28 Best Restaurants in Orlando, Florida

The Pig established the gastropub category in Orlando and then went on to spawn several offshoots. Run by James and Julie Petrakis, a husband-and-wife chef team with multiple James Beard Award nominations, its delicacies include pork porterhouse and the pub burger, though the daily-changing menu always includes less-expensive pub fare like rock shrimp tacos and homemade pretzels. All charcuterie is made in-house, from the spiced orange salami to the game-bird terrine. Adjacent is the Ravenous Pig Brewing Co., serving small-barrel craft beers and ales in a beer garden. The Pig received the Michelin Bib Gourmand designation in 2022, which recognizes great food at great value.

What started as a tiny business in a former tire-repair shop has turned into a 15-location dynasty, with an urban farm and educational center. The popular 4 Rivers turns out slow-cooked barbecue standards like pulled pork and Texas-style brisket, as well as more unusual items such as bacon-wrapped smoked jalapeños, the Six Shooter with cheese grits, and a sausage-filled pastry called kolache. Old-time soft drinks such as Frostie Root Beer and Cheerwine are for sale, along with desserts like the Chocolate Awesomeness—an indulgent layering of chocolate cake, chocolate pudding, Heath Bar, whipped cream, and chocolate and caramel sauces. Some branches have Sweet Shops that sell whole oversize cakes.

Nestled in the funky Mills 50 neighborhood, this small, casual, Michelin Bib Award–winning taco place serves corn tortillas and fresh guacamole with every dish. Tacos like the vegetarian (shiitake mushrooms, onions, zucchini, and crema fresca) or the smoked greens (kale, shiitake, plantain, onions, and ricotta) are unusual alternatives to the classic chicken tinga or carne asada options. There's a second location in the hip Hourglass neighborhood with a Sunday brunch option.

The Grand Bohemian, a luxury boutique hotel, is the setting for this sleek city-center restaurant. Start with the calamari or the porcini flatbread followed, perhaps, by a selection from the famed Angus beef menu, the Chilean sea bass, or the Hunter's Board of handcrafted charcuterie. The Sunday Jazz Brunch here is legendary, with stations for omelets, seafood, and carved prime rib, as well as an expansive dessert selection. Local politicians favor this place for power breakfasts, and local jazz stars perform in the Bösendorfer Lounge most evenings.

People have been known to check their bags at the airport and then go back through security and change terminals just to eat at C&L. The draws at this locally owned restaurant are the gastropub-inspired menu and the microbrews. Locally sourced ingredients highlight the breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus, with items like sandwiches, pulled pork and ribs, and specialty burnt-end meat loaf.

Hipsters, families, and business groups dine side by side at this popular restaurant, a laid-back spot that specializes in Asian street food and has quickly become a Southern institution with 15 locations in seven states, including six in Florida. Travel Southeast Asia with scratch-made family recipes from across the region. Developed by four Florida friends, the adventurous menu includes roti canai, a flaky bread with a chicken-curry dip; curry laksa, a noodle soup with exotic flavors; and crispy Korean wings. More timid eaters adore the marinated beef skewers with Malaysian satay sauce, peanut-y chilled sesame noodles, and duck tacos.

Modern spins on locally sourced Southern staples are the crux of this sprawling restaurant, where scratch cooking by Ritz chefs is the rule, and produce is grown on the resort's own private Whisper Creek farm. Dinner entrées change regularly and might include Florida shrimp and grits, waffle fried quail or diver scallops with wild mushrooms. The "devil" chocolate cake and homemade doughnuts with coffee gelato are choice sweets. 

At this restaurant, award-winning, James Beard–nominated chef Braden McGlamery emphasizes innovative American dishes. Sophisticated barbecue might find a place on the menu next to Florida redfish as well as some of the best burgers in the area. The bar serves creative cocktails crafted with house-made tinctures, and the Sunday brunch is a must.

You'll be transported to Calabria at this comfortable restaurant, which is divided into a trattoria and a pizzeria. It puts out a fresh menu of Italian specialties every evening, and the finishing kitchen is in the dining room, so diners lucky enough to snag the few indoor seats (the outside patio has extras) can watch chefs create the dishes. You might feast on fried pecorino drizzled with honey, a lasagna worthy of a return Orlando visit, pear-and-cheese pasta pockets, wine-marinated duck breast with spicy mushroom risotto, or seared tuna with cauliflower puree. Most desserts are made in-house.

