UCF Area Restaurant Guide: A Culinary Adventure for Knights
With the University of Central Florida (UCF) being one of the largest public universities, the surrounding area boasts a vibrant and diverse culinary scene. Whether you're a student, faculty member, or visitor, there's something for everyone to enjoy. This guide highlights some of the best restaurants near UCF, offering a range of flavors and experiences to satisfy any craving.
Quick Bites and Casual Eats
For those on a budget or looking for a quick and tasty meal, the UCF area has plenty to offer.
- Lazy Moon: A long-time UCF favorite, Lazy Moon is known for its massive, "Southern" style pizzas, with slices bigger than your head. The restaurant has a hipster feel and has benefited from its larger, upgraded location. A slice of cheese pizza with a pint of PBR will cost $4.75. It is frowned upon if you’re in the UCF area and you don’t make a stop at Lazy Moon.
- Wawa: This gas station is a food haven for college students. It is also one of the only 24-hour places around UCF, offering a variety of food at cheap prices. Customize a turkey sub or a beef quesadilla for about $4-6.
- Huey Magoo’s: The fried chicken tenders at Huey Magoo’s speak for themselves. Order the 5 Tenders Meal for $7.39, which includes hand-breaded or grilled chicken, crinkle-cut fries, Texas toast, and your choice of dipping sauce. On Tuesdays, you can get a free tea with your meal.
- Blaze Pizza: Set up like a Chipotle or Subway, Blaze Pizza allows customers to build their own pizza for $7.95.
- Tijuana Flats: Known for its Mexican cuisine, including flautas, burritos, and tacos. The Norrito Bowl consists of light salsa-based rice, black beans, cheese, toppings, and guacamole, served in a bowl with your choice of filling for only $5.35.
- Junior Colombian Burger: This restaurant knows how to cater to the meat lovers. There is a special for each day of the week, Monday through Friday, for $4.99.
- Habibi: For the falafel lovers out there, Habibi has its own falafel sandwich for $5.99. You can even order a single falafel on the side for $3.25.
- South Philly Steaks: Try the Cheesesteak Lunch Box for $4.99, which is a half-sized cheesesteak served with chips. Add a churro for $1.75.
International Flavors
UCF's diverse student body and surrounding community have fostered a rich selection of international restaurants.
- Tamarind Indian Cuisine: UCF students don’t have to travel all the way to the International Drive’s tourist corridor to enjoy some of the best Indian food in town. Grub on the wonderful creamy chicken tikka masala, oven roasted tandoori chicken with some fluffy naan and basmati rice or for vegetarians, try the huge dosas, sweet fermented rice crepes stuffed with spicy potatoes and veggies.
- Taipei 101: Features home style Taiwanese Chinese street food cuisine with great prices.
- Hawaiian Grindz: Serves up popular panko crusted mochiko Chicken, Kalua pulled pig, and fried garlic sugoi Chicken.
- Lechonera Latina: This Dominican street food cafeteria is a hotspot among both locals and students trying to get a bite to eat. Lunches starting at $3.99 for a huge heaping of roast pork and yellow rice with pigeon peas.
- Purple Orchid Thai: Thai home style cooking for a cheap price. The pad thai and drunken noodle are favorites here.
- Azteca: Authentic and insanely scrumptious Mexican food. The portion sizes are huge, so either share with a friend, or be prepared for leftover heaven. Enchiladas a la Crema are cheesy goodness. Order them with refried beans and Mexican rice for $10.99.
- Hummus House: You can create your own pita, rice bowl, or salad, with your choice of protein, toppings, and hummus. The Greek Pita is stuffed with grilled chicken, romaine lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, black olives, feta cheese, Greek vinaigrette dressing and roasted garlic hummus for $7.19.
- Pei Wei: Rolls, bowls and platters make up the menu, and we highly suggest the Pad Thai if you’re into that Thai sweet and sour sauce over rice noodles with a bunch of toppings.
- Yao's: A modern Chinese kitchen by Chef George Yiu, honoring tradition yet embracing contemporary interpretations and highlighting the qualities of locally sourced ingredients.
Unique Dining Experiences
For those seeking a more memorable culinary adventure, UCF offers several unique dining experiences.
- Kesh: Helmed by Chef Jerry Helminski, Kesh specializes in “street food off the streets.” A visit to ‘Kesh is like playing a game of food roulette.
- Sus Hi Eat Station: This sushi spot is full of “ninja” servers dressed in black. Think of it as a sushi version of Chipotle, where you can pick and choose your fish, toppings, sides, roll or bowl style, etc. Customers can order a roll, bowl or wrap for $7 and choose the protein, ingredients and sauces to make their meal perfection. There’s raw protein, including krab, salmon and tuna, and also cooked protein, such as chicken and shrimp.
- Sushi Pop: One of the best sushi restaurants in all of Orlando, Chef Chau and his team masterfully crafts dishes that “pop” with flavor, from the Hokkaido scallop nigiri sushi to the black squid ink infused khao soi curry noodles with roasted leg of duck confit.
