Eating Out in Orlando, Florida

Restaurants and eating hangouts are in no short supply in Orlando, Florida. Foodies (or gourmands if you're into fine dining) have an abundance of options from all you can eat buffets to a medley of flavours ranging from Cuban, Mexican and Italian to Chinese, Indian and Japanese. With such a varied selection, you needn't eat the same thing twice during a short visit. Better yet, many of these menu options come at a wonderfully reasonable price.

A number of restaurants provide inexpensive breakfast buffets, which are great for saving money without skimping on the variety and volume of the meal. Most popular are the Southern style breakfasts, which offer savoury, sweet and salty flavours from its variety of southern style biscuits and gravy coupled with a hearty helping of grits. Most restaurants even offer free coffee refills. IHOP is one of the area's best places to eat an inexpensive breakfast. For something a little more upmarket, major hotels in the area offer champagne Sunday brunches, provided you book in advance.

When it comes to lunchtime, if you're not up for a heavy meal, try the Japanese options for sushi, sashimi or teppanyaki. Sushi House is reputed to be the best restaurant for all of the above. The menu holds both modern and traditional items, including an interesting "Japanese fusion sushi" and provides a variety of sakes and wines to round out the experience.

Seafood lovers should check out McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurant, offering (arguably) the freshest seafood in Florida. The menu is typically Floridian in style, which is generally a Caribbean themed menu offered in large quantities.

Of course, a steak dinner should always be somewhere on your list of foods to try. Morton's is regarded as one of Orlando's best steakhouses, offering a wide variety of cuts and styles all cooked to order. It is slightly on the high side of pricing, however, and your attire would need to be a tad classier than shorts and sandals.

For a break from the norm, check out Medieval Times Dinner Theatre. It puts a whole new spin on "dinner and a show." Here, you'll find yourself enthralled by a jousting tournament, games, and hand-to-hand combat between six noble knights elected by the king. The sole winner at the end is rewarded with the position of becoming the king's personal champion...and the right to select a beautiful woman as his own from the maidens of the castle. Due to the popularity of the show, everyone should make reservations well in advance.

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