Orlando Friends - Restaurant recommendations
- Thread starter Fijimn
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There are a ton of restaurants on property, at City Walk, and in the resort hotels. If you really want to Uber out for something, there are dozens more in the International Drive tourist corridor. Charley's Steak House is a long-time fan favorite, but make sure your credit card has plenty of limit left on it.
Yeah, we have a reservation at Mythos (spelling?). Is Charley's good? I have never been, but have seen it advertised in in-flight magazines -- so was a little suspicious of whether it was good or touristy good.
I've been a couple of times and I enjoyed it. Don Shula's at Disney's Dolphin/Swan resort is good, too (but a lot farther away).
Moon Fish is a good steak/seafood place to eat right around the corner from Universal.
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Honestly, we were so tired at the end of the day we just ordered room service at the hard rock and it was fantastic. Like better than most restaurants you could go to.
Hard Rock Hotel® Orlando Room Service
Hard Rock Hotel® Orlando Room Service is available 24/7 for those mid-day munchies or late night jam sessions!
stayinguniversal.com
Dang. Fish Bones is good and along the same lines as Moon Fish which was part of that same restaurant ownership group…. Talk of the Town Restaurant Group.
Welcome
Located in Lake Mary, FishBones is listed as one of America’s Top Ten Seafood Restaurants. We offer the freshest just-caught seafood flown in daily, aged steaks cooked over 1200° citrus and oak wood fire on our custom built pit and a 23-hour slow roasted prime rib.
www.fishbonesrestaurants.com
We are staying at the Cabana Beach Club. And we will probably end up eating at Universal/City Walk. I am just expecting some very good news in Frida and was thinking of going somewhere nice to celebrate.
I've been to Charleys a few times (a bunch if you include the family's original steakhouse in Lakeland that is essentially identical but for the name). It is very good, one of the better steak places I've visited.
Dang. Fish Bones is good and along the same lines as Moon Fish which was part of that same restaurant ownership group…. Talk of the Town Restaurant Group.
Welcome
Located in Lake Mary, FishBones is listed as one of America’s Top Ten Seafood Restaurants. We offer the freshest just-caught seafood flown in daily, aged steaks cooked over 1200° citrus and oak wood fire on our custom built pit and a 23-hour slow roasted prime rib.
I think the Fishbones in Lake Mary is still open, but the one in Orlando on Sand Lake Rd is gone.
Definitely Charley's! I miss it. Whenever I'm in the area it's a must.
Charley‘s is excellent. I think it’s the best in Orlando over a lot of similarly priced expensive steak competitors. I’d say it’s just a touch better than Capa, Le Cellier, The Palm, The Boheme, Vito’s Chophouse and the Yachtsman. I will say however that when in Tampa and I want to drop a similar amount of money, I prefer Bern’s Steakhouse or the Council Oaks.
The best thing about Charley’s IS the steak. A lot of the fancier steak places like Capa or Vito’s have better composed main menu dishes and appetizers, but at Charley’s you will have choices in your steaks beyond just cut and size but breed and age. For example on the menu they always have ribeye cuts in Black Angus in both a short wet age, Black Angus in a 21 day Dry Aged version, Bison and American Wagyu (which genetically doesn’t have a lot of true Japanese wagyu genes and tastes more like just a fatty Black Angus). But off menu they will frequently have specials like older aged Black Angus that have been dry aged to 45, 50 or 60 days (45 is when blue cheese-like flavors start developing and past 60 it’s usually too strong for most people although 80 days is usually the oldest sold), Australian Wagyu (which is not 100% Japanese Wagyu but closer than American) and sometimes true Japanese Wagyu. It’s pretty fun to have everyone at the table try a different age or breed and then compare and contrast.
Also, it’s not comparable as it’s a third of the price but Orlando does have one true roadhouse remaining. And by roadhouse I mean cheap mom and pop steakhouses serving cheap cuts but cooked right. It’s called Linda’s La Cantina Steakhouse. You’re not getting fancy old dry aged angus or wagyu, but you are getting perfectly cooked select t-bones for $32 and ribeyes for $36 instead of a porterhouse for $72 or a low aged ribeye for $79 at Charley’s.
Are you talking about the place on Colonial in Fashion Square? That's more than an Uber ride from Universal, unfortunately.
I was just talking steak not proximity to Universal. I’ll be coming back later with my on property and nearby recs. But spoiler alert I always love Nile Ethiopian when I’m in that area. It’s a great restaurant and an interesting communal eating style that works great with families.
