Eat Like a Rabbit

The first time I heard of Paxia, I was getting off of I-4 and saw a guy dancing around with a sign saying it was the best Mexican restaurant in Orlando. The next time I heard of Paxia was less than a week later when I was researching the restaurants participating in Eat Local Week sponsored by Slow Food Orlando. Tonight we chose to dine there mainly because I couldn't remember any other restaurant on our list and it was close by--because it was getting late (like 5) and I was very hungry. Boy, was I glad it was the only one I could think of!

Let's start with our entrance into the restaurant. This is only the second restaurant I've ever seen that actually tries to sit people in the windows first so that the place looks full. Of course, by the time we left, the place was full so it didn't really matter! But, it's a wise marketing move. The greeter who seated us was the first person at any restaurant we've been to this week to completely explain the concept of Slow Food, and he did so in great accurate detail.

Our first night eating local started off pleasantly in at a great little restaurant on Orange Ave. in downtown Orlando. Virgin Olive Market used to be on Clay, and I think the change in location surely must have increased its exposure. There was a nice, steady stream of customers during our entire dining experience. Virgin Olive makes the grade in a couple of areas. First, it is a fast, very friendly, and significantly cheaper restaurant than the two restaurants it's sandwiched in between. Next, it holds down the spot as a source for good coffee and breakfast in the immediate vicinity. Also, it offers healthy (generally), light, budget friendly meals on top of some unusual foodie items for sale to take home.

Central Florida isn't just home to Kennedy Space Center (although I highly recommend the back-lot tour of the area if you're ever in town visiting the attractions. It's a day's activity, but well worth it.) It's also home to some great restaurants that focus on the Slow Food Movement. Rachel from Slow Food Orlando contacted me about the project and even shared a link to a fabulous map of Central Florida with restaurant locations in relation to food sources. It is completely fascinating. Slow Food Week starts tomorrow; so do your research. . .or just read mine!

This great announcement came in my Google Reader. January 25-31, restaurants in the Orlando area that support local (within 200 miles) growers will be focusing on "promoting connection, community, culture and cuisine in Central Florida." You can go to Heather McPhearson's Food Blog for a list of participating restaurants.

Paul and I are thinking about saving our pennies for a week of eating out in Orlando to show our support. Some of the restaurants that are our top choices to visit are: Harmoni Restaurant, Dandelion CommuniTea Cafe, and the Virgin Olive Market. Thank you, Travis and Patty for recommending the latter.

If you have a recommended restaurant on the list complete with dishes to order, please comment at the bottom of this post so others can enjoy the tastes, too.

The results are in&helip; but they won't tell us! The Orlando Sentinel is hosting an evening at Eden Bar to announce the winners next week. However, we're pretty sure Eat Like a Rabbit came in second place for the Foodie section of the Orlando Orbbies. We also expect we came in at some point for the best overall Central Florida Blogs. I'm really proud of these results because we were up against some very nice Foodie blogs. Moreover, the fact that there are so many great blogs out there, especially associated with surviving Orlando's theme parks, makes me really proud to be in the top 10 blogs in the area. Thank you to everyone who voted for Eat Like a Rabbit. I hope that we can continue to earn your loyalty and be a great assistance to your adventures in the kitchen.

I thought it would be a good idea to share some of the other Foodie websites based in Central Florida that you might also find useful when eating in or dining out.

If you're in town on November 22 and are looking for people who feel as strongly about their vegan food as you do, take a look at this scheduled event for the day. It's called Thanksvegan, which is a clever name for a luncheon and games for the children focusing on being compassionate toward animals during a season that is often focused on gluttony and turkey or ham.

The following are some vegan or easy-to-make-vegan recipes that you might want to bring to share.

• Make Pesto without Parm to top the spaghetti squash.
• Especially if it's kinda warm, consider bringing a chilled drink like this fruit smoothie with spinach.
• Butternut squash risotto takes advantage of the in-season veggie.
• Remember, the last issue of Gourmet Magazine has some vegetarian/vegan recommendations for Thanksgiving dishes.

