Elite Event: Magical Dining Month Kickoff Party!

First order of business — Huge shout out to Ms. ANDI for organizing this delightful treat for us mere foodie mortals in CFL.
I am a relentless advocate of #magicaldining ! Why? Three Courses for $ 33 — You heard me right — it’s that time of the year where you get to indulge your inner gourmet with an appetizer, entrée and dessert at some of the best restaurants Orlando has to offer and best of all without breaking a bank.
Visit Orlando and local restaurants gives us the opportunity to explore new restaurants to add to my ever-​growing dining repertoire from the finest chefs Orlando culinary scene has to offer for a steal of a price.
I am constantly amazed by the generosity of CFL local chefs — their passion and devotion for sharing their love and talent for fine food and drinks. Chef Kevin of K, Chef Jared of Napa, Chef Stafford with Fiorenzo, Chef Gawlak of Siro, Ruth Chris Steakhouse and more…
It was my first time visiting the ballroom and boy oh boy! how GRAND! Tempted me to renew my vows there…
Did I mention the entertainment: Magicians Kostya Kimlat, Darren Rockwell and Alec Perea and the talented Savi Fernandez had me on my toes the entire evening with groovy tunes…
Kudos to ALL involved in hosting this incredible feast for our foodie souls!
#MAGICALDINING is a month of SEPTEMBER, So get out your cocktail dresses and pearls ladies, it’s time… time to PARTYY!

My hubby and I always seem to take advantage of the yearly Magical Dining Month here in Orlando. Every year, we go over the restaurants and menus and decide what we would like to try this time around… so It was great to be able to try many of the most popular places to eat all in one place!
Once I found the ballroom, I was amazed at the décor inside this building. I have driven by it many times but never knew what was inside. Once inside, the main ballroom was set up with all the different tables of great food samples. I got to try most of them but missed out on a few items because I was talking so much with my Unilocal friends! LOL… plus I was getting full from all the samples.
Cuba Libre had pulled pork, margaritas and one of my favorites, flan! I got to talk with the chef and it he was a delight to speak with. The K restaurant had pork loin as well as a seafood minestrone that was very good! I had heard many good things about K and was happy to be able to try some of their cooking.
Hemmingways had their famous crab cakes! I could have just sat there all night and eaten those… oink. Ruth’s Chris steakhouse had a sampling of their filet and shrimp. very tender and oh so yummy!
Those were my favorite ones… some of the other offerings did not appeal to me so I will not comment on them.
Drinks were fun! Titos vodka with the Onil sparking waters was great! I never even made it to the dessert table… LOL…
The music was nice but I don’t remember his name. I did tip him and thanked him for his great playing!
This was my second Unilocal event since my open heart surgery and it was so nice to see many of my Unilocal friends! It made me appreciate everyone so much more after going thru something like that. Friends are so important in my life so i want to say thank you to all of you that call me friend! i also made a few new friend that night so it was a great evening all around.
Thanks again to Andi and of course we got to see Colleen! My favorite party girl!

Hands down the best Elite Event I have had the pleasure of attending thus far! Ummm can we go back?
This was my first trip to the Ballroom at Church Street. I have always seen it in passing but I never imagined all of the beauty that was hidden inside. The décor was just awe-​inspiring from the flooring, chandeliers, and stained glass windows. I surely have some ideas for return visits to this beautiful place.
I was impressed to see so many restaurants interested in pairing with Unilocal and allowing us to sample some of their regular dining and magical dining dishes. All of the stations we well organized and surprisingly with so many attendees there was no crowding. I had a few favorites of course that I had to go back for seconds… or maybe thirds but whose counting?
Favorites of the evening:
Siro’s Salted Conch Fritter — It’s been a while since I’ve had the chance to enjoy some fresh conch. This bite sized baby packed a punch with flavor. It was lightly fried and tender and the salty flavor wasn’t overbearing. It was just enough. There goes my mouth… watering already.
K Restaurant’s Southern Seafood Minestrone — O-​M-​G what did I do to deserve this masterpiece in my mouth?! This delightful dish is a seafood/​veggie medley sure to make even the most picky eater change their mind. This is one of their menu options they will be featuring during Magical Dining Month. It consists of clams, oysters, shrimp, summer beans, bacon broth, local greens. Its so flavorful… words can’t even express how amazing it was… it was just EVERYTHING!
And last but not least my personal favorite… probably the best thing to ever touch my taste buds since birth. Cuba Libre’s Lechon Asado! Dear Food Gods… Thank you… I am not worthy! This menu item thankfully is on their regular menu and available for order at anytime of the year. This magical masterpiece consists of slow roasted marinated pulled pork, classic sour orange mojo. Amarillo chile smashed yuca and black bean broth with Vigorón slaw. I can’t begin to explain how amazing this dish was. The pork was tender, all of the spices and the fresh slaw together was like the Fourth of July in my mouth. I am planning a trip to CL just to order this. My goodness it was just… heavenly.
Overall I really enjoyed this event. Andi and the staff at Unilocal really outdid themselves this time. If you haven’t been to K Restaurant or Cuba Libre you haven’t lived life! Thanks again guys for such an amazing experience.
What a treat it is to be Elite!