So try not to waste your time eating at Cabana Bay, of the onsite hotels they probably have the worst food. The rest of it is great though as they have a decent lobby bar, a nice theme and the best onsite hotel swimming area/things for kids to do.
Speaking as someone who had annual passes for 18 years and only gave them up recently to get BGand SW annual passes as I have three nephews aged 3-5 so Universal doesn’t work for them, I’ll give you a rundown of all the restaurants in City Walk, the onsite hotels other than Endless Summer as I haven’t been to that one and both parks.
My restaurant rankings (minus anything at Endless Summer and some of the small kiosk style restaurants in the parks selling turkey legs, butterbeer, ice cream, kebabs, wraps and jacket potatoes (although the one outside of London in a bus sells amazing jacket potatoes)) are as follows:
Bice at Portofino - 10/10 Not just my favorite authentic Italian at Universal or Florida but my favorite I’ve had anywhere in the US including NYC, Philly, Boston and San Fran. It’s a clone of a standalone famous restaurant in Milan and is not like the red sauce “Italian”/Sicilian-American places you find all over America. I highly recommend it.
Wantilan Luau at Royal Pacific - 10/10 I actually prefer this Luau over the three I’ve done in Hawaii including the Polynesian Cultural Center. Great dinner show with all you can drink Mai Tais and some of the best whole suckling pig I’ve had.
The Palm at Hard Rock - 9.5/10 One of the best steakhouses in Orlando. I prefer Charley’s and Capa and several others like Vito’s are roughly on par but it’s still an excellent steakhouse that’s significantly better than the same price costly chains like Ruth’s Chris, Capital Grill and Flemings.
Vivo Italian Kitchen at CW - 9.5/10 Although I prefer the authentic Milanese food at Bice, I eat at Vivo far more often because of the convenient location and as it’s still an excellent Italian/Continental Fusion restaurant. I especially Recommend the Squid Ink and Seafood pasta, lamb ragout, chicken piccata and short rib risotto.
Cowfish Sushi and Burger Bar at CW - 9/10 Not a traditional sushi place but one with interesting combos including sushi/”burgushi” with pulled pork, steak and hamburger meat. No sushi place in Florida will compare with the taste of the best in Japan and the West Coast as our rules require all fish to be hard frozen before use in raw preps. So the individual ingredients will never be great. But the mix of ingredients at Cowfish are great.
Mama Della’s at Portofino - 9/10 Standard red sauce “Italian”, but an excellent example of it with excellent theming and interactive cast.
Mythos at IOA - 9/10 It is no longer as good as when it was winning national awards for best theme park restaurant as they’ve dumbed down the menu significantly. But it still has great high end burgers, some interesting seasonal risottos and some simpler Mediterranean fusion dishes. It’s still the best restaurant in any of the Universal theme parks but it’s no longer award-winning.
Finnegan’s Bar & Grill at USO - 9/10 An excellent pub with good live music entertainment and a nice selection of Irish, British and American pub favorites. One of my favorite places to rest, drink and recover in any theme park.
Antojitos at CW - 9/10 A surprisingly excellent Mexican restaurant better than anything in the Epcot Mexican pavilion and arguably the best Mexican in Orlando. A truly fantastic tequila selection and great drinks helps make the entertainment (a mariachi band that only does covers of American rock and pop songs) even better.
Leaky Cauldron at USO - 8.5/10 The better of the two Harry Potter themed restaurants. Make sure you order a fire whiskey to add to a hard cider or a “hot butterbeer” if it is cold out. The food is mostly decent British standards But the theming makes up for the less than stellar food.
Bob Marley’s at CW - 8.5/10 A very well themed restaurant with decent Jamaican and seafood and above average drinks. If you’re there at the right time you’ll get some great music as well. More of a “fun” restaurant than a foodie restaurant but I always enjoy it.
Red Oven Pizza at CW - 8.5/10 Best pizza I’ve had at any theme park including any at the Italian pavilion in Epcot.
Toothsome Chocolate Emporium at CW - 8/10 Great theming mixed with great desserts and “adult” milkshakes makes for a fun time. The main meal items are better than you would expect but still mainly just plused up Ruby Tuesday style fern bar food.
Bigfire at CW - 8/10 Pretty decent steaks and some other good grilled items make this a decent choice for families with children who want a steak and aren’t willing to fight them at a high end restaurant like the Palm.
Trattorio Del Porto at Portofino - 8/10 A well above average breakfast and lunch cafe but not worth the hassle of getting to it unless you’re already at Portofino or nearby.
