Grub Crawl - Disney Springs: STK, Frontera Cocina and Sprinkles

I ate at these restaurants yesterday at lunch time.

STK - I only went here because I'm running out of places and I didn't really want to waste my time sampling them in another state. I had a 6oz filet mignon that ended up costing $45 all told ($36 on its own). Now I ask you - is that worth it? It wasn't even a good cut. From the tail end of the loin. Their idea of medium rare is half medium/well done and half rare. The beef had no taste. The peppercorn sauce it came with tasted of bad cognac (or some inferior alcohol) and needed more peppercorn. The plating was an after thought. A white ramekin with the sauce on a white plate. Now look, I hate steak places so maybe this is standard treatment and pricing. I forget. I'm sure $125 for a tomahawk cut is pretty standard. No? I can't hear you. However, I'll tell you where you can get a better piece of meat (for a tenth - yes tenth - of the price) in about a minute. I wouldn't have minded as much (maybe a half of one percent) if they served you in the main room and not the front "bar" area. I was paying a dinner price right? You don't charge even more at dinner do you? The rest of the menu is composed of different cuts, burgers and the usual steakhouse twaddle. It's a small menu. The wine menu is predictable. Single pours run as high as $20. I didn't even dare order a soda. The place looks luxe. It is mainly white accents on black. The decorations on the black wall are referred to as "horns" and the beams on the ceiling are "ribs". The front (more "casual" room) seats around fifty. Same with the "formal" room. They have a deck out back. No dress code or reservations needed at lunch. Not sure about dinner. There were six others there at lunch. Most people looked at the menu prices and kept on rolling. Exactly the rip off I was expecting. My waiter was the only bright spot.

Frontera Cocina - I stopped at their taco window for a real lunch. And here is the answer to who beat STK in a steak off. For $3.50 I had a brilliant short rib soft taco in a corn tortilla. I would wager that it had close to 6oz in it. Plus I got some cotija cheese on top. Plus the tender meat was bursting with flavor. The achiote pork taco with pickled red onions wasn't as good, but, that is just because the short rib was so perfect. I also didn't like the habanero sauce that went with it. It overpowered everything. really hot. It is served on the side though. The only other thing the serve is guac and chips at $7. I thought I read something about burritos, but, I guess not. The main restaurant looks nice. They have a big ceramic tile mural facing you as you enter. There is some dining up front and then a bar and then some more dining and then a patio. I can't speak for the "dine in" experience (because I didn't dine in) or the menu (because I didn't look at it), but, I have eaten at his (Rick Bayless) place in Chicago and everything is good. I suspect the same is true here. Based on the take out window.

Sprinkles - They are across from Frontera. It is a chain (30) out of Beverley Hills. I had a Smore cupcake. It was really messy and I would have preferred that they held the cupcake. It had a graham cracker bottom crust that fell off and a melted marshmallow top that needed a cracker (or anything) top to keep the ultra sticky goo from getting all over everything.. I figure they didn't add one because it would ruin the aesthetics. I think aesthetics/kitsch are important here. The cupcake had a chocolate center. The whole thing was so sweet, that if you wash it down with a Coke, the Coke MITIGATES the sugar rush. The cake cost $5. They had around twelve others. Ice cream seemed to be of equal or greater importance. They have a cute cupcake ATM. The place is very white (paint not race).

This is it for a while, so, saver it like a 6oz filet.

Urban Brick, Deland

I grabbed a pizzetta to go at this fairly new (six months) Italian place of N Woodland Blvd in the center of the old town. I had the daily special. It was called Blueberry Pie. It cost $16. I mainly tried it because it came with guanciale (pork cheek). It also was so bizarre. They put blueberries, maple syrup and pistachios on it. It was ok. They made the same mistake of "over crusting" it that they did at Pizza Bruno. They promised to "stretch" the dough more. If they did, then I can't imagine how wide the normal crust is. In addition, I could not see or taste whatever cheese was on it. Garlic also overpowered the other ingredients. They were frugal with the very salty guanciale. Less so with the pistachios. It was about twelve inches wide. I applaud the imagination of the cook. The menu (mostly pizzas starting at $9) is also on the inventive side. They have a "slice" of pizza (with soda at lunch at $6) that is round. It's a cute little flippy flyer. They also do sandwiches (3), wings, pasta (2), and salads. It looks brand new because it is, It seats about thirty in a rectangular space. The have a mural of Broadway on the wall separating the kitchen and the rear seats. The people I interacted with were friendly. I chose this place because the places around it (that I hadn't tried) seemed more suited for a sit in meal and I just wanted to get home with a dinner at that point in the day. I'm glad I found this spot. It fit the bill. I want to try a more traditional pizza and maybe the "slice" in the future. I may always dislike the crust situation, but, I like the mentality of the place in the aggregate. If I lived nearby, I would give their whole menu a once over.

Las Palmas, Mount Dora

I ate lunch at this Cuban restaurant in the center of town (Donnelly St) yesterday. It is oddly one of two Cuban plays on the same block. I had the lunch size Picadillo (ground beef) platter for $10. Mostly because I think I have tried most of the other Cuban dishes on the menu over the years. I may even have had this at some point. It's just a bowl of ground beef stewed with olives, potato and black raisins. It's funny that if they went through the bother of forming this into balls then maybe they could charge the extra $2 that they would at Pizza Bruno's. Bruno would have to kick in more beef though. The beef was made more palatable (and a cheat for the sandwich they have with ground beef) with the delivery of some free pressed bread. It helped balance the richness of the beef eaten solo. The beef did come with a choice of two sides. They also helped balance the meal. I chose red beans and arroz con gandules. The red beans were good. They were stewed with sliced sausage. The rice had pigeon peas, chicken and pork added to it. It was yellow in color. Over cooked like every Latin/Island rice I've ever had. Good enough though. Served in a form. It was hard to finish all this. The menu is large and has what you'd expect a Cuban restaurant that serves lunch and dinner to have. Quite a few platters have lunch prices. Oh! I forgot. The rice was included. I had a salad as my second side. It was a boring lettuce and tomato salad, but, it made it feel like I ordered an app. Service was good. The place looks pretty nice. I remember that they painted the pressed pattern tin ceiling black. I forget what the walls were. It seats about sixty. The room has windows along the sides of the room. There is a little bar room. It's well run and a value. However, it's still Cuban food at the end of the day. I haven't ever been knocked off my feet by it. This is a respectable representation of what it can be.