Wow what a great time my wife and I had here that evening. We both got to sample food from all of the different restaurants that are participating in the magical dining month. All of the vendors and restaurants very kind, very gracious, very friendly and eager that you sample their food or beverage.
I especially enjoyed the pulled pork from Cuba Libre located at Pointe Orlando.
The crabcakes from Hemingway’s were absolutely amazing. I can see why they would want to do this, it drives business to their locations.
Looking forward to participating in some of the Magical Dining Month restaurants in September.

This was definitely a fun event and I’m glad I was able to go and try out all the yummy food and my bestfriend enjoyed herself as well! It was great trying out the restaurants that were featured, because I haven’t even heard about a lot of them so it was good that they were featuring restaurants that were in hotels to get their name out.
My personal favorites were from Ruth Chris’s prime rib & shrimp. Loved it so much that I went back for seconds! yup! No shame. haha. The prime rib was perfectly cooked and man that shrimp was SOOO good.
Crab cake from Hemingway’s, was delicious! You could taste and see that they had a lot of crab, and had a nice topping of salsa on it. Really good and this one definitely got me full, luckily it was a small portion. I can only imagine a full serving!
Fiorenzo Buttersquash pasta was seriously the bomb dot com! The sauce was what got me, if it was a soup I could eat a whole pot of it for sure! Absolutely divine! The pasta itself was unique, never had seen it and the slices of pear had a nice balance and lightness to the dish. Great dish!
The yellow tail from Napa was another hit for me! The fish was perfectly cooked, had a nice crispy-​ness on the outside and soft, flaky on the inside. Paired with risotto, and that was really good! I’m a huge fan of risotto and this was cooked just right. Oh man, trying to describe it is making me want it now. YUM!
To end everything the panacotta from Siro was my ultimate favorite! Panacotta is one of my favorite desserts and this was perfectly light, nice tartness from the raspberries, and a great palate cleanser from all the things I tried that night.
I had a great time at this event, and even had a kick out of the magician too. Man they were good and got me. haha. The entertainment was also great, having local musicians was a nice touch as well. An awesome event and enjoyed myself fully!

I had to wait a week to write this review because I needed time to mentally review all the goodness. First I have to mention the venue, the church street ballroom. It was absolutely gorgeous! I felt like royalty walking in with the beautiful atmosphere and the «Elite ’14» sign at the entrance. The room was really decked out for a party with all of the balloons, the beautiful chandelier lighting, and the amazing music by Savi Fernandez. The songs were really great and soulful. Loved all The Beatles covers!
The restaurants serving up some magical dining were K Restaurant, Cuba Libre, Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, Fiorenzo, Napa, Hemmingway’s, and Siro. There were also desserts from Puff ‘n Stuff catering that were to die for! The drinks from the locally owned Onli company were really refreshing and I really enjoyed the delicate flavor of their hibiscus soda. Tito’s Vodka was there with Onli providing mixed drinks, but I didn’t have any alcohol.
So back to the magical food part-​I tried so many small plates of delicious food but the stand outs for me that evening we’re definitely Hemmingway’s crab cakes paired with coconut grits. Wow! This is a favorite and so full of flavor. Very rich and delicious, so a little goes a long way. Tried the wonderful seafood chowder from K Restaurant, it had a nice selection of shellfish with a delicate, lightly salty broth. Cuba Libre had amazing minty mojitos and lechón that was so tender. Had some great mini desserts at Cuba Libra too including tres leche cake and this wonderful little brownie dessert. Siro had a burrata and watermelon salad that was salty, sweet, and so refreshing. That was a favorite, an odd combo of flavors that worked together so well. My palate was overwhelmed by all the fantastic options and I can’t wait to try some of these restaurants out during September for magical dining month! Thanks to Andi and the Unilocal crew for such a memorable, delicious, and fun event!

