Winter Garden Pizza Company: Not Quite There.

One of the drawbacks of doing this blog is that expectations get raised a little higher, especially when the results are consistently good. I have had fantastic burgers, I have had fantastic sushi, and I have also had fantastic pizza. So at what scale should you judge a spot when you’ve dealt with the best? With Winter Park Pizza Company, I decided to pit it against the better Central Florida pizza chain locations.

With pizza chains, they are always hit and miss, no matter where you go. When you do indeed find a good one, you never go anywhere else, regardless of your current destination. With my case in Orlando, the best pizza chain locations include the Little Caesars in Hunter’s Creek, and the Pizza Hut in the 535 Crossroads area by Downtown Disney. If you can top them, then you’ve done well.

Winter Garden Pizza Company has been around since the 70s and has developed a devoted fanbase and has won awards from local magazines and newspapers as one of the best pizza places in town. Located in the middle of the old-school themed downtown Winter Garden, you have to sneak through a nice and calm neighborhood before reaching the area. It has a very quiet scene in the afternoon, with a very small assortment of people roaming the streets.

Inside the Pizza Company was no different, with only one table being occupied. It appears this place takes off in popularity in the evening. Since I took the whole family with me, we decided to order multiple items to get the entire experience: the mozzarella sticks, the garlic knots, fries, and their largest pepperoni pizza—which is 18 inches.

The appetizers arrived and the results were a mixed bag. The garlic knots were decent but nothing outstanding. The oddest part of the dinner was that the marinara and alfredo sauce had a unique taste and texture—they were both sharp with a vinegar/garlic bite. The alfredo sauce isn’t as thick or creamy as your best sauces out there. They didn’t compliment the knots at all. The mozzarella sticks however were quite good and each packed plenty of rich cheese.

The pepperoni pizza arrives with all its glory. It was massive, and had the New York pizza look. That being said, even though the toppings were decent and got the job done, the sauce itself was rather off-putting. It wasn’t all meshing well. It was quite greasy, and the crust couldn’t handle it. It explains the army of napkins that had arrived along with the pizza. Me and my brother have also tackled larger pizza that was able to handle the toppings and calorie madness. But the pizza here---just couldn’t take it.

Despite the price, despite the service, the pizza just didn’t work. Not only does it disappoint against the heavy-hitters I’ve had over the years, but it doesn’t even top Little Caesars, which can make a mean pizza when the effort behind the cashier is there. I wanted it to work, I really did. But it didn’t.

Bottom Line: Winter Park Pizza Company works if you are close by, and you are looking for a cheap easy meal without too much stress. The people were nice, the location is nice (albeit seemingly dead when compared to Winter Park and Tourist Country), and the food isn’t exactly a disaster. However, there are better garlic knots out there, better mozzarella sticks, and definitely better pizza within Central Florida and the state itself. If you are close, give it a shot. If you are far, well….


….well…….


Final Verdict: Do Not Recommend (unless you are very, very close)

Winter Garden Pizza Company
42 W. Plant St.
Winter Garden, FL 34787

Cafe 118: No Animals Were Harmed During the Enjoyment of This Meal

As a man’s man (insert primal animalistic scream) I have indulged in the fine arts of cooked meat for many, many years. 5 pound burgers, 26-inch pizzas, you name it. I have been to the promised land, I could never ever consider becoming a vegetarian, much less a vegan, even if the doctor demanded it from me:


Doctor: If you don’t stop eating meat you will die soon.
Me: So how much longer do I have?

However one of the recommended restaurants is not only devoid of meat, but its devoid of any sort of dairy. No animals are involved whatsoever in the entire menu of Café 118. As a matter of fact nothing is even cooked past 118 degrees. It is all organic. All natural. No soy, no milk. No preservatives. I am afraid. Very afraid.








I don’t think I can do this.





I am still very afraid.

But background before I continue this. Café 118 is a popular vegan restaurant located in the middle of the Park Avenue area of the beautiful and I-can’t-seem-to-find-a-single-parking-space section of Winter Park. It is in a nice confined space and consists of a few tables inside and outside and some nice artwork scattered in the building. Lastly, there is your indie music blasting in the background to set the scene.



