I tried this "new world cuisine" restaurant last Saturday night. It was thirteen years in the making. When I first moved down permanently, I asked a service worker what the best restaurant in town was. She said Norman's. I've made frustrated attempts in the past to dine here. I've rewritten its name on every iteration of my "to try" lists. It has been a thorn in my side. It's in nowheresville. It's hard to find. There is no direct exit off ramp moving west. Getting back east on I4 is a circuitous affair. They don't serve lunch. Roads are always under construction around it. It just never happened. And now it has. And I kind of wish it hadn't.
The food was prepared properly. The service was impeccable. The setting is fairly nice. The ingredients are top notch. It's Norman that is the problem. His menu stinks. You's have to be a Psycho (or mother of) to enjoy it. There's not much of it and what there is of it is over crafted and poorly conceived. Usually the executive chef sets out an exciting blueprint and the kitchen screws it up. This is one of the rare cases where the opposite is true. And it is surprising because I liked his 1921 concept. I'll be more specific in the next paragraph, but, it doesn't help that his "thing" is Caribbean cuisine. Where is that fine dining? You can't "fuse" it enough. It is too bold. Too simplistic. And the "traditional" half of the twenty or so item menu is boring by hotel restaurant standards (ie filet mignon, waygu, chicken, pork). The special was wreckfish. Which is just stone bass. There is also a tapas section. Tapas are played. And kind of a third wheel.
I settled one three starters because I didn't really want anything on the menu. It was either ridiculously overpriced (like a $50+ filet) or didn't do anything for me. The $90+ tasting menu was little more than the same dishes and a dessert at the same price as if you ordered them ala carte. I started with half portion of foie gras (1) on a "french toasted" brioche atop caramel sauce for $15. The brioche fell apart. The dish was sooo cloyingly sweet. Brioche AND caramel? Why no powdered sugar? The slippery "whole" liver nearly slid off. Maybe that is why they need the caramel sauce? You couldn't taste the liver at all. It was mushy liver on mushy bread on mushy sauce. Sweet on sweet. Is he the only chef that hasn't heard of levels of flavor and contrast? Never mind complimentary flavor. I believe the liver was a duck liver (not goose) by the size. There were other forgettable components to the dish (and the others). Remember I said these dishes are over crafted. The second dish was another cavity inducer. A $18 conch chowder. I think he meant conch gelato. Think of the sweetest she crab soup and double it. It tasted like a milkshake. It was nicely presented in a bowl full of vegetables that the waiter poured the liquid into from a kettle. But the conch was FRIED and dry and did nothing for me. Less than nothing. It annoyed me. Who doesn't know that fried items become mushy when exposed to liquid? Who wants mush? The last dish was the best. It was a 2 scallop dish ($18) atop Anson Mills grits with tomato. The grits were phenomenal. More like what he does at 1921. The scallops were topped with annotta seed dust (aka achiote) and seared perfectly. This simple little riff (scallops for shrimp) is all he has to do. How about a stone crab chowder like I just had in The Keys?
As I said the service was great. Everybody is dressed to the nines and their "section" consists of only four or five tables. They could have been slightly more present. I don't know why they disappeared when they did. There was a little conflict on when they were ready for me and when I was ready for them. In general I think a wait staff should recede after the table is seated and then be very present when the table has probably had time to make their decisions. Is anyone that prepared for questions as soon as they sit down? Does anyone need a drink order filled that fast? I think we want to settle and then we want attention after that. That said, they covered for each other. Plates didn't linger on the table. They spaced out the timing of the dishes. They took questions and made small talk. They gave space. They weren't too pushy with the recommendations or add ons.
The space is nice. Not memorable. Classic. Marble floors. You enter through a long hall. High (maybe too) ceilings. A circular layout. A sem-private room in the middle (surrounded by glass and wood wine storage cases). Windows along the exterior. Soft lighting. Maybe too soft to read the menu. I can't remember if there was music. The plates and cutlery were high end. The crowd was mixed. Probably many tourists. Dress was very casual. The wine list was good.
All in all, I wouldn't go back for a second turn. I live in Florida so the "Florida-ribbean" cuisine doesn't excite me as much as it might a tourist. I've had wreckfish TACOS in New Smyrna. Conch isn't an extravagance. I can get empanadas everywhere. And I hated most of the concoctions he constructed. I will say that I think he can do well. I like 1921 and that is experimental and over dreamed up. I guess there is more margin for error with Southern cuisine. And maybe even that home spun stuff "fuses" better than Caribbean? Plus it is less of a hassle to get to (even if it is in Mt Dora). I would say that you should skip it (because of price, menu and isolation) unless you are already staying at the Ritz.
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