The Juicy Crab, Winter Park - Moved to I Drive

This place just replaced that disaster of a sushi bar on the corner of 436 and Aloma/Fairbanks. And to report that they are slightly better is a testament to how bad that place was. It is now a place that boils most of the things that the last place hibachi-ed or served raw. I had a combo that let me pair (or maybe I "curated" it) two half pound items. I chose crawfish and the cheapest thing (sausage) because I just didn't trust that the freshness of their menu and blue crab is out of season. Don't ask me why I would have trusted them on crab. I tried to reason with myself, but, I wouldn't have it. I really don't understand myself sometimes. The crawfish cost $5. The sausage cost $4. I would bet that the crawfish (9) had been frozen at some point. Very tough with no flavor. Then again it could have been the asinine practice of boiling instead of steaming seafood that most of America seems to enjoy. The sausage was fine. The meal also came with a red potato the size of a monkey fist and the requisite quarter cob of corn that they boil so long that the kernels flatten out. They serve the usual cheap fried crap and boil shrimp, crabs, mussels and clams. Everything is about $10. They also list lobster or stone crab. I'm not sure I'd trust them to provide any of that. I mean not just them. Any place like this. I just don't trust that the stuff going into the pot is fresh. FYI - check if their shrimp have black spots on the shells. I just learned that this is a sign that they were frozen (not that almost every shrimp isn't). They did very little to the decor and what they did clashes. I'm not sure if you know James from the last two seasons of Big Brother. He's an Asian redneck from South Carolina. This spot is an Asian redneck too. They left the Bangkok nightclub elements of the old place and nailed up some wood boards to make it look like a beach/shit shack. They also walled of the hibachi area. They said it was a "private room", but,  it looks like they just removed the grills and left it at that. Service was polite. They are part of a small chain from Georgia. I can't recommend anyplace that destroys seafood by boiling it. If you don't have enough sense to know that this strips them of all their natural flavor and texture then you shouldn't be allowed to buy it let alone serve it. Throw in the embarrassing decor and all you have left is that it may appeal to a very undiscerning segment of the population.

11/17/2019  - I popped into the new location and they claimed they had no affiliation (not even the franchise) with this one. The story sounded the same to me though. These franchisees may not even be aware this place once existed. In any case, I won't be trying out the new one based on this experience and the vibe I got from the new location. Another location is opening soon too.

Earl's Kitchen + Bar, Mall at Millenia

I ate lunch here on Sunday. I had intended on favoring an undeserving tapas place around Sand Lake (only because I won't trust them to enough to waste a dinner on them), but, they think they have a buffet that merits $40. I would already have to be drunk on mimosas made with five dollar a bottle sparkling wine to believe that. Like the two customers in the place who obviously disagreed with me. This place is a chain from Canada. I think I may have liked it better had I not been informed of that before I went. Aside from the boring name (not associated with Robert Earl of Planet Hollywood as far as I can tell) and 50% too greedy menu pricing, I kind of liked it. I especially liked the attractive waitresses (many who moved here from Canada) and the interior design. The space is expansive. The front of house is a bar area with mass transit like wood benches and other regular high top tables. The ceiling rises two floors. The outside wall is all glass. There are different columns/support structures exposed in that area. The rear area is the more "formal" area. It starts with a barrier of booths and ends with another bar, The open kitchen is on the right that is separated from the room by a half wall with a row of connected seating on the "wall" side. Regular tables form the rest of room. The color scheme is mostly white, black assorted Autumnal colors and wood and granite. They have interesting lighting fixtures in the air and art and murals on the walls. The rear room alone must seat 100. Half that up front. There is also an outside patio up front. It was pretty crowded with an attractive/well dressed clientele. I would wager that a fair number were from Toronto and Montreal. I guess it is smart to open a Canadian chain where half the country vacations. You don't even really need the locals to buy in. I found the menu a little boring. Not much for the twelve bodies I counted on the line to do. They have four stabs at "ethnic" dishes like curry (or all of two sushi rolls), but, it's mainly sandwiches, burgers and steaks. All but three of the starters are really mains. In concept and price. They had a brunch menu on Sunday, so, I thought I'd be the least bored or fleeced in this area (should they suck). I had the steak and eggs so I could sort of sample the quality of steak (for you people) since it is a highlight. The dish was set on a slice of sour dough toast covered with bacon jam, avocado, steak and fried eggs. The eggs were overdone. My waitress noticed it right away and offered to have it sent back. Since I was mostly interested in acquiring intel on the steak, I asked her to let it slide. The meal was good. The steak was good. Medium rare. It also came with some nicely executed fried potatoes. It cost $14. Of course they hose you on soda. Nearly $4 for one skinny, ice filled glass full. If they could be as creative with the menu as they are with interior design then I could really recommend them. Chain status not withstanding. That or drop the prices to reflect the tedium. As it is, I would only come back to people watch and star gaze at the interior design. Most of CF should love it though. It's very Canadian in the sense that they play it safe. I think they have only been open for a month or so. It is in the old Blue martini space in the front right side of the mall. Anyone else noticing that "&" is no longer cool? It's now "+". Service was polite and professional. They are all dressed in black.

