Mama Mia's Pizzeria, Orlando

I had the two slice lunch special at this pizzeria near Hoffner on South Orange today. It cost $5. Two slices and a soda. The pizza was ok. It was probably day old and the cheese mix they used is bad (oily and curd like), but, it was thin. The crust was bone dry (day old I hope). They let you have a topping topped slice(s) at this price. They also do calzones, stromboli, wings, salads, subs and pasta. It's in a cute little round space. The pizza maker was a woman. Not sure if  I have seen many of those now that I think on it. If they improved the quality of the raw materials, they could have a nice pie. As it is, it is an ok NYC style approximation. They have been there since 1996. They say Orlando, but, I think it's Fern Park.

I have to apologize for the lack of reviews. It seems like every place on my list isn't as open as The Orlando Weekly et al would have you believe. Just wiffed on Mezo (a Med place that was supposed to be open in Baldwin Park) and a place in Sanford that I think is called Original that was supposed to be doing lunch. The stupid taco place on Lake Ivanhoe is still not open to the public. The two Asian places in Audubon Park don't seem anywhere near opening.

The Avenue Grill, Altamonte Springs

I got a gyro lunch special to go at this Greek restaurant on the way to Lake Brantley High School (off 434) Wednesday. It came with fries and a soda. The soda was the best and then the fries and then the gyro. The fries were crinkle cut. Pretty crisp. I think they steamed in the container. The gyro was bad. A thick, almost raw pita with pre-formed meat (unknown origin) covered with limp veggies and a pasty sauce. They said that they don't do enough business to have a rotating loaf to carve from. Chicken or egg? They also said that places that do just chuck that lump into a refrigerator every night and they don't want to do that. Not sure I'm going to order gyros anymore. The meal was cheap though. $6 - I think. They also do some dishes I'd be scared to order based on this sampling. Salmon, kabob and things I hope they misname (sound Chinese) like chicken/shrimp rice and stir fry. I think they said they opened seven months ago. The place used to be a pizza place.

Create Your Nature, Winter Park

I grabbed a salad at this healthy foods con game a few weeks ago. I only bought in because the fish restaurant nearby wasn't open for lunch yet and I had driven all that way. I had a small/half Kale-ifornia Dreaming salad for $7. I was ok. I don't hate kale. It also came with zucchini (dry), avocado (unripe), quinoa, and toasted chick peas (hard). Needless to say that the full Wendy's salad I had today at $5 with tax after a $2 coupon was a better value. And it came with chicken. This place is slightly different from the "heavy girls eating light" compatriots in that they serve oatmeal in addition to the salads and acai bowls. I guess they want to fleece in the morning as well. Or groom the kids of these Puppies. Maybe this is one of those perpetual infancy sort of appeals. Are these places popular because these retards don't see the parade of like minded charlatans that have preyed on them immemorial? Does anyone read history? See patterns? As Dean Wormer told Flounder (I believe) in Animal House, "Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life". If he only could have envisioned that he could have been talking about MIWNFs (Mothers I Would Never Fuck) or hell - their daughters (who are often less in shape) in the twenty first century. I can't decide which I hate more - the sloth or the wastefulness. How hard is it to make a salad? I doesn't require cooking. Are you that incompetent? That lazy? That susceptible? And oatmeal requires boiling water! You could conceivably get it from the tap. Too tired from yoga and a facial? I'll give you a facial! Needless to say that I don't approve of this place. Oh, it's near the old Ravenous Pig on Orange. If we could just recreate your nature. You know who I am talking about.

On a totally unrelated topic, I have a recipe for local cooks to steal. It's called flammekuek. It's a Belgian pizza with sour cream, swiss cheese, bacon and grilled onions. Tastes like a potato skin. You cook the sour cream. Good and I hate sauceless pizzas.