Category Archives: Winter Garden

Bella Italia Ristorante

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Exterior

Bar

Interior

Clams Casino

Fettuccine Alfredo

Eggplant Rollatini

***** (5 stars)

Bella Italia is definitely a level above what you’d expect in a strip mall location. The decor, food and service are all top notch.

We started with the Clams Casino, a generous portion with a delicious lemon and garlic broth.

Fettucine Alfredo was equally generous, nigh on to huge. It needed a bit of salt to bring out the flavor, but had plenty of butter, cream and cheese.

Eggplant Rollatini was a nice improvement on Eggplant Parmigiana, with grilled rather than breaded eggplant, stuffed with four kinds of cheese, baked in marinara sauce, and topped with melted mozzarella.  It was delicious. The accompanying spaghetti was fine, but not needed.

All of these dishes were less than $9 at lunch, a great deal. Lunch also came with a basket of fresh bread and an excellent pesto/olive oil mixture for dipping.

Service was friendly and attentive.

Bella Italia Ristorante
13848 Tilden Rd
Ste 192
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 347-3277
http://www.yelp.com/biz/bella-italia-ristorante-winter-garden

La Perla Deli

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Chilequiles

Quesadilla

Nachos con queso

Interior

Exterior

**** (4 stars)

This is a small, well-run restaurant that offers table service food, with a fairly extensive menu of home-cooked classics. Counter service to-go food is also available.

Nachos con queso were served with plenty of jalapenos, but I’d rather they’d left off the refried beans, which I don’t think were mentioned on the menu.

Our favorite item was the chilaquiles, which were served with a very savory green sauce. The house-made chips really made a difference. I also liked the simple but flavorful rice.

Service was friendly, and prices are reasonable.

La Perla Deli
608 S Dillard St
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 905-0440
http://www.yelp.com/biz/la-perla-deli-winter-garden

Taco Norteño

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Nachos with ground beef

Tostada Barbacoa, taco pastor

Exterior

Interior

Salsa bar

**** (4 stars)

This neighborhood Mexican restaurant is very popular, probably in part due to the fact that their tacos start at $1.85.

I tried the taco pastor with a soft corn tortilla, the tostada barbacoa, and the nachos with ground beef.

My favorite item was the tostada, which had a nice, crisp, sturdy tortilla and generous slices of avocado. The barbacoa didn’t have a lot of flavor, but the refried beans did.

I didn’t care for the pastor, which was completely dry, with no evidence of marinade or sauce, and didn’t include the somewhat traditional pineapple either.

The nachos were by far the most expensive, but the serving was giant. You have a choice of meat, and indeed they were all about the meat, with very little cheese, and the limited cheese was a thin queso anyway.

The best feature of Norteno is the salsa bar, which offers not only an array of salsas, but also fresh cilantro, onions, jalapenos and limes, so you can deck out your food however you like. There are also free chips to accompany it.

Taco Norteño
12307 W Colonial Dr
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 656-2567
https://www.yelp.com/biz/taco-norte%C3%B1o-winter-garden

Breakfast Club

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Club skillet

Exterior

Interior

**** (4 stars)

This is an old style coffee shop that emphasizes breakfast but also serves lunch food.

My “skillet” was actually just a plate, but I liked that I could select every ingredient, including choice of potatoes, veggies, meats and eggs. The hashbrowns were nice and crispy as requested.

The room is bright and airy and the servers are friendly, even when swamped, as they are on Sunday mornings after church.

Breakfast Club
13750 W Colonial Dr
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 347-9726
https://www.yelp.com/biz/breakfast-club-winter-garden

Scoops Old Fashioned Ice Cream

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Exterior

Interior

Cappuccino Crunch

***** (5 stars)

I’m old enough to remember ice cream parlors in the 1960s, which I suppose were a lot like those from the 1920s, and Scoops certainly captures that feeling. The historic building, retro furniture, and decor all contribute to the feeling of stepping back to 1927. The friendly service also harkens back to a bygone era.

But of course, it’s all about the ice cream, and that will not disappoint. There are dozens of interesting flavors such as birthday cake, plus classics like butter pecan and pistachio. I chose the Cappucino Crunch, and it was superb.

I’d never heard of Hershey’s Ice Cream, but they’ve been around since 1894 (no relation to the candy company). I wish more places served it, as it is fantastic.

You can also get soft serve with mix-ins, but I urge you to go for the real thing, and get a scoop at Scoops.

