My neighbor asked me last week where my favorite restaurants in Orlando are – the real ones, not the obvious ones. I gave him about six names before I realized I should probably just write this down! Twenty-five years in this city means I’ve eaten at a lot of places. These are the ten I keep going back to.
All local.
All worth knowing about.
All the kind of spots that make you genuinely glad you live here!
Willie's Pinchos
Guy Fieri gave this place two thumbs up and I’m not going to argue with Guy Fieri.
Willie’s serves Puerto Rican food in an East Orlando strip mall. The mofongo is delicious with plantain, garlic, crispy pork, the way it’s supposed to be! The steaktrami sandwich sounds like it was invented on a dare. It wasn’t. Order it anyway. You’ll call someone on the way home to tell them about it!
SLAP Hand Ripped Noodles
Mills 50 is already one of the best food streets in Orlando and SLAP is a big reason why. Hand-ripped noodles, made right in front of you, in a broth that takes all day to build. Simple as that!
Hot Dog Heaven
Open since 1987. People Magazine named it the best hot dog in Florida. It’s on East Colonial, it looks exactly like what it is, and it has been doing Chicago-style exclusively for almost 40 years. The dogs, buns, sport peppers, neon relish, celery salt are all shipped from Chicago. Don’t ask them to change anything. That’s not how this works and you don’t want it to be!
The Ravenous Pig
The restaurant that put Orlando’s food scene on the map and hasn’t let up since. James and Julie Petrakis opened it in 2007, earned seven James Beard nominations, and picked up a Michelin Bib Gourmand along the way. Go for a real dinner. Order whatever’s seasonal and don’t skip dessert!
Red-Eye's Git-N-Messy BBQ
It started in a gas station and ended up on national TV. That’s all you need to know about the quality of what comes off this smoker! The southern poutine is the thing that made the news and it earns it. Wear something you don’t mind getting messy. That’s not a warning, it’s a preview!
Selam Ethiopian & Eritrean Cuisine
National Top 100 on Yelp for multiple years! Ethiopian food is meant to be shared with one big platter, injera bread, eat with your hands! It’s one of those meals where the conversation gets better as the food gets better. If you’ve never had Ethiopian food, Selam is where you should start.
Kappy's Subs
Almost 60 years on Orlando Avenue in Maitland doing exactly what it’s always done, good subs, no fuss, every single day. It’s outlasted trends, recessions, and about 10,000 restaurant concepts that opened and closed while Kappy’s just kept going. Some places figure out what they are and just stay there, Kappy’s is one of them.
Papa Bee's Wings
Garlic Parmesan Wings. That’s the review. I could say more but it wouldn’t help, you just have to go. Longwood locals talk about Papa Bee’s the way people only talk about food they’re genuinely protective of. Low-key spot, nothing fancy, wings that make you forget where you are for a few minutes. If you’re near 434 and you haven’t been yet… what are you doing? Go this week!
Hawkers Asian Street Fare
Hawkers started small on Mills Avenue and grew because the food earned it. The original location still feels like what it always was: focused, no-frills, genuinely good. It pulls from across Asia in a way that feels intentional rather than random. The roti canai, the laksa, the pork belly bao, these are things you order and then immediately start planning a reason to come back. Don’t play it safe with the menu here. That’s the whole point!
East End Market
Technically a food hall. Actually the best argument I know for why Orlando’s food scene is better than people realize. Gideon’s Bakehouse is here, the cookies people wait in line for. Lineage Coffee. Domu’s ramen and wings. And Kadence, a tiny omakase counter with a reservation list and sushi that’s genuinely worth the effort to get a seat. I bring people here when I want them to understand what Orlando actually is!
Someone always knows a place I haven’t found yet. That’s one of my favorite things about living here. If you’ve got a spot that belongs on this list, send it my way!
And if you’re thinking about making Orlando home, reach out. I’ll tell you everything else worth knowing too.
Ray Lopez Team | Keller Williams Advantage II Realty
407-697-8298 | closings@raylopezteam.com
