La Terza

The bright red pasta maker that greets patrons at the entrance of La Terza exemplifies the combination of old world Italian cuisine and modern flair that chef/owner Gino Angelini executes with panache. Centerpieces of dry spaghetti or lemon with dill on each table emphasize the point that the food is the thing here. Of course pasta rules, and specialties like agnolotti di ossobuco (veal shank) and cappellacci alla zucca (pumpkin) are satisfying enough for a main course. But you’ll want to save room for “secondi” like branzino (grilled striped bass) or something from the rotisserie, like melt-in-your-mouth duck or pork. As the restaurant is housed in The Orlando hotel, you have to be a guest to partake of the breakfast menu. But at lunch and dinner, it’s a neighborhood spot that attracts a bustle of power lunches and romantic interludes to the breezy patio; laid-back lounge; contemporary dining room with high ceilings, exposed beams, and carved wooden chairs; and upstairs loft-like seating. The view? Idiosyncratic boutiques like Polkadots & Moonbeams, The Traveler’s Bookcase, and, appropriately, The Cook’s Library.

TIPS: You don’t have to use The Orlando hotel valet; La Terza has its own dedicated valet on 3rd Street in front of the restaurant.