This counter service stir fry and sushi place also has adequate inside seating. The stir fry is cooked to order, with fresh veggies and a tasty sauce. I particularly liked the scallops in my shrimp and scallop combination.
And how can you beat a lunch special with two sushi rolls of your choice, a ginger salad, and a drink for $8.99? The spicy tuna roll was actually spicy, and the salmon wash fresh.
Friendly service.
High end sushi dining in Ocoee! Who would have thought?
The first thing you notice walking into X is the stunning decor, including a custom build-out, fanciful hanging lights, and bold artwork covering most of one wall.
There are an assortment of tables sizes, all elegantly set. Surprisingly, although sushi is prepared at an open counter, there is no sushi bar seating.
The quality of the fish here is what it’s all about. The menu claims it is all from the Tokyo Seafood Market, and that’s easy to believe. The Sashimi Moriawase selections were as good as any I’ve had in Orlando’s high-end expensive sushi restaurants.
Speaking of expensive, that fish comes at a cost, of course. Whether there is a market for food at this level in Ocoee is a question, but I hope so. You won’t find better.
Exterior
Interior
***** (5 stars)
This delightful local creamery serves my very favorite ice cream–Hershey’s–in a wide range of flavors. This Hershey’s is unrelated to the candy company; it’s actually older. Their flavors a rich and complex, with great consistency.
I usually just like a scoop or two in a cup, but West Orange Creamery have everything from waffle cones to genuine banana splits. The employees and owners are really into it, and can give you great advice about their favorites.
West Orange Creamery and Soda Fountain
1575 Maguire Rd
Ste 101
Ocoee, FL 34761
(407) 656-6066
https://www.yelp.com/biz/west-orange-creamery-and-soda-fountain-ocoee
Pork platter
Exterior
Interior
Sauces
***** (5 stars)
Orlando is an excellent town for barbecue, with many great choices, and a lot of different styles, from Southern to Midwestern and more. I like the barbecue here better than almost anywhere I travel to, because of that diversity. And I have to say, of all the great Orlando barbecue places I patronize, Ellie Lou’s is the best.
I had the pork platter with two sides. I was expecting sliced pork, so I was pleased when something more like burnt ends appeared: succulent chunks of lean, moist pork, with a nice charred crust on some of the pieces. It was a generous serving, too.
I liked all four BBQ sauces on the table: Kansas City (sweet), Memphis, Hot, and Mustard. The combination of the first three was my favorite. All of them are made in-house, and it shows.
Also made in-house are the sides. The baked beans were loaded with chunks of meat; a squirt of sauce and they were perfect. One of my favorite parts of the whole meal was the potato salad, which was also obviously homemade, with big chunks of potato, a creamy dressing and lots of herbs.
The two slices of garlic bread were also excellent: fresh, crispy and with lots of garlic butter.
Perhaps the thing that most distinguishes Ellie Lou’s is the environment. It’s not crowded and is actually quite pleasant inside. And even though you order at a counter, the staff is very attentive once you’re seated, so it’s like a real restaurant. A real GOOD restaurant.
Ellie Lou’s Brews & BBQ
336 Moore Rd
Ocoee, FL 34761
(407) 347-9515
http://www.yelp.com/biz/ellie-lous-brews-and-bbq-ocoee
Pork lo mein with fried rice and egg roll
Exterior
Interior
**** (4 stars)
This isn’t a fusion restaurant (which would blend cuisines in one dish) but they do offer Chinese and some other Asian cuisines, particularly sushi.
I liked the three items I had at lunch: a particularly savory pork lo mein, a very interesting flavored egg roll and fluffy fried rice. Service was fast, perhaps due to the fact I was alone.
The place is bright and clean.
Bamboo Asian Cuisine
1567 E Silver Star Rd
Ocoee, FL 34761
(407) 291-0100
https://www.yelp.com/biz/bamboo-asian-cuisine-ocoee
Curry chicken
Jerk chicken
Exterior
**** (4 stars)
Many of the Jamaican places in town are a bit divey, but not Negril. It’s a neat counter service place in Ocoee.
We tried the curry chicken and the jerk chicken. Both were very good. The curry sauce on the accompanying rice and beans was particularly good.
The mac and cheese side wasn’t very good, but the fried plantains were very nicely caramelized.
The “small” size is plenty for a full meal.
Service was fast and friendly.
Negril Jamaican Restaurant
2795 Old Winter Garden Rd
Ocoee, FL 34761
(407) 347-7449
http://www.yelp.com/biz/negril-jamaican-restaurant-ocoee
***** (5 stars)
This latest location in the Pio Pio chain takes over a nice space in the Publix shopping center that was previously a mediocre BBQ place. Pio Pio is much better.
I love their rotisserie chicken, which always has a delicious golden brown crust. It comes with rice, beans, and plantains. The quarter chicken is surprisingly small, so you may want to get the half chicken. Both are very reasonably priced.
Not so reasonably priced, but also delicious, is the ceviche ($18). It’s a Peruvian style ceviche, (which is a bit confusing since the restaurant is often listed as Colombian).The Mixto version combines raw white fish and cooked shrimp with onions and lots of lime juice. It’s served with the traditional mutant(!) corn, and also cracked corn kernels.
Service was excellent.
By the way, they also have whole rotisserie chickens to go at very reasonable prices. They’re way better than the ones next door at Publix.
Pio Pio Restaurant
2588 Maguire Rd
Ocoee, FL 34761
(407) 347-7101
http://www.yelp.com/biz/pio-pio-restaurant-ocoee-2
*** (3 stars)
This is a perfectly fine neighborhood sushi bar. Fish quality is good, and the preparations are professional.
All of the fish selections for the sashimi lunch were fresh tasting and it was a nice assortment. There is a large assortment of rolls available as choices on the sushi lunch.
The Tuna Kobachi was a fairly small serving, and the very thinly sliced avocado was a bit hard to deal with, but the flavors were good.
Service was very friendly and welcoming.
Yoshi Sushi Bar
11127 W. Colonial Dr
Ocoee, FL 34761
(407) 347-0521
http://www.yelp.com/biz/yoshi-sushi-bar-ocoee
**** (4 stars)
It’s nice to find an Asian restaurant in this are that isn’t Chinese or sushi. The menu has a limited offering of Vietnamese staples including Pho and Banh Mi sandwiches.
I had the Special, which turned out to not be Pho, but rather a bowl of rice topped with beef chunks and an optional egg. It was good, but my friend’s Pho was better, a generous serving, with all the usual ingredients.
The Banh Mi was good, although at over $6 it’s one of the more expensive versions in town–not that that’s a lot for a sandwich, but for some reason this sandwich is traditionally really cheap most places.
Although it’s counter service, the interior is rather nice. Service is friendly, but the kitchen takes a while at lunch time, so don’t be in a hurry.
Pho Real is quite hard to spot from the street. It’s not on the main sign at the entrance to the strip center, and the combination of the name and logo make it look like a real estate office, so don’t give up.
Pho-Real
2910 Maguire Rd
Ste 1006
Ocoee, FL 34761
(407) 614-1684
http://www.yelp.com/biz/pho-real-ocoee-2
**** (4 stars)
This is one of the best quick serve burgers in town. I’m a particular fan of the BBQ burger, which is a bacon cheese burger with all the toppings, BBQ sauce, and three onion rings on it.
The fries are much better here than at just about any of the competitors, with a crispy exterior and soft inside.
Service is friendly. Arrive early, as the line gets long at lunch.
That One Spot
10968 W Colonial Dr
Ocoee, FL 34761
(407) 877-7575
http://www.yelp.com/biz/that-one-spot-ocoee