Endless wasteland of generic chains... (Orlando: condos, houses, restaurants)

[OptimusPrime69]

Originally Posted by sean1the1

That is not just Orlando or Florida. That is pretty much any place that has grown tremendously over the last 30 years.

Exactly..... a lot of the "sunbelt states" who have experienced rapid growth have these chain restaurants and strip malls everywhere. Phoenix Arizona? OMG.... Orange County California--same thing. Orlando--same thing, Atlanta suburbs---same thing.

Every suburb in America is pretty much the same.

[WithDisp]

Originally Posted by Rcsligar

My Dad and I ate at moes for lunch and were shocked to note that there were 5 + full sail students eating there. Really, it can't be good for their health.
So, is the city making any effort to revitalize itself and develop more vibrant neighborhoods with better amenities? I drove by the neighborhood where Rollins college is located and it seemed somewhat vibrant yet quaint. Not much else besides that though.

Orlando is the smaller city in the much greater "Orange County, FL" which actually governs most of what out-of-towners call Orlando. There is mass consumer restaurants and shopping- and plenty of smaller places as well. Moreso than other parts of the country smaller chains just can't compete because of the big $$$$ businesses are willing to pay to be in the tourism capital of the western world. Most of it isn't that quaint, but there is definitely a lot to see if you look.

Full Sail's appearance in a strip mall is quite abhorrent, but this of course is to be expected from a for-profit, non-accredited school.

[Peter1948]

Originally Posted by OrlFlaUsa

Did you open your eyes at all while you were here? Plus as others have said, suburbs everywhere are plagued with this same problem/situation. In Chicago where my family lives, their suburbs are filled with generic chain food with family/independent restaurants peppered in between.

Orlando is pretty bland though my friend. It is getting better though. Downtown is essentially one 5 block strip of college aged nightclubs. It has probably the worst restaurants of any downtown I have ever been in, and I have been in essentially every major downtown in America. Thornton Park is quaint and nice, and the idea of what Orlando needs more of, but in reality it would be only a fraction of a similar neighborhood elsewhere, even mid sized southern cities for that matter.

The only viable, walkable, urban part of Orlando is really the .75 mile strip along Park Ave in WP.
Everyone talks about Dr. Phillips, but it is really an upscale strip mall on a road with some of the worst traffic I have seen in the southeast outside Atlanta.

Orlando simply has a long way to go to compete with the urban vitality of Austin, Nashville, New Orleans, or even Memphis or Louisville. Much less the big SE cities Orlando emulates which are Atlanta, Miami, Dallas, etc.

That said, I choose to stay in Orlando because I DO see the potential (a good job doesn't hurt), like that we are building rail, have hopes for the new TODs especially the village near the old Amway and Florida Hospital, and yearn for a day when downtown roads like Magnolia and Central will be lined with viable retail and upscale restaurants of the caliber seen in many larger cities.

[Pete C]

Originally Posted by Peter1948

Orlando is pretty bland though my friend. It is getting better though. Downtown is essentially one 5 block strip of college aged nightclubs. It has probably the worst restaurants of any downtown I have ever been in, and I have been in essentially every major downtown in America. Thornton Park is quaint and nice, and the idea of what Orlando needs more of, but in reality it would be only a fraction of a similar neighborhood elsewhere, even mid sized southern cities for that matter.

The only viable, walkable, urban part of Orlando is really the .75 mile strip along Park Ave in WP.
Everyone talks about Dr. Phillips, but it is really an upscale strip mall on a road with some of the worst traffic I have seen in the southeast outside Atlanta.

Orlando simply has a long way to go to compete with the urban vitality of Austin, Nashville, New Orleans, or even Memphis or Louisville. Much less the big SE cities Orlando emulates which are Atlanta, Miami, Dallas, etc.

That said, I choose to stay in Orlando because I DO see the potential (a good job doesn't hurt), like that we are building rail, have hopes for the new TODs especially the village near the old Amway and Florida Hospital, and yearn for a day when downtown roads like Magnolia and Central will be lined with viable retail and upscale restaurants of the caliber seen in many larger cities.

Church Street is undergoing a slow transformation out of club central to be more of an adult destination. Some bars remain, but Mako's, Bliss, Heat, Touch, and others closed and are being replaced by restaurants and quieter bars. Mad Cow Theater even took up residence in a bigger space on Church St. With the Amway Center and possibly soccer stadium on one end and the Arts Center on the other could be a slice of downtown that will cater to an older clientele as well as families. The current nightlife scene can still reside on Orange, Pine, and Central. Downtown Orlando already has a prettier, more walkable layout than most downtowns in Florida. It just needs the restaurants to match.

I agree that Winter Park has the best culinary scene in the metro area. I go a step further and say it is one of the best in the state of Florida. That bodes well for the future considering Tampa and Jacksonville, both of which have been around a lot longer than Orlando, don't have any area on par.

On a side note, the Orlando metro actually had more James Beard nominated chefs this year of any city in the state.

[Peter1948]

Originally Posted by Pete C

Church Street is undergoing a slow transformation out of club central to be more of an adult destination. Some bars remain, but Mako's, Bliss, Heat, Touch, and others closed and are being replaced by restaurants and quieter bars. Mad Cow Theater even took up residence in a bigger space on Church St. With the Amway Center and possibly soccer stadium on one end and the Arts Center on the other could be a slice of downtown that will cater to an older clientele as well as families. The current nightlife scene can still reside on Orange, Pine, and Central. Downtown Orlando already has a prettier, more walkable layout than most downtowns in Florida. It just needs the restaurants to match.

