CULTURE

Arts and culture are uniquely tied by the United Arts of Central Florida. Under United Arts, funding is available for more than 50 area arts and cultural organizations. As a result, not only is there great diversity, but the depth of options is also impressive. Here are some of the area’s performing arts and cultural centers.

There’s nothing wrong, of course, with traditional American restaurants such as Chili’s Grill & Bar, T.G.I. Friday’s, Roadhouse Grill and Ruby Tuesday. And, few cities across the country have as many excellent franchise dining choices as Orlando. The region also boasts numerous outstanding seafood places and wonderful choices that represent cuisines from around the globe.

Yet, be honest. Don’t Latin restaurants naturally hold a special place in the heart—and your stomach?

While there are many worthy places to go for Latin food, here is a spicy sampling to whet your appetite:

Amazonas Latin Grill.
Serves breakfast, lunch and dinner in the Sand Lake Road area of Orlando—all with Latin flavor in a comfortable setting.

Austral Latin Fusion Cuisine.
This Lake Mary spot fuses flavors of Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Colombia in an exclusive one-menu concept of continuous courses.

Bongo’s Cuban Café.
Don’t be fooled by the restaurant’s pineapple-shaped building at DowntownDisney. This is a real restaurant, serving authentic food, not a tourist attraction.

Ceviche Tapas Bar and Restaurant.
Trendy and hip, with soft live music and white table cloths, this Spanish restaurant is helping to relive Church Street in downtown Orlando.

Choo-Choo Churros Café.
Lake Underhill Road is home to this Argentinean restaurant, small in size but huge in flavor. Enjoy the famous “parrillada,” and for dessert try a fresh “churro” pastry.

Colibri Mexican Cuisine.
Located in Baldwin Park, the restaurant features authentic cuisine, mariachi band and flamenco dancers.

Columbia Restaurant.
Columbia is cause for a Celebration, literally. It’s located at Celebration, near Disney; the old-world Spanish food is excellent; and the dancers are alluring.

Crazy Grill.
This authentic Brazilian steakhouse on International Drive features churrascaria and an all-you-can-eat buffet, plus live entertainment on Fridays and Saturdays.

Habana Grill.
A Caribbean plaza-style dining room, reminder of Old Cuba and three generations of family tradition highlight this dining experience in Altamonte Springs. Plus, there’s live music.

La Granja Brasas Grill.
This is fast food with a Latin flair in Winter Park. Try the tasty rotisserie “adobo” chicken and all the fixings.

Latin Fire Puerto Rican Cuisine & Restaurant.
Family friendly, casual, traditional and inexpensive are the best words to describe this warm scene in Casselberry.
 
Latin Quarter.
You can go for the music or the food. Either way, it’s entertaining. And its location puts you right at Universal CityWalk.

Limeña Chicken.
Authentic Peruvian cuisine is the fare at this Winter Park establishment.

Los Portales.
The tastes of Perú are also found in Central Florida. Enjoy the “ceviche” and explore the manyother temptingplates at this Casselberry establishment.

Medina’s Restaurant.
Just east of downtown Orlando, Medina’s offers superb Cubanlunches and dinners. You can find the bright yellow and red build-ing on Bumby Avenue south of Colonial Drive.

Nelore Churrascaria.
Owned and managed by Brazilians who bring more than 25 years of experience, this churrascaria-style restaurant on International Drive is authentic and sophisticated.
 
Numero Uno.
This Havana-styled mom-and-pop café just south of downtown Orlando features a variety of traditional Cuban favorites. And the meals don’t cost a fortune.

Oh Que Bueno!
The name says it all. Enjoy top Colombian cuisine in Central Florida at rock-bottom prices. There are two locations: on South Semoran in Orlando and Orange Blossom Trail in Kissimmee.

Rolando’s.
Cuban cuisine has a home in Casselberry—a spacious, bright and popular place.

Salgados Steakhouse.
Formerly Cattleman’s Steakhouse in Kissimmee, this place is now a Latin-flavored restaurant and nightclub, with a mix of steak and live Salsa music.

Samba Room.
An electric ambiance makes this southwest Orlando place fun. Latin Fusion cuisine is served.

Sazon 436.
Reminiscent of Old San Juan, this new Winter Park restaurant offers Puerto Rican nouveau cuisine and colorful art in an intimate setting.

