Soco, the Southern Contemporary style restaurant in Downtown Orlando is truly my guilty pleasure. In fact, my tumultuous love affair with Chef Greg Richie's Award-Winning cuisine began just seconds after I sank my teeth into those crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside taste of heaven southern style biscuits with the house made butter and preserves.
The Soco Restaurant menu is truly a labor of love that is flawlessly translated through the carefully crafted dishes and flavor pairings put together by Chef Greg Richie. Beginning with the small plates, my go to is a toss-up between the Soco Style Chicken & Dumplings or the cornmeal crisped oysters. For the pork lovers in the room, I've been told on more than one occasion that the Slow Roasted BBQ Glazed Pork Belly Biscuits w/ Jalapeno Jelly are dangerously delicious. Proceed with caution and anticipation.
Soco Restaurant In Downtown Orlando Serves Southern Sophistication Daily
The southern fusion is kicked up a notch when it comes to the main courses. My dish of choice is by far the Pecan Crusted Florida Snapper carefully plated on a bed of Jupiter rice, dressed with a to die for lemon butter sauce and paired with two perfect little shrimp hushpuppies. If I indulged in red meat, the meatloaf with lobster mash has been tempting me since the restaurant opened in 2014.
A common theme in my list of favorite Orlando restaurants seems to include an impressive brunch menu. We all know it was, in fact, Orlando that invented Sunday Funday after all. Soco serves up hot and fresh homemade "pop tart" pastries (fillings may vary) and if you're trying to stay on the lighter side the housemade dried berry granola is a guilt-free treat. Now if you don't mind burning through your entire caloric intake for the day in one sweet and savory shot, this would be the time and the place to do it. A spin on my longtime love for latkas the Crispy Salmon Potato Cakes comes with poached eggs, arugula, and a caper butter sauce.
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My love for lobster knows no bounds so of course, the Lobster Eggs Benedict piled high on Soco's famous buttermilk biscuits is my first choice when throwing caution to my waistline. Sub the Benton's Country Ham for spinach and tomato, please. And because perfection takes time, the Piping Hot Skillet Cornbread will take at least 12 minutes to cook but damn if it's not worth the wait.
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