I love that I had an opportunity to attend an event at The Ballroom — and a magical one at that! We had been looking at this venue for a potential location for WordCamp Orlando and I had only seen it empty, so it was great to see it in action!
I’ve never actually eaten at any of the featured restaurants, so this event was like a tasting tour in a whole ‘nother city! It was amazing how well cooked (almost) everything was, considering they were working on portable cooking setups.
Best dish: The crab cake from Hemmingway’s. I love it when crab cakes just barely hold together but are mostly falling apart with real lumps of claw meat. Perfect flavor and sauce and cooked excellently — crisp outside, but still tender and moist.
Worst dish: The salted cod fritter. I don’t like excess salt, nor do I usually like cooked fish, but I had to give it a shot and my instincts were right. At least it was crisp and not greasy.
Between the two: The pan seared snapper and risotto — the snapper was cooked perfectly with a crisp outside and moist inside, but the risotto was undercooked and crunchy. Had the risotto been cooked better this would have been my #2.
Only other thing to note about the main dishes was that I was pleasantly surprised to see that Ruth’s Chris served a SUPER rare piece of fillet. It was like tuna tartare where it’s just barely seared outside to change color and warm it up but still raw in the middle. I didn’t mind it, but my guest (and I’m sure many others) couldnt’ eat it that raw. So yeah, a bit surprising considering most beef dishes that are cooked to temperature preference but served in bulk are usually prepared medium to make sure most people are okay with it.
As for the rest of the night, the magicians were baffeling, as a good close magician should be. They were very smooth and talented both with their act and keeping up the performance even when reluctant Unilocalers didn’t want to participate.
The music was… ok? I didn’t really pay too much attention, honestly, except when the performer started randomly beatboxing at one point. Wasn’t bad, but also wasn’t memorable.
The wait staff from Puff n Stuff were almost completely perfect, except this one waiter kept reaching across us to grab plates. Like actually between myself and my guest and reaching over her to grab my plate — couldn’t have moved to my other side? Their tiny pastries were delicious, though, so I give them the pass.
Final comment — MORE CHAIRS and TABLES! People were damn near fighting over seats when they’d open up. Luckily my guest and I had a system where only one would get up for 2 plates at a station while the other fought people off to secure our seats. Oh, and knives, definitely knives next time.
Overall, it was a great opportunity to try some of the higher end restaurants without committing to the $ 33 and have some magical fun.

Mind blowing. Life changing. Best. Event. Ever! It was MAGICAL! (lol okay… forgive me for the last one.) Everything was unbelievable perfect that night when it came down to the people, location, food, and entertainment. There was nothing more I could ask for.
I love how the event was located in the Church street Ballroom. I’ve never been in and thought it was just like any other club. I was SO wrong! The insides is reminiscent of a the Great Gatsby party waiting for us Unilocalers to explore. The stairway when you walked in is the such a grand entrance. The double staircases on the left and right really adds to that effect. While we all were patiently waiting, I could already smell the night whiffing from upstairs…
Seven of the restaurants from the Magical dining months graciously provided samplings from their menus that are offered ALL MONTH LONG! There are no losers and even I can’t pick a winner. How do you pick from tender filet from Ruth Chris to the creamy coconut grits with a fab crab cake on top from Hemingways from Hyatt? Then to those that have tasted the tenderloin at K restaurant, unbelievable right?! Plus all those wonderful cocktails from Cuba Libre and Onli. YUMMMMMMM. Listen, just close your eyes and pick a restaurant and it’ll be good.
BUT WAIT — there’s more! Magicians and musicians! We were lucky enough to have Alec from See Magic Live performed a card trick for us. If I were gambling with him, I definitely with out a doubt lose all of my money. Our ears was pleasured by the talented Savi Fernandez (Did i get the name right or no??! Im sorry if its not it!).
LAST but not least — we all need to give a round of applause of our amazing CM, Andi Perez and her help, the CB aka Colleen! I see them conversing, preparing, making sure everything is going smoothly makes me a Unilocaler feel like these people care! Not only were they running around, Puff n Stuff crew all was impressive with their non intrusive service but always around.
GREAT NIGHT!

