East Orlando

Kreyol Kafe & Bakery

Address
City
Phone
Price

12014 E. Colonial Drive
Orlando
407-930-6731

Charming Haitian quick-serve with delicious food.

Read More

Lazy Moon Pizza

Address
City
Phone
Price

11551 University Blvd.
Orlando
407-658-2396
$

When I visited the original location, a couple of years ago, I was fairly underwhelmed. No, that’s not quite accurate. I had to list the pizza I ordered as one of the worst I had ever had. How bad was it? I threw most of it away. Even lousy pizza usually gets saved for a late night leftover.

The new Moon is a bit farther down University Boulevard. The space is larger, maybe three times the size of the old place. And it’s prettier, too, with less of that student milieu funk. But it hasn’t gotten too fancy. The place still operates in the same way, which, at least in one instance, is a bit of a problem. But more on that in a moment.

The best thing I can say about the new Lazy Moon is that the pizza is much improved over the one I tossed. In fact, I liked the slice I had on my recent visit rather well. I was told by LM fans after my visit to the old place that my mistake had been in ordering a whole pie and not just a slice. And, it should be noted that the whole pies are really big. No, I mean enormous. I had difficulty getting the box into my car.

So I didn’t want to make that mistake this time — or discard all that pie if it was the same.

But the slice I had, with sausage and mushroom, had a nice thin crust, just the right amount of tomato sauce and plenty of the ordered toppings. One complaint: the slices are, as mentioned previously, so large that it is nearly impossible to lift one and eat it with one’s hands the way God intended for pizza to be consumed. It’s just too unwieldy. And I feel like an idiot eating pizza with a knife and fork. It’s just so wrong.

The dining area of Lazy Moon is spacious and has a good hum about it when full, which it was when I visited. Tables are wood with a stainless steel topper, which gives it an industrial look. But then there’s a plant wall with greenery tucked into pouches, sort of like the vegetation wall at Winter Park’s Prato, but bigger. That softens the look a bit.

Read More

Marketplace at Avalon Park

Address
City
Phone
Price

3801 Avalon Park East Blvd.
Orlando
407-730-3515
$$

A new food hall in downtown Avalon Park with myriad food vendors, including Brazas, NOLA, Cheese to Share, Pico de Gallo and Rosso Specialty Coffee. Joining them are Bowigens Beer Company; BBQ50 with conventional ‘cue; KBBQ, from the originators of the Korean BBQ Taco Box, one of Orlando’s original food trucks; Sip ’N Roll ice cream; and Lemon Shark Poke.

Read More

Naroodle Noodle Shop

Address
City
Phone
Price

10034 University Blvd.
Orlando
407-853-4828
$

Read More

Omelet Bar

Address
City
Phone
Price

11250 Strategy Blvd.
Orlando
407-704-1597
$

Omelet Bar seems poised to take on the First Watches and Keke’s of the world (and says as much on its website). With a little more polish it could be a contender.

Read More

Paradiso Pizza

Address
City
Phone
Price

1502 N. Semoran Blvd.
Orlando
407-745-4226
$

Pretty good pizza that can stand up to some New York City shops.

Read More

Peter’s Kitchen Chinese Bistro

Address
City
Phone
Price

3922 E. Colonial Drive
Orlando
407-895-7184
$$

The food here is Hong Kong style, which is a mix of Cantonese and Western, especially British because, you know, empire and all that. So is the food here authentic? Yes, it’s authentic Hong Kong style.

Read More

Pine & Oak

Address
City
Phone
Price

8600 El Prado Ave.
Orlando
407-768-1234
$$$

East Orlando has a new upscale-casual restaurants from the same team that brought you downtown’s Delaney’s Tavern. Pine & Oak, a “modern American tavern,” is in the newly renovated clubhouse at Rio Pinar golf course, which was once, apparently, the area’s premier golf club where links legends played before Bay Hill and other courses appeared. The new owners of the club want to restore some of that cache by reinvigorating the facilities and creating a new, open-to-the-public restaurant.

Read More

Pio Pio Latin Cuisine

Address
City
Phone
Price

2259 S. Semoran Blvd.
Orlando
407-207-2262
$$

There are other Pio Pios (Piae Piae?) in the area and although it doesn’t say so on any of the restaurants’ websites, they are all related via ownership. The menus are similar, but, as a pleasant young man at the Semoran Boulevard restaurant explained, “We all serve the same food, but there might be subtle differences like in a sauce.”

Read More

Rice & Beans Cocina Latina

Address
City
Phone
Price

504 N. Alafaya Trail
Orlando
407-380-9962
$

There is, of course, a lot more on the menu than grains and legumes. R&B offers an array of mofongos (mofongi?), seafood, beef and pork dishes with Puerto Rican, Cuban and Dominican touches. You can order from the menu, or you can do as I did and choose a big platter of goodness from the items on display at the counter. For a lunch special of $6.95, you get your choice of rice — white, mixed with red beans, mixed with black beans, or yellow mixed with vegetables; sweet plantains or boiled yuca; stewed red beans or black beans; and one of the featured meats. I chose two types of rice (with black beans and with red beans), yuca (love my yuca), black beans and the roast pork. All good, and very reasonably priced.

Read More
Scott's Newsletter