After minutes of quivering in fear about what I might be indulging in, I decided to go with their version of ravioli. Their ravioli is a mesh of arugula, spinach, cashew, beets, and has a pear wine sauce. I also complimented that with lemonade that is mixed with agave and strawberry. My taste buds were going to head in a very unique direction far off my usual spectrum. This is much healthier than what I am used to.

The presentation was very nice, although I was anticipating less…salad….and more…..ravioli. It was a massive arugula salad surrounded by an assortment of ravioli pieces. The arugula was a tough sell but got better when I mixed it with the thick applesauce-textured sauce that was swimming on the bottom of the plate. The ravioli however was fantastic. The cashew ricotta was just as filling and creamy as your best of ricotta cheeses and mixed perfectly well with the mildly bitter and distinctly sharp arugula. They said the menu constantly changes; let’s hope the ravioli survives the shuffle.



Here is the other item that needs to remain a staple: their key lime pie. Also dairy-free. Also scary-sounding but the execution was absolutely perfect. I went with this because it was a special, as opposed to the almond milkshakes which have been on the menu since opening. Although it lacks the legitimate crust of your greatest of the Florida desserts, the filling was spectacular, even if it has avocado—a very odd choice for a pie filling if you ask me. Nonetheless, its mixture with lime and the cool texture made for a refreshing dessert success.

Café 118’s goal is to provide a tasty diverse palette of food that involves healthy options and opportunities to not need any animals in the process. In this aspect they definitely succeeded. Although I will forever stick to my carnivore ways, it is refreshing to see a restaurant in the area try something daring, unique, and take on the challenge of providing food through a means that is pricier, riskier, and tougher to appeal to the public. Argue all you want, key lime pie needs some milk involvement to be pure. But Café 118 proves that it’s not a hopeless case if there is no milk to be found.



Bottom Line: Café 118 is not an easy place to dine if you are accustomed to the lifestyle that doesn’t connect with this Winter Park gem. But if you are into the vegan lifestyle, or if you are trying to dine out and not take in too many calories or carbs, then this place is your answer. The price might be a bit higher than the norm, but that’s part of the sacrifice to deliver wholesome organic food. With an ever-changing menu, and a great assortment of food and drinks, there’s very little to gripe in terms of this place as long as you are fully aware of what you are about to enter.


Vegan is not my forte in the least bit, but Café 118 is still an enjoyable meal.


Final Verdict: Recommend

Café 118
153 E Morse Blvd
Winter Park, FL 32789

Donut King: Potentially the Breakfast King of Central Florida

So there is a legendary donut joint located in a random corner in a random small town in the indescribable Central Florida. What if I told you that this place is open 24 hours, and makes everything to order and the donuts are made from stretch within the building itself? Made-from-scratch donuts at 3 a.m. potentially? Count me in.



Donut King, here we come.

Me and my brother decided to make the trek over to Minneola (small city of less than 8,000 located in the Orlando/Kissimmee circle) to try out the insanity. The place is small, ridiculously small. At the most, there were 10 tables inside. Most of the customers however (the place always contained a line) were grabbing and leaving. Donut King even offers a small drive-thru that is besides the building. As a testament to being local and old-school, there was only one paper copy of their breakfast menu. My kind of place.

The variety of sweets is immense to a point in which you might need five to ten minutes to decide what you actually want. We decided to eat from their breakfast menu before taking on their donuts. Biscuits and gravy was my option, my brother picked the breakfast biscuit sandwich. The biscuits were fresh, soft, big, and far more filling than what you might expect. The beautiful part of this breakfast however was the sausage gravy, which was a gorgeous mix of savory, spicy, and hearty. The texture was more like bisque, which allowed it to stick to the biscuits far more effectively. Don’t let the small quantity of two biscuits fool you---this work of breakfast art packs a punch.

Even though the breakfast was fantastic, we did not hunt down this place for that reason. We were to see how this small place can stack up against donut giants like Dunkin’ Donuts and Krispy Kreme. The donuts we chose were as follows: glazed, vanilla glaze, glazed with crunch bar pieces on top, chocolate with vanilla cream, Boston crème, and one with junior mints sprinkled throughout. We also threw in a cinnamon roll for good measure. All this plus a couple drinks totaled just north of 10 bucks. Good deal if you ask me.