I was so excited for this Unilocal Elite Event that I skipped my softball game for it! (luckily the other team forfeited, so I didn’t miss much). But anyways, it was totally worth it!
The event was to kick of Magical Dining Month. Magical Dining Month is amazing. There are tons of restaurants that have three course meals for only $ 33! I love this promotion because I get to try tons of restaurants that I might not normally try!
I had never heard of the Church Street Ballroom before but it is absolutely GORGEOUS!
Upstairs we were in a large room. There was music being played by a wonderful musician! And tons of food!
We started out at Cuba Libre with the Mango Mojito. I’m not a fan of Mojitos. I don’t like the mint flavored. But I tried this because I was thirsty and it was free. And it was delicious! No hint of mint at all. I might have gone back for seconds later. The pork dish was good, but a little too spicy for me. Chef Jose was so friendly! For dessert, they had Tres Leches cake. My favorite desert of the night! So so tasty!
Up next we went over to Onli to try their water which they were mixing with Tito’s vodka. I asked for the sweetest variety they had and it tasted wonderful with the vodka.
Next we headed to Ruth’s Chris Steak House. (I’ve been here many times and apparently been pronouncing it wrong! I’ve always said just Ruth Chris!) We had the filet and shrimp. The filet was pretty rare but that is exactly how I like it! My only complaint was that the slices were too big and there were no knives so I didn’t look very ladylike shoving the whole piece in my mouth at once! Definitely didn’t stop me from going back for seconds at the very end though!
We headed over to Napa. There we had Seared Yellowtail Snapper, Preserved Lemon Risotto, Broccolini, Charred Bell Pepper Coulis. Pretty tasty!
Right by them was Fiorenzo. They were serving Vesuvio Pasta, Butternut Squash, Baby Spinach, Ricotta Salata, Fresh Pear, and Roasted Pine Nuts. This was my favorite food of the night! I loved the pasta with the butternut squash and cheese! If I hadn’t been so full, I would have gone back for seconds!
Up next was Hemingway’s, which has special meaning to us since that’s where we met Meghan at the Elite event! They had their delicious crab cakes! We already have plans to go there for magical dining month and I’ll definitely be getting these suckers again!
Over at Siro they had three items. For the life of me, I cannot remember the first one, even after looking at the menu. Oops! I remember it was good though. The second one was their tomato salad with watermelon and burrata cheese. I had my hands full and meant to go back so I could try the cheese, although I hate tomatoes, but I forgot. The third one was Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta with Raspberries on top. I also tried a bottle of the water from Onli. The dessert was delicious but the water by itself wasn’t sweet enough so I passed it off to a friend.
Puff ‘n Stuff had some delicious desserts out. The chocolate one even had real gold flakes on top!
K is one of my friend’s favorite restaurants. I had the Seafood «Minestrone» and the Roast Palmetto Creek Farm Pork. The pork was pretty good. For the Minestrone, I didn’t like the broth but the seafood in it was delicious. I found a HUGE oyster in mine! Score!
It was such a great night! I was so stuffed with delicious food! Thanks to Andi and Unilocal for spoiling us once again, and to the restaurants for such great food!

