F&D Kitchen and Bar, Lake Mary

F&D? More like F'n A. As in F'ing A (right) it's good. I went to this new gastropub (and buddy it isn't the first in Lake Mary by a long shot but we'll let that slide) last night. I was surprised by the experience. This place has been a thousand places over the years. They're usually of a good quality, yet, they fail. This place may end the trend. It was packed. Even at eight/nine pm which is late-ish for LM. I went expecting the same treatment I got when it was Chavo. I just went in shorts and a T-shirt like last time to see if I would get "big timed" again. Nope. This time they offered a table without a stink. It was on the patio, but, that was ok because I saw that the place was jammed and they had a waiting list resting on the hostess table. I sat at the bar instead. No problem. I wanted to watch TV anyway. I sat next to a couple that new something about the owner. They came TO Lake Mary FROM Winter Park for this! The owner is a veteran of the the industry, but, this is his first restaurant. You can hardly tell. He spent alot decorating the place in a flea market, industrial motif that is pretty common among modern gastropubs. Think chalk boards, exposed wood and brick, old chandeliers, old light bulbs, etc. They have a bar area. The menu draws from alot of common gastropub fare, but, has some riffs. I had the daily fish (grouper) on top of faro on top of a sweet corn puree adorned with tiny flower blossoms. It cost $24. It was great. Sizable portion. The fish was perfectly cooked. This may be the first time in forever that grouper looked liked grouper when it came on my plate. It was a thick, flaky serving with a nice crust. The faro was perfect. The puree was good. It was an odd pairing and I'm not sure they worked as a whole composition, but, I liked them separately. The folks next to me had an outrageous short rib (on a Flintstone bone), some flavorless (their words) lamb meatballs, good brussel sprouts and a great salad. The couple on my right had what looked like a decent burger. Service was polite and expeditious. The crowd was hip. Prices were reasonable. I will definitely go back. I really hope they do lunch soon. F'n A!

Lombardi's, Winter Park

I grabbed something to go at their new store on Fairbank's (near 4 Rivers). I had the special fish of the day sandwich. I had never heard the name of the fish and can't remember it. I'm sure it was something ordinary that they renamed. It was good in any case. It came on a nice glazed roll with ok lettuce and tomato. FF, cole slaw and a thousand island like tartar sauce on the side. The FF were that gooey, coated kind that just reek of oil absorption, calories and Arby's. It cost a reasonable $8. The place obviously looks new. I think they have been open under a month. The seafood selection is sick. The quality looked impeccable. Their "soft opening" menu is even impressive. Oysters, pink shrimp, poke, lobster mac and cheese egg rolls, steamers, grouper, lobster roll, poke - on and on. Prices are reasonable. They have a clean area to eat in. They even have wine and beer. Top notch.

Brazialian Paletas, I Drive

I stopped by this place because the waiter at Boi said it was a Boi Express. It WAS. It isn't now. You'd think he'd know. It's in the corner of that strip mall that is on the left side of Kirkman. I stopped here to see if the rumors of the malls' tear down were true (they say it isn't) and to get some pizza at the place that replaced Big Italy. It turns out that place is only open at night (and owned by the Boi people). Back to Paletas -  It's a Brazilian popsicle and hamburger/hot dog joint. They have some religious/Chicago connection. The place seats around sixty. It seems way to big for what they serve. They have been open for a month. The owner says she makes her own popsicles. They looked artisanal. They were $3. I had a Dog Bacon for $4. It was a beef hot dog smothered with mashed potatoes, bacon, mayo, potato sticks and corn. It was very good. Nothing tasted nuked. The mashed potatoes were real. The bacon was chunky. They have a variety of dogs and burgers and one chicken sandwich. It looks decrepit, but, maybe they will fix it up. At least the have the caring part down.