Confisco Grill at IOA - 8/10 A surprisingly decent global fusion restaurant blending mainly Mediterranean and Asian flavor profiles together. It’s one of my “hidden gems” in the park. The bar here is great as well.
Sal’s Market Deli at Portofino - 8/10 Second best pizza on the premises but no reason to go if you’re not already staying at or near Portofino as it’s easier to go to the better Red Oven at CityWalk.
Orchid Court Sushi Bar at Royal Pacific - 7.5/10 It is an above average fairly conventional American style sushi bar. But unless you’re staying at Royal Pacific or nearby I would rec going to the odder Cowfish for convenience sake.
Simpson’s Fast Food Boulevard at USO - 7.5/10
Today Cafe at USO - 7/10
NBC Sports Grill at CW - 7/10
Bar 17 Bistro at Aventura - 6.5/10
Amatista Grill at Sapphire Falls - 6.5/10
Three Broomsticks at IOA - 6.5/10
Green Eggs and Ham at IOA - 6.5/10
Minion Cafe at USO - 6/10
Hard Rock Cafe at CW - 6/10
The Kitchen at Hard Rock - 6/10
Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville at CW - 6/10
Thunder Falls Terrace at IOA - 5.5/10
Galaxy Bowl at Cabana Bay 5.5/10
Bubba Gumo Shrimp Company at CW - 5/10
Mel’s Drive-In at USO - 5/10
Circus McGurkus at IOA - 5/10
Pat O’Brien’s at CW - 4.5/10
Comic Strip Cafe at IOA - 4.5/10
Lombard’s Seafood Grill at USO - 4.5/10
Louie’s Italian at USO - 4/10
Pizza Predatoria at IOA - 4/10
Bayliner Diner at Cabana Bay - 4/10
Hot Dog Hall of Fame at IOA - 4/10 No
Richter’s Burgers at USO - 3.5/10
Wimpy’s Burgers at IOA - 3.5/10
Captain America Diner at IOA - 3/10
Cafe 4 at IOA - 3/10
Delizioso Pizza at Cabana Bay - 3/10
Kidzone Pizza Company at USO - 3/10
Blondie’s at IOA - 2/10
I’ll come back and finish up my assessment later
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Thanks for this, Tribe. The Luau was a lot of fun and food was pretty good. We skipped Mythos because we were just beat at the end of the day.
That's how we were. It was late July, and the heat/humidity combined with walking miles and miles each day beat the shit out of us, and we were very happy ordering room service at the Hard Rock, which as noted above was superb. If we go back I will need to revisit Tribe's advice in this thread.
And you have to get up and get going pretty early if you want to take advantage of the early entry. We did get the Leaky Cauldron for breakfast one day, but most of the food was seeing which line was the shortest.
Yes, the firm was very good to me. I celebrated with a fair number of mai tais at the Luau on Saturday night.
Having a 15-year old and 18-year old at the time, getting up early wasn't in the cards. But, since we stayed at the Hardrock, we got the fast passes or whatever they are called. We got our fill of rides and left by late afternoon. I think at one point, we just kept walking up to the Hulk and getting on it over and over, with like a 1 to 5 minute wait, while the regular line looked like it took 45 minutes.
Congrats! I assume it was relating to making partner or a different class of partner than you already were.
Lol...I'm an early riser. Wife and daughter are not. I still got up pretty early, worked out and did a little work at Starbucks while I let them sleep in a bit. I about killed them with my "get up and go" last year in Europe, so I was more chill this time.
I finally gave up trying to get the daughter on the roller coasters. She likes all the VR rides. I'll ride them, but not a big fan and after a couple of them I need to ride a real ride. So by the afternoon, I would take off and do some of the roller coasters while they did the VR rides or played games in Simpson's Land.
Also, Express Pass is a must--especially at spring break. You were looking at 2-3 hour waits for the main rides.
Different class of partner. But last two years seeing the financial benefits of having a really good billing attorney number.
Yeah, that's me. I'm pretty much up at 5:55 every day of the year. Lots of times I am the only one of the 4 of us that has breakfast at the hotels, and typically, I have showered, eaten, had coffee, and done some work before anyone else is up and at 'em.
There is a nice quaint American food spot located at 6324 International Dr, Orlando, FL 32819.
Downtown Orlando isn't bad. One of the cleanest cities I've ever visited.
Now nearby Pine Hills on the other hand....
Hard Rock Orlando the food was decent but seeing and touching a section of the Berlin Wall they have outside was unexpected.
