Orlando’s foodie scene feels endless these days: We’re getting new additions by the day and steadily receiving national recognition (take that, Miami). With all the change happening in the eatery world, Orlando Weekly restaurant critic Faiyaz Kara is keeping us grounded and in tune with the latest savory and sweet creations rolling out of the City Beautiful.
From porchetta to green eggplant curry to hand-pulled Chinese noodles, here are all the amazing restaurants we’ve reviewed so far in 2023.
Taco Kat Credit: photo by Rob BartlettTaco Kat
11 S. Court Ave., Orlando
Luckily for Taco Kat, the new downtown taquería is being met with approving purrs. It’s the first taquería in town to specialize solely in Sonoran-style tacos, of which harina, not maíz, tortillas form the base. Under the charge of Team Market Group executive chef Nick Grecco, Taco Kat makes their tortillas in-house using Sonoran wheat flour. The result: tortillas that are thin, browned, chewy and plenty pliable. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettCrocante Restaurant Credit: photo by Rob Bartlett
4311 E. Colonial Drive, Orlando “Holy moly, the pancetta crocante is probably the most tender piece of pork I’ve ever tried!! We have been meaning to try Crocante for forever now and finally visited for dinner on a Friday night. I loved that the space is super big and no wait after 6pm!” — Marisa C. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettBanana Leaf Credit: photo by Rob BartlettBanana Leaf
2504 S. Alafaya Trail, Orlando
Culinary intermingling is on full display at Banana Leaf in East Orlando, purported to be Florida’s only Sri Lankan restaurant by Nilanga Dassanayake, the affable Sinhalese owner of the restaurant. Indeed, Sri Lankans from Fort Myers to Fort Pierce to Fort Lauderdale make the drive to this cozy South Alafaya Trail spot to partake in a buffet ($20.99) that looks undoubtedly vibrant — red rice, green eggplant curry, blue mackerel, yellow potato curry. Credit: photo by Rob Bartlett
4646 S. Kirkman Road, Orlando “We had a large group on 10 and had several signature dishes. Best was the fried noodles with beef, boiled beef, fish in sour soup, and drooling chicken. Also mashed eggplant and old eggs. Tasty. Mapo tofu uses the wrong kind of tofu. Most highly recommended.” — Stephen C. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettChilispot
4646 S. Kirkman Road, Orlando
When a server came by within seconds of us being seated and placed a bowl of soup on our table, we naturally assumed it to be a liquid combustible. “It’s sweet!” said one of my dining comrades after sipping the warm liquid. The clear, almost gelatinous broth was reminiscent of egg-drop soup, but scented with osmanthus flower and textured with small, colorful, sticky balls of sesame and fruit-flavored mochi. It’s also a Chinese New Year staple. “You have to eat it all for good luck,” said our server, so eat it all we did. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettKaya Orlando Credit: Photo by Rob Bartlett/Orlando WeeklyKaya
618 N. Thornton Ave., Orlando
At Kaya, the modern Filipino restaurant by Kadence alums Lordfer Lalicon and Jamilyn Bailey, the structure housing the restaurant has the look, and certainly the feel, of a bahay kubo. Calamansi, lemongrass, banana, pineapple and tomato as well as herbs and edible flowers bloom about the restaurant’s outdoor garden. Inside, Kaya has all the homey feels: on the walls, personal effects and family photos of Lalicon and Bailey provide the backdrop, while artwork, ceramic serveware, terracotta floor tiles, even a ceiling resembling a terraced rice field, lend Kaya an intimacy rarely found in any “casual fine dining” restaurant. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettFarm & Haus Cafe
526 S. Park Ave., Winter Park
The grass-roots rise of Farm & Haus from meal delivery service in 2014 (it was Farm-Haus back then) to East End Market stall to full-scale restaurant hasn’t been meteoric but, rather, biscuit-like. Expect dishes like the harvest hash, a well-composed breakfast bowl of sweet potatoes, farro and, among other things, locally sourced soft-boiled eggs. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettFarm + Haus Cafe
526 S. Park Ave., Winter Park
The grass-roots rise of Farm & Haus from meal delivery service in 2014 (it was Farm-Haus back then) to East End Market stall to full-scale restaurant hasn’t been meteoric but, rather, biscuit-like. By that I mean it’s been a slow rise over the food operation’s 10-year span — a span that also saw owners Patrick and Brittany Walsh Lyne welcome three children into the mix, their youngest during the midst of a pandemic, no less. But after taking the plunge into brick-and-mortardom, the pair seem as relaxed and self-assured as ever and, hey, why not? They’ve got a fetching restaurant on one of the toniest strips in the city and a following as healthy as their menu. Credit: Farm + Haus Cafe / photo by Rob BartlettAtaj Moroccan Restaurant Credit: photo by Rob BartlettAtaj Moroccan Restaurant
2901 Parkway Boulevard Suite B12, Kissimmee