Su Cocina.
“Your Kitchen,” located in Altamonte Springs, exemplifies the mingling of flavors and ingredients passed from generation to generation among the different ethnic groups that settled in Puerto Rico.

Texas de Brasil.
Looking for high-end churrascaria? One wonderful option is this “unique” national chain restaurant on International Drive.

Vittorio’s Brazilian Restaurant.
In search of a Brazilian buffet? Vittorio’s, also located on International Drive, is under new ownership but remains a top choice for excellent fare at a value price.

Volcano Bar & Grill.
Located near Universal Orlando and International Drive, this club/restaurant features Mexican food and hot live music, along with dancing, in a festive atmosphere.

NIGHTLIFE

After dining out, it’s time to Salsa—or at least stay out a bit longer. Where to go? Top choices include downtown Orlando, International Drive, Downtown Disney and Universal CityWalk.

Just as with the Latin restaurants, however, there is obviously something special about Latin nightspots. Here are just some of the sure bets for fun:

Bongo’s Cuban Cafe.
This restaurant also serves up live music, with a Ricky Ricardo impersonator and an open area where you can dance.

Club at Firestone.
Friday is Latin Ladies Night, featuring four rooms with different Latin styles each. Firestone, located in downtown Orlando, has a newly renovated dance
floor.

Club Karma.
Located across from Wet ’n Wild, this place gets hot on Saturday’s Latin Night.

Club Mirage.
Saturday nights are all about Latin music; located on West Oak Ridge Road.

Coco’s.
It’s hot, hot, hot, especially on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. It’s located on Orange Blossom Trail in Orlando.

Dolce (formely Club Paris).
Latin Salsa night in an upscale environment, on Wednesdays.

JJ Whispers.
Friday nights get loud at JJ Whispers in southwest Orlando, as the sounds of salsa, merengue, bachata, freestyle, disco and reggaeton take center stage. Expect a lively, upscale atmosphere in a classy club.

La Gota Fria Pub.
On Friday and Saturday nights, it’s Latin music and dance all night long.

Latin Quarter.
Live music blends with a colorful décor and tasty food to spice things up at CityWalk, especially on Thursdays.

Los Portales Night Club.
Friday and Saturday nights are dance nights at this Casselberry club.

Mambo Club.
Latin music is the featured attraction on both Friday and Saturday nights; located on West Oak Ridge Road.

Salsa Latina.
Friday night is Rumba Night at this Kissimmee club.

Samba & Jazz Club.
Elegant dining and dancing are brought back into fashion at this upscale south Orlando
restaurant and lounge.

Samba Room.
On Saturdays, it’s a restaurant-turned-night club in southwest Orlando.

Tropical Magic Restaurant & Nightclub.
Some of the hottest salsa, merengue and bachata are played by a DJ at this upscale club located west of downtown Orlando.

Up The Ground-Jala Jala.
This International Drive club puts the accent on Latin music each Friday and Saturday. Saturday Night doubles as Colombian Night.

Orlando isn’t called the Vacation Capital of the World for nothing. There are many places to go to act just like a tourist. Only, these places are around town, right here in your own backyard.

At the Walt Disney World Resort, there are four theme parks filled with famous Disney adventures: the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney-MGM Studios and Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

Universal Orlando includes the Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure theme parks, along with the CityWalk entertainment complex. Also, The Blue Men Group has taken permanent residence at Univeral Orlando Resort.

SeaWorld contains 200 acres of shows, thrill rides, animal attractions and, most recently, animal encounters. In March 2008, SeaWorld opened Aquatica, a new water park which blends up-close animal experiences, waters from serene to extreme, highspeed thrills and wide, sandy beaches with a South Sea Islands atmosphere.

Plus, you can visit other attractions, which offer plenty of both entertainment and education. Among those theme-park alternatives are the Central Florida Zoo, Discovery Cove, Gatorland, Harry P. Leu Gardens, the Orange County Regional History Center, the Orlando Museum of Art, the Orlando Science Center, Medieval Times and Arabian Nights, which has a Latin-themed skit as part of its dinner show, where Latin music and dance are featured. Meanwhile, the Pirate’s Dinner Adventure, which is a staged on a full-sized authentic replica of an 18th Century Spanish galleon, has Latin-inspired show scenes to spice up the popular entertainment.

