Habaneros Metro West

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habaneros

**** (4 stars)

Metrowest really needs a sit down Mexican restaurant since the sorely missed Taquitos Jalisco closed several years ago. Habaneros fills the bill adequately, but it will need to overcome the same liabilities that put the last three tenants of this space out of business: namely, location, location, location. The building is invisible from the street, there is almost no signage space, and the parking lot is across the street and behind a fence. (Why the developer put the parking lot on the lake, where it has the best view of the entire development is beyond me.)

Anyhow, the food at Habanero is freshly prepared, looks appealing, and tastes good. The salsa is a bit bland, but the chips are very good.

I had a dinner combo that included an enchilada, relleno and taco. The taco shell was particularly good, a crisp house-made tortilla completely unlike the fast food kind you find most places.

Service was quick and friendly, and the interior of the place (unchanged from previous tenants) is still gorgeous. I wish this small, family-owned chain luck in this terrible but lovely location. Habaneros is definitely worth a visit if you can find it.

Habaneros Metro West
6996 Piazza Grande Ave
Suite 100
Orlando, FL 32835
(407) 757-2541
http://www.yelp.com/biz/habaneros-metro-west-orlando

Naru Sushi Bar

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*** (3 stars)

“Hi, I’m your sever today. May I bring you a beverage?”

“Green tea, please.”

“I’m sorry, we don’t have green tea. Only Lipton iced tea.”

Uh oh. A Japanese restaurant without green tea. Seriously?

That’s not the only thing in somewhat short supply at Naru. A quick look at the sushi and sashimi list will reveal that almost everything is based upon tuna or salmon. Because that’s basically what they have.

And someone sure likes cream cheese–nearly every roll includes it. In fact one entire section of rolls has not a single offering without cream cheese.

Despite all of this, we had some fairly good food during our visit. The best item was the salmon carpaccio, which included, citrus, oil and scallions.

The sushi rolls were unimpressive, but the hand roll, although pricey at $8, was good, and I liked the way you can easily add optional ingredients such as salmon skin for a very reasonable price.

Still, lunch for two came to $100 without alcohol, and with no real home runs.

The decor of the place is great, the sound track is upbeat and trendy, and the service is friendly.

But I can’t help wondering about a Japanese restaurant with no green tea.

Naru Sushi Bar
8441 International Dr
Ste 290
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 801-0005
http://www.yelp.com/biz/naru-sushi-bar-orlando

Romano’s Macaroni Grill

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*** (3 stars)

Poor Romano’s. It just can’t seem to get any respect. I’m not sure why, because the decor–especially at this location–is really nice, evoking an old Italian country house. And the service is always friendly.

The food isn’t bad either. I particularly like the bruscetta appetizer, where you apply your own diced tomato and garlic topping to the crusty bread. The pizza service is nice too, with a hand shaped oval pizza served with a personal pizza cutter and a bowl of spicy sauce, so you can finish it off any way you like.

There are also some great lunch deals, including a three course lunch for ten bucks, or a seven dollar lunch served in seven minutes. If you haven’t tried Romano’s lately–at least for lunch–it might be worth a second look.

Romano’s Macaroni Grill
3143 Daniels Rd
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 654-0351
http://www.yelp.com/biz/romanos-macaroni-grill-winter-garden

Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse

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**** (4 stars)

I was here with a group for a special menu.

We began by sampling the escargot, crab cake and thick cut bacon au poivre. The crab cake was the best, with very little filler. Escargot was tender; it was hard to tell what the normal presentation would be like, as we had it on a crouton. The bacon was a fairly tough an fatty hunk of pork belly that didn’t appeal to me at all.

Lobster and shrimp dumpling was very nicely sautéed, and the heirloom tomatoes served with burrito cheese were excellent.

The filet mignon we had was very tender, but it lacked the sort of char that would make an otherwise fairly bland cut interesting. At least they hadn’t tried to cover it up with sauce to disguise its flavor. The accompanying lobster tail was fairly durable and didn’t have much flavor, and my wife’s was even tougher. So I don’t think I’d order a surf and turf, and would be inclined to order a more flavorful steak such as a strip or porterhouse.

The brussels sprout side dish incorporated bacon, which tasted nice, but because the sprouts had been separated into individual leaves it was fairly dry compared to, say, the succulent ones at Eddie V’s.

The lobster mac and cheese used fontina cheese which resulted in a somewhat pasty consistency without a lot of crust, but the lobster was good, however the dish was nowhere near as good as the lobster mac at Capital Grille.

The Wild mushrooms were quite good, with a nice variety of mushrooms, succulent and tasty.

Both the chocolate souffle cake and the buttercake were excellent, with my vote going to the buttercake.

A variety of good wines were paired with the meal, and the Del Frisco Cabernet Sauvignon, made by Robert Foley, was a particularly nice choice, a fairly light bodied cab with good fruit.

Service was superb, very attentive and professional.

We were in a private room, which was great, because the main restaurant, which was packed, was absolutely deafening, and there’s no way we could have carried on a conversation there with our tablemates.

On the whole, I’d say it’s a good conventioneer steakhouse, but I think locals can find better choices.

Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse
9150 International Dr
Orlando, FL 32819

http://www.yelp.com/biz/del-friscos-double-eagle-steakhouse-orlando

Philly’s Best Cheesesteaks

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**** (4 stars)

This place surprised me in a number of ways. I’m not a huge cheesesteak fan, but I went with a group, and was pleasantly surprised to see a fair variety on the menu. I ended up ordering a cheesesteak that included bacon, and quite liked the flavor. A half sandwich came as a lunch special with fries and a drink for a very reasonable price.

I also liked the outside seating area, which is spacious and well-sheltered from the elements.

But the biggest surprise was the friendly enthusiasm of the staff, who delivered the sandwiches, refilled drinks and made us feel appreciated. I’ll definitely return to sample some of their other offerings.

Philly’s Best Cheesesteaks
2295 S Hiawassee Rd
Orlando, FL 32835
(407) 488-3960
http://www.yelp.com/biz/phillys-best-cheesesteaks-orlando

Chipotle Mexican Grill

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*** (3 stars)

I happened to visit both Qdoba and Chipotle during the same week, and was struck by how nearly identical they are.

Both offer counter assembly of burritos or bowls with rice, beans, sauce, protein, guacamole, lettuce and a couple of other ingredients. And both result in fairly homogenous, bland tasting imitations of a mediocre Tex-Mex burrito. There are minor differences in the other offerings and drinks, but not really anything of note.

The major appeal seems to be the weight of the food you can get for well under ten dollars. This aspect probably explains why most are located near college campuses.

It’s not the worst Tex-Mex food you’l ever have, but unless you’re looking for a good deal by the pound, the appeal is really lost on me.

Chipotle Mexican Grill
7800 Dr. Phillips Blvd
Ste 100
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 352-0198
http://www.yelp.com/biz/chipotle-mexican-grill-orlando-11

Qdoba Mexican Grill

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*** (3 stars)

I happened to visit both Qdoba and Chipotle during the same week, and was struck by how nearly identical they are.

Both offer counter assembly of burritos or bowls with rice, beans, sauce, protein, guacamole, lettuce and a couple of other ingredients. And both result in fairly homogenous, bland tasting imitations of a mediocre Tex-Mex burrito. There are minor differences in the other offerings and drinks, but not really anything of note.

The major appeal seems to be the weight of the food you can get for well under ten dollars. This aspect probably explains why most are located near college campuses.

It’s not the worst Tex-Mex food you’l ever have, but unless you’re looking for a good deal by the pound, the appeal is really lost on me.

Qdoba Mexican Grill
58 E Randolph St
Chicago, IL 60601
(312) 629-1190
http://www.yelp.com/biz/qdoba-mexican-grill-chicago-3

Chutney’s Indian Restaurant

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**** (4 stars)

Chutney’s is in the space formerly occupied by the excellent Rice Paper and the terrible Lolailo. It’s also almost next door to Graffiti Junction, which used to be Orlando’s finest Indian restaurant, Memories of India, so it has some big shoes to fill.

So far things look promising. We visited at lunch, and, unfortunately like most Indian restaurants in the area, only the buffet is available at lunch time. While there are plenty of choices available on the buffet, it’s impossible for the food quality to match what could be served up fresh and in even more variety from the kitchen.

We were impressed with the variety of chutney available (not too surprising, I guess, given the restaurant’s name) and the endless supply of naan bread that was delivered to our table.

They were still working out some issues with getting checks promptly to tables, but the service was friendly.

Still, to assess whether this is really the next go-to Indian restaurant in Southwest Orlando (something we could really use, given the weaknesses of the others in the area) will require a visit in the evening.

Chutney’s Indian Restaurant
7637 Turkey Lake Rd
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 730-9624
http://www.yelp.com/biz/chutneys-indian-restaurant-orlando

Bistro Voltaire

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**** (4 stars)

There are quite a few restaurants in and around River North that claim to be authentic French Bistros, but most of them really aren’t. This one is pretty much the real deal.

The intimate space is busy yet not loud, and the menu offers authentic bistro dishes such as Bouillabaisse and Salad Lyonnaise. We particularly liked the Rack of Lamb, which was served in a red wine sauce with a touch of sweetness to it. Food pricing is very reasonable.

A small to medium selection of fairly obscure French wines offers a few excellent selections if you look for the good years. Wine pricing is fairly reasonable.

Service was friendly, a bit overwhelmed on a busy Saturday, but they coped nicely.

Bistro Voltaire
226 W Chicago Ave
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 265-0911
http://www.yelp.com/biz/bistro-voltaire-chicago

Hub 51

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**** (4 stars)

I really enjoyed the upscale vibe of this place, which came without the usual deafening roar of poor acoustics. The lighting is also great, with spots directed at the tables, where they belong.

We went at lunch time on a Saturday but ended up ordering breakfast. The vegetable hash with poached eggs was very good, but the show stopper was the breakfast nachos. What a great dish! Thin, crisp chips with cheese, scrambled eggs, sauce, some guacamole and a sour cream drizzle, all finished under a broiler. And what a huge mound! This could easily have been lunch for two all by itself.

Good service (lots of people in training, who also seemed good) made for a nice meal.

Hub 51
51 W Hubbard St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 828-0051
http://www.yelp.com/biz/hub-51-chicago-2