Oshio, I Drive

I had lunch at this Korean/Japanese spot next to the sky diving simulator around Universal Blvd on Wednesday. It replaces a Chinese place. I had salmon sushi for $4.50 and I tried a rice pasta soup for $13. The salmon was ice cold. I don't think they expected someone to order it. The soup was a "specialty". I guess the specialty is that they forget to include the beef that comes with it and justifies the price. I'm still not sure what the deal is (language issues). The regular menu said beef. The take out menu does not. The take out menu says it comes with carrots and hot paste sauce. It didn't. I had eaten alot of beef during the week so I didn't complain. I was just knocking this place off the list. In any event, it was like a $13 egg drop soup with tons of pasty slivers of rice pasta in it. The best part of the meal was some mediocre bon chon (four dishes). Although, they can't even make kimchi well (not aged at all). The place is old. They did nothing to it. They still have Chinese statues out front. The table bbq is electric (not charcoal). Prices are slightly higher than most Korean places. It seats about eighty. There were five other there at lunch. The one and probably only thing it has going for it is that I can't think of another Korean play near by (outside of that one on Dr Phillips). They f that up too by giving it a Japanese name. I think it's a derivation of the word oshii which means "delicious". Oshio must mean - "palatable". They have a cheaper lunch menu, but, you have to ask for it. I'm ambivalent about this place.

Mrs. Potato, Universal Area

I grabbed some snack from this Brazilian potato-centric restaurant in the strip mall that houses Bloodhound Brew (Kirkman and Conroy). It's way in the back corner. She does baked potatoes, rosti, burgers, hot dogs, snacks and alot of Brazilian entrees. They have five TV's above the counter and one had a loop of her on Fox 35 with that fake Ryan Seacrest guy. The potatoes looked like ostrich eggs. You can top them with a multitude of things (all under $10). Same with the rosti (A huge hash brown). Lots of the toppings are Brazilian. The burgers are on a potato roll. Around $5. They entrees are in the teens. I had a chicken catupiry (Brazilian cream cheese) empanada for around $2. Very good. Cooked to order. Not greasy. I would mix the chicken and cc so you don't get separate bites of each. Brazilian cream cheese tastes alot like Whipped Cream Cheese. I also had a shrimp pot pie that was the loser. Ridiculously salty. The filling may have had shrimp in it. It was a curry like mess with a slice of pimentoed green olive. The pastry was very mealy and dry. It was like eating a fist full of crackers without water. A shame because it looked cute. The last thing I tried was a chicken and corn risoli (crescent shaped croquette). Does this mean Risoli and Iles mean Crescent Shape and Iles? It was good. The same shredded chicken as the empanada. The inside dough was a little under done. I liked the place. They have a small main room and an adjacent enclosed patio (no view). It looks like some kind of breakfast or cupcake place from the outside.  It seemed to be doing brisk business. Locals and tourists. The value is there. When I go back, I am trying a chicken stroganoff potato or maybe one with the Brazilian sausage. The snacks I mentioned were just a small sample and they do those with many different fillings. They are all around $2. They have been in this location for six months. It may have been called Netto's before this because that is what printed out on my receipt. They had been open near the ice cream place shaped like a cone on I Drive last year. I'm glad I went out of my way to knock it off the list.

Adega Grille, I Drive

I had dinner at this Portuguese restaurant on the Fun Spot side of I Drive tonight. It's near Giraffa's. I went there recently when it was Emporio Brazil. The name means wine cabinet. They should have called it bacaloa. Half the menu is comprised of this dried salt cod and nine tenth of the seafood entrees (one shrimp dish). The rest of the entrees are three beef and one chicken and one pork dish. I had the pork with clams for $17. It was good. I had cooked myself pork two of the last three nights, so, I wasn't eager for more pork. However, I wanted bacaloa even less and I just don't trust most places with shrimp any more. The clams (4) were an afterthought. A decoration. It was really a pork dish in a wine, drippings and cream sauce with roasted potatoes and pickled cauliflower and carrots. There was a lot of pork. It tasted gamey. Hopefully, that meant it wasn't American roided up pork and not that it was spoiled. It could have been because there were only two other diners eating with me (often a sign that the food may be stretched beyond its use by date). I hope the empty room is because their usual customer is a vampire. They also offered up a basket of rolls. The insides were cold. Does that mean they nuked them? The place seats about eighty. Half the tables/seats are in one style and the other half in another. They are new-ish though. The paint is white with orange accent walls. They have a faux brick wall wainscoting. The prep area is in tile. They have some blown up photographs of Portuguese landmarks on the wall. It's all appropriate. They sell Portuguese wine and beer. I still don't know if Orlando is ready for Portuguese cuisine. I'm less sure now. A Portuguese menu can be limited to begin with and such a bacaloa-centric menu is a gamble. I guess it is a smart move from the expense side since dry cod doesn't spoil, but, I'm not sure that is why you sell it. We aren't on a six month voyage to the America's. We can get whatever we want whenever we want. I don't think we ever want bacaloa. All that said, I think you should try it even if only to stamp your culinary passport. You can avoid the bacaloa. They have been open for four months.

