A New Direction for an Old Favorite

Opportunity knocked twice and caught the ear of a quintet of Marco Island businessmen who’ve joined forces to make a mark on the local dining and pub scene.  

Tim McCoy, Dan Collardey, Tim Keaney, Ivan Zdravkovic and Don Wahl have been the owners of the venerable Sand Bar since early January. In the case of something old, something new, the partnership also plans to open a new restaurant on Marco. Named for its street address, the 844 Social Club will occupy the Bald Eagle Drive space formerly home to the now-closed Arturo’s Ristorante Italiano. The interior has been gutted and the project is now going through the City of Marco Island’s construction permitting process.  

“It will be somewhere north of 170 seats and an upscale American restaurant that will be able to attract people all year round,” Keaney said of the 844 Social Club, which the partnership hopes to have open in time for next tourist season. “It will have a very cool indoor-outdoor bar, which we’re excited about; and live entertainment. We’re fine-tuning the menu right now.”  

McCoy, Collardey, Keaney, Wahl and Zdravkovic’s plans initially centered on opening the 844 Social Club.  

“Then we were approached by the most recent owner of the Sand Bar who said she wanted to sell,” explained Keaney. “So, we got together and thought that if we’re going to do one, we might as well stretch a little bit and buy the Sand Bar. We’re really excited about it.” 

McCoy, Collarday and Zdravkovic have long been part of the island’s restaurant scene.  

In fact, McCoy and Tim Keaney’s father, Frank Keaney, became partners in the Sand Bar with the late restauranteur Ray Fortune in 2004. They purchased the now 30-year-old establishment from Mike and Carol Matthews. McCoy, who was raised in the restaurant business in Indiana, and Frank Keaney sold their interest to Fortune in 2006. His wife, Maria Fortune, became the owner after he passed away in 2014. She, in turn, sold the pub to the McCoy, Collardey, Keaney, Wahl and Zdravkovic partnership.  

McCoy, Collarday and Jimmy Boylan were the creator-owners of the SpeakEasy, before selling to the Jones Restaurant Group in April of 2018.  

“Timmy and Danny owned the SpeakEasy, which we frequented quite often,” said Tim Keaney. “They turned that from nothing into a hugely successful restaurant. And we all used to spend a lot of time at DaVinci’s Ristorante Italiano, which is how we got to know Ivan. I knew these guys would get itchy feet after they sold the SpeakEasy. When their non-compete agreement elapsed, we got together and decided to get into the restaurant business again.”  

Zdravkovic has primarily worked in the restaurant industry since moving to the U.S. from his native Serbia in 2006, at age 23. He was a long-time fixture at DaVinci’s, where he worked his way up from server to head server to managerial duties. He’s serving as the Sand Bar’s general manager and is in charge of day-to-day operations.  

He studied civil engineering in Serbia and had planned to continue his college education after moving here. Zdravkovic had intended to continue his college education in the U.S. and then enter that profession, but he found the restaurant business to be the perfect career field instead. Somewhere down the road, he envisioned having a restaurant of his very own, but then came word about the Sand Bar.  

“When the boys said, ‘Hey Ivan, we’re buying the Sand Bar and we’d like you to be on board with us,’ I saw this as a challenge and that’s what I like,” said Zdravkovic. “I like taking on the challenge of making this place a local favorite, like it used to be, and even better than before.”  

The partners said that since taking over at the restaurant, they’ve conducted extensive maintenance and cleaning, and dramatically improved foodservice and food delivery times.  

“One of the complaints was inconsistency in the kitchen,” said Keaney. “I think Ivan, Dan and Tim have transformed the staff and we’re already hearing from our customers that the timing, the quality and the consistency of the food and service, have improved and that’s only going to continue under Ivan’s leadership.” 

Plans also call for repainting and updating the furniture after the season’s end, as well as retaining a focus on affordability, good food and service, and as Zdravkovic put it, “caring for the locals.”  

Live music, seven days a week, is also on tap. 

McCoy took a moment to say he recognizes the “efforts of their good friend Don Wahl who has a vested interest in both ventures.” 

He also said the foundation to success is, ultimately, nurturing the human element. “The restaurant is a people business, it’s a relationship business. You have to go to a place where you feel comfortable and where you feel appreciated. Like our logo says: ‘Fun, Food and Spirits.’” 

The Sand Bar is located at 826 E. Elkcam Circle—behind Walker’s Marine. For more information, visit sandbarmarco.com, call 239-642-3625, or email to info@sandbarmarco.com.