Brendan O’Connor, editor-in-chief at The Orlando Shine, and Fred Thimm, owner of Reel Fish Coastal Kitchen + Bar in Winter Park. Photo by Roberto Gonzalez.
THE RELEASE OF ORLANDO MAGAZINE’S ANNUAL DINING AWARDS WINNERS is always such a great opportunity for me to sit down and assess where the heck I’ve been eating all year and to see if my favorites line up with everyone else’s.
I reached out to several of this year’s winners to ask where they actually eat when they’re not working. Their answers offer a running tour of the City Beautiful, from steakhouses to strip-mall Thai.
Naming Reel Fish Coastal Kitchen in Winter Park as the year’s Best Restaurant checks with what I know of Orlando magazine’s readers. Reel Fish Coastal Kitchen + Bar has been a fixture on North Orange Avenue in Winter Park since opening in February 2017, in the space that previously housed The Ravenous Pig before it moved to its current beer garden compound up the street. Owner Fred Thimm, a veteran of the Palm steakhouse at Universal Orlando’s Hard Rock Hotel, built the concept as a modern take on the Southern fish camp, serving Florida seafood pulled from both the Gulf and Atlantic coasts in a casual, family-friendly setting. The menu runs from fried seafood platters, shrimp and grits and whole fried fish to a cold bar of oysters, ceviche and peel-and-eat shrimp, with a rotating roster of regional catches that includes triggerfish, sheepshead, hogfish and even invasive lionfish. Nearly a decade in, it remains one of Winter Park’s go-to spots for lunch, dinner, brunch and happy hour, closed only on Mondays.
The Tap Room at Dubsdread serves up amazing food with a great view. Photo by Roberto Gonzalez.
They love fish, y’all. And they love a good story, both of which the owner has on hand. But I couldn’t help but wonder where Fred Thimm, owner of Reel Fish Coastal Kitchen and Bar, likes to spend his dining hours when he’s not running his Orange Avenue-facing flagship.
Like most chefs and restaurateurs, Thimm said running the city’s newly crowned Best Restaurant doesn’t leave him much time to dine elsewhere. Monday is his only day off, and he said he likes to spend it at Tap Room at Dubsdread in College Park, this year’s Best Burgers winner, which is a conveniently short walk from his home. His order never changes: Texas chili and the Tap Room Wedge to start, followed by a medium prime rib-eye with a loaded baked potato, no bacon.
The Tap Room at Dubsdread has operated on the grounds of College Park’s historic Dubsdread Golf Course since May 2001, when Steve Gunter and Barbara Teal took over the clubhouse restaurant and opened it to the public. The golf course itself, though, dates back more than a century, giving the Tap Room a country club casual setting with views of the fairways from its dining room, outdoor patio and veranda. The kitchen turns out fresh fish, prime cuts, crisp salads and a burger widely regarded as one of Orlando’s best, backed by more than 30 wines and a dozen-plus beers on tap. The restaurant has picked up national recognition along the way, including OpenTable’s Top 100 Neighborhood Restaurants list, and remains one of the city’s steadiest spots for brunch, happy hour and weekend dining.
Christner’s Prime Steak & Lobster elevates any business dinner.
Tricia Hage, co-owner of Charlie’s Bakery & Creamery, said her go-to for celebrations is Christner’s Prime Steak and Lobster, this year’s Best Place to Do Business winner and Best Restaurant runner-up. Asked what dish she’d drive 30 minutes for, she didn’t hesitate: the Greektown pizza at SoDough Square, this year’s Best Pizza runner-up. “It’s unfreakingbelievable,” she said, adding that she’s lucky enough to not need the drive.
Owner (and dining awards winner) Trisha Hage of Charlie’s Bakery & Creamery shows her 2025 win for Best Bakery!
Charlie’s Bakery has been a Curry Ford West institution since 1972, when founder Charlie Hawks opened its doors. Tricia Hage took over the business from Hawks’ son, Gary, in September 2021 and added a creamery, rebranding it Charlie’s Bakery & Creamery and introducing house-made ice cream (with all the yummy fats) alongside the shop’s longtime desserts. Hage trimmed the menu from more than 300 items down to roughly 200 while keeping Charlie’s original recipes, like the Napoleon and the eclair, intact and folding in a few of her own family recipes along the way. More than five decades in, it remains one of the city’s go-to spots for classic baked goods. A new ownership team snatched up the shopping plaza it’s located in, and we hope that only means good things for this longtime Orlando dessert staple.
I had to reach out to one of my favorite people, Zach Scray, co-owner of The Gnarly Barley in Ivanhoe Village, when I found out that they’d won this year’s Best Bar Food award. I’m a fan of Gnarly and Zach and have done more than a few events with them through the years, including a Pink Pony Club bar crawl, a mini golf tournament and a questionable number of hot dog eating contests. He’s a gem, and his team is a family of champions.
The Gnarly Barley co-owners Joey, Trace and Zach Scray first opened on South Orange Avenue back in the day before heading to greener pastures in Ivanhoe Village in 2021, trading their original space for a larger kitchen and a spot they believed gave the brand more room to grow. Known for its “legendary” sandwiches and laid-back bar fare like mac and cheese, the restaurant rolled out a revamped menu in fall 2024, leaning into bolder flavors and creative twists on classic pub food, alongside its lineup of craft beers and signature cocktails. The same ownership group also runs GB’s Bottle Shop around the corner on Virginia Drive.
Zach told me that his stalwart special-occasion spot is Sloppy Taco Palace, where the staff usually join him for tequila shots. For the dish he’d drive 30 minutes for, he admitted he doesn’t have to: Cavo’s Philly cheesesteak with curly fries is walking distance from his downtown home in Thornton Park. “You can take me out of a dive bar but not the dive bar out of me,” he said.
Thomas Ward, owner of Pig Floyd’s.
Thomas Ward, owner of Pig Floyd’s Urban BBQ, this year’s Best BBQ winner, has had a busy year reshaping his Mills 50 footprint. Pig Floyd’s closed its original location and merged into Pigzza’s larger space this September, combining both menus under one roof with expanded hours and a late-night pizza window. For breakfast, Ward pointed to Zaza Cuban Comfort Food, which just opened its 11th and largest location in the SoDo neighborhood, and Peach Valley Café, this year’s Best Breakfast winner, calling both consistent and a good value. His favorite place to eat outside of work is Linda’s La Cantina Steakhouse, this year’s Best Old Favorite runner-up.
Michael Cooper, executive chef at The Osprey and partner at Osteria Ester, this year’s Best New Restaurant, said that when friends visit from out of town, the group almost always ends up at Sea Thai, which has been quietly serving Colonial Town Center from its strip-mall storefront across from Fashion Square Mall for years, building a loyal following without much fanfare.
Chef Michael Cooper, executive chef at The Osprey.
The menu runs deep, with more than 80 items spanning classic curries like panang, massaman and red curry, noodle and rice dishes including pad Thai and pineapple fried rice, whole fish prepared several ways and specialties like tiger tear steak and nam sod, alongside tom yum and tom kha soups and a full vegetarian and gluten-free-friendly lineup. It’s not super showy or ostentatious and is a bit more neighborhood spot than showpiece, which is part of why it’s become the kind of place industry regulars send out-of-town friends. I spent some time with the owners for an episode of “On the Radar” for Very Local, and I have to say, I’m still thinking about how good the food was.
Chef Cooper says to check out the pad see ew duck noodles.