Big Italy: The Tasty Alternative to Your Typical Pizzeria

So pizza is arguably the greatest food ever invented. There is no way a person can dislike the heavenly delight of cheese, sauce, and whatever topping you desire. The thought of it does not compute. That being said, independent restaurants that are run on pizzas have a tougher time standing out because it is so hard to screw up the food. Mediocre places like Papa Johns, Dominoes, and nearly every single Florida pizzeria that contains the word New York still manages success because it is too difficult to make pizza unbearable. To stand out, you really need to deliver something drastically different.


Big Italy just might be that cure.


Big Italy is a pizzeria that has a legit lunch/dinner menu that boasts all your classic pasta dishes and over 100, that’s right, over 100 kinds of pizzas to choose from. With the most diverse pizza menu I have seen in Central Florida, you can dine here multiple times and get very different experiences each visit. They range from your classics (BBQ pizza, pepperoni pizza) to the quite unique (Gaeta – tomato sauce, buffalo mozzarella, hot sausage and cherry tomatoes, Rimini – tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella and french fries) to the “wait…what?” choices (Rieti – tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, baby arugula, tuna in olive oil and hard boiled eggs).

What hurts this place is the location. The interior is nice, full of nice Italian décor and television screens explaining Italian customs and phrases---but the building is part of arguably the ugliest cluster of businesses in the infamous International Drive. I went with the classic mozzarella sticks and then ordered the Possilipo—which is shrimp, mozzarella cheese, and arugula. Each meal comes with bread and an Italian dip, which are nice starters.

The mozzarella sticks are just a classic snack in any restaurant. The ones here are no different, as they contain plenty of cheese, and plenty of spice. But the big show was the pizza. They are always 12 inches, which makes them good enough to share with another individual, but not too big that it will destroy you if you are alone.

I had already enjoyed their pepperoni pizza before, so they need to also deliver on one of their different pizzas if they want to stand a chance in the street so full of eatery options it literally contains four T.G.I. Fridays. This pizza contained a plethora of shrimp but had even more cheese and even more arugula. While I would have definitely preferred more shrimp, the combination with the cheese and greens made it a winner. All their pizzas are a thin crust, so it’s not too much bread and has more focus on the toppings themselves. Nothing was ever overbearing, from the crust to the sauce to the cheese. It’s light pizza at its finest. But if you are looking for heavy-hitter thick pies, look away from here.

The dessert however became the surprise highlight of the lunch. While their pizzas are certainly good (and with many others I still have to try) their gelatos are absolutely amazing. I had their tiramisu gelato and it was rich beyond control, and was coated with a layer of sugar that adds a light crunchy texture to the concoction. I definitely look forward to having this again.

Bottom Line: I can safely declare this one of the better pizza spots in Central Florida as Big Italy offers an extremely diverse menu with plenty of good food and done with prices that aren’t overbearing. If you are looking for pizza that is outside the box, then this is your place. While it doesn’t have the emotional staying power of the better Florida pizza joints, Big Italy has plenty of reasons to warrant your visit.


Final Verdict: Recommend

Big Italy
5700 International Dr.
Orlando, FL 32819

The Beefy King: Good Blast to Orlando's Simpler Past

The Beefy King has been had quite a history. Started out as a very popular joint, became a franchise, died as a franchise, and the one last remaining location happens to be the original---and it’s still hella popular. After years of passing the place I finally decided to stop by the classic in the middle of the Milk District and see why it has survived for so long.

The answer is simple: quality and speed.

I took about a few seconds too long and they right away knew it was my first time. Before I knew it, I had ordered a roast beef sandwich, their signature tater tots, and a Coke. Before I knew it, I was seated and ready to eat without even realizing the ketchup and bbq sauce was lying around waiting for me.

This place serves the food quick, but the temperature of the food remained hot, so it’s not like it was hanging around waiting for a customer. But people came and went in a rapid pace, especially on the drive-thru. Being in the outskirts of the business area of Downtown Orlando, this speed is required to continue thriving in modern-day society.

And delivers it does. The sandwich is simple: roast beef, cheese, bread. They steam the bread using the same heat used to cook the roast beef so that way you don’t get that putrid mix of warm meat in a cold bun. This simple technique does wonders as there is some roast beef flavor with the bread alone, and that’s not including the moist, scrumptious, and thick hearty portion of roast beef that comes with every sandwich. Although they offer other meats like pastrami, good roast beef sandwiches are a rarity in this state—and Beefy King delivers indeed.

The tater tots brought me straight back to the Waterbridge Elementary School, where my days of .40 cent lunches were met with classic tater tots that you just don’t see in enough restaurants. Rounding out the experience was the discovery of their bbq sauce, which is far lighter than you would ever expect. The ketchup was thicker than the sauce for crying out loud---which results in a smoky flavor that never threatens to overpower the food it’s complimenting.

Bottom Line: The Beefy King is a fast-paced classic that cranks out quality roast beef sandwiches for those that want good food on the go or done very, very quickly. It has all the qualities of a good-natured fast-food joint: quick, cheap, filling. It is a good blast to the past as it contains old-school décor and simplistic sandwiches at its finest.


Final Verdict: Recommend


The Beefy King
424 N Bumby Ave
Orlando, FL 32803