I agree that Winter Park has the best culinary scene in the metro area. I go a step further and say it is one of the best in the state of Florida. That bodes well for the future considering Tampa and Jacksonville, both of which have been around a lot longer than Orlando, don't have any area on par.

On a side note, the Orlando metro actually had more James Beard nominated chefs this year of any city in the state.

Pete....Jax is a joke. Tampa is ok, but they definitely do have much better restaurants than Orlando. But as the southeast goes, Orlando is waaaaay behind much smaller cities which blow it out on the culinary scene.....among them are Louisville, Charleston, New Orleans, and arguably Nashville, Richmond, Memphis, Savannah, Asheville, and even Charlotte.

Even in FL, Orlando cannot compete with Miami's suburbs...ie Lauderdale and Palm Beach and environs.

I have been to Church St, just last week. Loft 55 has the look of something that is trying to be Miami, but is very sterile. The old Antigua is now a Mexican themed Cantina, which seemed ok, but definitely "whorelando," for lack of a better word. The new spot in the old Mako's seems gimmicky, and is definitely a very young scene.

That said, I am very very excited in the hopes that sun rail and transit oriented development change how folks in Central Florida think, and instead of a small urban core of post college grad greeks, the city will grow multiple urban spokes on a wheel neighborhoods ala Nashville, New Orleans, Louisville, etc. A few more bars like Redlight Redlight in downtown, some actual retailers, and some cross density, especially with better restaurants, will do it good.

I think Thornton Park, College Park, and Winter Park are a start, but areas like the new rail villages, Lake Eola Heights, Mills 50, the Milk District, south Bumby, and Lake Como/Delaney will have to become much more dense, and walkable with urban retailers to get the city we all desire here.

I do agree that Orlando's downtown is among the cleanest and most well kept in actually all the SE. Part of it was because Orlando was historically such a small city, it did not have a downtown that got big enough to have to be "urban renewed" away. So when domwtowns made a comeback in the late 90's Orlando, had less real estate to "clean up." It is now going to have to move development west of I-4....

[Crane's Rooster]

Best restaurants in Orlando are on Sandlake road restaurant row, followed by Park ave, followed by Maitland then the downtown neighborhoods. Just my opinion.

[chopchop0]

Originally Posted by Crane's Rooster

Best restaurants in Orlando are on Sandlake road restaurant row, followed by Park ave, followed by Maitland then the downtown neighborhoods. Just my opinion.

Id switch the top 2, but agree with you about those 2.

[OrlFlaUsa]

Originally Posted by Peter1948

Orlando is pretty bland though my friend. It is getting better though. Downtown is essentially one 5 block strip of college aged nightclubs. It has probably the worst restaurants of any downtown I have ever been in, and I have been in essentially every major downtown in America. Thornton Park is quaint and nice, and the idea of what Orlando needs more of, but in reality it would be only a fraction of a similar neighborhood elsewhere, even mid sized southern cities for that matter.

The only viable, walkable, urban part of Orlando is really the .75 mile strip along Park Ave in WP.
Everyone talks about Dr. Phillips, but it is really an upscale strip mall on a road with some of the worst traffic I have seen in the southeast outside Atlanta.

Orlando simply has a long way to go to compete with the urban vitality of Austin, Nashville, New Orleans, or even Memphis or Louisville. Much less the big SE cities Orlando emulates which are Atlanta, Miami, Dallas, etc.

That said, I choose to stay in Orlando because I DO see the potential (a good job doesn't hurt), like that we are building rail, have hopes for the new TODs especially the village near the old Amway and Florida Hospital, and yearn for a day when downtown roads like Magnolia and Central will be lined with viable retail and upscale restaurants of the caliber seen in many larger cities.

I've been to most of the cities you mention here and I think you're over estimating them a bit. New Orleans ok, got me there, Atlanta, ok once again I'll concede, but seriously Nashville, Dallas, and Louisville? Now I'm not saying Orlando beats those cities in everything, or anything for that matter but they all have the same issues you describe in Orlando. While I feel you make some decent points about Orlando, I'm not exactly sure some of the examples we're the best if blandness if what one is trying to avoid.

[bdpop]

I remember while growing up in Central Florida back in the 1970s, there were a lot more "mom and pop" type of places than there are now. Ronnie's comes to mind.

[Crane's Rooster]

Honestly there are mom and pops establishments just about everywhere. The problem is the average consumer is conditioned to call Dominos, Papa Johns and Pizza Hut before calling Anthony's pizza. On top of that, YES it does cost more to support local owned eateries but hey you get what you pay for. I can honestly say I have eaten at national chains less than a handful of time I can remember in the past few months. I do make it a point to support local shops but at the end of the day, I'd rather spend a few extra dollars to get a much better meal. To me corporate chains seem to only appeal to 10 year old taste, very middle of the road. For instance if you like Latin food I don't see how you can ever eat Pollo Tropical when there are so many good local Latin restaurants. Italian I"ll take Antonios and just about any other local shop over Olive Garden or Carrabas any day. Asian, PF Chang can't hold a candle to Mills/Lil Saigon area and some of our other local foods. And if I'm eating high end, I'll take Park Ave or Sandlake over Season's 52,