Our apologies: your internet browser is not yet fully supported by our Schmap online guides. If you continue, pages in this guide may display or function incorrectly.

Would you like to continue anyway?continue anyway

Schmap.com supports the following browsers:

PC

MAC Orlando - Dining & Drinking
Download the Schmap Orlando Guide
With Schmap 2.0 you can:
Orlando Home
Schmap Orlando guide and map
At first glance—and for that matter, at second and third glance—Orlando would appear to be the world nucleus of the fast food industry. On seemingly every thoroughfare, in and around every theme park, mall and neon neighborhood, they are there, locked in a burger-to-burger face-off, vying for attention with millions in marketing dollars. From chintz to cheeseburgers, they await the weary, who want a quick meal that will challenge neither belly nor budget.

It would, at first glance, seem that way, but thankfully, it is not.

While there are few who would argue that Orlando is one of the great culinary centers of the hemisphere, it has come a long way since its earliest days when gourmet food meant barbecue on a china plate. Lured, however, by the phenomenal success of this theme park capital of the Sunshine State, some of the world's top chefs have whisked their names into Orlando's gourmet roster, among them Los Angeles' Wolfgang Puck and Louisiana's Emeril Lagasse.

Ample Ingredients for Success

It also helps that Central Florida has many of the ingredients needed to whip up fine dining. While the region's famed citrus groves have shrunk in the face of determined development and urban sprawl, Orlando is still surrounded by vast groves whose several varieties of oranges, grapefruits, limes, lemons and kumquats play an intriguing part in sauces, garnishes and a bevy of tropical drinks.

Amid the enormous hype that surrounds the region's tourist attractions lie hundreds of thousands of acres that have long made Central Florida the winter vegetable capital of America. The tiny town of Zellwood, just nine miles from Orlando, considers itself the winter vegetable capital of the nation and tosses an annual party each May to celebrate its harvest of radishes and carrots, cauliflower and corn.

Sugar cane that grows in the region surrounding giant Lake Okeechobee, just south of Orlando, has made many a millionaire in the region and finds its way into coconut patties and elaborate desserts.

Kissimmee, Walt Disney World's tourism bedroom community, has long been a cowboy town, populated by wranglers who keep the region's cattle herds in line. Florida is, surprisingly, among the top cattle-producing states in the nation.

Add to that the seafood-laden waters of the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, both about equidistant from Orlando, where snapper, grouper, dolphin (no, not the bottlenosed, performer variety) lobster, shrimp, stone crabs and pompano play.

All those indigenous ingredients mean that chefs here have all the makings to create top-quality cuisine, and in recent years they have been doing just that.

Diverse Population Adds Spice

Toss into that mix a community whose prosperity has lured hundreds of thousands of every nationality—from Asian to European, Caribbean, Polynesian, Latin American, and Canadian—bringing with them the spices and flavors of their native lands. So prolific, in fact, are the ethnic restaurants of the region that the telephone book's Yellow Pages features a list of restaurants by nationality, helping you narrow the choices.

Orlando's vast numbers of large hotels have created some outstanding dining rooms, and each of the two major parks—Walt Disney World and Universal Studios—has a resident super-chef, Wolfgang Puck at WDW and Emeril Lagasse at Universal.

Special Spots

Two standouts among the masses are Maison et Jardin and Chalet Suzanne. Maison et Jardin is an Altamonte Springs dining institution that occupies a sprawling antique mansion snuggled into a grove of massive oaks. Known by locals who aren't much on foreign languages as the "Mason Jar," the restaurant glows with candlelight and offers sound American fare in an elegant atmosphere. The eccentric Chalet Suzanne Country Inn and Restaurant showcases the founder's hodge-podge of antiques and collectibles, which provide handsome yet eclectic adornment. One of the region's award-winning dining spots—its romaine soup traveled to the moon with the astronauts—lovely Chalet Suzanne is set in an orange grove overlooking a tiny lake and serves multi-course lunches and legendary dinners.

Morton's of Chicago may have gotten its start up there in the Windy City, but it's an institution now in Orlando; here it is outfitted in dark woods and crisp white linen and serves up top-notch steaks.

Theme Dining

If you're traveling with children—or want to tap a little of the child that lurks in all of us—themed dinner entertainment is an intriguing option. At these events, the food is basic American fare but the entertainment is lots of whimsical fun. You can read more about the themed evenings, which range from pirates to Wild West shoot-outs, England's King Henry and thoroughbred horses, under the Entertainment Guide.