Where to even begin… the Elite events keep getting better and better. This was by far my favorite event– and I’m not just saying that because my tweet won me a night’s stay at Shingle Creek and dinner! I feel the need to warn you, Andi, this is going to be a tough event to top!
Unilocal partnered with Visit Orlando, Tito’s Vodka (which is becoming my favorite vodka, by the way!), Onli flavored waters, and a slew of some of the best restaurants around town to showcase what they have in store for Magical Dining Month. The food and drinks were flowing in a beautiful banquet room at the fabulous Church Street Ballroom, and you could feel the excitement in the air. When you feed awesome food and booze up the Unilocal Elite gang, we are a happy people. Oh, and I should mention, the amazing performers, both the singer/​guitarist and the magicians, made this event even more exciting. I can’t wait to hit up the Social to check out the musician with his band!
As for the food… where to even begin?! K is by far my most favorite restaurant in town, and, as usual, they did not disappoint. The seafood soup, with bacon broth (I didn’t even know there was such a thing as bacon broth!), and a ton of different shellfish, even an oyster, was absolutely delicious. I don’t know how they do it, but keep it coming! The pork tenderloin was so tender, I did not want it to end. I will definitely be visiting them this month for more!
I enjoyed Ruth’s Chris’ steak and shrimp. The steak was nice and rare, the way I like it, and the sauce on the shrimp was super flavorful. The only issue I had was without a knife, I was forced shove the whole piece of steak in my mouth, as a plastic fork would not work to cut it. It was tender and good, but I would’ve like to been able to savor it.
The Yellotail Snapper over the Lemon Rissoto from Napa is definitely something I would order if I saw it on the menu normally. Delish! Not too heavy, and I felt the flavors, including the bell pepper sauce, melded together nicely.
Everyone in my group is excited to check out Siro, as their watermelon and burata salad (I love me some cheese, and burata is the holy grail of cheese in my book) was a big hit. I may have gone back for seconds!
Speaking of seconds, I helped myself twice to the crabcakes from Hemingways. WOW! Those are some good crabcakes! And I loved that they were freshly made in front of us, so we could enjoy them hot off the griddle.
I was disappointed I missed out on dessert at Cuba Libre, as Tres Leches is one of my favorite desserts and everyone was raving about it, but their mango Mojito made up for it. The pork dish was spicy, but had a nice heat to it, which was unexpected. Cuban food is my all time favorite, so I was excited to get a taste of their offerings.
I can’t express how much fun this event was. The ballroom was nice and big, and all the stations were spread apart, so there was never that feeling of being too crowded or waiting long for food or drinks. The restaurants have really stepped it up for Magical Dining Month. I can’t wait to enjoy some great meals with friends, as this event confirmed that I will be checking some of these places out!

What a spectacular all around event from the venue, food, décor, swag, magicians to the musician. Andi left no stone unturned and I felt like I was sitting in first class.
Savi the musician had me singing along and Alec from Magic Live was a pro. I’m wondering how many decks of cards these guys had to have on them? ;-)
Some of the restaurants that were represented were diligent in their attention to detail w/​décor as well as their presentation. My introduction to K Restaurant and Fiorenzo left a lasting impression as my new fave restaurants. Fiorenzo’s pasta w/​butternut squash sauce and pine nuts was so very delicate and yet fulfilling. It was assembled perfectly and I didn’t want more for fear I’d get accustomed to their great food. I would rather it be a treat. K Restaurant’s surprising seafood minestrone has to be the best minestrone I’ve ever had hands down. It was made with a bacon infused soup base and was adorned w/​shrimp, clams and oysters. The layering of flavors was expertly executed and I savored every single drop. A brilliant chef had to of experimented for months to reach this ultimate height of perfection.
Though these were my NEW fab plates, my regular fave plate can be found at Hemingways. Their constant perfection of the ultimate carb cake needs to be recognized once again. This isn’t just any old crab cake but rather a sophisticated one that has no fillers, is seared lightly and is presented on grits and topped with a sweet corn relish. There is none better in the entire state. To add to their great food the staff at Hemingways/​Hyatt Grand Cypress is always so professional and helpful. If you go to Hemingways for MDM (and you should) take note of their Magical Dining Night. For a reasonable price you can enjoy not only their meal at their restaurant but an over night stay w/​all the amenities that are available. Their pool alone is one of the most spectacular.
Thanks to Visit Orlando also for a magical night and we’ll be visiting all the great restaurants that were represented.

Another fantastic event by Unilocal!As a newbie in Orlando, I am very fortunate to get to try these fantastic restaurants all under the same roof. There were so many delicious food. One of my favorite was the crab cake from Hemingway! The crab cake had lumps of real crab meat and cooked with a slight crisp on the outside. I love the grits underneath it because it had a hint of coconut taste. Another favorite was the Vesuvio from Florenzo. Usually if you get a pasta dish, it feels very heavy, but not this one! I love the fresh pear (looks like potatoes) that makes the whole dish refreshing and the butternut squash gives the pasta a hint of sweetness. There were also abundant of dessert dishes to try. One of my favorite was the Rocky Road from Cuba Libre. The chocolate was very rich and there were little pieces of caramel on the top that makes it crunchy! Yum!
The music was excellent throughout the night. I really enjoyed the mood that he set for us. Very lively and a great singer too! The magician Alex wowed us with his card tricks! I don’t know how he switched the card! It was so quick! Or was it really magic? LOL!!!
Thank you Andi for a wonderful night!
Magical Dining Month! Here I come!

