A favorite waiter retires

Every downtown has its favorite white-tablecloth restaurant.

You know the kind of place: It's where business deals get done, lawyers meet to hash out settlements and people dine to see and be seen. The Veranda in downtown Fort Myers is one such restaurant.

So it's big news for the downtown crowd when one of its veteran waiters retires. The Peden family, the owners of the Veranda, even issued a press release announcing Larry Forsyth's retirement.

On March 21, Forsyth will hang up his tuxedo after 27 years at Veranda. He says he plans to volunteer in the community with his wife, Pamela, to whom he's been married 38 years.

The Veranda, located inside two Victorian homes on Second Street in downtown Fort Myers, celebrates 37 years in business in 2015. Beside the Veranda, the Peden family also owns the Rib City barbecue restaurant chain.