Sea World not only offers you a look at sharks, Shamu the whale and cuddly penguins, but you can also wiggle and sway with talented Polynesian dancers at the attraction's nightly Polynesian Luau, capped by a Samoan fire dance.

Walt Disney World rolls out its characters from Chip 'n Dale to Mickey and Minnie at numerous dining opportunities from early morn on through the day and also features a variety of revues, complete with uncomplicated dining, at various locations within the parks.

Nearby Dining

Winter Park has earned its dining stars as the home of a number of outstanding restaurants including Park Plaza Gardens, which offers diners a carefully orchestrated array of selections amid greenery and under a glass roof; Park Avenue Grill, a casual spot featuring seafood and beef specialties; and Nicole St. Pierre, once the stained glass window-bedecked Le Cordon Bleu in Winter Park, now occupying similarly lovely quarters in nearby Maitland.

An hour's drive or so west toward Tampa will bring you to another unusual dining spot in the farming village of Thonotosassa: Branch Ranch. A working ranch that's now also working at the restaurant business, this spot serves family-style dinners, that means the food comes out of the kitchen and onto your table in big bowls just like at Grandma's house. Patrons dine on wooden tables in a high-ceiling barn of a place with a massive fireplace and plenty of farm memorabilia and chintz. Hearty home-cookin' American style is the lure here, where the prices are moderate but the portions are definitely not. Loosen that belt a notch!

Many are the chic and trendy newcomers to Orlando's roster of 3,800 restaurants, so and go browse among the bites at the Wcities Dining Guide for a culinary tour of Central Florida.







Copyright 1999-2005 Wcities, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Contact Wcities

Maison & Jardin


Longtime Orlando favorite
 430 South Wymore Road
Orlando, FL 32714
United States
+1 407 862 4410
http://www.maisonjardin.com 		This elegant restaurant is perhaps the best known of the city's French/Continental restaurants. Boasting the AAA Four Diamond Award and Wine Spectator's Grand Award, the award-winning food does not come cheaply, but the ambiance and culinary treats are worth it. You'll often find an older, more sophisticated crowd that appreciates the rare-in-Orlando opportunity to dine in elegance, which includes candlelight, crystal chandeliers and classical music. The menu includes Escargot-filled Puff Pastry, Sherried Oyster-Mushroom Bisque, and Texas Ostrich Tenderloin. A 1,200-bottle wine list is available as well as a full bar.

Review © 2007, Wcities
 

 
Morton's of Chicago


Upscale steak house
 7600 Dr. Phillips Boulevard
Dr. Philips Market Place
Orlando, FL 32819
United States
+1 407 248 3485
http://www.mortons.com/ 		This high-end steak house is making a splash among the Orlando elite. Expensive and plush with dark wood paneling and impeccable service, this newcomer to the steakhouse scene lures the high-roller crowd and is the popular choice for high-level business meetings. In an atmosphere of mahogany paneling and linen tablecloths, patrons feast on 20-ounce New York strip sirloins and 24-ounce porterhouse steaks. Meals end with Godiva chocolate cake and the wine list boasts 175 offerings. Reservations recommended. A full bar is available.

Review © 2007, Wcities
 

 
Park Plaza Gardens


Romantic American dining
 319 Park Avenue South
Orlando, FL 32789
United States
+1 407 645 2475
http://www.parkplazagardens.com/ 		This handsome indoor-outdoor dining spot features a brick-and-glass-lined interior courtyard, so tranquilly beautiful that you could easily while away an afternoon there and not regret a minute of it. There's also an outdoor café and an intimate bar that's a favorite after-work gathering spot for the region's up-and-coming and already-there execs. As for the dining: sublime. Grilled vegetables, beef tenderloin and salmon are all skillfully and temptingly prepared.

Review © 2007, Wcities
 

 
Other Schmapplets in this city related to "Orlando - Dining & Drinking"
Orlando
Orlando - Historical Background
Orlando - Neighborhood Guide
Orlando - Where to Stay
Orlando - Art & Entertainment

Other nearby cities:
Tampa (123 miles)
Fort Myers (206 miles)
Jacksonville (208 miles)
Fort Lauderdale (286 miles)
Miami (320 miles)
Florida Keys (386 miles)
Atlanta (654 miles)
Chattanooga (821 miles)
New Orleans (852 miles)
Nashville (989 miles)

Schmap.com
About
News & Reviews
Travel Store
Privacy
Terms of Use
Contact Us
© 2008 Schmap, Inc. All rights reserved.