1. Giovanni’s Italian Restaurant, multiple locations, giovannisrestaurant.com
2. Il Pescatore, 651 N. Primrose Drive, 407-896-6763, ilpescatoreonline.com
3. Prato, 124 N. Park Ave., Winter Park, 407-262-0050, prato-wp.com
Previous Winners
Mini biscuits & gravy at Cask & Larder
565 W. Fairbanks Ave., Winter Park
321-280-4200
caskandlarder.com
The Ravenous Pig chef-owners Julie and James Petrakis opened sister restaurant Cask & Larder right down the street in Winter Park last year, to rapturous foodie acclaim. We heard tons of positives about the “Southern Public House”: tasty locally sourced plates, diverse house-brewed beer and so on. So it was no surprise when a Sunday-morning brunch order of biscuits and gravy ($9) landed us with a charming plate of fluffy, buttery miniature black-pepper biscuits and a small-yet-satisfying bowl of country gravy – for spoonful pouring, if you have manners. They were almost too cute to eat. Almost.
1. Blue Bird Bake Shop, 3122 Corrine Drive, 407-228-3822, bluebirdbakeshop.com
2. Charlie’s Gourmet Pastries, 3213 Curry Ford Road, 407-898-9561, charliesgourmetpastries.com
3. Raphsodic Bakery, 710 N. Mills Ave., 407-704-8615, raphsodic.com
1. 4 Rivers Smokehouse, multiple locations, 4rsmokehouse.com
2. Bubbalou’s Bodacious Barbecue, multiple locations, bubbalous.com
3. Cecil’s Texas Style Bar-B-Q, 2800 S. Orange Ave., 407-423-9871, cecilsbbq.com
German-American Society of Central Florida’s annual Oktoberfest
381 Orange Lane, Casselberry
407-834-0574
gasocf.com
So you heard there was this authentic Oktoberfest thing happening in Casselberry, and you had nothing to do that night anyway. You didn’t expect much, until you drove up Orange Lane and saw the German Alps-style lodge down this middle-of-nowhere road. Whoa. You paid your entrance fee and were directed into some kind of awesome party in the woods where people were eating wursts, drinking authentic dunkel and dancing, singing, cheering … in the woods in Casselberry. It’s as surreal and beautiful as it sounds, and words can hardly do it justice.
1. Keke’s Breakfast Café, multiple locations, kekesbreakfastcafe.com
2. First Watch, multiple locations, firstwatch.com
3. Matilda’s on Park, 358 N. Park Ave., Winter Park, 407-951-5790, facebook.com/matildasonpark
1. Graffiti Junktion, multiple locations, graffitijunktion.com
2. Matilda’s on Park, 358 N. Park Ave., Winter Park, 407-951-5790, facebook.com/matildasonpark
3. Beth’s Burger Bar, 24 E. Washington St., 407-650-4950, bethsburgerbar.com
1. Bahama Breeze, multiple locations, bahamabreeze.com
2. Mark’s Caribbean Cuisine, 10034 University Blvd., 407-699-8800, healthyjamaicanfood.com (tie)
2. Caribbean Sunshine Bakery, multiple locations, caribbeansunshinebakery.net (tie)
3. Singh’s Roti Shop, 5244 Old Winter Garden Road, 407-253-2900, singhsrotishop.com
1. Tako Cheena, 932 N. Mills Ave., 321-236-7457, takocheena.com
2. Gringos Locos, 20 E. Washington St., 407-841-5626, eatgringos.com
3. Tijuana Flats, multiple locations, tijuanaflats.com
1. Hawkers, 1103 N. Mills Ave., 407-237-0606, facebook.com/hawkersstreetfare
2. Imperial Dynasty Chinese Restaurant, 2045 W. State Road 434, Longwood, 407-786-2266, imperialdynasty.com
3. Lam’s Garden, 2505 E. Colonial Drive, 407-896-0370
Berries & Bubbles at Ocean Prime
7339 W. Sand Lake Road
407-781-4880
oceanprimeorlando.com
Restaurant Row’s Ocean Prime specializes in seafood, but the swanky restaurant’s “all-time best selling cocktail,” the Berries & Bubbles ($14), packs a little something not found underwater. The ingredients don’t sound so unusual – Belvedere Citrus vodka, marinated blackberries, house-made sour mix and Domaine Chandon brut champagne – but the cube of dry ice plunked in at the end adds over-the-top pizazz. The recipe can be found on Ocean Prime’s website in case you want to try mixing up one at home, but we suggest caution when playing around with dry ice – those fingertips come in handy for other things.
