Grub Crawl - Downtown: Spice Burger (Closed), Isla Verde by V (Closed), WOB, and Lozada's Cafe

I went to these places Friday night. I took Sunrail there.

Spice Burger - They are under the movie theater at Church and Orange. They have been open for five months. I had a traditional burger for $6. The meat tasted like it was mixed with organ meat (gamey). The bun was good. The greens were fresh. It was a smallish patty. It came with a huge helping of fries. They coated them in that starch garbage, yet, somehow this time it wasn't terrible. It's your typical me-too, chain ready, gastro-burger place. It looks like they all do. Nothing that hasn't been done to death before.

Isla Verde by V - This is right next door to Spice. It has been open for one week. It's a Latin, Mexican, Brazilian restaurant. I just had their shrimp in hot sauce (I think they called it something like ala V) for $5 and a beer. The shrimp were probably frozen (softish texture). They were a good medium size. The sauce just seemed like it was straight out of a bottle. The place has fairly shoddy construction work. They have a two story band area. I was intrigued by a land crab stew.

WOB - I tried the newish location on Lake Eola. I love this location. Near Stardust. It had a better crowd than all their other locations combined. Actual girls who didn't look like hipster boys. It was packed. They have a great outdoor area. Still queer about hiding the damage their goods will do to your wallet.

Lozada's Cafe - This place is on Magnolia near the courthouse. It replace a bakery that replaced a.... The owner (young) has some back story with Undercover Boss. He seems to be conscientious. I just had a shrimp empanada ($3.50) and some mozzarella sticks ($2.50) for the train ride home. The shrimp looked like the dried stuff I feed my fish. The dough was freshly fried while I waited. The mozzarella tasted weird. Spongy. Like it was vegan or something. 4 sticks. Freshly fried. The rest of the menu is kind of boring. Sandwiches, etc. The Mediterranean place next door has already closed.

I'll end with a critique of Sunrail. The last train leaves way too early. It takes a long time to get there and back. You can't wait for the ride home to end. It doesn't stop at Church Street but one block down. I heard tales of how screwed people were when it hit a car earlier in the week. They had to wait until the Fire Department accounted for every one and people had to wait hours or call Uber to rescue them. The buses that drop you off at locations in town weren't there at last call. You still have to drive home when they drop you off, so, it's not much of a help if you want to use it to avoid a DUI.