Florida and food...

One of my favourite things about going on holiday is knowing that I can eat as much as I want without feeling guilty. I always make a big effort to eat healthily during the week when I'm at home, so it's nice to relax the rules when I'm on holiday. Calories don't count when you're abroad, right?

The food in Florida is absolutely immense and I couldn't even begin to describe all the meals I ate there... you'd probably think I was disgusting if I detailed everything I ate. Or you'd be very very jealous.

I thought I'd compile a list of my top five restaurants, then I realised that I couldn't really narrow it down to a top five because there are so many fantastic places to eat in Orlando. So... I've attempted to rank my favourite five restaurants, but I added a load of notable mentions too to make sure I didn't leave anything out. I didn't take many photos of my food unfortunately, but I can assure you that it was all amazing.

1. Portobello, Downtown Disney

We ate in Portobello on our last night, and we definitely saved the best until last. I had beef and veal meatballs in a tomato sauce to start, and spinach and ricotta ravioli for my main course. We were also given some bread rolls with olive oil and roasted garlic... I'm still drooling at the thoughts of this amazing meal. Words can't actually describe it. We didn't have room for dessert unfortunately, but we did splash out on a bottle of Pinot Grigio as it was our last night. This was also Neil's favourite meal of the holiday, and we'll definitely be returning at least once next time we go to Florida. 20 out of 10!

2. The Cheesecake Factory, Mall at Millenia

The Cheesecake Factory isn't actually in Disney World but it's an absolute must if you're ever visiting Orlando. It's located in Mall at Millenia, and it's definitely not just about the cheesecake... although that's pretty good too. Their menu is about 20 pages long, and you really do have to spend about fifteen minutes deciding what you want. I went for a grilled chicken and avocado sandwich for my main course and the Oreo cheesecake for my dessert. You might be thinking that a sandwich is just a sandwich, but this is definitely the best sandwich I've ever had in my life. Don't even get me started on the cheesecake... it was absolutely spectacular. I took it back to the resort with me and took three days to finish it!

3. The Rainforest Cafe, Downtown Disney

Again, this is a restaurant you absolutely have to visit if you're in the area. It's a very unique restaurant as the interior actually makes you feel as if you're in a rainforest... there are even fake earthquakes and volcano eruptions from time to time! I had an amazing Italian sausage and mozzarella pasta in a tomato sauce, and I definitely didn't need a starter or a dessert to go with this massive main course. They do lovely cocktails too!

4. Perkins, Crossroads

Perkins is situated just outside the gates to Walt Disney World and is hugely popular with tourists and locals alike. We went for breakfast at Perkins twice... I had a bacon, egg and cheese melt with hash browns the first time and strawberry pancakes the second time. I ate every bite of the bacon, egg and cheese melt as it was probably the best breakfast I've ever had. However, I only managed one and a half pancakes as my stomach doesn't seem to let me eat any more than that before getting full. This is very gutting for me as their pancakes are delicious!

5. Via Napoli, Epcot

Need I say any more after sharing this picture? This pepperoni pizza was big enough for both of us to share and is one of the best pizzas I've ever had. I know I keep saying that about all the food I eat in Florida, but it's so true! I also had lovely mozzarella and risotto balls to start in Via Napoli, but the starters are always slightly overshadowed (literally) by this immense pizza. The pizza dough was absolutely perfect, and the pepperoni was really tasty and wasn't dripping with grease. No other pizza will ever satisfy me!

Notable mentions:

Nine Dragons Restaurant, Epcot's World Showcase

We ate here three times!

Earl of Sandwich, Downtown Disney

Pictures will never do it justice.

Ghirardelli's, Downtown Disney

Might have eaten four of these during the holiday...

Be our Guest, Magic Kingdom

An amazing and authentic dining experience... and I met the Beast!

Karamell-Kuche, Epcot's World Showcase

I wanted EVERYTHING... I settled for some chocolate covered grapes. 

Good's Food to Go, Old Key West

Good old American food!

The Plaza, Magic Kingdom

Lovely burger and New York cheesecake... first meal after we got engaged :)

Churros and pretzels, everywhere!

Are you hungry yet? The big question is... how did I only put on 2lbs?!