Three winners at the Clearwater gala
The Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association named its 2026 Hospitality Stars of the Industry Hall of Fame winners at an evening gala at Opal Sol Resort. The release is datelined Clearwater, Florida, was posted on 14 October 2026, and describes the gala as running the previous evening.
Hotelier of the Year went to Tony Lapi of 'Tween Waters Inn on Captiva Island. Richard Gonzmart of the 1905 Family of Restaurants took Restaurateur of the Year. Susan Kopstad of Sea Breeze Coffee & Tea in Sarasota took Supplier of the Year.
The association swore in its 2027 board executive committee and Henry Delgado of Smith & Wollensky, Miami Beach, as 2027 chairman of the board. The release photograph caption identifies Greg Cook as the 2026 chairman.
Hotelier of the Year: Tony Lapi
Lapi moved from Rochester, New York, to Sanibel Island in 1976. He and his wife, Angie, joined partners in buying 'Tween Waters Inn. The resort then held 47 cottages, a small marina and a restaurant.
Lapi served as general manager and later as president and chief executive. The company grew into Sanibel Captiva Beach Resorts, with more than 300 units across four beachfront properties. Headcount went from six employees to 230.
'Tween Waters Inn went on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011. Its first cottages date to 1931.
Lapi stepped down as president and chief executive in 2022 and stayed on as chairman. Hurricane Ian damaged Southwest Florida that year, and Lapi helped lead the rebuild of three destroyed properties. 'Tween Waters reopened in 2026 with a new fine-dining concept and Beachview Cottages.
His honours include the Sanibel Captiva Chamber Citizen of the Year, the Gordon Schopfer Lifetime Achievement Award, the Sam Bailey Award for Outstanding Community Service and a place in the 2023 Florida Tourism Hall of Fame. He has served VISIT FLORIDA, the Lee County Tourist Development Council and the Sanibel Captiva Chamber.
Restaurateur of the Year: Richard Gonzmart
Gonzmart is the second great-grandson of Casimiro Hernandez, Sr., who founded the Columbia Restaurant in Tampa's Ybor City in 1905. The release calls it Florida's oldest restaurant and the oldest Hispanic restaurant in the United States under one family's ownership.
The Columbia group grew from two locations to seven under Gonzmart, spanning Tampa, Sarasota, St. Augustine, Clearwater Beach, Celebration and Tampa International Airport. He created Ulele, Goody Goody Burgers, Cafe Con Leche Ybor City and Casa Santo Stefano.
The Columbia Restaurant Community Harvest programme has given more than $4.8 million to Florida non-profits.
Supplier of the Year: Susan Kopstad
Kopstad entered the coffee and tea trade more than 46 years ago in Chicago. She and her husband, Todd, built a company across 11 states with more than 1,000 accounts. They moved to Florida's Gulf Coast in 1996 and founded Sea Breeze Coffee & Tea.
The release describes Sea Breeze as the only family-owned Nespresso Professional distributor on Florida's West Coast. Kopstad has served 29 years on the Suncoast FRLA board and is its secretary.
The association
FRLA was founded in 1946 as the Florida Restaurant Association and merged with the Florida Hotel and Motel Association in 2006. Its release states more than 20,000 members. The release boilerplate puts Florida's hospitality industry at nearly $112 billion and two million employees.