The Anna Maria Island Sun Newspaper


Vol. 16 No. 7 - December 16, 2015

BUSINESS

The Feast: casual and fine dining

LaPensee Plumbing Pools Air

LOUISE BOLGER | SUN

Brothers Joseph and Chris Dale are
owners and chefs.

BY LOUISE BOLGER | SUN STAFF WRITER

What does it say to you when a restaurant provides a birds-eye-view into their kitchen? What it says to me is they have a level of confidence in what goes on behind closed doors that most cooks in their own homes don’t have. The Feast restaurant in Holmes Beach opened in October of 2009, and the confidence level is a direct result of the success and consistent following the restaurant has acquired.

Owners, chefs and brothers Christofer and Joseph Dale accrued years of experience and training working in many of the Island restaurants. They classify their restaurant as casual fine dining and have recently completed a total renovation that supports their dining concept.

The main room of the restaurant has a trendy high end look with tables and booths along the wall. There are touches of reclaimed wood on the walls, attained from the Bradenton Beach City Pier after it was rebuilt, and a brick archway focal point. The front room has some booths as well as a window bar for extra seating or enjoying a glass of wine while waiting for your take out order.

The hallway leading to the rest rooms is covered with artworks from local artists, some of which are for sale. The restrooms also received a total makeover with a cranberry color for the ladies and blue for the gents.

The Feast uses local and seasonal seafood and is famous for its all you can eat snow crab summer special. There are daily specials that always include a pasta selection, a meat selection and two to three seafood selections. Streamlining and improving their menu items is always a work in progress for the Dale borthers.

Some of their menu entrees are beef tenderloin, veal Madeira, crab cakes, chicken Marsala and salmon Florence. There are lots of appetizers, soups and salads to choose from like grouper bites, coconut shrimp, crackling calamari, Nicoise salad, lobster bisque and New England clam chowder and a large selection of gourmet pizzas. They make their own Key Lime pie and brownies and purchase other desserts from Island bakers.

The lunch menu includes a variety of sandwiches like crab cake and chicken, salads and soups. The restaurant also offers beer and wine with 100 bottles of wine and wine by the glass. They offer ales and imported and craft beers as well.

Chris and Joseph Dale do the primary cooking, and one of them is always on the premises. They appreciate all of their regular customers and long term staff for helping them accomplish their goal of owning and operating a successful Island restaurant. They have always lived on Anna Maria and support local community events, and these two Island boys aren’t done. They are already looking to the future for another restaurant business opportunity.

If you haven’t been to The Feast restaurant recently, you will be pleasantly surprised. The Dales have put together the perfect combination of casual and fine dining along with a window into the kitchen. As the sign above the kitchen door says, “Paradise found.”

THE FEAST RESTAURANT

Island Shopping Center

5406 Marina Dr., Holmes Beach

941-778-5092

www.thefeastrestaurant.com

11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.

7 days a week

Take out available

All major credit cards accepted

Anna Maria Island Sun News Story

High-income earners can still use a Roth IRA

Investment Corner By Tom Breiter

Have you ever known something was right for you and been told you couldn’t have it? It can be pretty frustrating. Many high-income earners, who would like to contribute directly to Roth accounts, cannot do so because of IRS income limits. However, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible for high-earners to reap the benefits associated with Roth accounts, such as tax-free growth, tax-free distributions and no required minimum distributions. They may be able to participate in Roth accounts by:

1. Converting an existing Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. Anyone can move the assets accumulated in a traditional IRA account to a Roth IRA account, regardless of income. The catch is you’ll owe current income tax on the amount converted. This may be a sound choice if:

• You want tax-free income during retirement;

• You expect to be in the same or a higher tax bracket in the future;

• You can pay taxes owed from sources other than the IRA account;

• You plan to leave the account for your heirs.

2.Completing a backdoor Roth conversion. If you earn too much to contribute directly to a Roth IRA (adjusted gross income of $131,000 or more for a single filer; $193,000 for joint filers in 2015), then you can contribute to a non-deductible traditional IRA and convert it to a Roth IRA. This is called a backdoor Roth conversion. It may have some appeal for high-income individuals even though IRA contribution limits, which are $5,500 in 2015 ($6,500 if you are age 50 or older), make it difficult to build a substantial position.

Before pursuing a backdoor Roth conversion, it’s essential to thoroughly understand the rules and limitations. For example, the pro-rata rule requires individuals who are complete backdoor Roth conversions to calculate taxes owed across all untaxed IRA assets. So, if you have other IRAs that have not been taxed then a pro-rata portion of any assets converted to a Roth IRA may be taxable. Your financial professional or tax account will be helpful in understanding the limitations.

If you complete a Roth conversion of any kind and regret the decision, you can re-characterize the conversion by converting the Roth IRA assets back into a traditional IRA. This must be done within specific time frames.

3. Making Roth contributions to a 401(k) plan. Not all employer-sponsored retirement plans offer Roth 401(k) plan contributions. If yours does, take advantage of it. There are no income limits on Roth 401(k) contributions and contribution limits are more generous than those for traditional IRAs. During 2015, plan participants may contribute up to $18,000 to a 401(k) plan account, plus up to $6,000 more, if they are age 50 or older.

No matter how much money you earn, it is possible to enjoy the benefits of a Roth account. Just make sure you talk with a financial professional and understand the rules, limitations and potential impact of any conversion before you take action.

Tom Breiter is president of Breiter Capital Management, Inc., an Anna Maria based investment advisor. He can be reached at 778-1900. Some of the investment concepts highlighted in this column may carry the risk of loss of principal, and investors should determine appropriateness for their personal situation before investing. Visit www.breitercapital.com.

 


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