Skillets bringing its breakfast and lunch menu to Bradenton area with new restaurant
A Naples-based breakfast-and-lunch restaurant company with an eye-popping menu plans to open its first Bradenton area eatery by mid-June.
Skillets’ new 180-seat restaurant, located in School House Plaza at 9722 State Road 64 E., across from Carlos E. Haile Middle School, has four broad menu categories: early risers, breakfast, lunch, and kids.
The Early Risers menu, available 7 - 9 a.m. Monday-Friday, offers a variety of dishes for $8.95, including coffee, tea or soft drink.
Among the Early Risers selections: Skillet Omelet with bacon, tomato, and Swiss cheese, topped with fresh avocado, served with potatoes, toast, and a fresh fruit cup. Other Early Risers include the Panegger (pancake and eggs dish), the Breakfast Skillet (two eggs your way, potatoes and bacon strip or sausage, toast and fruit cup), and Noreen’s Breakfast (steamed spinach, grilled tomato slices, topped with avocado and chives, served with a poached egg, wheat toast, and a fruit cup).
The breakfast menu then moves on to a variety of Skillets (yes, many of the dishes are served in skillets), ranging from corned beef hash to veggie meals. Also on the breakfast menu: multiple ways to have pancakes, omelets, fritattas, eggs benedict, waffles, French toast, blintzes and crepes, and more.
The extensive lunch menu features something for everyone from sandwiches and wraps to tacos, quesadillas, soups and salads. Yes, there are plenty of lunch choices, but the breakfast menu really does feel like the Fourth of July of breakfasts.
Ross and Noreen Edlund founded Skillets Restaurants in 1995 in Naples, and now have five restaurants in Collier County, three in the Fort Myers area, and two in Sarasota County, serving traditional American fare with a focus on high quality ingredients, as well as healthy options.
“We started our restaurants in 1995 and we grew with the town,” said CEO Ross Edlund. “There is a lot of love that goes into the food.”
The Edlunds decided to open a restaurant in Manatee County about five years ago, attracted by the growth in the Bradenton and Lakewood Ranch area.
Skillets might have opened even earlier except for the coronavirus pandemic. Fortunately, many of the new restaurant’s seats are outside.
“We have a nice big patio,” Ross Edlund said.
“We have a great breakfast, the best around. We make our own breads and everything is made from scratch,” he said.
Before becoming a restaurateur, Ross Edlund was a baker. His breads, scones, and biscuits are all house-baked using his own recipes. Skillets’ pancake and waffle batters are also Edlund’s creations, made from scratch.
Noreen is particularly proud of Skillets’ healthy menu selections, identified on the menu as Blue Zone options.
In a tip of the hat to the local scene, the restaurant is decorated with photos of Bradenton area landmarks.
“We are so excited.. People are telling us you’re making the best decision of your career by coming to Bradenton,” Ross said.
Skillets is open 7 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. daily, serving breakfast and lunch. The restaurant also offers catering, curbside pickup and delivery through Doordash.
For more information about Skillets, visit skilletsrestaurants.com/ or call 941-254-4609. The restaurant plans an on-site job fair 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Friday, June 4. Applicants may also apply online on the company website.
This story was originally published May 28, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