Brewstillery, Winter Park

I stopped in last night to see if they had started pouring their own brew yet. They had (as of late November). The Park Ave Pale Ale I had was very good. Hoppy. Slightly sweet finish. I don't know if I should call this place The Brewstillery of Bear and Peacock. My receipt says Brewstillery. For more info on the place see my review of Bear and Peacock from earlier this year. They started with five types of beer.

Swirlery Wine Bar, Orlando

I stopped here last night after Bruno's. It's diagonally across from that age old burger joint (forget the name) on Michigan. They were hosting a party later in the night, so, I just had one drink and left. Plus no tvs to watch the game. They serve wine and beer. It looks pretty nice. The have done some interesting interior work behind the bar. The bar is composed of a thick slice of a tree. I suspect it is a fake though. Possibly a mold made to look like wood. The selection of libations is pretty good. It's pricey. A glass of cheap German Riesling is what a bottle of that goes for at the market. I thought they were new, but, they said they have been in business for 18 months. Service was polite.

Pizza Bruno, Curry Ford Rd

I finally tried this gourmet pizza place last night after four tries when they weren't open for varying reasons. I had an order of meatballs (3) for $12 and a regular pizza for $10. The way they do pizza is not my preferred way. They use the right ingredients and probably meet the standards set by Italian law, but, it's just to crusty and the cheese was tasteless. Imagine a fort surrounded by wide ramparts. That is what the pizza looks like. It's almost half crust. And while it is soft and fluffy because it just popped out of the brick oven, I don't want breadsticks and pizza. I want pizza. Hopefully, they aren't doing this because they are too lazy to spread out the dough or they are trying to minimize topping costs. If either of those is the reason then there is a problem. The cheese was glossy. It looked like the top of a lasagna.  It wasn't deposited evenly. The sauce was just a plain tomato sauce. It was heavy in spots and light in others. The dough was slightly underdone in the crust. The meatballs were better. They were light. They came in a tomato sauce with golden raisins, a shmear of lemon ricotta and a toasted slice of bread. It is really a meal in itself. The menu is small. Aside from the various pizza combinations, they only offer two salads, garlic knots, a caprese, an antipasto plate, and a cauliflower app. It seats about thirty (including the bar). There was a thirty minute wait for a table. They do get the food out fast though. My waiter/barman was very attentive. The decor is minimal. Oldish building. I felt a bit cheated because I believe my neighbors at the bar received free meatballs and I paid full freight. I guess I should be happy for them. A tiny bottle of soda was $3. You know how I love that. They say the pizza is styled on the pizzas of Naples. Alot of Americans say this. But, isn't that pizza oval? I like that they are committed to quality. I just wish I liked breadstick pizza so I could really give it a good rating. Alas, it will rank a little lower because of that. That and the fact that the location is so equally removed from most of our neighborhoods and there are alot of gourmet pizza choices out there. Almost as many as pregnant local newswomen. They are only open for lunch on Sa and Sn and they are closed on Tuesday.

Grub Crawl - New Smyrna Beach: Cafe Verde, Beachside Candy Co, Donna's Canal Creamery, and Golden Biscuit

I tried these places around lunch time on Thursday. The first two are on Flagler at the beach and the last two are in the town on the land side of the bridge.on Canal St.

Cafe Verde - This spot is behind the Mexican place (Clancy's) about midway up the street. It almost looks as if it may be part of that restaurant. To its detriment. I had a really great avocado and shrimp salad for $10. It was full of fresh shrimp, almost a whole avocado and a mix of field greens and romaine and watermelon. The green mix produced a good combination of crunchy bites with leafy bites. There was a very subtle dressing applied to it. They call it rocoto. Whatever that is. The watermelon takes the usual place of tomatoes. I wasn't in love with the pairing, but, it was a change. The serving was huge. The place seats around twenty inside and thirty on the patio out back. The decor is minimal. I'd categorize it as a nouveau foodie play. They also do tacos, tortas, rice bowls, gyros, ceviche, mussels and some other salads along with some more dinner type meals ranging from roasted lamb to orecchiette alfredo. They describe themselves "food without borders". Service was efficient and cordial. The meal came out quickly. You can watch the two chefs at work behind the counter. A nice surprise.

Beachside Candy Co - It's a little closer to the bridge. I just sampled a bag of chocolate covered pretzels (2) for $2 so I could include it. They were good. Fresh. They also offer ice cream and other sweets.

Donna's Canal Creamery - They said this place has been there forever and under Donna for two years. It's about half way down the street. I had a slice of banana bread so I could include them. It cost $2. It was good. They also serve some small lunch items, coffee, ice cream and other pastries.

Golden Biscuit - This place is also about half way up the street. The entrance is on the parking lot side behind the street. They have been there since 1986. I grabbed a BLT so I could include them. It was a BLT. Good bacon. Fresh veg. Came with chips and pickles. It cost $5. It's your typical cafe/diner menu. The eggs and sausage I saw coming out of the kitchen looked good. Big links. The most expensive thing was $9. Plus they are open a little longer than a lot of breakfast/lunch places. They close at 2pm. The place looks like it could be a rail car. Nice value.

Grub Crawl - Florida Mall: Fat One's (Closed), Carvera (Closed) and Memories of Peru

I started out the new year by trying these places in or around the Florida Mall. The first is inside the food court near the entrance, The second is right outside the food court entrance. The last is in a strip mall on the OBT entrance to the mall. I think used to house a sushi place (Sushi House?).

