New restaurant brings fine European flavors to downtown Bradenton. Take a look inside
When Fabjan Dodaj found pieces of old wood inside the historical Manatee County building he bought, he didn’t toss them.
Rather, Fabjan and his wife, Orjola, used the pieces to create a backdrop for the bar at their newly rebranded restaurant: Sofra Kitchen Bar & Bistro, 606 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton.
Not long after becoming the owners of Fusilly’s Italian Kitchen, which previously occupied the space, the Dodajs decided it was time for something new and closed the restaurant last year. Now the refresh is complete.
Opened in mid-March, Sofra is a fine dining restaurant centered on European cuisine, with many Italian dishes dotting the menu.
It features outside and inside dining, an events room and a full-service bar.
Menu highlights European flavors
Some signature dishes include seafood risotto, made with shrimp and mussels, and the branzino, a Mediterranean sea bass served over a truffle mushroom risotto.
Appetizers cost between $15 and $24, while entrees are priced between $27 and $55. Pasta dishes cost between $21 and $35.
There are 138 seats for dining between the inside and outside tables. Reservations are optional and can be made on OpenTable.com.
Behind the bar sits the honeycomb display holding various bottles of alcohol and wine. Orjola came up with the design, while Fabjan added a clear coat of lacquer to the wood.
“We wanted to do something that, yes, it gives you a minute of thinking and looking at it,” Fabjan said.
‘Good quality food’
Originally from Shkoder, Albania, Fabjan and Orjola moved to the Bradenton area from Michigan three years ago.
Eventually, they bought the building and the prior restaurant at 606 Manatee Ave. W., Fusilly’s Italian Kitchen.
“It was doing very well, but it wasn’t what we expected,” Fabjan said. “We tweaked a few things. We brought a chef from Italy to tweak a few things and it got better.”
When they began remodeling the building and had to close the restaurant, they decided it was the perfect time for a rebrand.
“(In the) back of my head, me and my wife wanted something (upscale), good quality food, something we can’t find in this town around here,” Fabjan said.
Finding an executive chef
They just needed an executive chef. For that, they looked back to Michigan, where they found Armand Dosti.
Originally from Berat, Albania, Dosti was working as executive chef at the highly rated Tallulah Wine Bar & Bistro in Birmingham, Michigan.
Dosti says he enjoyed working at Tallulah, where he oversaw a kitchen that won “Restaurant of the Year Classic” from the Detroit Free Press in 2023. But he always wanted to have a restaurant of his own.
When Fabjan offered to make Dosti a partner at his new Bradenton restaurant, the chef says he was convinced to relocate to the Suncoast.
He added that he wants people to try Sofra once.
“And I’m sure they will love it,” Dosti said.
Operating hours
Sofra is open Monday through Saturday starting at 4 p.m. The restaurant closes at 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday and at 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
For more information visit Sofra-Kitchen.com/menu.
This story was originally published April 1, 2025 at 5:50 AM.