Amazing Party! Andi is a Superstar! The Ballroom is a beautiful venue and the perfect place to host a Unilocal Party! Entertainment was very good and we got to meet a lot of fellow Elite Unilocalers. We had a few favorites and a few not so favorites.
For my wife and I, the clear winner was K. The Pork Tenderloin was Spectacular and my favorite dish of the night. I have never had PT that tender and that flavorful, we can’t wait to visit K for the first time. Another favorite was Fiorenzo’s pasta dish. The Butternut Squash sauce was light but flavorful and the pasta was cooked to perfection. I also enjoyed the nuts, it gave the dish a different texture and flavor. The desserts at Cuba Libre consisting of Tres Leches, Flan, Arroz Con Leche and Chocolate Cake were well done and definitely made our night complete.
One of our least favorites was the Lechon Asado at Cuba Libre. Despite the pork being very moist, it was way too spicy. Traditional Lechon should be well seasoned but it shouldn’t be spicy. The Filet at Ruth’s Chris was almost raw but I enjoyed it that way. What I didn’t enjoy was the lack of seasoning/​salt, it was very bland. Thankfully the shrimp made up for it.
The Mojitos at Cuba Libre were ok. Despite being a bit too sweet for Mojito’s, they provided us with a nice buzz. I was not a fan of the Vodka drinks. The flavored water did not blend well with the vodka in my opinion, it tasted a bit bitter.
Overall, we had a fantastic time and I am very proud to be part of the Orlando Elite. Last but certainly not least: Thank You to Andi for making us Unilocaler’s feel like VIP’s, all the restaurants that participated along with the Chefs and to the folks at Magical Dining. We look forward to trying many restaurants on the list this September and we will be spreading the word to all our friends and family.

My very first Elite Event! So much fun!
I was really impressed by the food that was there. I couldn’t try a couple of the dishes due to shell-​food allergy, but the food that I did try was amazing. On top of good food, they also had live music and magicians! Way cool.
I was most impressed by the pork dish that Cuba Libre served. I’m not usually a big fan of pork, but their was delicious! Both of their Mojito offerings were perfect as well. For dessert, they served flan, rocky road chocolate goodness of some sort, and a rice pudding. I tried the rocky road sampling, which was perfection in a tiny little cup. I am definitely adding Cuba Libre to my list of restaurants I hit during Magical Dining Month!
Fiorenzo’s Vesuvio Pasta served a butternut squash, pasta, and pear dish that just melted in my mouth.
K Restaurant had a seafood soup looking thing (didn’t try it) and a pork roast that was delicious.
Napa had a seafood and risotto dish that was really good, though the risotto was a bit under cooked.
Siro offered a little watermelon salad that was very refreshing. They had another dish that I didn’t try, but my +1 said was good but not great.
Ruth’s Chris had steak, which was nice, but one of my pieces was so rare that it was hard to chew (on top of it being too big of a piece, and no knife given so I had to shovel the entire piece into my mouth at once. awkward…).
Hemingway’s had a crab cake, that my +1 said was amazing.
Puff n Stuff had delicious little desserts, plus I think they were in charge of the folks going around cleaning up tables. They were on their A Game for sure!
Tito’s paired up with Onli for drinks, which were good, but I’ve not had a flavor from Onli that I actually like, so I wasn’t particularly impressed.
Overall, I think the event was a lot of fun. I got to meet some new people, try some delicious food, and get entertained with good music and funny magicians! Win!

Magical Dining starts… wait for it… NOW! Andi my dear you have yet again outdone yourself.
That is right, the chance to have the most delicious food at equally delicious prices is now here. Unilocal threw a wonderful kickoff party highlighting some of the participating restaurants.
Everything I tasted was mouthwatering and just exquisite in taste, but I have to add this disclaimer: I don’t eat beef, pork, chicken. I will however eat fish and shellfish when no other options are available. So I had a bit of Pasta, fish, and other delectable treats. My all time fav was most definitely the Crab Cakes from Hemingway’s Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress. I just couldn’t get enough, so delicious!
Favorite Dessert? Mouth watering and mind numbing delicious Panacotta from Siro: Urban Italian Kitchen– World Center Marriott. I could have grabbed that tray full of cups and run out of that place like a mad woman. Luckily my hubby was there to stop me.
The music? Awesome!
Tito’s Vodka also was there with some great cocktails, thanks to you!
There were Magicians blowing our minds with their slight of hands, and oh how I tried to follow their quick tricky ways, alas, they tricked me something good. Kudos to you guys.
I hope at some point the restaurants will add more vegetarian fare to their menus for Magical Dining. Having been a hard core carnivore and excellent cook now turned Veg head, I know how easy it is to make food delicious by adding bacon, seafood or meat. The true sign of a great chef is to be able to create a truly delicious meal without falling on those staples to flavor the food. :)