Fat One's - I swear I was the first to realize that the ex-N'Syncers name broke down to this. I'm glad he has a sense of humor about it. They opened in the spring and I wasn't going to haul my ass all the way down here for a hot dog. Luckily, there has been a fair amount of turnover and new construction around the mall and here we go. It wasn't that bad. Now I think I ordered the only dog combo that is close to justifying the $5 base price, but, it's better than what the Wahlberg family offers up. I had the Cuban dog for $5. It was a dog split down the middle with Swiss cheese and pickles and mustard. They press it like a Cuban sandwich. The dog reminded me of the dogs they served at the snack bar at the beach club I worked at as a teen. I think they used Sabrett's. Possibly Nathan's. It's a beef dog with a touch of salt and maybe garlic. It was good. The bun wasn't all oiled up too. They also have $5 dogs with sriracha or sauerkraut or make your own, The $6 dogs have chili or pepperoni or corned beef or guac. There is a $12 dog that piles on ALL of their toppings. They also had Italian ices ($2-$4). Not the train wreck I expected. Better than most of the food court. And they go to battle with a wiener.

Carvera - They are the first US branch of a Puerto Rican chain (different name) of an Argentinian grill that is apparently very popular down there. They also opened in the spring. It's a fast casual place up here. Read the bio on the wall to understand the Argentinian - Puerto Rican connection. I had the Chicken Milanesa platter for $8.49. It was 85 cents less after they offered me a 10% discount for no apparent reason (maybe you have to say you shopped at the mall). It came with two sides. I chose a baked potato and potato salad. The chicken was huge. It was fresh. Crispy. The potato salad was very good. They put some garlic in it. Otherwise it was your typical recipe. The portion was ridiculous. 2+ giant scoops. I haven't tried the baked potato yet. too stuffed. I ate this for dinner. The place looks posh. I wasn't prepared for fast casual. The main elements are wood. There is a backless "cabinet" on the left that is decorated with cute metal objects from the early part of last century. The place seats about sixty. Service was very friendly. They also sell salchicha, churrasco, burgers, sandwiches, grilled chicken, salads, warps, turnovers (empanadas), soup, chorizo, pimento, desserts and alot of sides. I'm glad it took the chance. Great value.

Taste of Peru - I think the just opened very recently. I had the lunch special for $9. It was a steal and why I continue to laud Peruvian cuisine as the best in South America. Value and variety and verve. That's a good combination. I chose Aguadito de Pollo (from among three choices) for the first course and Tallarin Saltado de Pollo (from among five choices) for the main. They also thrown in a soda (with refills). The first course is a chicken soup the last is a form of lo mein (noodles). The soup was huge. I was full after this. It had carrots, celery, hominy, peas and maybe quinoa (or some starch, like rice, to thicken it), All but the peas appeared to be fresh and most chefs suggest using frozen peas anyway. The chicken it it was very tender. It took a tiny while for it to come out, so, I wouldn't be surprised if they cook it to order and that there is only one person in charge in the kitchen. The Tallarin is something I have avoided in the past because I don't really want the "Chinese" dishes that they love so much as my indoctrination into Peruvian cuisine. Still to much to learn. Plus I can get Chinese at a Chinese place if I am so inclined. But, I caved because I had already tried all the other choices. It was ok. The noodles were thin fettuccine noodles. I believe lo mein uses round noodles. Not that I like lo mein enough to care about the noodles. They were covered with a dark soy sauce and mixed with chicken sauteed in that sauce and tomato, red pepper, scallion and a ton of onions. It was a huge portion. The place is a little shabby. There are wires all over the ceiling. They should remove some window "posters" that hide the view and make the place darker. The color scheme is white, red and black. The white is on the bottom of the walls and the furniture. There is a "best of Peru" mural on the back wall. They have seven booths (small), two four tables, two two tables and one eight table. Service was great. The dishes did seem to come out one person and table at a time. Once again, good because you aren't getting warmed up slop, but, bad because you may be starving. On that front they prep the table with a bowl of fried maiz. I won't say corn nuts because they are softer. The menu has all the usual suspects. It's rather large. The place was almost at capacity. Most, if not all, Peruvian. It's always a good sign when the home town fans show up. All in all it was a great value. I would need to order a few more things to see how they stack up against the other Peruvian options. But, that just means the others are that good. They even threw me a 10% of card as I left. AFTER offering a to go soda. Should I end with my memory of Memories of Peru? That would be a little hacky I think. But you can noodle something out for me.

2016 Favorites List

Ok. Here we go. I should begin be stating that if I was being sufficiently critical that this list would have three names on it and one of them would be a "fast food" chain. The real "artistry" in 2016 came from the various breweries that proliferated throughout the year. Remember that this list is composed of places I tried in 2016. It is not a complete compilation of all the restaurants in CF.

$$$$ - Urbain 40, Eddie V's, 1921 (Mt Dora), Bulla. DoveCote

$$$ - Naru Sushi, North Quarter Tavern (Closed), Ootoya, Maestro

$$ - Black Rooster Taqueria, Nonno's, Antonella's Pizzeria, Dave's Boathouse, Manzano's (New Smyrna Beach), Street Corner Eat + Drink (Mt Dora), Saigon Blvd, Third Wave (New Smyrna Beach)

$ - Freddy's, Fuzzy's Taco Shop, Dreamy Cakes, The Taste of the Yucatan (Closed)

