prominent leaders, Harrity presented Representative Mack with an
archival photo portraying a shrimp boat, named the Connie Mack, that was part of the Fort Myers Beach shrimp fleet.  Shown in the photograph, which was taken before Congressman Mack IV was born, is the Congressman’s grandfather (Connie Mack Jr.).  Connie Mack II was the owner of shrimp boats that docked in the same area the current Doc Ford’s restaurant overlooks.

Mack’s wife, Congresswoman Mary Bono Mack was present at the celebration, along with his children; step-daughter Chianna, daughter Addison and son Connie Mack, V. Bono Mack serves the people of California’s 45th District, which includes the community of Palm Springs, California.

Doc Ford’s Fort Myers Beach was pleased to host New York Times Best Selling author Randy Wayne White on July 26, 2009.

Excited fans lined-up early for a chance to meet the author and get their copy of  Dead Silence, the latest novel in the Doc Ford series, signed.

Click on any of the images below to see full-size.

Author, Randy Wayne White

Randy Wayne White and wife, Wendy proudly watched the many fans in line waiting for their opportunity to met the author.

Stan & Jeanne Seeds of Ft. Myers came to get their copy of the newest book signed and to see if Jeanne’s daughter Debbie Flynn had another mention in White’s book.

A young fan, Jack, age 2.

Doc Ford’s enthusiasts will be excited to hear that New York Times Best Selling author Randy Wayne White will be signing copies of his latest novel in the Doc Ford series, Dead Silence, on Sunday, July 26, 2009. The best selling author and local favorite is scheduled for two appearances 12pm – 2pm and 4pm – 6pm.

The event will take place at Doc Ford’s Bar & Grill on Fort Myers Beach. Devoted fans of the author and his colorful characters are certain to be there anxiously awaiting White’s arrival while sampling the tantalizing food on the Doc Ford’s menu.

Join the crowd inside and dockside and enjoy Caribbean Jerk Nachos, Shrimp Sausage Quesadillas, or the famous Fish Tacos – not to mention the best Mojito’s on the Beach – while sharing stories about the adventures of Marion ‘Doc’ Ford and his pals.

Dead Silence is the 16th in the series of Doc Ford novels and quite possibly the most chilling yet. Meet the author and get the latest scoop. Who knows, you may even wind up as a character in his next novel.

For more information, please call (239) 765-9660 or visit www.docfords.com. Doc Ford’s Fort Myers Beach Bar & Grill is located at 708 Fisherman’s Wharf Drive (last right before the Fort Myers Beach bridge). Channel Marker 22.