Looking for a really different cultural experience? “Part circus, part theater, part grand spectacle.” That’s one way to describe Cirque du Soleil’s production in Orlando, called La Nouba.

Cirque du Soleil is a world-recognized troupe of international performers. It all started in Baie-Saint-Paul, a small town near Quebec City, Canada. There, in the early 1980s, a band of color-ful characters roamed the streets, striding on stilts, juggling, dancing, breathing fire and playing music. Today in Orlando, Cirque du Soleil has a cast of more than 70 international artists, who perform La Nouba at Downtown Disney. The performers include Latins Carlos Rodriguez Diaz, known as Rokardy; Ana Cuellar; and Miguel Vargas.
Rokardy, from Spain, began gymnastics training at age 4 and is an expert at balancing on canes. Vargas, from Mexico, is a flying trapeze specialist. Cuellar, also from Mexico, is an acrobat.

Consider this description of the show from its creators: “Once upon a time, a door opened and two worlds collided. Dreams clashed with reality. The mundane mixed with the marvelous. It was no longer possible to tell where one world began and the other ended.
This new place was called La Nouba.”

Yes, this show is different

They wear blue makeup and don’t speak a word—and they make audiencescheer wildly.

Blue Man Group has added an entirely new dimension in live entertainment at Universal Orlando. Occupying the stateof-the-art Sharp AQUOS Theatre, the three-man show combines music, comedy and multimedia theatrics to create the blissful party atmosphere. The production has been custom designed for Universal Orlando and includes elements of the group’s existing shows across America as well as newly created material exclusive to this production.

Blue Man Group performs continuously throughout the week. The 1,000-seat theater, complete with a 30-foot-tall Blue Man façade, is accessible from both Universal CityWalk and Universal Studios theme park. The façade’s large size makes Blue Man visible from
nearly everywhere in CityWalk, adding to the distinct variety offered by the already established hotels, restaurants, clubs, theaters, shops and theme parks.

More information: 407-363-8000.

Want a place to shop? More than 200 shopping centers and eight major malls deliver the goods throughout the region, which ranks in the top 10 percent of all metro areas in total retail sales. And if you don’t think people love to shop in town, consider this total: $25 billion. That’s what people spend in one year locally in retail sales.

Of the major malls, the Mall at Millenia is the newest—and fanciest. The mall features such big names as Bloomingdale’s,Macy’s, Neiman Marcus and Hugo Boss. The mall, which contains 1.2 million square feet, is located south of downtown Orlando off Interstate 4.

The area’s largest mall, at 1.6 million square feet, is The Florida Mall. There, more than 250 stores await, including Saks Fifth Avenue. Next in line, in order of size, are Altamonte Mall, Seminole Towne Center, West Oaks Mall, Orlando Fashion Square and Oviedo Marketplace. They offer many leading names such as Macy’s, JC Penney and Sears, along with numerous specialty shops.

Still can’t find what you’re looking for? Try the stores located right in your neighborhood or maybe off the beaten path. Of course, part of the fun of shopping is searching around at what you might find.

You can either watch or you can play. Either way, when it comes to sports, metro Orlando will keep you busy.

For those who enjoy their own recreational fun, the region contains a wealth of sports facilities in virtually any pursuit. Sports range from softball and soccer to fishing and, of course, golf. After all, the many professional golfers who live here have to practice their craft somewhere. And if you think your golf game is really up to par, try your luck at courses such as MetroWest Country Club and Orange County National. There, top-notch courses have played host to the 2003 PGA Tour Qualifying School. For those who want to watch others play, metro Orlando offers NBA basketball, Major League spring training, professional golf, big-time college football, and even indoor professional football.

The NBA basketball comes courtesy of the Orlando Magic, led by superstar Dwight Howard. The Atlanta Braves hold spring training at Disney, while the Houston Astros prepare in Kissimmee. Two PGA Tour events and one LPGA event are held in town. The University of Central Florida Knights are a rising team in college football, and Orlando is the site of two bowl games. Plus, the Orlando Predators play a zany form of pro football—indoors on a shortened field. It’s part football/part concert but all fun.

So the choice is yours:Watch or play.