Category Archives: Gastropub

May 22, 2012 · 8:40 pm

Impromptu date night

Last weekend, Kevin and I put a gift card to use and grabbed dinner at The Rusty Spoon, Orlando’s newest gastropub. Previously, I had only been for lunch and thoroughly enjoyed it so I was excited to try their larger dinner menu. We headed over on Saturday evening and started with a round of drinks. I ordered a cucumber martini.

The Rusty Spoon - Cucumber Martini

The martini was light and fresh with a surprising burst of cucumber flavor. It smelled like a spa weekend and tasted slightly tart and bright.

The chef sent out complimentary cheese fritters with homemade barbeque sauce for us to nibble on.

The Rusty Spoon - Cheese Fritters

Kevin ordered the 55 burger, since I had been raving about it ever since I had it for lunch.

The Rusty Spoon - 55 Burger

The fries came with a side of homemade ketchup, which was slightly tangy almost like a cross between ketchup and barbeque sauce.

I was craving something on the lighter side so ordered the Lake Meadow salad, which ended up being way bigger than anticipated.

The Rusty Spoon - Lake Meadow Salad

The salad had fresh greens, which tasted straight from the garden, topped with bacon, chicken liver (which spread like pate), and finished with a soft cooked egg. Dippy eggs on a fancy salad? I’m in. The salad tasted so earthy and decadent with the bold flavors.

I also ordered a side of grits, which were phenomenal. They were extremely peppery and garlicky. These were not your average breakfast grits. They were thick, creamy and rich.

The Rusty Spoon - Grits

I loved my meal and my time out with Kevin. I definitely think we’ll return. Everything from my first drink through the whole meal was excellent.

11 Comments

Filed under American, Downtown Orlando, Gastropub

April 30, 2012 · 6:48 pm

The Rusty Spoon

Today I got to try a new-to-me restaurant in the 55 West building in downtown Orlando, The Rusty Spoon. They are a gastro pub focused on local and all-natural ingredients. Their menu is not very big but full of flavor.

For starters, our group of four ordered the haystack (shoestring fries) and stuffed eggs.

The Rusty Spoon - Haystack 

The fries came with three different sauces: aioli, barbeque and ketchup. All of the sauces tasted homemade and much better than anything found in a bottle. The fries were dusted with cheese and were incredibly rich. Warning: these fries are addicting. I love skinny fries, so these were right up my alley.

The Rusty Spoon - Stuffed Eggs

The stuffed eggs were also delicious. They were bright and full of dill flavor.

I ordered The “55” burger, which was a 1/2-pound burger stuffed with bacon and gruyere cheese.

The Rusty Spoon - The 55

The burger was delicious and full of flavor. The soft bun soaked up the delicious onions and aioli sauce. I don’t usually order the burger off menus, but I was so happy I ordered this one. For my side, I chose the Shiitinonion Soup (spell it out), which is their version of French onion soup. The soup was a little on the salty side, but I loved the onion and cheese flavors.

The Rusty Spoon - Shiitinonion Soup

Also ordered at the table was their salad of the day and a chicken sandwich.

The Rusty Spoon - Sunrise Salad

The Rusty Spoon - Bauk Bauk

Everyone at the table commented on how fresh everything tasted. The veggies tasted like they were straight from the garden. Even though I ate a ton of food, nothing sat very heavily in my stomach. I expected to be much more weighed down after eating such a big burger.

Kevin and I actually have a gift certificate for The Rusty Spoon, and after my rave lunch review, we realized the certificate expires next month, so I expect I’ll be returning soon.

What’s your French fry dipping sauce of choice?

7 Comments

Filed under Downtown Orlando, Gastropub, Lunch