Orlando Dining

The booming tourist industry has attracted world-class restaurants of all types to the Orlando area. Every cuisine and nationality is represented in the restaurants of greater Orlando, and you can find examples of each in everything from the finest, dress-up gourmet establishments to the most laid-back and casual venues. From Winter Park to downtown Orlando, from Lake Buena Vista and Disney World to Kissimmee and St. Cloud, the greater Orlando area offers a wealth of dining options for every appetite and budget.

We have presented below a small selection of restaurants which are especially representative either of their cuisine type or theme. By no means are these the best restaurants which you may find on your own. Regard our selections as starting points, if you are looking for something in particular, where you may be assured of experiencing exactly what you are seeking, and from where you can branch off in search of your own discoveries that may even exceed the standards we have identified below.

Fine Dining

Dux at the Peabody Hotel, 9801 International Drive (407) 352-4000 is managed by a world-class chef whose award-winning specialty is creative constructions of pastry and chocolate, but who also is an experienced master of the continental menu and style of presentation in general. If you want a genuine, first-rate dining experience without any of the commercialism and pretense found elsewhere, then we recommend The Peabody. When in season, the summer berries with white chocolate mouse is outstanding.

Victoria and Albert’s at Walt Disney World’s Grand Floridian Beach Resort, 4401 Floridian Way, Lake Buena Vista (407) 824-3000 provides a top-notch experience in fine dining, with all of the trimmings. The furnishings and atmosphere are perfect, like the rest of the resort, and the experience is free of any blemishes found in elegant restaurants of the real world. What cannot be manufactured, however, is genuine culinary talent, and the quality of preparation and service are coincidentally among the best in greater Orlando.

Emeril’s at Universal Studio’s CityWalk, 6000 Universal Boulevard (407) 224-2424 is one of the celebrity chef’s famous restaurants, this one set in an astounding visual environment consistent with the rest of Universal Studios. The menu and service are classic Emeril, however. If you have a couple of hours to linger over a perfect meal, prepared with a New Orleans flair and presented by a friendly and experienced staff, then you would do well to spend them here.

Manuel’s on the 28th at the top of the Bank of America building, 390 North Orange Avenue (407) 246-6580 offers the best view of downtown Orlando. The menu is continental with a contemporary Spanish nuance, and includes entrees of filet mignon, lobster and duck. The manner of presentation is simple and elegant, and the view is unmatched.

Barbecue

Bubbaloo’s Bodacious BBQ at 1471 Lee Road, Winter Park (407) 628-1212 is worth the short trip out of Orlando to experience genuine, family-run Florida cooking at its best. The antithesis of “fine dining,” this casual, no-reservations restaurant serves authentic barbecued beef, smoked for hours on the premises, with generous helpings of beans, cole slaw, a variety of sauces, beer and a bib, and is fine dining indeed.

Smokey Bones BBQ and Sports Bar at 303 North Alafaya Trail (407) 249-2010 is furnished similar to a mountain lodge, and the atmosphere is casual with a lot of sports motifs everywhere. The style of barbecue is more Rocky Mountains than Florida, but the quality ranks with the best in Orlando.

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Florida Regional

Ever Glades Restaurant at the Rosen Hotel, 9840 International Drive (407) 996-9840 serves entrees of wild boar, venison and alligator, as well as prime steaks and locally caught seafood, accompanied by selections from their superior wine cellar, in an elegant but casual Everglades-themed environment. While in Orlando, take the opportunity to sample Florida regional cuisine at its authentic best.

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Steak

Ronnie’s Steakhouse at 7500 International Drive (407) 313-3000, soon to become part of the Sam & Harry’s family in name with no other changes planned, is a covered-terrace, floating restaurant that serves the best steaks in Orlando, and features a wine cellar with hundreds of selections, live piano and after-dinner fine cigars. This family-run restaurant with ornate, hand-trimmed mahogany, marble and crystal furnishings, is an Orlando institution.

The Boheme at the Westin Grand Bohemian, 325 South Orange Avenue (407) 313-9000 serves top quality steaks, as well as fresh seafood, in the best continental tradition, complemented by soft, classical music and rare works of art, and is the most elegant and intimate alternative for steak dining in the Orlando area.

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Seafood

Charlie’s Lobster House in the Mercado Shopping Village, 8445 International Drive (407) 352-6929 serves fresh, locally caught seafood from the nearby coast, as well as a variety of selections from the Pacific and Northern Atlantic coasts. In addition to seafood, certified Angus steaks also are served.

Boston Lobster Feast at 8304 Crystal Clear Lane (407) 438-0607, 8731 International Drive (407) 248-8606 and 6071 West Irlo Bronson Highway, Kissimmee (407) 396-2606 specializes in Maine lobster rather than the smaller crawfish variety of Florida lobster served elsewhere. The menu is available in 10 languages, and includes salads, appetizers, a variety of fish and seafood entrees, fresh vegetable side dishes and desserts.

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Dinner Shows

White Wolf Cafe at 1829 North Orange Avenue (407) 895-9911 has the appearance and atmosphere of a European sidewalk café with a blackboard menu out front. The menu is varied and American, however, and includes pork chops, pasta dishes, seafood and poultry. Live acoustic performances of folk, rock, or pop music accompany dinner on Friday and Saturday nights.

Baskerville’s Restaurant at 1850 Hotel Plaza Boulevard (407) 827-6534 serves an unlimited buffet during its main Sherlock Holmes-style mystery performances on Saturday nights, and offers various other themed performances and dinner specials throughout the week.

Capone’s Dinner and Show at 4740 West Highway 192, Kissimmee (407) 397-2378 serves an “all yous can eat” menu of Italian favorites, while presenting a dramatic chronicle of the life of Al Capone.

Pirate’s Dinner Adventure at 6400 Carrier Drive (407) 248-0530 is a great place to bring the kids. The menu is all-American, the atmosphere is come-as-you-are, and an interactive pirate show accompanies dinner where you and your family are hostages aboard a pirate ship in the middle of an exciting drama.

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