Johnny's Fillin' Station, Orlando

I had lunch at this cafe on Michigan (half way between 436 and I-4) last Friday. I had a Bacon Cheeseburger for $8. They and others tout it as the best burger in town. It isn't. The burger was pale. It had little flavor. It was small. The best part of it was the bun (a kind of sweet roll) and the bacon. It came medium well though I asked for medium rare. They didn't even melt the cheese on the patty. The greens were ok. Fries are extra. The place seats about 50 in the back of a bar. It was mostly full. I think they do business with the city workers down the street and yokels. It was mostly a male crowd. They were probably there to try their stale lines on the four moderately attractive young waitresses. The place looks like a bar. It had Gaytor and Steeler memorabilia and alot of tchotckes. They have another (newer) location next door. It's kind of out of the way for the quality. I'm sure you have some biker bar near you where you can try and court comparable red neck lasses. No need to make this journey.

Teriyaki House, West Colonial

I went to this Chinese and Taiwanese restaurant on 50 after my second attempt at finding the elusive Taiwanese restaurant seemed to have failed today. I found this place on Yelp when I searched for Taiwanese restaurants. I don't think this is the one I read about this Spring (it's not in a market). It is however down a few hundred yards from the Oriental Supermarket (on Kirkman) and does serve Taiwanese style food. The catch is that the menu for that side of the menu is in Chinese (a theme?). I asked for a representative dish and was given Beef and Noodle Soup for $7. It was ok. They were bright enough to store the noodles in a separate container until I was ready to eat it (for dinner). The broth was savory. The beef was tender with a little fat (short rib?). The noodles seemed fresh. The place looks like it was a pizzeria before (Italian cartoon character trim) this. It is small. It seats about 16. It's pretty run down. So much so that it almost comes around the curve into being a positive (a real diamond in the rough). Just be prepared that cleanliness and decor are not primary ambitions here. But, the people (one woman and her husband) couldn't be lovelier. They even gave me a free pork sausage that tasted like the glaze on Chinese Spare Ribs. They are Taiwanese. And it's not like you have a lot of choice if you crave this type of food. I'm happy they are serving food from an under represented area of the world. I'm glad they are in Orlando. I'm asking you to give it a try so we can continue to grow the food options in our town.

1st Oriental Supermarket, West Colonial

I purchased a Roasted Duck and Rice Box for $5.50 from this "restaurant" in the market today and had it for dinner. It was mostly disappointing and predictable. It seems that only really good (if any) Chinese restaurants do duck well (I like it confit). It is usually mostly bones, skin and fat. That was the case here. Barely any meat on a half a bird. I went here because I thought it was the location of that elusive Taiwanese restaurant in some market somewhere on 50. Strike 2. The "restaurant" is in the front left corner. They serve a variety of items as meals or by the pound (ie pork tongue). There is some seating. It looks like the corner of a supermarket.

The market is excellent. It has tons of fresh digestibles and Asian products (even tanks with live crustaceans and fish from around the world).

Moghul, Winter Park

Sorry to have left my meager assemblage of devotees in limbo for so long, but, someone had to take their talents to Cooper's Beach this summer (don't get too excited - this is just a brief interlude before Summer Away 2011 Part Deux) and I agreed it should be me. I am excited to report that I had lunch at this Indian restaurant (in what I believe was the old Krystals) on 436 near Aloma today and it was great. I had the lunch buffet for $9. It included Naan, Roti, Basmati Rice, Cabbage Mutter, Mixed Vegetable Curry, Chicken Tandoori, Yellow Daal Fry, Chicken Curry, Channa Masala, Rice Pudding and a Garden Salad. All were wonderful. I'm just angry with my stomach for only being able to handle three trips (full plate of course) to the buffet. It was a first time for the Mutter. It was buttery flavored, yellow, translucent fettuccine width strands of cabbage. Not bad as a side. The Mixed Vegetables in Curry was the best. I hate vegetables. I had three servings of this. It had every vegetable (peas, carrots, potatoes, zucchini, green beans, baby corn, lima beans, etc) under the sun and even some Paneer (cheese), but that may have fallen in by accident. The red/orange sauce was sweet for a curry. The waiter said it was really the butter sauce they use in another dish (I forget which) and misidentified. The Chicken Curry had a moderate amount of heat. It was full of little squares of white meat. Very good. The Tandoori was good. Sometimes they can under cook it so the inside is slimy. Since they use the portions of the chicken that have dark meat, this can make it taste gamy. This was almost cooked through. The Daal was a yellow puree with nice flavor. The Chana (chick peas) had a brown sauce and whole peas. The Rice pudding was good. It's thinner than an European version. It wasn't as sweet as some that I've had so it was superior. I didn't try the salad. The bread and rice were all perfect. Overall everything was surprisingly acceptable. If they put this care into a lunch buffet then I am confident of the rest of the menu. The wait staff (2) were great. Even though a buffet is kind of self serve; they filled me up three times without prompting, they answered all my questions, they were quick with bill. They accomplished this even though the place was getting near full. The place seats about 50. It's broken up into a bar area and a dining area. In the dining area the booths are under the windows at the periphery of the room. The tables are inside of that. The bar area has a few stools, but seemed to be mostly used for take out/pick up orders. They did a brisk business there. The color scheme is Cabernet and black. It gives it a very sultry feel. They have some ethnically appropriate decorations. The place was an old fast food locale so there is so only so much that can be done. I don't want you to think it is posh by any stretch of the imagination, but, it's better than most Indian decor. The place was filled with a hodgepodge of society. Plenty of Indians, Caucasians, young, old, hipsters, and maybe a gay. A good portion were greeted as return visitors. I know the place has been open for a few months so I'm sure I'm not breaking any headlines to anyone in the neighborhood. Frankly, I was shocked that a place in this part of town would have such a following so fast or be any good. I encourage you to get on the bandwagon. They took Amex and sodas were under $2.