Nonno's, Altamonte Springs

I tried this new Italian venture (1 week) on 436 yesterday at lunch. It is in that nearly barren GFS strip mall near Appliance Direct and the train tracks that last housed a forgettable breakfast cafe (Mom's Kitchen). I think I recall reading that it is a collaboration between the unretired Stephano Lacommare (Il Pescatore, Stefano's Trattoria) and his son. Not to be confused with Stephano Tedeschi who has the place I didn't like at Dr Phillips. I didn't like Il Pescatore at all. I liked what his daughter and son in law did at Antonellsa's in Winter Park and I liked what they are doing here as well. I had the chicken piccata on penne with a soup or salad (soup) for $13. The three medallions of white meat were soft and juicy. The "coating" was a little rustic (thick) for me, but, I am quibbling. The penne was al dente. I still think they (all chefs) need to find a better partner for that tart piccata sauce than pasta. The plating was simple and nice. The soup (cup) was a pasta e fagiole (pasta and beans). The broth was home made. The beans and pasta rings were plentiful and cooked perfectly. It was seasoned nicely (sparingly). They also gift the table a whole round loaf of warm homemade bread (with pesto dip). The pesto is all a bit rustic. They did offer butter though. Service was attentive and quick. They even plied me with a to go soda. They didn't do much to the layout. You can still envision the old place. They painted the walls a light gray and reupholstered the booths an a slightly darker gray. The other colors are wood and black. They blew up a photos of the dishes they serve and the town he was born in. A mural of Marsala Sicily (western most region). The place seats around sixty. In addition to the booths that line the right hand wall, they have seven bar seats, a family sized banquette in the back and tables of four. They added some ornamentation like an embossed gold metal shield below the bar and a twigs inside glass partition as you enter. The lunch menu tops out at $13. That is for the pastas and the mains. The sandwiches, flatbreads and panini are mostly $9 (veal parm is $12). Dinner is more involved. A whole section of seafood ($16-$27). Some more mains ($12-$18). Stephano was telling the table in front of me that he is an avid fisherman and really investigates what the fishmonger brings in. Now it is grouper. The Italian dishes are all over the map. Northern. Southern. East. West. Sicilian. They also offer specials. I was sort of ambivalent about trying out the place, but, I was pleasantly surprised. I'm kind of shoe horning this into "The Best of 2016" list at the second level of pricing. The lunch pricing. I hope that the quality doesn't suffer when the excitement of the grand opening subsides. I've seen alot of people lose heart or concentration if things don't break their way right off the bat. Let's hope that worry is unfounded and people will find this place. Because they will have to. They aren't getting any foot traffic in that strip mall. I'll likely go back to try the seafood. It's perfect for lunch every day though too. I really wanted to write a review that had "No. No. No. No. No. No. No" in it. From that song that continues "nobody does (some word I forget) like you do." Oh well. Can't be funny all the time.

The Habit Burger Grill, Mall at Millenia Area

I've been trying to knock this one of the list for months but they never opened. I got my chance yesterday. I was looking to knock off another irritant (some steak and pizza place), but, they seemed to have already shuttered. I tried here and they had just opened the day before. It is chain from Santa Barbara. Based on the cheese burger I had, I don't see how they ever evolved as a chain. Although, the company I am going to compare them to evolved. The burger they sell is similar to a Hardee's/Carl's Jr burger. A salisbury steak/meatloaf like sponge. And like those places, they think it is worth north of $4 (cheese is extra). Now I was expecting at least a level of quality to match Shake Shack or Burger Fi. Especially when they also offer tuna filets, tri tip and tempura green beans. That is not the case. Maybe those other items are better. They can't hold In & Out's or Freddy's jock burger wise.  I also had fries. They are half way between shoe string and home fries. The half that were properly fried were good. The best part of the combo I bought for $8. The rest of the menu is chicken and salads. They are in the shopping plaza with the Target (Millenia Plaza Way) near the Zoe's and the Chipotle. It won't become a habit.

Grub Crawl - Sand Lake Rd: Bartaco and Pincho Factory (Closed)

I ate at these two new comers in the shopping plaza at Dr Phillips and Sand Lake yesterday at lunch time. I was hoping to shoe horn the first one into the best of list. Alas, it was unworthy. Even if I put them in the cheap classification.

Bartaco - It seemed to have it all. Cheap, fashionable tacos. Point Break sounding owners. Unpretentious cool. It sounded...well now that I think about it...it sounded kind of shallow. A restaurant is essential and existentially about food, right? And that is where they dropped the ball for me. Now that is fixable. And it may have been an anomaly. However, we rate the experience and not the promise around here. I had their $10 lunch tray (soup or salad with three tacos). I chose the chicken, the pork pastor and fried fish tacos and a bowl of pork pozole. The chicken was slightly undercooked thigh meat. It was flabby and cut in overly large hunks. The pork in the pastor was bland on its own and overwhelmed by the pineapple. The fish was the worst. Soggy. Old. Brittle. Cod? I just purchased some frozen cod at Winn Dixie that was priced at two for one (so you know it was old) and it was of a better quality than this. All the tacos were near "naked" with the exception of some spice on the meat and raw onions. The small soft tortillas needed more browning. I will stipulate that the tacos tasted better as a sum of their parts than they did when I picked them apart. The pozole had almost no pozole (hominy). I think I counted four. The "stock" was really on the "stew" side. It was like a red mojo sauce. There was plenty of braised pork in it though. The serving was big for it to be in the lunch tray. I regular bowl runs $7. I prefer chicken based pozole. Those tacos and some veggy ones, some rice bowls and a ceviche are really the whole menu. The place looks great. The main room is white and blue with upturned hampers turned into lampshades and potted plants hanging from the ceiling. The bar is towards the back (with the kitchen). They had some baskets with fake fruit for color at the rear right wall. The patio area in front is backed by garage doors that close off the main room. It seats about 100. The booths and tables are natural wood. The walls showcase photo posters from the owners' travels as well as sport (golf, tennis, surfing) themed collage poster art. Service was good. They are dressed in matching outfits (blue checkered shirts and khakis). They even gave me a chip for a free taco. Like I said, I really want to praise them, but, that food needs to be better. They do so little that they better do it right. I was there early, so, maybe the cooks were still getting thawed out. Although, that fish quality makes me wary. It was understandably empty-ish when I started eating. It (especially) the patio picked up as the day went on. If I had to choose Rocco's Tacos or Bartaco, I would choose Bartaco. It fits my sensibilities better. I grew up surrounded by the things in here. Just fix the food! I believe they opened a few weeks ago. It is part of a chain that started in Georgia for some reason even though at least the owners is South American and they describe the place as being influenced by Brazilian, Uruguayan and Californian beach culture. I didn't love that they charged $3 for about four shots of Coke (with refill). It's almost worse when the tacos are only $2.50. I will recommend it based on the decor and the pricing and the elan. If you get better execution from the kitchen than I did then you will really like it. It's next to the French place around the center of the marketplace.

