Restaurant group to launch new seafood concept in early 2021

SARASOTA — Gecko’s Hospitality Group Founders Mike Gowan and Mike Quillen plan to open a new contemporary restaurant concept called Tripletail Seafood & Spirits in early 2021

Tripletail will be at The Landings in Sarasota at 4870 S. Tamiami Trail. Tripletail’s dining room and bar design as well as a new kitchen were created and implemented by Gowan, according to a press release. His ideas were combined with insights from Wil Stutzman, general manager of Gecko’s Hospitality Group's sibling, Dry Dock Waterfront Grill on Longboat Key.

The Tripletail Seafood & Spirits menu will include fresh, locally sourced fare from the seas, bays, ocean and shore, with Dry Dock favorites and Gulf of Mexico-centric catches.

Tripletail’s cocktail lounge within the restaurant will serve classics and offer craft and signature cocktails, the release states. The cocktails will be prepared under the direction of Gecko’s Hospitality Group COO Fiona Farrell. A wine list will include 35 domestic and imported offerings. 

The space will provide socially distanced dining for about 150 guests. It will have a nautical ambiance with modern lighting, plantation shutters, shiplap paneling, spacious tables and deep red leather booths with glass dividers. The patio will have greenery privacy walls and a 10-foot waterfall feature.

Tripletail will be led by Chef Trae Peavey and General Manager Meagan Smith, a veteran Dry Dock manager. When Tripletail opens, it will create 50 hospitality jobs, according to a press release.  

Gecko’s Hospitality Group is locally owned and operated. It employs over 600 Floridians. The group includes Gecko’s Grill & Pub, Dry Dock Waterfront Grill, Dockside Waterfront Grill and Red Barn Bar.