OPENINGS:
The first of several planned locations of Coco Thai has opened in between the former Wet 'n Wild and Twistee Treat on I-Drive ... Tamale & Company Take Out celebrates its grand opening Saturday, Dec. 16, in Altamonte Springs. The quick-service joint will serve much of the same Mexican street fare it does from its food truck ... More Mex: Winter Park's Cocina 214 will open a second location next month on South Atlantic Avenue in Daytona Beach ... Sonny's BBQ on South Semoran Boulevard near the airport has reopened after a thorough remodel ... Metro Diner has opened its second Orlando location on University Boulevard just east of Rouse Road.
CLOSINGS:
After 53 years in business, Rossi's Pizza & Pasta on South Orange Blossom Trail and Oak Ridge Road will close by year's end ... FEAST, the over-the-top vegan restaurant by the owners of the District at Mills 50, won't be moving into the Nova Restaurant space in Ivanhoe Village after all. The deal with the space's owner, Mark Stillman, fell through. Jamey Harper, one of the District's owners, hopes to open the vegan restaurant in another space. EVENTS:
Santiago's Bodega in Altamonte Springs holds its Bubbles & Caviar Dinner Wednesday, Dec. 20, at 6:30 p.m. The five-course dinner with pairings is $125 ... Reel Fish Coastal Kitchen debuts its Feast of the Seven Fishes menu Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, at 6:30 p.m. The seven-course meal with wine pairings from Chateau Ste. Michelle costs $69.
NEWS:
Theo Schoenegger, former executive chef of Patina Restaurant Group's signature restaurant Patina inside the Walt Disney Concert Hall in L.A., has been appointed executive chef of Patina's Disney Springs concepts – Maria & Enzo's Ristorante and Enzo's Hideaway Tunnel Bar – opening this winter. Prior to his Orlando stint, Schoenegger was executive chef of Sinatra's inside the Wynn Las Vegas. Consider the Schoenegger snag a real coup for Orlando ... ICYMI: Orlando's Signature Dish, as foisted on us by Visit Orlando, is the honey nougat glacé fashioned by Catherine Delrieu of Winter Park's Mon Petit Cheri café. No disrespect to Chef Delrieu, but we don't see this catching on as a widespread local trend.
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