A Magical Dining Bonus – Dinner at RusTeak

We always like to show that we practice what we preach, so we thought we’d highlight a quick follow-up to our blog about Orlando’s Magical Dining season with a blog about – a Magical Dining meal!

Yes, we’re leading the way when it comes to highlighting one of Orlando’s most enjoyable features at this time of year, braving the perils of an expanding waistline, and dining out on a budget but still getting great VFM.

With that in mind, we ventured into new territory recently to try a restaurant that much of Orlando has been raving about since it opened in 2021 as the successor to a namesake venue in College Park.

RusTeak is a familiar name to many who live in downtown Orlando, but its Thornton Park location – on the south-east side of the city’s iconic Lake Eola Park – is still relatively new in a part of town that is rapidly developing its own foodie reputation.

Where is Rusteak?

For those still new to Orlando’s downtown geography, there are 12 ‘Main Street’ districts that make up much of the city’s central core, with Thornton Park District one of the original half dozen or so, an impressive area of new apartment blocks, boutiques, day spas – and restaurants; Quite a few restaurants.

Summerlin Avenue and East Washington Street have typically been the heart of Thornton Park, but more recent development has branched out along South Eola Drive, which is where you’ll find the new setting for RusTeak.

With an eye-catching location on the corner of the 101 Eola Condominium building, at the junction of Eola Drive and East Pine Street, RusTeak sits in the home of the former Menagerie Eatery & Bar, with a pleasant covered outdoor patio.

It also shares building space with sister property and cocktail bar The Broken Cage, and opposite another restaurant with the same owners, The Stubborn Mule, which boasts more New American cuisine.

In fact, this whole stretch of Eola Drive is something of a foodie haven, as it also includes Oudom Thai and sushi restaurant, and the modern chic of the Eola Lounge, a classy small-plate restaurant and lounge bar with an attractive outside terrace.

What deliciousness can I expect to eat at RusTeak?

Like its partner venue across the road, RusTeak proudly proclaims itself a ‘Rustic New American restaurant,’ featuring fresh local ingredients served up in imaginative ways alongside craft cocktails, wine and local beer.

And they really do back up their lofty claims with some serious food and drink, notably with separate dinner and brunch menus, plus an extensive wine list, excellent American craft brewery products (notably the fab Beach Blonde Ale from 3 Daughters Brewing Co in nearby St Petersburg) and a range of smooth cocktails with inventive touches.

The dinner menu is packed with tempting appetisers, several well-balanced salads, a selection of good-looking burgers and sandwiches (under the heading of ‘Handhelds’) and their entrée list of fish, steak, pasta and a vegetarian option.

For their Magical Dining menu, they have chosen a choice of three appetisers, three mains and three desserts that all provide a representative slice of their regular menu. And, for the $40/head prix fixe deal, you get to choose one of each.

What did we have at RusTeak?

Just to start with, making the booking couldn’t have been easier or more straightforward. RusTeak uses the Resy app, and it allows you to book the day, time and whether you want the dining room or patio seating.

Out timing was also spot on – we were just in time for the last drinks of Happy Hour (4-7pm, Tue-Sat), so our scrummy Blueberry Gin Sling cocktail (Gin Lane 1751, Cocchi vermouth, blueberries, lavender, lemon and club soda) was only $8 and a glass of Stingray Sauvignon Blanc was just $7. Chalk up another triumph for Magical Dining!

We were given the Magical Dining menus to peruse but, truth be told, we had already studied them online and knew exactly what we wanted: the Burrata and Ahi Tuna starters; Grilled Salmon and Steak Pomme Filet; and Bread Pudding and Key Lime Bar for dessert.

While we waited, we checked out the full menu as well, eager to see what else would tempt us back for future visits, and the answer was – quite a lot.

Just about every appetiser has distinct appeal for us, while the range of ‘Handhelds’ (for a modest $14-$17) definitely holds great temptation as a meal in their own right. The Brunch menu (served Saturday and Sunday, 11am-2.30pm) is another line-up that has terrific all-round attraction, with the likes of a Crab Cake Benedict and Waffle Betty among a mouth-watering array of weekend specialities.

What was RusTeak like?

And now, the all-important taste test (and did we get our $40 worth!):

A big thumbs up for the furkikaki crusted Ahi Tuna, which came with wontons, cilantro slaw, pickled ginger, ponzu sauce and a lovely smear of wasabi cream. The tuna was smoothly buttery and rich, and the accompaniments added extra Asian flair and a nice crunch. As an example of the restaurant’s ‘New American’ cuisine this was exactly what we were hoping for.

The Burrata was also highly enjoyable, served in garlic olive oil, a balsamic glaze drizzle and basil oil, with warm, toasted bread. The burrata itself could have had a creamier centre for our tastes, and the toast points were a tad chewy, but the garlic and basil oil added an elegant “summery” flavour.

Next up was the salmon, or Keto, Keto, Keto as it is on the menu. A thick piece of grilled salmon was served on top of blackened asparagus and a generous portion of the restaurant’s signature vegetable dish, which we immediately christened “heavenly.” A cauliflower casserole loaded with cheese and panetta, it was superbly smooth and hugely flavourful; we could easily eat this on its own next time.

However, the big hit of the evening was the Steak Pomme, which was large enough for a meal for two on its own, such was the size of the 8oz portion. The accompaniments were sautéed baby spinach and crimini mushrooms served with roasted garlic mashed potatoes, in a cabernet sauvignon demi-glace and truffle oil drizzle, all of which provided a major taste sensation (especially the demi-glace and mash), but the thick filet of juicy steak was cooked to perfection and melt-in-the-mouth luscious.

This could easily be a $30 item elsewhere, and here it was just part of the $40 Magical Dining menu. A magical dish, indeed. ¬¬¬ Finally, even though we were practically full to the brim at this point, we managed to have a taste of both desserts (before taking most of them home with us). The Key Lime Bar was nicely smooth and tangy, but the Coquito Bread Pudding is the one we’ll happily have again, a heaping helping of house-made bread pudding topped with coquito cream, vanilla ice cream and cinnamon caramel sauce. A truly decadent sweet sensation.

Today’s trivia tidbit – coquito is a mix of coconut milk, cream, rum, spices and condensed milk, often referred to as the Puerto Rican egg nog. And it’s utterly delightful.

And, in conclusion…

It’s a real restaurant cliché that good, fresh ingredients make for great food, but it remains the essential truth here, and we fully appreciated the extra razzle-dazzle of the sauces and accompaniments.

RusTeak is currently one of downtown Orlando’s most celebrated restaurants, with consistent four and five-star reviews from the locals on Yelp. It was easy to see why from our visit, and we’d rate it a very good four stars, if not four-and-a-half.

There’s no doubt we’ll be back, and we’re also keen to try more restaurants in this vicinity. Our visit was on a Tuesday, and things were relatively quiet, but we suspect it gets a LOT busier at weekends, and booking is highly recommended.

For that ‘something different’ factor for Magical Dining, but also any other time of the year, give Thornton Park a try.

Have you tried Magical Dining Before? What restaurants did you enjoy most? Tell us about them on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages..