Orlando ?'s

Someone wrote:
>
>Jeff S. wrote:
>>From: [email removed] (Jeff J. St.Onge)
>>Subject: Orlando ?'s
>>Date: 5 Mar 1995 19:57:17 -0600
>
>>I'm going to the Orlando area the end of March. Does anyone have and reasturant
>>suggestions. Also and good oyster bars in the area.
>
>The Bubble Room.  I haven't been to the one in Orlando, but if it's as good as
>the one of Captiva Island, FL, it's fantastic, and a great kitschy atmosphere.
> I've seen it mentioned before as one of the best restaurants in the country.

It is pretty good -- and the desserts are incredible.  Unfortunately, if you'll be in the tourist part of town -- south of Orlando proper, this is way north.  As another poster mentioned, you can generally find good food in Disney World, itself, especially in Epcot.  (An exception, in my mind, was the fast-food part of the Chinese restaurant.)  Beyond that, the local cuisine tends to be chain, at least in the tourist part.  As a matter of fact, when the Orlando did a reader poll of favorite restaurants, the top places were generally chains.  However, there are a few exceptions.

My husband and I lived there for a while.  Our favorite restaurant was Donato's, an Italian pizzeria which is now located on International Drive.  We sent my sister and her husband there recently, and it is definitely still up to speed.

Another place, especially if you're in the mood for fancy, is Basil's (or is it Sweet Basil's? -- it changed names at one point, but I forget which came first) in Kissimmee.  We went there for special occasions, and the food was always great.

If you want to try one of those dinner/show places, we were always happy with Mardi Gras, where we often took out of town visitors.

For Chinese outside the park, Ming Garden, on International Drive, was really good.  There's also a small Chinese place in a strip mall near Florida Mall, called Feng Ling that we regularly frequented.  Even their daily lunch buffet was good, and this is usually the downfall of other good Chinese restaurants.

And, for good diner-type stuff, Angel's on South Orange Blossom Trail is wonderful.  Their motto, printed on their door, is "This is a bad place to be on a diet."  (I hope I got the wording right.)  The food is good and plentiful.  Nothing fancy, but definitely worth going.

One of the few chains we did go to on a regular basis was the Outback, outside of Florida Mall.  (This is not to be confused with the Outback on Disney property, which is also great -- we had the most fantastic Thanksgiving dinner there one year -- but totally unrelated.)  If you don't have an Outback at home, I definitely recommend going.

Another, slightly fancier but still comparatively casual, place near Disney is Pebbles.  I highly recommend it for relaxed dining.

Let me know if you plan to go farther afield.  There are some other good restaurants, farther away from the area, that are worth trying, as well.

One caveat to all this.  We moved away about two years ago, so some of these restaurants may no longer be there or may have gone downhill. However, based on my knowledge of them at the time, I would recommend at least trying them.

BTW, another poster mentioned a Japanese Teppanyaki place near Disney. If I remember correctly, it's called Kobe, and it is very good.  We preferred it to Benihana.

Let me know if you got to try any of my suggestions and what your impressions are.

My husband and I have been to Orlando four times and we always go to Rolondos a cuban restarant (it is *not* in the touristy part).  We always seem to spend one evening at Jingle Jim, which has great hamburgers.

At Epcot we have enjoyed a meal at the Moroccan and French plazas

Hope this is not too late, enjoy your trip

Lori

Someone wrote:

> Someone wrote:
> >
> >In article  [email removed] (Jeff
J. S. writes:
> >>From: [email removed] (Jeff J. St.Onge)
> >>Subject: Orlando ?'s
> >>Date: 5 Mar 1995 19:57:17 -0600
> >
> >>I'm going to the Orlando area the end of March. Does anyone have and
reasturant
> >>suggestions. Also and good oyster bars in the area.
> >
> >The Bubble Room.  I haven't been to the one in Orlando, but if it's as
good as
> >the one of Captiva Island, FL, it's fantastic, and a great kitschy
atmosphere.
> > I've seen it mentioned before as one of the best restaurants in the country.
>
> It is pretty good -- and the desserts are incredible.  Unfortunately, if
> you'll be in the tourist part of town -- south of Orlando proper, this is
> way north.  As another poster mentioned, you can generally find good food
> in Disney World, itself, especially in Epcot.  (An exception, in my mind,
> was the fast-food part of the Chinese restaurant.)  Beyond that, the local
> cuisine tends to be chain, at least in the tourist part.  As a
> matter of fact, when the Orlando did a reader poll of favorite
> restaurants, the top places were generally chains.  However, there are a
> few exceptions.
>
> My husband and I lived there for a while.  Our favorite restaurant was
> Donato's, an Italian pizzeria which is now located on International
> Drive.  We sent my sister and her husband there recently, and it is
> definitely still up to speed.
>
> Another place, especially if you're in the mood for fancy, is
> Basil's (or is it Sweet Basil's? -- it changed names at one point, but I
> forget which came first) in Kissimmee.  We went there for special
> occasions, and the food was always great.
>
> If you want to try one of those dinner/show places, we were always happy
> with Mardi Gras, where we often took out of town visitors.
>
> For Chinese outside the park, Ming Garden, on International Drive, was
> really good.  There's also a small Chinese place in a strip mall near
> Florida Mall, called Feng Ling that we regularly frequented.  Even their
> daily lunch buffet was good, and this is usually the downfall of other
> good Chinese restaurants.
>
> And, for good diner-type stuff, Angel's on South Orange Blossom Trail is
> wonderful.  Their motto, printed on their door, is "This is a bad place
> to be on a diet."  (I hope I got the wording right.)  The food is good
> and plentiful.  Nothing fancy, but definitely worth going.
>
> One of the few chains we did go to on a regular basis was the Outback,
> outside of Florida Mall.  (This is not to be confused with the Outback
> on Disney property, which is also great -- we had the most fantastic
> Thanksgiving dinner there one year -- but totally unrelated.)  If you
> don't have an Outback at home, I definitely recommend going.
>
> Another, slightly fancier but still comparatively casual, place near
> Disney is Pebbles.  I highly recommend it for relaxed dining.
>
> Let me know if you plan to go farther afield.  There are some other good
> restaurants, farther away from the area, that are worth trying, as well.
>
> One caveat to all this.  We moved away about two years ago, so some of
> these restaurants may no longer be there or may have gone downhill.
> However, based on my knowledge of them at the time, I would recommend
> at least trying them.
>
> BTW, another poster mentioned a Japanese Teppanyaki place near Disney.
> If I remember correctly, it's called Kobe, and it is very good.  We
> preferred it to Benihana.
>
> Let me know if you got to try any of my suggestions and what your
> impressions are.