Scoops Old Fashioned Ice Cream
99 W Plant St
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 656-3369
https://www.yelp.com/biz/scoops-old-fashioned-ice-cream-winter-garden

Harry and Larry’s Barbeque

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Smoked brisket 1/4 pound

St Louis Ribs & Cole slaw

Exterior

Interior

***** (5 stars)

This small shotgun style business is always packed, and there’s a reason. While there is lots of pretty good BBQ in Orlando, it’s largely represented by small local chains such as Bubbalou’s and 4 Rivers. While those places turn out some good products, Harry and Larry’s seems to take it to another level, because of the small, home-made approach to everything.

Both the St. Louis Ribs and the Smoked Brisket I tried were, simply put, awesome, with a smokey crust and tender, flavourful meat.

Even the house-made coleslaw was a cut above, with fresh, crisp cabbage and carrot flavors coming through the light and flavorful sauce.

The only miss was the soggy piece of grilled bread served with the ribs.

Note: It can be a bit confusing on your first visit. You order at the counter (inside or out) and if you’re dining in they give you a playing card to put on your table to keep track of who to deliver it to.

Harry and Larry’s Barbeque
54 W Plant St
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 614-5950
https://www.yelp.com/biz/harry-and-larrys-barbeque-winter-garden

Beijing & Tokyo

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Polly roll and spicy salmon roll

Pad Thai

Yellowtail jalapeno (seared)

Exterior

Interior

Menu

Lunch menu

**** (4 stars)

This small mall-based restaurant offers sushi, Chinese, Thai and other Asian cuisines. Although it describes itself as Fusion cuisine, there aren’t actually any blendings of cuisines, just a variety.

The quality of the sushi we had was very good, and the Pad Thai was also nicely done, although it could have used lime instead of the small slice of lemon.

The place is very clean, and the service was friendly.

Beijing & Tokyo
16112 Marsh Rd
Ste 413
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 654-3800
https://www.yelp.com/biz/beijing-and-tokyo-winter-garden

Melts On Main Street

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Who Shot JR

Reuben

Exterior

Interior

**** (4 stars)

This charming sandwich shop also offers a variety of wonderful home cooked specials such as soda bread, stew and quiche. You can also pick up dinner to take home.

As the name implies, most sandwiches are grilled. I had the Reuben, a special, and it was excellent. I wasn’t a huge fan of the very chunky potato salad that came with it.

The Who Shot JR wasn’t quite as flavorful as the Rueben, but it came with a mild blue cheese spread on the side that was a nice accompaniment.

There is live entertainment on Sunday.

Melts On Main Street
108 S Main St
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 656-3587
https://www.yelp.com/biz/melts-on-main-street-winter-garden

Hagan O’Reilly’s Irish Pub

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Buffalo wrap

Buffalo chicken salad

Potato skind

Bar

Exterior

Interior

**** (4 stars)

This is a fairly authentic Irish pub that combines traditional Irish food with modern American sports bar grub. The decor is great, and there are lots of cozy little alcoves all around the perimeter of the dining area. An ornate, L-shaped bar occupies one corner. The only failing is the overly bright lighting.

Potato skins were heavily loaded with bacon and nicely crisped. The Buffalo wrap and Buffalo chicken salad were both good, maybe not the best Buffalo chicken in town, but certainly adequate.

Quite a few beers are available on tap, in bottles and cans, although I would wish for more stouts and porters than the meager selection.

Service was very friendly and prices are reasonable.

Hagan O’Reilly’s Irish Pub
16112 Marsh Rd
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 905-4782
https://www.yelp.com/biz/hagan-o-reillys-irish-pub-winter-garden

Maryland Fried Chicken

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*** (3 stars)

This is an old fashioned fried chicken plan with counter service and a few tables. Standing outside it’s easy to imagine it as a roadside stand in the middle of nowhere, although the widening of highway 50 has crept almost to the edge of the front parking spaces.

Things seem a bit disorganized behind the counter, but the food was hot and fresh tasting. The fried chicken is in a very straightforward style, with no obvious breading or seasoning. Chicken tenders are large strips of solid whit meat, breaded and fried; the breading is salty but not obviously seasoned in any other way. Both types of chicken were quite succulent, if somewhat lacking in flavor.

Sides items varied. Mac and cheese was bland, and the gravy on the mashed potatoes was not a home run, but the red beans and rice had lots of flavor, and the green beans had nice bacon and vinegar notes, although they had been very thoroughly overcooked.

If you’re looking for old-fashioned fried chicken, this may be your ticket. If you’re looking for spices and more complex flavors I would try elsewhere.

Maryland Fried Chicken
13675 W Colonial Dr
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 656-4143
http://www.yelp.com/biz/maryland-fried-chicken-winter-garden