Progressive Italian cuisine in a casual, bustling, wood-and-brick setting immediately made Michelin Recommended Prato a local favorite. Every item, from the pancetta to the amaretti, is crafted from scratch, and many are prepared in one of two imported Italian wood-burning ovens, dubbed Johnny Cash and June Cash because "they make music," the chefs say. The menu changes regularly, but standouts include the duck with fig jam and pastas such as rigatoni cacciatore made with shredded rabbit and orange zest. The hand-tossed pizzas are also popular, as are the tiramisu and seasonal gelato.

Standing out in a town saturated with taco places, Reyes brings authentic (meaning real Mexican) cuisine to Orlando. Michoacán-born chef Wendy Lopez honors the food of her homeland while adding inventive modern touches; Yucatán pork ribs, duck enchiladas, and a mixed grill of NY strip, chicken, and shrimp are just a taste. An extensive variety of agave-based liquors and the one-of-a-kind mezcal-soaked chocolate cake ends the meal on an alcoholic peak.

Trina Gregory-Propst and her team of bakers and cooks make the biggest and most satisfying breakfasts, lunches, and sweet treats in town. Try a from-scratch chicken potpie, which has the most glorious crust; the mile-high meat loaf sandwich; or the "7th Trimester" of buttermilk garlic biscuit, over-medium egg, and smoked bacon, smothered in five-cheese mac and cheese. Look for the "Let us fill your pie hole" mural.

Tabla's reputation for great Indian food has lasted since 2008. Start with a selection from the enormous range of house-made breads before choosing from the menu of biryanis, curries, tandoor-fired meats, or vegetarian dishes like bhindi masala and sautéed paneer.

Armando Martorelli has opened many local restaurants in his career since coming from Italy to Florida, but his namesake eatery is the epitome of his craft. It has a relaxed neighborhood vibe and serves what is perhaps the area's best Neapolitan-style pizza. Other menu highlights include daily fresh-seafood specials, veal saltimbocca, and a signature pollo di Tatiana with vodka cream sauce.

Open from early breakfast to dinner and desserts in the Hyatt Regency, this slick modern diner is not exactly cheap, but the salads, sandwiches, and griddle foods are tops. The classic B Line Burger is done beautifully. And there are lots of selections you'd never expect to find here, like a stuffed avocado salad and a portobello quesadilla entrée.

Exceptional cuisine served in a relaxing, indoor-outdoor setting is a welcome surprise among the big-budget chains on Sand Lake Road. Servers at this independently owned neighborhood favorite bring to the table piping-hot, oversize lavas (hollow bread) to dip in appetizers such as a hummus, ezme (a zesty, garlicky, chilled chopped salad), and baba ghanoush. Many twosomes make a meal of the bountiful mixed-appetizer platter with a lavas or two. Following are oversize platters of char-grilled whole or filleted sea bass, kebabs, and lamb dishes, each prepared expertly. Light eaters enjoy the boat-shape spinach-and-cheese Turkish pastry. Other locations are in Winter Park, Lake Nona, and Winter Garden.

With nine permanent food and drink vendors, all housed in colorful repurposed shipping containers, Boxi Park is like a big, stationary, food-truck park, just with more alcohol. Three of the venues serve microbrew beers and margaritas or other mixed cocktails to go with burgers, chicken sandwiches, tacos, lobster rolls, and more.

The food here is served tapas-style, and although everything is appetizer sized, it's plentiful and relatively inexpensive. The restaurant is designed to resemble an artist's loft, so painters work at easels while diners take a culinary trip around the world with dishes such as Cajun-chicken egg rolls or Moroccan turkey meatballs. Thanks to a patio, diners can also share their small plates alfresco. The drinks list includes 50-plus craft beers and more than 35 wines from several countries, with most offered by the bottle or the glass. Belly dancers, flamenco dancers, Bolivian dancers, and African drummers are among the entertainers who perform on weekends.

