**** (4 stars)
Traditional Brazilian food, done well, in a nice place with table service and a full bar.
The emphasis is on meats of all kinds, and the VERY extensive menu does a good job of picturing everything. The prices seem high at first, but even the half portion is more than enough for two people. There is also a lunch menu.
Hard surfaces, so it can get noisy.
Boteco do Manolo
7653 International Dr
Orlando, FL 32819
***** (5 stars)
Really nice market with a full range of fresh and packaged foods and a great butcher department. There's a small buffet restaurant on the side with lots of well shaded outdoor seating.
Rokka’s Market
6507 Old Brick Rd
Windermere, FL 34786
**** (4 stars)
This is in the large space that used to be Crafted, a sports bar with a giant central bar and very spacious patio seating.
The space is largely unchanged, but now the menu is Brazilian. There are a few lunch-priced items on the menu, but I really wanted to try the Moquequinha Capixaba de Camarao, even though it was $25. I must say that it was worth it. The metal bowl was served literally boiling hot, and was filled with shrimp–probably close to a pound, I would guess.
My companions also liked their food: a veggie burger, and a sandwich.
Service was pleasant. The kitchen is not terribly speedy, even though there weren't many lunch customers, so don't go in a hurry.
A Brasileira Bar & Grill
2417 S Hiawassee Rd
Orlando, FL 32835
El Topo
Peruvian sea scallops
Kanpachi, yellowtail and yellowtail ceviche
Pumpkin spice old fashioned for Thanksgiving!
Interior
**** (4 stars)
Very good sushi with a slight Peruvian spin, such as the sauces used for the sashimi preparations. Fish quality was good, and service was friendly. Chill vibe.
SUSHISAMBA – Las Vegas
3327 Las Vegas Blvd S
Las Vegas, NV
89109
(702) 607-0700
https://www.yelp.com/biz/sushisamba-las-vegas-las-vegas
El Topo
Peruvian sea scallops
Kanpachi, yellowtail and yellowtail ceviche
Pumpkin spice old fashioned for Thanksgiving!
Interior
**** (4 stars)
Very good sushi with a slight Peruvian spin, such as the sauces used for the sashimi preparations. Fish quality was good, and service was friendly. Chill vibe.
SUSHISAMBA – Las Vegas
3327 Las Vegas Blvd S
Las Vegas, NV
89109
(702) 607-0700
https://www.yelp.com/biz/sushisamba-las-vegas-las-vegas
Kings Double Cheese and Bacon Burger
Interior
Exterior
**** (4 stars)
Extensive menu of burgers, Brazilian and some Italian food. It’s not a fancy place inside, and the counter service can be slow.
Burger was good, and fries were excellent, but the highlight is being able to serve yourself over 30 different ice creams–not soft serve, not yoghurt, but real dip it yourself ice cream.
Kings Point Ice Cream & Burger
7231 International Dr
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 868-9079
https://www.yelp.com/biz/kings-point-ice-cream-and-burger-orlando
Exterior
Interior
Empanada
Chicken Catupiry Rosti
**** (4 stars)
This is both a counter serve and sit down restaurant. Although there are only three tables in the building, an adjacent permanent tent accommodates many more. The menu offers many variations of potatoes rosti, and also baked potatoes.
Rosti is essentially a beret-sized mound of hashbrowns with whatever filling you like. I tried the Chicken Catupiry Rosti. I enjoyed the crispy brown hashbrown crust, but the filling wasn’t my favorite.
In addition to potatoes, they also have many Brazilian and South American entrees and appetizers. My favorite was the empanada. The beef version I ordered was unavailable so I tried cheese, and it was excellent, with a delicate crust cooked a perfect golden brown, and served with an excellent salsa/relish.
Service was excellent, very friendly and efficient. I was impressed that every customer was promptly and warmly welcomed upon arrival.
They also have a large assortment of Mr. Potato head toys for the kids to play with!
Mrs Potato
4550 S Kirkman Rd
Orlando, FL 32811
(407) 290-0991
https://www.yelp.com/biz/mrs-potato-orlando-2
Chicken with grilled pineapple
Top sirloin
Interior
Menu
*** (3 stars)
The quick serve concept here is a good one, with healthier food than fast food served in a pleasant environment. The healthiest way to go is to order the “plate” rather than the sandwich.
Each plate comes with your choice of two sides (although the menu implies they are fixed, they are not). Three of us tried the sirloin, and although it looked beautiful, we all found it quite tough. The accompanying grilled vegetables were good, and the side salad I had was generous.
The best item was the chicken. My companion ordered it with the grilled pineapple, which was delicious.
I was impressed by how fast the food came out, and the friendliness of the servers. Pricing may be a problem, as a plate and soft drink come to about $18, which will buy a pretty nice lunch at a table service restaurant.
Steak on Fire
7541 W Sand Lake Rd
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 440-2323
https://www.yelp.com/biz/steak-on-fire-orlando
Exterior
Sushi
Buffet
**** (4 stars)
Although I live near Disney, I rarely go to restaurants in the tourist area because they don’t need to be very good to stay busy. So I was pleasantly surprised by Black Fire Brazilian Steakhouse. The service was very accommodating, and the food was quite good.
This is certainly the best remodeling job of the many restaurants that have occupied this space. The interior is open, sleek, and sophisticated.
As with the other (many) Brazilian steakhouses in town, there is a salad bar, limited hot buffet, and then many servers come to your table with skewers of a dozen or so different types of meat, where they cut it off into your waiting tongs.
Black Fire has a somewhat more limited buffet than most of the competitors, but the quality is good, and this buffet includes pretty decent sushi, which is unusual. The meats seemed about the same quality as those of the competitors. That’s good news, because Black Fire is less expensive than most of the others.
The night we visited they were reasonably busy, which is the first time I’ve seen more that a few people in this building’s various incarnations, so they’re doing something right. Our server was extremely attentive, and obviously cared that we had a nice time.
Black Fire Brazilian Steakhouse
8594 Palm Pkwy
Orlando, FL 32836
(407) 477-7771
https://www.yelp.com/biz/black-fire-brazilian-steakhouse-orlando-2
Interior
Exterior
*** (3 stars)
This place basically makes only one thing, which is a deep fried ball of mashed potato with a small bit of chicken, beef, cheese or vegetable in the middle. Ten of them are served in a cone. You can mix types in your order, but they tend to taste very similar. The Brazilian name is coxinha.
Frankly, they were not to our taste, but if it’s something you like, then I’m sure it’s a perfectly fine version. The problem is that there isn’t a place to eat, and barely a place to stand while you wait for your order. They also have a lunch truck, and this place is essentially like getting food from a lunch truck, with nothing but a small counter.
Service was very friendly.
Chicken Bites
2405 S Hiawassee Rd
Orlando, FL 32835
(407) 985-4285
https://www.yelp.com/biz/chicken-bites-orlando