Restaurant Roundup - Eateries That Offer a Recipe for Some Enchanted Evenings

by Scott Joseph

It’s always fun if you’ve got theater or concert tickets to make a night of it with dinner out. It can be a meal before the show or a late-night bite afterward. Either way, you probably want something close to the venue.

If you dine before the show, be sure to let your server know that you have a time constraint. It will help ensure the pace of the meal. Besides, it’s just fun to say, “We have an eight o’clock curtain to catch.”

If you’d rather wait until afterward, well, there’s nothing wrong with comparing notes on the show over dinner, and decent, late-night meals are not impossible to find in this town.

If you’re visiting the venues in Loch Haven Park, maybe an opening at the Mennello Museum or a play at Orlando Shakes or Winter Park Playhouse, you have several good pre-show choices. The Ravenous Pig is just around the corner at 1234 N. Orange Avenue, Winter Park. Getting there early for a pre-show meal makes it more likely you’ll get a table. Don’t leave it to chance, though; call for a reservation.

White Wolf Café, 1829 N. Orange Ave., Orlando, is convenient, too. It’s also a good choice if you’re attending a show at Theatre Downtown – you can walk between the two. For après theatre, head to Bananas Diner, 924 N. Mills Ave., Orlando, which is open late every night and 24 hours on the weekends. Be warned, however: you may see more costumes there than you did on stage.

If your entertainment venue is in Winter Park, say something at Rollins College, you have many choices up and down Park Avenue. Park Plaza Gardens, 319 Park Ave. S., is elegant enough for a dressy night. Luma on Park, 290 Park Ave., S., can be dressy or more casual.

Late night? You’ll find some Winter Park establishments that stay open until 11 p.m. on the weekends, so just make sure you can get there before the kitchen closes.

However, you’ll have a better chance with late-night dining in downtown Orlando, maybe tapas at Cevíche, 125 W. Church St., or Hamburger Mary’s, 110 W. Church St. Also nice: The Boheme at the Grand Bohemian, 325 S. Orange Ave., or the Rusty Spoon, 55 W. Church St.

Pointe Orlando has a new theater option in the Pointe Orlando Performing Arts Center. And there are plenty of good options there, including Funky Monkey, which is open late nights, as well. You’ll also do well to choose the Capitol Grille, Tommy Bahama’s Tropical Cafe, Cuba Libre and Taverna Opa.

Some, but not all, offer complimentary valet parking, so ask when you make your reservation. You don’t want any drama when you go to pick up your car.

Photo: Eric Cucciaioni