La Merce, Winter Park

I had lunch at this new (3 months) Spanish (Andalusian - southern) restaurant on Morse off Park on Thursday. I think it replaces a vegan spot. There have been so many casualties in this location that I can't keep track. If the crowd at lunch is any indication (no one else), these guys are going to share the same fate if they don't pick a lane. If they are going to charge what they do ($30 range with a standard deviation of $10), they have to improve the experience. Now they are a one legged stool. The service and ambiance do not support the price points they demand. They must be counting on the food to carry the whole load. Not that the service or ambiance are bad. They just aren't on par with a Luma or Prato (for example) and the pricing is about the same. Not to mention the food is better (based on this meal) at those locations. I had an acceptable lunch special (pork or chicken with two sides, dessert and a soda for $14. That was a value. However, if I had ordered a $27 chicken dish (for example) with a $4 soda (3/4 ice) then I would have been dissatisfied. Then I would have really been mad at the dry pork and the crusty mashed potatoes and the store bought rolls and the lack of a butter knife (or butter) or spoon for the tapanade and the non-cloth napkin and the plastic plants in the centerpiece. At $14 I can let that stuff go. At their regular menu prices, I could not. The dish I had had some nice asparagus (slightly wilted) and the sauce I chose (five spice) was a nice mix of chicken stock, cumin, honey and assorted hues of peppercorn). The meal also included a mini guava pie with vanilla ice cream. The dessert was delicious. I hope they didn't buy that too. The place is cute. They went minimalistic. The color motif is black and white and light blue. They "wrote" their name on one wall. It seats about forty. Tables and booths. New. They kept the bar area and patio. If it is not clear, I enjoyed my meal. But, I didn't pay $4 for a soda or x for an entree plus y for dessert. I actually stopped myself from ordering a regular entree or adding an app when I saw the $4 soda charge. It irked me. I suggest they keep it quasi-casual and lower the prices by a third. It has too much of a family run vibe (name is short for Mercedes - the grand mother) to compete with the professional "white table cloth" set. I worry that everyone will do the calculus that I did and just settle on the lunch menu. And I don't think they want that or can survive like that. I don't think they have competition (on Park) for their type of cuisine, so, they have a chance. I hope they succeed. Not just because I'm sick of coming back to this pot, but, because they seemed nice and the seem to import conscientiously and have some fun items on the menu. For now, I recommend the lunch special. I'd feel a little guilty advocating the full monty.