http://cuveebistro.com or www.ipanemaocala.com Both are excellent for special occasions. There is also a nice restaurant and bar in the Hilton Hotel in Ocala if you want a change of pace like that. If you take CR 475-A from TV to Ocala you will have wonderful scenery for the drive. I think Ocala is just about the right distance to go, for that 'getaway' feeling without a long drive if you just want to go out for the evening.
Other possibilities would be a trip to the beach and spend the night. If so, I'd think of the Clearwater or St. Pete area and one nice restaurant there is in the Marriott hotel (actually this is on Gulf Blvd. a few miles south of Clearwater) - a steak (also has seafood, etc) restaurant that is called 'Watercolors' or something similar to that; or Shepards, a hotel with a restaurant on the beach in Clearwater.
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Freeda Louthan
Lexington KY 1951-1972, Louisville KY 1972-2007
The Villages FL since 2007 - Home for good, at last
Measure your wealth not by the things that you have, but by the things you have for which you wouldn't take money. The world needs dreamers; the world needs 'do'-ers. But most of all, the world needs dreamers who are do-ers.
We were once taken to Pasta Faire in Bellview. It is a nice Italian restaurant that also has a stone oven . They serve rotisserie chicken which my husband deemed very good. It is a bit of a drive but it is also reasonable. Ambiance wise, it is better than Olive Garden. The night we went there was a wedding reception being celebrated in a seperate room so it is a decent ambiance. Just a thought.
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Sally Bowron
Cincinnati, Ohio; Osceola Hills at Soaring Eagle, TV
Try Goblin Market in Mt Dora. One of the better places close by. If willing to go further, Burns steak house in Tampa is excellent.
Both great recommendations! If you want to spend the night consider Chalet Suzanne in Lake Wales. Like Berns, a lifetime golden spoon awarded restaurant. The attached motel is very interesting in that every room is completely different. On occasions when I have been there, people congregate (a glass of wine helps) and check out the different rooms.
If you do not want to stay overnight then the Goblin Market is probably your best bet.
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"Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it." - George Bernard Shaw
True, I've missed your deadline, but from a personal point of view, budget not a consideration:
Lopez Legacy Restaurant. Right here in TV! And, be sure to order the Lobster al Forno appetizer! I'd even be happy ordering 3-4 servings with nothing else!
Note that there is an on-going special on Monday night, where a lobster dinner is something like $22 whereas any other night it is closer to $36.