“Wow, that smells amazing,” said my pal, and we commenced slurping the thick, zesty, tomato-based broth with chickpeas, lentils and chunks of lamb along with shreds of khobz, a round Moroccan bread. “This is the epitome of comfort,” I said to my dining comrade, “even if the soup does need more salt.” Even better was the zaaluk ($5.99), a spiced dip of cooked eggplant that we couldn’t get enough of and that we’d come back for in a heartbeat. Store-bought pita was served with the dip, but the khobz made a far superior scoop. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettNew York Beer Project Credit: photo by Rob BartlettNew York Beer Project
9230 Miley Drive, Winter Garden
American and Swiss cheeses goo up the patty melt ($17), arguably the best item we ordered thanks to 10 ounces of burger, caramelized onions and honey mustard on buttery grilled sourdough. Pairing the sandwich with sweet potato fries, instead of the truff-parm misfires, was choice. Pairing it with NYBP’s Coconut IPA was even better. Which brings me to the beers: Many are brewed on-site in the massive brewery, and you’d do well to get a flight of four 5-ounce pours for a very reasonable $10 — the Destination IPA, snowbird Florida stout and strawberry shortcake cream ale being faves of ours. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettMr. J Hand-Pulled Noodle Credit: photo by Rob BartlettMr. J Hand-Pulled Noodle
1688 E. Silver Star Road, Ocoee
Jiqing Meng, the “Mr. J” behind Mr. J Hand-Pulled Noodle in Ocoee, says he’s the only one in the state offering lamian — the scratch-made, hand-pulled squigglers that have bolstered soups in China for centuries. He may very well be right, but by year’s end, more than a few hand-pulled noodle joints are poised to open around the city, the notables being Red Panda Noodle (by former Orlando Meats maestros Eliot Hillis and Seth Parker), Bang Bang Noodle Co. (by Top Chef Season 3 winner Hung Huynh) and KungFu Kitchen from famed New York City noodle whiz Peter Song. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettNorigamiPlant Street Market sushi stand stuns with creativity. Credit: Norigami
426 W. Plant St., Winter Garden Located inside the Plant Street Market, Norigami serves sushi, hand rolls, sashimi and more. It’s no wonder a seat at this eight-person sushi bar is one of the hardest to come by in Orlando. Chef David Tsan’s menu offers seafood gems like geoduck, needlefish and blackthroat sea perch — all wrapped up in on an ambient, intimate dining bar. Credit: photo by Shaina Ofstein / courtesy Michelin GuideMaya Cafe Lounge and Gallery Credit: photo by Rob BartlettMaya Cafe Lounge and Gallery
1980 Howell Branch Road, Winter Park
You won’t find a flat-top, a hood or deep fryers here, but you will find a chunky eggplant dip ($14.95) blended with olives and dill and flecked with pomegranate and sesame seeds that’ll leave you blowing chef’s kisses to your mates. “It’s definitely one of our most loved dishes,” our server told us. Bites of prosciutto-wrapped mozzarella ($18) served on a cheese board and drizzled with honey, seemed hastily put together, but we tried to see the creations as “organic” in form and the missing filling of nuts a “culinary improvisation.” Credit: photo by Rob BartlettSanshi Noodle House Credit: photo by Rob BartlettSanshi Noodle House
5600 W. Colonial Drive, Orlando
Sanshi Noodle House is the first restaurant in town to specialize in this most Yunnanese of foods, presenting a variety of broths into which proteins, rice noodles and veggies are dunked. There are 18 different noodle soups offered here, but two are spotlighted on Sanshi’s menu — the fish maw chicken soup ($16.99) and the spicy beef ($16.99) — so we got them both. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettThe Dough Show Credit: photo by Rob BartlettThe Dough Show
12140 Collegiate Way, Orlando
Hamam works, stretches and pounds the gossamer-thin dough before theatrically twirling the pastry disc around his head. And then, like all shows, this dough show must go on: It’s slammed back onto the quartz counter, given a few open-handed slaps, then filled with toppings like house-brined and cured pastrami with Kiri cheese — the Middle East’s answer to Laughing Cow. Hamam folds and crimps the pastry, inverts it, and places this so-called “Oriental” pie (hey, that’s what it says on the menu) into a 600-degree oven for a few minutes until baked through. No matter the filling, be it mozzarella ($12.99), house-made sausage ($14.99), salami ($14.99) or mixed shawarma ($16.99), the result is magnificent. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettPizza Bruno College Park Credit: photo by Rob BartlettPizza Bruno College Park
2429 Edgewater Drive, Orlando
Pizza Bruno College Park appears to have staying power. For one, it’s not a facsimile of Pizza Bruno Curry Ford. Its pizzas aren’t wood-fired Neapolitan rounds but, rather, Jersey-style pies. If you’re thinking pizza eaten while wearing a pink Juicy Couture tracksuit or an Ed Hardy shirt buttoned up to the navel, you’d only be partially correct. They’re actually thin-crust pizzas where the tomato sauce is ladled on top of the cheese and toppings before being baked in a deck oven. And that’s reason enough for a visit. Credit: photo by Rob BartlettOtto’s High Dive Credit: photo by Blake Jones / courtesy Michelin
2304 E. Robinson St., Orlando Otto’s High Dive is no sleepy watering hole. It’s a “neighborhood rum bar,” alive with the din of tipplers who gather amid an understatedly lush, design-forward space to down daiquiris, mojitos and Cuba libres — and excellent Cuban fare. Credit: photo by Rob Bartlett