This family-owned Lebanese eatery, set in a major upscale strip shopping center that's become part of Restaurant Row, serves Middle Eastern standards like shish kebab, baba ghanoush (an ultrasmoky variety that is the very best in town), and hummus as well as tasty daily specials. One of the most notable regular entrées is the shawarma cooked on a rotisserie. More formal than the average Orlando-area Middle Eastern restaurant, and featuring a cocktail menu, Cedar's has tables with white-linen tablecloths and diners who tend to wear resort-casual attire. Musicians or belly dancers perform on some Friday and Saturday nights; hookah pipes are popular on the back patio.

Named after Jimmy Buffett's beloved yacht, the Euphoria Fish House is just off of the lobby of the Margaritaville Resort Orlando. It's open for breakfast and lunch, as well as dinner, when featured dishes range from lobster rolls to pan-seared Chilean sea bass served with citrus-marinated bok choy. Be sure to ask your server about the margarita of the day—after all, you are in Margaritaville!

Hampton Social covers many bases with its menu of "coastal-inspired food." With options ranging from California-style pizzas and lobster rolls to steak or seafood tacos and crispy calamari, there's likely to be something for everyone in your party. Weekend brunch adds boozy and nonalcoholic bevs, as well as live music.

The big draw here is fondue, and the bubbling pots of bouillon, cheese, or chocolate on offer give fans of food on skewers a chance to share plates with friends. It might seem like an old idea, but Melting Pot continues to draw families and dating couples for a surprisingly fun meal. Lunch is available weekends, and there are midweek and date-night specials, too.

Part tavern, part bistro, and part sports bar, Nona Blue has a little something for everyone. Kettle chips smothered in blue cheese or Buffalo chicken wings, check; burgers and salads, check; filet mignon or a 16-ounce, $54 Delmonico rib eye, also (very much) check.

Family recipes and beyond-standard Indian dishes makes Saffron a small gem in Orlando's subcontinental culinary scene. The classics—lamb korma, tandoori chicken, and tikka masala—are joined by specialties from Chettinad, Goa, and Kerala.

The bright, shiny, and oh-so-hip ette hotel is home to this eatery, created by celebrated chef Akira Back, who has 22 restaurants worldwide and a Michelin star to his credit. The menu delights with Mediterranean-Asian (emphasis on Asian) dishes that might include miso black cod with pickled cauliflower or garlic maple soy chicken. The hotel and restaurant are strictly nonalcoholic, so drinks from the creative mixology menu won't trigger any breathalyzers.

It's hard to believe that a chain restaurant can offer healthful yet hearty and very flavorful food, but the innovative Seasons 52 does just that, with some of its menu changing weekly as well as seasonally. Nearly everyone orders the flatbread starters, and entrées might include wood-roasted, dry-rubbed pork chop with braised cabbage or caramelized grilled sea scallops with butternut squash and leek risotto, broccolini, and lemon butter. An impressive wine list with dozens of selections by the glass complements the menu. For dessert, indulgent classics like pecan or Key lime pie and carrot cake are served in petite portions. Although the cuisine is haute, the prices are modest—not bad for a snazzy, urbane bistro and wine bar. It has live music nightly to boot.

Best bets at this family-friendly restaurant on Highway 192 are the signature, ½-pound, Wagyu-beef burgers, or you can go wild and order the jalapeño peanut butter burger with pepper jack cheese. Lunch specials include salads, wing baskets, and mashed-potato bowls.

In addition to excellent Greek staples and a nice selection of meze (small plates), this restaurant has a fun, high-energy ambience. The ouzo flows like a mountain stream, the Greek (and global) music almost reaches the volume level of a rock concert, and the roaming belly dancers actively encourage diners to join in. The only thing missing is the tradition of throwing dinner plates, made up in part by the throwing of small paper napkins, which sometimes reaches near-blizzard level. Menu standouts include traditional staples like spanakopita, saganaki (the traditional flaming cheese appetizer), avgolemono (lemony chicken-rice soup), and perhaps the most famous Greek entrée, moussaka. Family-style meals for groups of four or more are available at $48 and $58 per person. The best dessert is the baklava.