Best of Orlando 2018 – Food & Drink
There are treasures to be found all over Central Florida—and here’s your exclusive map to some great finds. Our annual Best of ORL list is based entirely on reader picks in dozens of categories. Plus check out our snapshot profiles of selected winners.
Food and Drink | Home & Shopping | People & Media | Fun & Leisure | Health & Beauty | Kids & Pets
Coffee & Community
In December 2016, longtime friends Iain Yeakle and Alex Tchekmeian pooled their backgrounds in the coffee industry and opened the first Foxtail Coffee Co. location in Winter Park. “We wanted a space where friends could come and create, meet friends, make new friends and celebrate things. Foxtail in Winter Park is a communal space for people to express themselves or work [remotely]. A lot of people will come in and work all day,” Yeakle says. Foxtail has since expanded to two locations in Winter Park, one in downtown Orlando, one in Altamonte Springs and one opening soon in Orlando’s Hourglass District. “It’s the freshest coffee you can get. Most of our coffee we serve within two weeks of roasting to give it a little bit of rest period so it’s at its peak when served,” Yeakle says. The company focuses on equitable sourcing and fair wages for coffee farmers, as well as obtaining locally sourced eggs, vegan doughnuts and pastries, juices and kombucha. “We’re striving for something better, and we carry that to every shop we open,” Yeakle says. —Cheri Henderson
COMMUNITY COFFEE SHOP
1 Foxtail Coffee Co.
Four Orlando-area locations
foxtailcoffee.com
2 Axum Coffee Downtown
Winter Garden
axumcoffee.com
3 Drunken Monkey Coffee Bar
Milk District
drunkenmonkeycoffee.com
CATERER
1 Arthur’s Creative Events & Catering
Altamonte Springs
arthurscatering.com
2 Puff ’n Stuff Events and Catering
Orlando
puffnstuff.com
3 Cuisiniers Catered Cuisine & Events
Winter Park
cuisinierscater.com
PLACE FOR A FROZEN TREAT
1 Jeremiah’s Italian Ice
14 Orlando-area locations
jeremiahsice.com
2 Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt
13 Orlando-area locations
menchies.com
3 Twistee Treat
Nine Orlando-area locations
twisteetreat.com
CHOCOLATE SHOP
1 Peterbrooke Chocolatier
Downtown Winter Park
peterbrookewinterpark.com
2 The GanacheryDisney Springs
disneysprings.com/shopping/the-ganachery
3 Farris & Foster’s Famous Chocolate Factory
Baldwin Park
farrisandfosters.com
WINE STORE
1 Total Wine & More
Three Orlando-area locations
totalwine.com
2 Tim’s Wine Market
Four Orlando-area locations
timswine.com
3 ABC Fine Wine & Spirits
Multiple Orlando-area locations
abcfws.com
RESTAURANT ROW RESTAURANT (SAND LAKE)
1 Eddie V’s
eddiev.com
2 Ruth’s Chris Steak House
ruthschris.com
3 Rocco’s Tacos & Tequila Bar
roccostacos.com
Prime Time in Sanford
Dwayne Pratt laughs as he recounts how Buster, the elk head hanging above the beer cooler in his bar, got his name. When Pratt opened Colorado’s Prime Steak restaurant in Sanford in 1992, the bartenders settled on the name after they kept “busting” their heads on the elk’s chin when they grabbed a beer. The restaurant’s homepage reads, “Buster says eat more steak.” Idiosyncrasies like this tell patrons the story of both Pratt and his business. The Colorado references are reminiscent of the owner’s life there in the 1970s. There, he met his late wife, who opened Colorado’s Prime Steak with him, and it’s where the restaurant originally got its beef. Though Pratt loves Florida, he longs for the crisp mountain air. “What I miss most about Colorado is the way the air smells. It’s so fresh, you wouldn’t believe,” he says. On the menu is Gigi’s Homemade Chips and Salsa. Gigi and Pratt are newlyweds; they met when Gigi came into the restaurant wanting to use his kitchen to make salsa. “I’m living a charmed life, let me tell you,” he says. —Megan Stokes
