I’ve now been to DoveCote, the new brasserie in downtown Orlando, a half dozen times. I’m pretty sure that’s a pre-review record, especially considering it opened just over a month ago. The previous record was five visits, to a forgotten restaurant many years ago that required the extra scrutiny to break the tie between good experiences and not-so-good. (Ultimately, it tipped in the not-so-good category, which is probably why the restaurant is forgotten.)

That wasn’t the case with DoveCote, and to be clear, not all of the visits were purpose-driven with this review in mind. Some were a matter of convenience, needing a convenient downtown venue for a meeting, and at least one visit was from an invitation from friends.

And no tie-breaker was needed because in fact I liked DoveCote. 

For our most recent meeting of Scott Joseph’s Supper Club, we did something a little different. Our friends at Gaylord Palms wanted to host the Supper Clubbers but I had a hard time choosing between the two very good restaurants. Do we go to Old Hickory Steakhouse and go all meaty? Or do we set sail for MOOR, the seafood centric restaurant?

Ultimately, the decision was easy: we’ll do them both.

And so that’s how the first Progressive Supper Club came to be. It was so much fun, I don’t think it will be our last.

We started with a reception and hors d’oeuvres at Old Hickory. Gaylord Palms is a massive structure that features a gigantic interior atrium under a glass roof. Old Hick is situated in a houselike structure in an area designed to resemble the Everglades, except with air conditioning and no threat of Zika.