Originally Posted by courtyard (Post 559172)

I'd love to see a health food restaurant here, preferably one that serves only Organic food!

Originally Posted by Richard1366 (Post 559047)

Let me be the first to say that I feel sorry for us. Here we live in a wonderful “village” with all the beauty of nature, companionship, and activities…yet we are in a gastronomic wasteland. Our “Italian” restaurants are “red sauce’ dispensers, pasta with a variety of red and white sauces slathered on. Where are Italian restaurants that serve contemporary Italian cuisine; Gnocci, hot pastas with cool fresh and light sauces, simple wonders such as cacao e pepe (fresh spaghetti with cheese and ground pepper?) Where are the authentic Oriental restaurants? Isn’t everyone tired of fried rice, General Tso’s chicken, sweet and sour pork. Why hasn’t some Asian restaurant provided us with a variety of dim sum (even if only on weekends} adding such dishes as scallion pancakes, pigs ears (really delicious,) and wonderful noodle soups? With a large number of Vietnamese veterans, why doesn’t any restaurant offer Vietnamese Pho with spring rolls and that wonderful Vietnamese iced coffee. No restaurants anywhere around offer any spicy and delicious Korean dishes.
Hopefully one of these days a restaurant investor will take a leap of faith and provide this community with something other than chain restaurant pap.

Originally Posted by sunglow (Post 559414)

Right on, Richard! Maybe if we start demanding it....
I did find a place with really good bagels... Brooklyn Water Bagels? Not sure of the name but I was impressed with the bagels.

Originally Posted by Down Sized (Post 559421)

I haven't seen too many people around here that looks like they have missed out on any meals for lack of places to eat.

Originally Posted by jblum315 (Post 559077)

Because most people here wouldn't pay for it. They want cheap and fast, not good.

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter (Post 559423)

Demanding of whom??

Originally Posted by sunglow (Post 559414)

Right on, Richard! Maybe if we start demanding it....
I did find a place with really good bagels... Brooklyn Water Bagels? Not sure of the name but I was impressed with the bagels.

Originally Posted by mikeod (Post 559347)

I've lived here about six years and have seen several restaurants come and go. Italian, Mexican, seafood, etc., all closed. Those that remain provide a level of cuisine and service that the majority of residents and visitors enjoy. This isn't New York, or Chicago, or LA, or Dallas, or Nawlins. The demographics here will not support the type of restaurants you describe.

Villagers vote for places they like with their wallets. Those that remain do so because they meet the expectations of most customers. If the establishments here are so mediocre, why is it difficult to get in January through April?

Frankly, I moved here for much more than the local cuisine. I don't need anyone to feel sorry for me. I do wonder about people who come to Central Florida and expect to find the same things they had in a major metropolitan area. Ain't happening.

Originally Posted by graciegirl (Post 559277)

Ditto and Amen. A lot of folks feel the same way.

P.S. I am a person who loves to cook, so I can pretty much have what I want to eat at any time but rarely do I run into food that is terribly disappointing here in TV. You don't have to be from New York to have fine dining experiences. But every meal doesn't have to be a home run to be enjoyable.

Toojays chicken livers and onions are the best I have ever had. The lighthouse has wonderful butterfish and catfish and their slaw with pineapple is always fresh and yummy. It is hard to beat Oakwood's barbecue, even if it is slightly off campus. ADD fun folks around the table and it is FINE dining.