COLLEGE PARK RESTAURANT
1 RusTeak Restaurant & Wine Bar
Edgewater Drive
rusteakwinebar.com
2 K Restaurant
Edgewater Drive
krestaurant.net
3 Outpost Neighborhood Kitchen
Edgewater Drive
outpostcollegepark.com
LAKE COUNTY RESTAURANT
1 The Crooked Spoon
Citrus Tower Boulevard
Clermont
facebook.com/thecrookedspoon
2 Goblin Market
Downtown Mount Dora
goblinmarketrestaurant.com
3 Copacabana Cuban Café
Downtown Mount Dora
copacabanacubanrestaurant.com
Crooked Can Brewing Company (ROBERTO GONZALEZ)
BREWERY
1 Crooked Can Brewing Company
Downtown Winter Garden
crookedcan.com
2 Orlando Brewing
SODO (South of Downtown)
orlandobrewing.com
3 Ten10 Brewing Company
Mills 50 District
ten10brewingcompany.com
OSCEOLA COUNTY RESTAURANT
1 El Tenampa
W. Irlo Bronson Memorial
Highway (192)
Kissimmee
facebook.com/ElTenampaMex192
2 The Catfish Place
13th Street (192)
St. Cloud
thecatfishplacestcloud.com
3 All Italian Market & RistoranteWest Osceola Parkway
Kissimmee
allitalianmarketand-ristorante.com
WINTER GARDEN RESTAURANT
1 Moon Cricket Grille
West Plant Street
mooncricketgrille.com
2 Chef’s Table at the Edgewater
West Plant Street
chefstableattheedgewater.com
3 4 Rivers Smokehouse
South Dillard Street
4rsmokehouse.com
WINTER PARK RESTAURANT
1 Luma on Park
Park Avenue
lumaonpark.com
2 Prato
Park Avenue
prato-wp.com
3 Hillstone
South Orlando Avenue
hillstone.com
SEMINOLE COUNTY RESTAURANT
1 Colorado’s Prime Steak
South Orlando Drive (17-92)
Sanford
coloradosonline.com
2 Hollerbach’s Willow Tree Café
Downtown Sanford
hollerbachs.com
3 Sushi Pop
Oviedo
sushipoprestaurant.com
DOWNTOWN RESTAURANT
1 Kres Chophouse
Church Street
kresrestaurant.com
2 The Rusty Spoon
Church Street
therustyspoon.com
3 Artisan’s Table
Pine Street
artisanstableorlando.com
THEME PARK RESTAURANT
1 Rainforest Café
Disney’s Marketplace and Disney’s Animal Kingdom
rainforestcafe.com
2 Be Our Guest
Disney’s Magic Kingdom
disneyworld.disney.go.com
3 Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville
Universal CityWalk
margaritavilleorlando.com
SPECIALTY FOODS STORE
1 Trader Joe’s
Winter Park and Restaurant Row
traderjoes.com
2 Whole Foods Market
Three Orlando-area locations
wholefoodsmarket.com
3 The Fresh Market
Five Orlando-area locations
thefreshmarket.com
I-DRIVE AREA RESTAURANT
1 Yard House
I-Drive 360
yardhouse.com
2 Café Tu Tu Tango
Southern I-Drive area
cafetututango.com
3 Texas de Brazil
Outlet Marketplace
texasdebrazil.com
HOTEL LOUNGE
1 Grand Bohemian Hotel Orlando
Downtown Orlando
grandbohemianhotel.com
2 The Alfond Inn
Downtown Winter Park
thealfondinn.com
3 WXYZ Bar
Aloft Orlando Downtown
aloftorlandodowntown.com
WATERING HOLE
1 Wally’s
Mills 50 District
wallysonmills.com
2 Frogger’s Grill & Bar
Five Orlando-area locations
froggers.com
3 The Guesthouse
Mills 50 District
facebook.com, search for The Guesthouse
TACOS
1 Rocco’s Tacos & Tequila Bar
roccostacos.com
2 Tijuana Flats
Multiple Orlando-area locations
tijuanaflats.com
3 Gringos Locos
Four Orlando-area locations
gringoslocos.com
PLACE FOR SOMETHING SWEET
1 Gideon’s Bakehouse
East End Market, Audubon Park
gideonsbakehouse.com
2 The Glass Knife
South Orlando Avenue (17-92), Winter Park
theglassknife.com
3 The Cheesecake Factory
Winter Park Village and The Mall at Millenia
thecheesecakefactory.com