For those of us who have a list of Orlando restaurants that we’ve always wanted to try, Visit Orlando’s Magical Dining is such a great value. I’ve heard about Magical Dining before, but up until last night’s Unilocal Event, I had no idea how many of Orlando’s best restaurants participated.
Some of the best of the best were there last night offering us samples of their menus. The event was just as I’ve come to expect an Elite event to be, well organized down to the posh décor and entertainment, which included very talented musicians, as well as magicians treating us to up close card tricks. It was a classy, yet laid back party atmosphere with a crazy variety of delicious food and drinks.
My guest and I got to know the staff at Cupa Libre very well. Their station was a favorite of ours, offering not only an amazing pork entrée, but two types of mojitos, as well as desserts. Needless to say, all were delicious.
Another favorite station of mine was K Restaurant. They served two entrees, the seafood minestrone being one I kept going back for. I will visit this restaurant, and I will order this because I can’t stop thinking about it.
The drink station was a collaboration between Tito’s Handmade Vodka and Onli Flavored Sparkling Waters. It was fun trying the different flavors which mixed perfectly with the vodka. For non-​drinkers, Onli served them their choice of flavor in an adorable glass bottle sans vodka.
Ruth’s Chris treated us to prime rib which I loved, but I do agree with some of the other reviewers: knives would’ve been nice since the portion was very difficult to eat with just a fork, and I also agree that it was served a bit underdone for my tastes. That said, it was perfectly tender, flavorful, and I was crazy about the shrimp it was served with.
Now that I know what Orlando Magical Dining is all about, I will be participating this year, it’s just going to be especially difficult to narrow it down to just a few restaurants.
Thank you, Andi, Colleen, Unilocal Orlando, Visit Orlando, and all participants for another spectacular Elite Event.

This week I enjoyed a preview of Magical Dining Month at a lovely preview party held at the historic Ballroom at Church Street. For the first time ever, Unilocal partnered with Visit Orlando to launch the annual September dining adventure during a special preview week, and I attended to write about it for
. The dining opportunities continue throughout September, with Orlando’s finest restaurants offering prix fixe dinners for just $ 33.
Kevin Fonzo of K Restaurant presented a tender pork tenderloin medallion topped with two sauces, one spicy-​creamy and the other fruity. I loved it! Siro Urban Italian Kitchen delighted the palate and the eyes with a pressed watermelon, tomato and burrata salad. The balance of creamy and crisp makes this dish ideal for the dog days of summer.
Hemingway’s, the signature restaurant at the Grand Cypress Resort, offered their signature crab cake. So many restaurants brag about their crab cakes, but I’ve found that in most cases they disappoint. Not this time. Large pieces of lump crab with nary a touch of filler, delicately spiced and seared for a crispy crust, with creamy polenta and a fresh corn relish. This is truly the best crab cake I’ve ever tasted, and I can see why they keep it on the menu year after year.
Cuba Libre Restaurant and Rum Bar brought three delicious dishes. The entrée was a tender lechon asado, with roasted marinated pulled pork, sour orange mojo and black bean broth. The explosion of flavors made every bite a new experience… one that I want to repeat again very soon. Their rice pudding was perfectly spiced, and the mango mojitos really got the party started!
Puff ‘n Stuff Catering wowed the guests as always. Their assortment of desserts included this candied orange peel confection, a passion fruit caramel chocolate, and Jewel-​like Marcona Cherry cakes, dusted with pistachios.
The cocktail bar was especially fun. They offered an assortment of sparkling, fruity Onli Water, amped up with shots of Tito’s Handmade Vodka — so refreshing! After this evening of tempting previews, I’m so excited to explore several new restaurants during Magical Dining Month.
Join me and let me know what Orlando dining treasures you discover! For more details and a full list of all participating restaurants take a look at:
. Bön Appétit!