Upon arriving at a lovely church for the wedding of my coworker, Paul proudly announced that it was right next door to an Indian restaurant he had been wanting to take me to. Paul had eaten there with some friends when they were in town for an internet convention and had completely enjoyed it. Unfortunately, I have been burned by Indian restaurants and up until Friday afternoon had staunchly refused to entertain the thought of visiting an Indian restaurant. However, marriage is all about give-and-take, and I agreed to take Paul there after the wedding as we were not planning on attending the reception, anyway.

It was 10:40. I was rushing between offices because I had patients to get to at the second one after finishing a meeting at the first one. But more importantly, I was speeding down I-4 because I knew what time it was. I was pretty sure breakfast at McDonald's ended at 10:30, and I was sure I was going to miss fulfilling my current "craving". I walked into the fancy and well decorated McDonald's Bistro by Orlando Reginal Medical Center, and smiled as nicely as I could while saying "I need a plain biscuit and a hashbrown." "You need?" said the kind guy behind the counter as a girl walked to the back to see what she could find. "Uh huh, I need. I really need." The crew was very amused to learn that more importantly than me, the baby needed a plain biscuit and hashbrown. They were amazingly sweet and provided me with butter and ketchup to go with my second meal of the day (which also amused them) but I don't give them any credit for their orange juice and must remember to pass that up in the future.

I recognize that Father's Day was some time ago, but as is evident with all my posting, it's been hard to bring myself to talk about food extensively without making my stomach upset.

So, the brunch idea was misleading because there wasn't a variety of breakfast and lunch dishes. It was simply a collection of lunch dishes served closer to breakfast time (starting at 11:00). I also thought the selection wasn't so balanced and wide enough for the price. And, I think it seemed like a way to dispose of leftovers. We were only the second guests dining at the cafe soon after it opened for brunch. The salad, soup, fruit, and desserts were self-serve, but the hot items were served for you. The buffet was all-you-can-eat, which meant you got to go back for a new plate. None of us had room for more than the first trip. Also, the $9.95 price for the buffet did not cover any drinks.

I'm not in the habit of photographing my groceries, but this was all part of my mom's and my scheduled day together, which we hadn't had much of because my grandmother had been visiting, and she doesn't have the energy to run around like we do. We had a few errands to run, but also, I wanted to take the opportunity of being down near Super Target to investigate whether or not I should shop there more often because their collection of organic products is far superior to Walmart and is mostly cheaper than Publix. We walked the aisles and piled coupons together for some great deals, especially the "stackable coupons" from target and the manufacturer yielding an $0.84 box of MorningStar Farms Buffalo wings and $0.50 box of MorningStar Farms Chick 'n nuggets. Mom got free mayo and salad dressing by stacking the coupons. Target had the Quaker Oatmeal Pancake mix that I couldn't find at any other stores, and that only cost me $0.69 after the coupon. Paul wanted to try the new Olive Oil Mayo by Kraft, which I had a Target coupon for. Then, there were lots of items on sale or clearance that I acquired without coupon because even paying the sale price without coupon is better than paying full price at any other store I'm often near.

Metro is very special to us. It is the restaurant where we ate just after Paul proposed. One thing I love about Metro is that it is in a building with its back to Lake Eola. You can't see the lake while dining, only the street, which can be entertaining enough. But, I love to park half way around the lake and walk to Metro to take in the beautiful sights of the fountain, swans, and owners walking their dogs.

I was nervous that Metro would be feeling the crunch of the economy. I don't think we have been to Metro this year because we no longer live downtown, but five exits or so up from the street leading to the lake and to the restaurant. But, I was happy to see that, if anything, the economy has not hurt the family-owned-and-operated restaurant. In fact, I think it was the busiest I had ever seen it. There wasn't even room for us to eat at the tables outside.

These are pictures of our lunch visit with Tim and Magally Putt to Ethos Vegan Kitchen. Paul and I shared the vegetable lasagna and a 10" pizza. Tim and Magally shared the vegetable lasagna and a black bean burger. Tim said the sandwich was twice the size of the lasagna but half the price.

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