The Ravenous Pig

The highlight of my eats this week had to be lunch at The Ravenous Pig with my two friends Katie and Sharon. It was a great escape from work with great company and, of course, great food. I had only been for dinner before, but I really enjoyed the lunch atmosphere. It is not as crowded, and the menu was still decadent.

The Ravenous Pig is a gastropub in Winter Park, which means that they feature traditional pub fare but with a more upscale twist. They have recently been featured in New York Time’s “36 Hours in Orlando” feature and the two owners and chefs, married couple James and Julie Petrakis, were 2011 James Beard semifinalist for the southern region. These accolades make getting a dinner reservation very difficult, but it’s worth it.

We started out our lunch with their Lake Meadow Deviled Eggs.

They had a great mustardy bite, which was balanced by the bits of bacon sprinkled on top. These are not your typical pot luck deviled eggs. They were wonderful, creamy and elegant.

I ordered the lamb pita, which came with a choice of salad or fries, of which I opted for fries.

The pita was thick but airy and filled with various vegetables in a cumin yogurt sauce. The lamb patties within the pita were flavorful and contained hidden pistachios, which added a great crunch. It was fantastic.

Also ordered at our table were the lobster tacos and grilled cheese, which both looked amazing.

I left lunch incredibly full. All of their food was very rich making me wish I could have spent the rest of the afternoon lounging, but alas, I headed back to the office to finish out my day. I can’t wait for my next trip to “The Pig.”

What do you think of the “gastropub” concept popping up everywhere?