Super! How did the magician know my favorite card was going to be the 2 of hearts so he could have it missing from the deck and in his pocket? Great reggae live music. The passion fruit caramel chocolate was out of this world.
Fun and high end event with some top notch restaurants represented. The offerings from Cuba Libre and Siro were my favs. The steak topped with shrimp that was served up by Ruth Chris was great too. And other dishes excellent as well.
Lots of lovely Unilocalers, many looking good in stylish duds. It was a great time at a fabulous event. I was happy to see George, Andi, Cassie, and Colleen and to meet Kevin, Stacey, Carolina, Candace and other party peeps. Thanks Brittany (sp?) and Church Street Ballroom for hosting!!!
The watermelon, microgreen, almond, burrata salad from Siro was fun and the raspberry compote topped panna cotta over raspberry preserves they served up was good too. Cuba Libre hit it out of the park with their mojito, tres leches cake, and pulled pork topped with slaw. I look forward to trying their restaurant.
I enjoyed trying the sparkling beverage from Onli (sp?). The flavored ice waters from Unilocal were welcome refreshers as well.
I liked the Vesuvius pasta dish with sauteed spinach, pear and a butternut squash sauce from Fiorenzo’s, one of the Hyatt’s restaurants (the other restaurant served up a nice snapper dish and another Hyatt was there too!!!). The crab cake from Hemmingways and the minestrone from K was good. There was definitely some fine seafood served up!!!
It was a festive atmosphere and there were lots of stylish and fun Unilocalers in da house.
Thank you, thank you, thank you to the fine restaurants that participated and Andi for organizing and the magicians and the great musician and to the Ballroom on Church Street for hosting. It was a great party and a super introduction to some places I have not yet been.

Another AMAZING Elite event! Thanks to Andi, Visit Orlando, and all the restaurants involved in making this a stellar event.
What a great way to start off Magical Dining Month here in Orlando. I’m all ready scheduled to go to two restaurants, but after tasting the food tonight I may need to add a few more to the list. All of the restaurants had great offerings and you never had to wait very long to try them out. Add in some great drinks from Tito’s, Onli, and Cuba Libre and it a home run.
The location was spectacular. I had been to the Ballroom at Church Street before, but it was so fun seeing everyone else’s reaction to the place. Makes you want to plan a big party with fancy dresses :)

Church Street’s ballroom was a great venue for the Magical Dining Month kickoff, and the participating restaurants went all out to show us a good time.
There were a lot of tasty offerings in the room, but one clearly stood out and frankly wowed us. It was K Restaurant’s seafood minestrone. This rich, flavorful soup started with a bacon broth base and added perfectly cooked diced vegetables, beans, shrimp and clams. Served piping hot, the flavor and aroma were almost intoxicating. K Restaurant is the top of my list for dining month, just so I can have more of this soup as my starter! (K also served an excellent roast pork with onion and berry sauce.)
In contrast, the most lackluster dish was probably from Siro at the Marriott. They seemed a bit disorganized, with the food not ready at the start of the event. When we visited later we got the last two of what appeared to be a croquette. It didn’t have a lot of flavor, and the sauce had a burnt flavor. They seemed to be out of their other item, a salad.
Ruth’s Chris offered a tenderloin and shrimp, which were both tender and succulent.
Cuba Libre presented a slightly spicy pork and slaw dish that went great with their mojitos.
Fiorenzo’s Vesuvio Pasta made good use of butternut squash; I’m not sure what was Vesuvian about it!
Hemingway’s offered a crab cake. In the ongoing competition for least filler in a crab cake, this has to be the winner, as there was basically none. I’m not sure why that has become the trendy style, but it was certainly a nice portion of crab.
Napa paired seared yellowtail with lemon risotto. I’m not a big risotto fan — there’s a bit too much wallpaper paste consistency going on there for my taste — but the yellowtail was superb, and beautifully seared.
Puff n Stuff caterers provided dessert, gorgeous petite fours. My favorite was topped with candied orange rind.
Onli mixers were paired with Tito’s vodka. I didn’t think the vodka improved them, but the mixers were impressive. I loved the tart palate cleansing nature of the lemon mango.
This was a great preview to Orlando Magical Dining month. I’m looking forward to revisiting some of these dishes at the participating restaurants. Thanks to them, and to Unilocal for organizing it.