If ambience were all that mattered, Kres would be a contender. But the food falls short – visit after visit. The steaks simply don’t measure up to local competition. Want a better steak? Go to Del Friscos, Morton’s or Linda’s La Cantina.

The Grand Bohemian is a first-class hotel in downtown Orlando. All of the other top-rated hotels in the Orlando area are outside the downtown city core. As for the restaurant: swanky in appearance; sometimes snooty service; so-so food. Not cheap, either. The brunch, however, is quite good.

Orlando is home to a sizeable Vietnamese community and to several Vietnamese restaurants. This one is -hands down – the best. It’s family-owned. The service is excellent. Go there and you’ll be treated like member of the family. The menu is varied. Food is fresh and delicious. I’ve probably eaten ther 100 times and I’ve always had a very good meal.

Not strictly French, but top-notch in every way. This is as close as you’ll get to a genuine gourmet experience in touristy Orlando. The chef keeps the menu interesting and focuses on fresh ingredients. The service is perfect. Not cheap, but worth it.

The quality of sushi varies greatly from restaurant to restaurant – maybe more than any other cuisine. The sushi at the Church Street location in downtown Orlando is consistently very good. There’s a store on Sand Lake Road (tourist area) that isn’t as good. Expect to wait for a table at lunch time.

This long-time Orlando restaurant (it opened in 1947) is still numero uno for great steaks. The rest of the menu is run-of-the-mill. The ambience is ‘Des Moines circa 1972’ but the steak rivals Morton’s or Del Frisco’s. Order the southern-style green beans as a side dish. Casual atmosphere. No pretense. Plenty of Crown Vics in the parking lot. The waitstaff are mostly long-timers. Be nice to Evelyn, the greeter, and she’ll get you a good table. Reservations are recommended.

They’re closed on Monday.

Please don’t tell the tourists about Orlando’s best Thai restaurant. It’s a little cramped, but the food is fresh and delicious. Try the scallops in yellow curry sauce. It’s not on the menu, but it’s always available. If you’re new to Thai food, try chicken with snowpeas. This is a family owned and operated restaurant that caters to a loyal local clientel.

Nice ambience, run-of-the-mill food. Had the calamari appetizer – which was overspiced with cayenne pepper – and the stuffed shrimp, which were undercooked (never had that happen before) and served cold. I won’t go back.