Kenneth V. wrote:
I'm planning a vacation to Orlando & the Tampa/St. Pete area in a couple of
weeks & was wondering if anyone out there had any suggestions on where to go to
eat or drink. I really get into restaurants & bars with a unique atmosphere!
I was thinking of going to Medieval Times. What are there prices like? Is it
worth it to go there?
Any atmospheric restaurants & bars would be greatly appreciated!
Please give me some idea of the price range, too, if you can.
Well, for atmospheric you probably want to go to the "Space Coast" or whatever they are calling it now...buy some astronaut ice cream....uh, JUUUUUSSSST kidding...
I was only in Orlando once and found it very hard to get away from the sort of "Shakey's Pizza" atmosphere: most places seem very geared to families with kids. A couple of good places where this isn't true:
- The Crab House in Lake Buena Vista (not far from Disney/Epcot).
We went here about three times and I got the garlic crabs
every time. They also serve a splendid shrimp cocktail.
- A Japanese restaurant whose name I can't remember, but it
should be easy to find...it's right up the road from the
Orange County Convention Center, on the same side of the road.
I had some really good grilled hamachi here, and a friend of
mine said the sushi bar's good too (she got blotto on sake,
though, so her judgement might be suspect). More dressy than
the usual Orlando place.
- An Italian place in a small complex across the road (more or
less) from the Japanese place, where the food was superb but
the singing waiters were really annoying (I could have stood
opera, but "That's Amore"? Please).
- Epcot restaurants:
Norway pavilion: this place serves a good smorgasbord, and the
people are really nice. This is good esp. if you've never had
Scandinavian food. It may be lunch only, though.
Mexico: good but not outstanding (the restaurant, that is...I
didn't try the cantina). The decor in this pavilion is pretty
cool...points for atmosphere.
Morocco: my favorite. I had a very nice couscous here. Again
the decor really made it a lot of fun.
Germany: had lunch at the Ratskeller or whatever they call
the beerhall-cum-platz place. What can I say? If you're into
the German beerhall environment/food, this is the place for
you. Be warned, group participation in that weird singing/
chanting/standing up/sitting down behavior is encouraged.
I really lost it when I saw this mental defective in lederhosen
play some very energetic song on a bunch of cow/sheep/goat bells
by picking up the desired bell, shaking it frantically, and then
slamming it down and grabbing another. The floor was littered
with bells before he was done. Depending on your liking for
the absurd and your tolerance for sausage, this could be just
the place for you.
England: the bar's a nice place to hang out. Don't know if they
have a restaurant or not.
I didn't eat at the Japan or China pavilions but I heard they're
pretty stock, nothing to write home about. Ditto Italy.
Sorry for lack of specifics.Orlando, FL