- The Pop Parlour: Founded by a UCF graduate, The Pop Parlour creates gourmet popsicles with local, all-natural, and organic ingredients. Pop Parlour has created over 100 different flavors, and continually rotates them. Alcoholic popsicles are also part of the menu. The Cookie Butter Popsicle is to die for.
- Kobé Japanese Steakhouse: Offers its guests a unique Teppanyaki dining experience. Provides an exciting and vibrant environment for guests to gather and celebrate over delicious food and drinks.
Barbecue and Comfort Food
Sometimes, all you need is some good old-fashioned comfort food. UCF has you covered.
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- Four Rivers Smokehouse: John Rivers’ barbecue empire continues to grow with the latest offshoot of the popular Winter Park restaurant recently opening its doors at the front gates of UCF. Popular for their smoked angus beef brisket, smoked St. Louis ribs, and other barbecue favorites. The BBQ Quesadilla with burnt ends will make your taste buds cry tears of happiness. For sides, try the corn and mac and cheese. You can go for $6.99 tacos on Tuesday. This meal includes three BBQ tacos topped with cilantro lime creme fraiche, guasacaca, pico de gallo, queso blanco and cilantro, along with a fountain drink.
- Buffalo Wild Wings: Known for its wings. Make sure to go on Wing Tuesdays, where you can get $0.75 traditional wings.
- Burger 21: The burgers are not only juicy and rich in taste, but they’re 100-percent certified angus beef.
- Mellow Mushroom: You can’t go wrong with a 10’’ House Special pizza for $12.99, which has a red sauce base with mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, sausage, ground beef, ham, Applewood smoked bacon, mushrooms, black olives, Roma tomatoes, green peppers and onions. And, to top it all off…literally…extra mozzarella is added after it’s made.
- TooJay’s: Has everything from bagels to pasta, but we think you should definitely try the Traditional Turkey Dinner. It’s like a Thanksgiving meal at home, with the oven roasted turkey, homemade mashed potatoes and stuffing. For $12.29, this warm meal is served with the restaurant’s savory giblet gravy and a fresh vegetable.
Sweet Treats and Desserts
No meal is complete without a sweet treat, and UCF has plenty of options to satisfy your sweet tooth.
- SnoTea Desserts: One of the first places in Orlando to serve up Asian style shaved ice desserts, Sno Tea is actually founded by UCF alumni. You can also get macarons and boba tea here as well.
- Jeremiah’s Italian Ice: You pretty much are required to go here if you go to UCF. Even though they moved down the street from their old location on University and Alafaya to Waterford Lakes, it’s still a Knight’s favorite. Soft served ice cream, flavored crushed Italian ice, and gelati - a crazy good hybrid of soft served ice cream and Italian Ice.
- Insomnia Cookies: Fresh, warm, melt-in-your mouth cookies and ice-cold milk. Insomnia offers cookies à la carte, ‘wiches (cookie ice cream sandwiches), packages of cookies, cookie cakes, and even bulk cookies.
- Keke's Breakfast Cafe: Keke’s Chocolate Chip Pancakes for $8.49 have Hershey’s milk chocolate chips cooked right into the pancakes, giving them that extra chocolatey taste.
Bars and Lounges
For those looking to unwind with a drink and socialize, the UCF area has a variety of bars and lounges.
- Bar Louie: Defined by award-winning handcrafted martinis and cocktails. On Tuesdays are $5 burger nights. The Clover martini, made with Hennessy so you can turn your birthday into a lifestyle. Go for happy hour from 4-7pm, it’s half off select apps and flatbreads along with $5.25 martinis and other alcohol deals.
- World of Beer: For beer enthusiasts, World of Beer is like a world of perfection. And to go along with the 500+ beers the bar offers, the kitchen cooks up perfectly pairable food.
- Bahama Breeze: Famous for tropical cocktails, live music.
Other Notable Options
- Lucky’s Market: This new-to-UCF shop is a combo of Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods. You can grab a cup of coffee and one of their pre-made meals for under $10, or create your own sandwich for $5.99.
- Vespr Coffee: Located in Waterford, this quaint coffee shop is straight out of an Instagram pic. Try their Butterscotch Latte, a popular drink that’s $4.75.
- Designer Greens: You have the option of ordering a salad or sandwich. Turkey Pesto sandwich and Mexicali salad for $8.99.
- Jimmy Hula’s: Home to the best fish tacos around. The indoor/outdoor seating, seaside surf décor, and laidback vibe is the perfect place to bring your dog, crack open a Kona Longboard, and listen to live music. Tacos range from about $3-6 depending on which you order.
- Moe’s Southwest Grill: For $6.49, customers can get a burrito, chips, salsa and a drink. There are several options to choose from when making a burrito, or you can step out of your comfort zone and try the Chili con Queso Burrito.
- McAlister’s Deli: The New Yorker is a 10 oz. corned beef and pastrami sandwich for $9.49, topped with melted swiss cheese and spicy brown mustard on toasted marbled rye. You can also get a cup of veggie chili, chicken tortilla or country potato soup in a cute little mug for $3.89.
- Rock & Brews: Combines scratch made, classic American food, ice-cold drinks, & music in a fun, family friendly atmosphere.
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