Pincho Factory - I grabbed a daily special to go at this South American/Latin "finger food" (burger and hot dogs and chicken sandwiches) spot a few door down from Bartaco (near Einstein's) yesterday. The special was Vaca Frita (beef). It cost $8. It was the best thing I ate all day. It was served on tostones like a hamburger. The shredded beef was moist. The pan frying added a little crispness. The plantains could have been fried a little longer. That's all it was. That's all it needed to be. The rest of the menu is made up of those overly complicated hot dogs and burgers that they seem to love south of the border and on the islands. Unnecessary to me. I don't like what the do to a dog in Chicago. It's wiener molestation if you ask me. And when it triples the price, I'm really out. It's a burgeoning chain from Miami. It has been open for eight months. It is run like a fast food place. It was clean and new and simply decorated. Fine for what it is. Prices are from $6 to $9.

Grub Crawl - Winter Park: Kona Grill and Hummus House (Closed)

I ate at these two restaurants on Orlando Ave/17-92 at lunch time on Wednesday. The first is in that new development opposite Houston's (with Bulla) and the other is closer to Mills near Marlowe's Tavern. I would like to have it on record that I think this strip between Lee Rd and Mills is getting so congested that it should be renamed I Drive North. Traffic is absurd. And yet, Fairbanks (the first thing anybody encounters when the come to the "upscale" enclave of Winter Park) is still an eyesore full of repair shops, rub out joints and weirdo specialty (lord knows what) shops. Great urban planning.

Kona Grill - I'm going to say that they are a rip off of of Roy's and not the other way around because I remember going to a Roy's before I ever heard of them. Maybe they came first. If so I apologize. It is a chain (44) with a modern (something white people will order) Hawaiian menu. I think I've eaten at one before in another city. I don't love chains as you know and I didn't come here purposefully (some dumb friend of mind said it was a new sushi place) to try IT, but, I could have experienced a worse fate. The place looks great. I saw it in a very unfinished for when I ate at Bulla a few weeks back. They open just before Thanksgiving. It's laid out in an L (maybe a P) shaped room with a patio. They put the long bar between the patio area and the dining room. The kitchen is at the rear. It is semi-obstructed by some booths and an illuminated glass partition. The floors are wood with a triangular carpet inlay. The main color choices are brown and light gray. They have hanging lamps with shades that look like seashells or jelly fish. There is a bubbling water tank by the entrance. I'm not sure what the layout was past the bar. I was still in the grip of the latest strain of flu and I forgot to do a pass through on my way out. Pretty good if this is a corporate design. The area where I was seated had five spacious booths and around fifteen tables of four. Lots of space between tables. It's a big space. High ceilings. They gave me a booth though I was just a party of one in shorts and a T. I ordered salmon sushi for $6 because I had prepared my stomach for that, but, then reached for the chopped salad for you people (to try the macadamia nut chicken) and for my still shriveled flu ravaged stomach. It cost $15. The sushi was very good. Long and thick pieces of fatty salmon on properly prepared rice. The salad was enormous. I ate what I could then had some for dinner then some for the next day's lunch. It consisted of tons of the chicken, eggs, bacon, tomatoes, cheese, croutons, a fanned out avocado half and a melange of fancy field greens (really fresh). They dressed it in honey dijon. I can't believe I'm saying this, but, they may add TOO much chicken. The rest of the menu is pretty extensive. 8 apps. 7 salads. 5 flat breads. 8 sandwiches. 4 soups. 15 entrees. 6 desserts. The Hawaiian inspired dishes kind of start and stop with their braised pork and the chicken I had. The rest is straight up American (clam chowder, lobster mac and cheese, steak), Pan Asian (potstickers, pad thai, lettuce wraps, miso sake sea bass) or esoteric (jambalaya, cuban sandwich, greek salad). Service was pretty good. There were a few times when I waited a little to long than I should have (ie getting my credit card and bill back), but, they were trying hard. The clientele (and the staff) was a little less Winter Park-ish than I expected. But, hey. It isn't WP. It's I Drive North. I can't say that I'll be back. But, that has more to do with the so many restaurant openings rather than with anything to do with my experience here. I really can't complain about anything and I'm not sure you will either. It's probably a really good choice when you have some provincials in your group who are scared to try things and you can't imagine wasting a night at Chili's/Chessecake Factory. A nice compromise. Now don't get me wrong. It is a little pricey. You will spend twenty bucks on a soda and a non-entree. Thirty on a soda and an entree. Just know that they probably deliver enough in a serving that you can go app/sandwich/flat bread/salad or entree and you don't have to order both for a full meal. The place was about half full on a rainy day a little past regular lunch dining hours.

Hummus House - I had the mis-fortune of espying this Middle Eastern fast food disaster while looking for the new breweries in WP a couple of weeks ago. It is to gyros what Subway is to any decent deli. That means it sucks for any of you so far ensconced from civilized society that you don't puke when I mention the name  - Subway.I have a $5 foot long in my toilet that they wish they had the recipe for.  I had a gyro to go for $8. I didn't see it, but, they had to have used gyro meat that came in sheets like bacon or Steak Ums. The worst gyro meat I've ever had. And they only gave me five slices if it. It was as thin as a sheet of paper. Salty. Maybe they use that company that sells the deli meat in those white pouches for 49 cents? They then slopped on terrible spreads and limp veggies. The wrapper was stale. It fell apart. I almost threw it out. I probably should have. It caused stomach pain, but, no bowel explosions. Which is nice. The place looks sterile in a cosmetic sense but not in a sanitary sense. The workers were sleep walking. Parking is next to non-existent. Are these terrible Middle Eastern restaurants that are showing up all over town the next stage in their jihad? Please tell me it is Americans screwing up another culture's food and not them destroying their own culture for a buck. Somehow they have survived there for a year. Avoid.

