Growing up Rich Castiano was aware of the relaxation and pleasure that his father Sal enjoyed when he’d light a cigar. The rich aroma reminded him of home and family and when the guys got together there were laughs, smiles and good times for all.

“Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve had this infatuation with cigars, and I knew I always would”, said Castiano from his World Famous Cigar Bar location in historic Downtown Fort Myers, Florida.

‘The cigars helped create conversation and even discussions, there was a common bond but at the same time the cigars showed the personality of each guy, and I paid attention. I really liked the fact that a cigar looked good in every situation, whether they were dressed up and going out or having a cold beer and watching a ballgame.”

For over fifteen years now, Rich has both fed his passion and has provided the perfect environment to enjoy good times and great cigars in his two World Famous Cigar Bar locations. His smile is warm and his enjoyment is that of a guy that likes meeting old and new friends over a cigar and a cocktail.

It may have started for Rich Castiano when he was a kid growing up on Long Island and for his father Sal long before that, but for the rest of us it began in 1996 when he took an abandoned store front and created one of the true landmarks in Fort Myers Historic River District.

Located in the Patio De Leon Building just off the corner of First Street, at 1502 Hendry Street, this place looks and feels like it’s been there forever. It’s such a classic barroom, one so rich with tradition, that every once in a while a visitor will ask if Tom Edison himself, drank and smoked at “The Cigar Bar”. It’s well documented that Thomas Alva Edison liked to ‘stroll the avenue’ and puff stogies in Downtown Ft Myers…. and his image overlooks the classic bar with eyes of approval.