The Golden Knife, Downtown - Closed

I had dinner at this sophisticated Continental restaurant on Pine St last Friday. It is in the space that was home to the Breakfast Club and Zilly Bee Cafe. The space is certainly the worst part of the experience. I don't love the location (the Versus sports bar has been sitting idle for years and this is kind of the edge of downtown even though it is only two blocks away from Orange Ave) or the room itself. They have tried to dandify it, but, the ceilings are low and the flow is bad. The ceiling tiles are also terrible. I'll just finish up on the decor as long as I'm at it. The room is semi-divided into a bar/entrance area and a dining room. It must seat 100+. They have put some straw mats on the walls and pinned orchids on them. Interesting. The rest of the vertical space is decorated with mirrors and flat art. The tables and seats seem new. Ok on to the exciting bits. I liked the menu and the food. The appetizers (3) are weak in number. Some things cost as much as entrees. Pricing is all over the place. I don't know if I should applaud some cheap entree prices or hope for lower app prices. The fact that they do a $9 lunch also makes you curse yourself for coming for dinner. However, that isn't a real problem. I had a salmon tartare app and a steak tartare entree. Both were $13. I was maybe going to go for a $20 duck and probably would have if they had something interesting under $10 to start with and I wasn't also drinking wine. I had been been craving tuna tartare for days. I was imagining raw flesh coated in oil. Their version was old fashioned. It was a creamy version. The yellow tail was fresh enough to discern under all the dressing and the portion was large. They cut in green peppers (a first). It was surrounded by avocado slices, tangerine sections and circular toast. You were to it them in a sequence. Savory, fat, sweet. The steak tartare was good too. Same preparation except the meat was mixed with capers and maybe onions and I noticed at least one almond sliver. Chunky texture. It came with a grain/seed bread and had an overcooked fried egg on it. I would do a raw (or cooked) quail. This one was to big. It ruined the appearance. I also thought the bread looked too thick and was of the wrong kind, but, it worked. The chef/owner said he was from Rio and has other partnerships in town. He didn't want to just open a steak house. I don't remember every dish on the menu, but, I think they were all American or French inspired. This is just what used to be called dining out. A high end Continental spot. With all the fusion and ethnic eats, I hope that this "against type" kind of place still has a place. I would guess there are some old timers who still revere this type of experience and some who are so hip that they find it ironic. Maybe even a few will try it just because it's good and they use some contemporary techniques. I was originally scared because the place was empty (one other table of two). I worried that the food would be stale. The owner swore he buys modestly and turns whatever is leftover through catering. I have no reason not to believe him after sampling his food. He also seems to care. He said they bake their own desserts and if the huge chocolate cake that my neighbor had was any good or indication, then that says something too. The menu seems small enough to control. They do fun things like cook sous vide. The wine list is chosen wisely for value. The single glass wine pours were enormous. It's probably the second best restaurant downtown now. They say they are in it for the long haul. I'd try and find it for dinner and if you are lucky enough to work downtown you have no excuse for ignoring it at lunch. They have been open for four months.

Pub Crawl - Downtown: Relax Grill, Grafitti Junction and Crow Bar

I went to these bars last Friday.

8-8:15pm: Relax Grill at Lake Eola - This place is an outdoor bar and restaurant next to the Swan paddle boat dock. They have been there for six years. I forget the name of the last place I tried here. Could have been this. It was pretty full.

8:30-9pm: Grafitti Junction - Finally tried this location (on the tracks on Church St). The usual.

10:30pm-12am: The Crow - This place is next to The Abbey and across from where I had dinner (Pine St). I forget what it was just a few weeks ago. It just opened as a whiskey bar. More vodka than whiskey so far. Hot staff. Made me miss my train home. Not sure how trendy a whiskey bar is. Might have caught the tail end of a trend (even for Orlando). Can probably re-theme. Semi-crowded for word of mouth.