Grub/Pub Crawl - Sanford: Tennessee Truffle, El Zocalo, Dreamy Cakes and Sanford Brewing Company

I tried out these places Saturday during the day. The first two are on 1st St (the main street) closest to 17-92. The cupcake place is on 2nd St behind those two. The brewery is down on Sanford Ave a few blocks up on the right.

Tennessee Truffle - I'm not sure if I should have had any higher expectations than I did when I read that the exec chef went to CIA and worked at Cafe de France, but, I guess I did. That is why I was mostly disappointed by this glorified food truck. To start with, they really just do biscuit sandwiches. And only three of them when you get down to it. They add an egg to a BLT and make salad out of the chicken, but, it is really just bacon and pork loin and chicken breast in the fridge. And I get that you need a hook. But, biscuit always have and always will suck. There is a fiction that they can be light and flavorful. They never are. Maybe if you get them within five minutes of being out of the oven. And that is just a hypothesis. They and hush puppies and scones and jonny cakes are English culinary refuse. These were no better. Hard shell. Pockets of salt or baking soda or baking powder or whatever doesn't work to lighten them up. And they don't work well as a food conveyance. They are too tall. You can't fit them in your mouth. Even open faced. I had the pork tenderloin one for $9 because it seemed like it required the most effort. If you are CIA approved, you are going to get nit picked for overdone pork. I don't subscribe to the pink in the middle pork doctrine, but, this was dry. Maybe why it took fifteen minutes to appear. They also didn't trim the fat. The best part was whatever jam it came with and the pickled onions. I also won't mention that I just ate an upscale pizza place and they had a pork HERO for $7. I'm sure that was bigger. The sides seem to be the star here. Now if their execution was as bad as my bland mayo/celery/onion potato salad then this place is totally still born. The place is ratty. I think they used reclaimed booths and tables. My table had some sticky imprint on it. The one area that isn't awful is the register. The went through all the bother of creating a corrugated tin overhang. It seats about forty. They don't do dinner. The cooking crew looked zombified. This just seems like a place run by a chef who doesn't put out and doesn't crack a whip. Sometimes a chef goes solo because he/she is so good. Sometimes it is because they have a character flaw (ie lassitude) that an owner can't live with. I wonder if this is case of the latter. I've been to alot of biscuit places all over the country (because of Diners, Drive Ins and Dives) so this place isn't a curiosity to me. Maybe some of the rest of you will dig it. No amount of imagination or obscure potions or powders can stiffen this limp biscuit. They have been open for a couple of weeks.

El Zocalo - This place replaces Tony's which replaced Cafe Rouge in the corner location. I had a combo to go for $8 because I didn't know they were in business and I already had eaten and I didn't want to come back to Sanford just for them The combo was two tacos and a flauta. I chose a shredded beed taco and chicken in the others. The beef had flavor. The chicken did not. I waited too long to eat the combo and the tortillas (hard shell) wilted. They looked cool. Crinkly. Not your average crap. They stuffed the tacos with guac and cheese and lettuce and tomato. They also included a small cup of rice and beans and a tiny salad. Nothing to write tomes about. They did nothing to the decor or layout. The menu is large and draws from all over Mexico. At least they don't serve biscuits. Deserves a longer look. I think they said they have been open for two months. *Moved to Sanford Ave.

Dreamy Cakes - I had a chocolate cupcake with mint icing that was dipped in chocolate and crowned with a peppermint "cherry" for $3. Not bad. The cake was really moist. I kept looking at my fingers to see if chocolate sauce was all over them. The chocolate coating helped mitigate my distaste for over icing. The cake was on the smaller size. They have been open for six months. They are not a chain. They had four lunch options. The place looks like a cute little doll house. It seats about four. Next to Fuel barbeque.

Sanford Brewing Company - They finally tapped their own kegs a week ago. I had four out of five. All were very good. Hoppy. Hopefully that isn't a masking trick. The one with celery was the most interesting. If I didn't mention it in my first "visit", they also serve food. It doesn't look that bad. I saw a bag of fries that was potato spears in Velveeta sauce that looked tempting. It seats about sixty.

*I saw that another brewery is being built diagonally from Celery City. It will be called Inner Compass. And Smiling Bison is only open at night.

Viet-Nomz, Winter Park

I popped in here before dinner on my way to the airport early last week. It's in that decrepit strip mall on University near Goldenrod. It was last a South American run sushi place and Thaitanic before that. I think they said that they opened in July. I had a Banh Mi for $5 because I didn't really have stomach room for a big bowl of soup three hours after I ate lunch plus it is harder to find a banh mi than a pho at this point in time. I also ordered some spring rolls ($3 for 2) because I felt cheap just dropping a fin. The banh mi I had was pork. They also do steak and chicken. It was pretty bad. It was the stringy slices of pork that you'd expect from takeout stir fry Chinese. The pork tasted like liver. The vegetables weren't fresh. The bun looked alarmingly like the ones I buy at Winn Dixie. I would say the pork was spoiling but I didn't get sick. Hopefully they have some explanation for this that doesn't involve the SCPA. The spring rolls weren't the usual size. They were the size of egg rolls. Now I leave it up to you if that (more) makes them better. The ground pork in those also tasted of liver. They were greasy too. I won't be too hard on them because I have heard that pho is really the thing to go here for and the bowls I saw looked good. They did a little to the decor. They tacked up some weathered wood boards on the walls and added a communal tables. They can seat around twenty. It was pretty full for that time of day. It's an order at the counter type of place. They then deliver the food about two feet from the open kitchen area aside the cash register. Can places make up their minds if they are full service or not. These half measures are bs if you expect me to tip. The phos seem to be the most expensive items. I think they were in the $10-$12 range. I saw on Bizarre Foods that pho is a bastardization of pot au feu and that is why you pronounce it phu and not fo. No idea why this is another on a long list of phonetically spelled words that don't seem to be spelled as they sound. The thing I liked best about this endeavour is the sandwich/pho combo. Hard to find a place that offers both. Now it would help if the sandwiches were actually good. That aside, did we need another pho place? Maybe this area did. No real reason to go out of your way to sample this one. Best thing about them is the name.