The donuts tasted fresh, were very soft, and the toppings that engulf the donuts were all fantastically anti-nutriously delicious. Each donut was just as good as the last, and there isn’t a single flaw to any of the delicacies. They each pack a punch, they each contain the right balance of fried dough and sugar, and you will never feel cheated. The donuts consistently arrive from the kitchen so there is never a shortage, and if you really want to fill up you should look into their éclairs and larger donuts that are about as big as a smart car.

Let’s just say after our breakfast, me and my brother did not have to eat the rest of the day. Our sugar high may have contributed to our slower driving back home.

Bottom Line: Donut King is a simple name in a simple building located in the edge of a simple plaza. However there is nothing simple about their phenomenal food and phenomenal prices. Everything they are doing works, and I seriously hopes it remains a staple in the Central Florida community. These are the best donuts in town, in the area, and potentially in all of Florida. It should be your mission in life if you are a Floridian to make the trek to this place and at least try one of their dozens of types of donuts. It is fantastic food with an old-school vibe.

Bottom Line: Strongly Recommend

Donut King
208 S Hwy 27
Minneola, FL 34715

Teak Neighborhood Grill: Hidden Delicacy in Hidden Neighborhood Area

Orlando (like most of the larger Florida cities from Central to South) is like a gigantic spider web: lots of hidden locations, lots of open space, and it’s all eventually somehow connected. The MetroWest section of Orlando does not hold the best reputation, but right in the outskirts is a nice cluster of apartment complexes and neighborhoods close to the Universal Studios area that is hidden from practically the rest of the area. It is embedded quite deep in a random street that seemingly goes nowhere, and also holds one of the best secrets of Central Florida:




Teak Neighborhood Grill.

This place is in the heart of the hidden neighborhood cluster, and was built specifically for the core group living here. The scene is youthful, the space is huge, the bars are massive, and it looks to be the perfect spot to meet up with friends residing in the area. During my stay here I saw several encounters of people coming in and knowing the folks that were already dining/drinking inside. But I was not here for the ambiance; I was here for one specific reason:


Their burgers.




After finding the ultimate burger in the history of Earth, I was determined to find one that can match the happiness I encounter every time I fight the work of art in Hollywood (about four hours away). I was told of a specific burger (The Pig) that features pulled pork, ham, bacon, herb mayonnaise, white cheddar, and onion jam. All their burgers sound delicious and anti-nutritious, and some absolutely outrageous (One of them features cronuts as buns). But The Pig and I have a date.



Although this one.........someday...someday....

Their menu is extremely diverse and has lots of interesting options outside their legion of burgers. I almost opted to try one of their flatbreads (Shrimp, corn, alfredo sauce, mozzarella cheese, bacon) as well as their burger but the waitress gave me a look like I was going to have a heart attack that night if I attempted it. So I went with shrimp fritters and The Pig.

The shrimp fritters were absolutely fantastic. All the ingredients blended in together fantastically to create a savory and sweet burst of flavor and went along perfectly with the two dipping sauces: old bay aioli and musters seed honey. Nothing stood out individually; it was just a great filling appetizer in general.

The Pig is a mighty big deal. It is a plethora, a medley, a tossed jumble of savory, salty, and sweet that dances well with the taste buds and is a pure delight from start to finish. The mayonnaise and onion jam combination provided the chill sweet, while the heat was delivered from the meaty mix of burger and pig. As you continue fighting the burger, you’ll quickly realize that the bun struggles to hold in all the toppings. That is a sign of a good burger: the bun isn’t part of the experience; it’s just there to contain it.

Easily one of the best burgers in Central Florida, ranking way up there with Margaritaville’s Cheeseburger in Paradise and the underrated burgers in Beaches n’ Cream. It got me pumped for a return visit to tackle another one of their behemoths. The entire experience was pleasant, as it’s a quiet neighborhood bar on steroids in terms of size, scope, and quality.



Oh, the fries were darn good too...



Bottom Line: Teak Neighborhood Grill is a gem from start to finish. This place is perfectly located, snug in the middle of the youthful scene, and has a menu daring enough to take on the youngsters that are sick of the touristy usual fare. The portions are no joke, and neither is the menu which has a grand variety of foods and alcoholic options. This place deserves its success, and deserves multiple visits from me, from you, and from our friends and families. Easily one of the best places to dine in Orlando.



Final Verdict: Highly Recommend


Teak Neighborhood Grill
6400 Times Square Avenue
Orlando, FL 32835