Ben Allen's Backyard Grill and Pub

Ben Allen’s Backyard Grill and Pub has something very unique to Naples-area restaurants—a big backyard where popular local music acts can pack in a pretty good crowd.

General manager Zach Stute, 27, grew up on Marco Island where he was part of the first class to graduate from the brick-and-mortar version of Marco Island Charter Middle School. Now he’s making things happen at Ben Allen’s.

Ben Allen’s has the comfortable feel of a neighborhood bar and grill, with activities on tap every day of the week. That relaxed feel doesn’t come by accident.

"We have a big local following,” Stute said. “People love the staff. I take great pride in the people who work here. They’re genuinely good people. The atmosphere will always be better here because the people who work here want to be here. Our staff are all local. They grew up around here. They’re very friendly. A lot of lifelong Naples residents work here. I always tell them we’re all family.”

Ben Allen’s is owned by Todd Brooks, who owns the popular Brooks Burgers restaurants in the area.

“When we got together, Todd asked me what my thoughts were,” Stute said. "I thought, ‘We’ve got to make this appealing to my generation as well as others.' I thought we could make this into a music venue that would attract a lot of people. Offer them a large variety of liquors. Not pigeonhole us with just the burger idea.”

When Stute set about making Ben Allen’s into a music venue, he recognized the large backyard area as a unique opportunity.

“I think the backyard is what really separates us,” Stute said. “It’s become an identity for us. The backyard is very casual. We’re getting cameras set up so we can have the music from outside broadcast inside. We’re really happy with how things have turned out.

"We are making this an entertainment venue,” Stute said. "We added the front and back patio during COVID. With COVID it was adapt or die. We had to keep everything going. We added outdoor seating. We did it with the idea that we would have active stuff in the backyard. We have a mobile trailer that folds out into a full-on 30’ stage with a light set up. We have a mini jumbotron for fights and sports. We have all the sports packages.

"Having that sports bar feel is something we want to build on,” Stute said. "We have 24 draft lines. We carry a lot of local beers. A lot of the stuff we carry here are Florida breweries. We’re constantly rotating through drafts. I enjoy that and the bartenders enjoying selling them. That appeases to craft beer drinkers. Monday through Wednesday we offer industry night where we do 25 percent off for people who work in the industry.

"We do an open MIC night on Mondays because that’s how Ben Allen got started. We always post our music for the week on our board. People can apply online to play here now. We have tons of people who want to play here. It’s kind of turned into a monster that we try to dial back. We have someone who solely handles all our bookings. People show up all the time and ask me if they can play here.”

The addition of Ben Allen, who made it to the finals on the popular national TV show The Voice, was an idea of Brooks.

"Todd was a big fan of Ben’s,” Stute said. "We did a lot of music with Ben, even before he was on The Voice. We followed him through his journey. Todd gave him the opportunity to put his name on the business and make a couple of appearances a year. Help give his input on the menu. Ben jumped at the opportunity. We actually had Ben play two nights in a row on our opening weekend. We made it an intimate setting. We can only fit in about 300 people. Ben sells out Hertz Arena. The first time we did it we had a great turnout. Everyone enjoyed it. It was a good energy to carry into the restaurant.”

Stute said Ben Allen’s will remain true to their Brooks Burgers roots, while adding a variety other culinary options.

"We kept the original Brooks Burgers,” Stute said. “We really know how to do burgers. We wanted to be able to have a variety of things. We have a scratch kitchen. We have ribs, pasta and shrimp. We’re really proud of what we’re doing.”