Taco Twist, W. Colonial Dr (50)

Part two of plan b of last night's evening directed me to this new (four weeks) Mexican/Korean restaurant about two blocks east of the I-Sore Death Trap on 50. It has been everything from an Italian place to a Chicago beef place. Most recently it was a bbq place. They now offer bulgogi, hot stone bowl rice, dumplings and a fried kim chi pancake on the Korean side and soup, tacos, burritos, chips, fajitas, quesadillas and burritos (maybe chimis and enchiladas) on the Mexican side. The Korean stuff is the more expensive ($10-12). Tacos can be had for $2.50 (other stuff around $8). I had three of them because they had some deal where you received a free drink if you did. Since they had no reservations comping the beer I had already ordered, I did that. I had a beef and a pork in soft shells and a hard shelled chicken. All were very good. They also offer shrimp. They probably should toss the flour tortillas on the grill (and maybe double wrap). However, the beef was actual flesh (not ground beef) and it and the carnitas style pork were both succulent. They also gave you a big serving of both. They topped them in an Tex Mex style. Tomatoes, lettuce, store bought shredded cheese mix, crema and even a little guac. They weren't quite lunch room tacos. Not quite street tacos. They were authentic enough to probably straddle the line. The hard shell seemed to be fried in house (as were the fresh tortilla chips). I think they filled the taco with chicken and then fried it. It was a good textural diversion, but, I would probably go soft shell next time to get more chicken. They didn't do anything to the decor. Same as when it was the bbq place. It was pretty full for 9pm. They drew from most ethnicities. My car wasn't broken into. Always a concern when you go to a place that has a tape measure on the door for identifying criminals. I believe the husband (with help) is responsible for the Mexican dishes and the wife for the Korean. Service was polite and efficient. The food came out quickly. They speak English. It was better than I expected. They are open for lunch as well. Parking in the rear.

GB Bottle Shop & Tasting Bar, Lake Ivanhoe Area

I had a beer last night at this "bottle shop and tasting bar" after I learned that the taco place I had intended to patronize near by is not yet open (even though I swear I did some version of a Google search that I can't now duplicate and they said that address was open for business). They are on Virginia near The Hideaway (train tracks). They are part of the Gnarly Barley family. I noticed them a few weeks ago while searching for another "new" place that is evidently way behind schedule (Grape and Grain - now Spring of '17). It was more popular and more of a bar than I expected. They said there was a bar crawl going on, so, maybe I hit them during an anomaly. The place looks new. They have a refrigerated area on the side wall that holds the wares. Half of it is exposed via glass doors to the public. You pick a bottle and take it home or pay a $2 and up "corking" charge and drink it there. Even with the charge, the price is equivalent to what you would normally pay at a bar. In front of the other half of the refrigerated area is the bar and the draft nozzles. They can open a section on the other side of the bar for fresh air. I think there were seats out there as well. They also serve wine (only by the bottle I think). I think they said they opened in July. Maybe later. Not bad. Not much. It is what they say it is. *Side note - why are all the places that never open on time great at inundating us with PR and the ones that open on time fall under the radar?

Grub Crawl - I Drive: Oreganatta and Halal Food Express

I had lunch at these places near Wet 'N Wild on Wednesday.

Oreganatta - I had the "Italian" buffet for $9 (+$2.59 for a soda - got to get that extra 9 cents). It was like eating at a reverse Sweet Tomatoes. Here the bread sticks and pizza are the stars and salads and soups are what you end up eating. I had a smidgen of pasta (for you) because you could see that it was over boiled. Looks did not deceive. I put a little Bolognese sauce on it. It was also terrible. When you stirred the sauce, hunks of beef (?) the size of turds bubbled up. I had a few slices of the regular and pepperoni plate sized pizzas. They seemed to be conveyor belt pizza. Very salty cheese (?). I also tried a garlic knot. And that is all the "Italian" (minus a minestrone) that was to be had. I expected a shitty lasagna at least. Maybe a greasy scallopini. I just piled up a few things from the salad area and called it a day. Pathetic. And perhaps why I was the one and only customer at lunch rush. The decor is even less Italian. Unless Marilyn Monroe was really Marla Maroni. It looks like it was some kind of Americana theme before they took over and they didn't remodel. I don't remember that place. I think it was a Filipino restaurant the last time I ate there. They seem to running the place with a two person staff. Skip.

Halal Food Express - I grabbed a chicken shwarma to go while waiting for Oreganatta to open. It cost $7. It was ok. It didn't seem like it was "shaved" from a rotisserie. Kind of like chicken pieces cooked in a pan/wok. There was a lot of it and it didn't give me the squirts. Not much veg or hummus or tatziki in the roll. They also serve pizza, falafel and gyros. Their sign highlights PIZZA as the word. You would think that was the restaurants name. People were friendly, but, can't recommend for anything more than a desperation snack. Not much to look at. Open for four years. Owned by Palestinians.