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Tag: Orlando restaurant reviews

  • Jala in Winter Park touts its modern Indian cuisine, but its comforting curries are classic to the core

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    Indian wedding vibes at Jala Credit: Matt Keller Lehman

    The space at 155 E. Morse Blvd. just off Park Avenue has seen a revolving door of restaurant concepts over the last decade — Nopa Grill, Daya, Proper & Wild, The Bridge. The latter was fitting, seeing it proved to be a bridge to the space’s newest tenant, Jala, an Indian restaurant touting its “fine dining” and “modern” aspects. And with Tabla being just a three-minute walk around the corner, the Battle of Biryani, the Tussle of Tikka Masala and the Rumble of Rogan Josh may be taking shape on these brick-lined streets in Winter Park.

    The space in which the contender resides remains largely unchanged since the (im)Proper & (very) Wild days, except for some twee flowered recesses and shrubberied walls that influencers use as a backdrop to twirl and arch like they’re Bollywood extras. Yes, there are Indian wedding vibes at Jala, and if you think the stagecraft is limited to decor, you would, unfortunately, be wrong. 

    Jala Indian restaurant in Winter Park Credit: Matt Keller Lehman

    Pani puri ($10), a common sight at Desi nuptials, is presented here with a good amount of smoke courtesy of that ol’ culinary crutch liquid nitrogen. Luckily the sturdy semolina puffs and the minty spiced pani, or “water,” served in shot glasses on which the puris are set, were worth enduring the tiresome theatrics. Just don’t drink the shot glass filled with LN2.

    Jala Indian restaurant in Winter Park Credit: Matt Keller Lehman

    Jala, BTW, also means “water” in Sanskrit, and a fair amount of it flowed after we filled up on dragon chicken ($15), an Indo-Chinese serving of deep-fried boneless chicken shellacked in a sticky, spicy sauce. Solid, but not exactly the “modern” Indian fare I thought I’d be enjoying. I mean, foggy wafts and hammered copper plateware is all well and good, but, South Florida has us beat in the “contemporary Indian” genre. Ghee, Rishtedar or Ela this is not. There’s more gimmickry on the menu, though — lamb chops gilded in edible 24k gold leaf ($55). They’re meant to impress, but a glaring absence of char on the meat took some of the sheen off the dish. 

    That’s not to say the flavors of the dishes we sampled were off in any way. On the contrary, dal makhani ($16), as creamy and smooth as any slow-cooked lentil curry you’d find in Punjab, had the dining pal and I reveling in its luxuriance along with shreds of tandoor-fired garlic naan ($6). Modern? Hardly. Comforting? Without question. 

    Credit: Matt Keller Lehman

    The kadai chicken ($20) is another dish I’d order again without hesitation for its simple, rustic preparation. Dry-roasted spices, onions, peppers and tomatoes stir-fried with chunks of chicken in a vessel of the same name (a kadai or karahi) — what’s not to like? Even the meatless hara bhara kebab ($10), circular fritters fashioned from spinach, green peas and spices, were skillfully crafted, so kudos to Jala’s owner for hiring chefs straight from India. They clearly know what they’re doing, and it’s not limited to savories. 

    Dubai chocolate gulab jamun ($15) capitalizes on the viral confection, sure, but I like the marriage of the South Indian classic and the trendy Middle Eastern newcomer for its doughy-crunchy union. Even better is the gajar halwa ($15) — shredded carrots slow-cooked with milk and ghee and served with a scoop of ice cream. Prices for both are steep, given the amount that’s served, but maybe that’s because both utilize an added ingredient — yes, wisps of smoke, courtesy of yes, liquid nitrogen.

    We resisted rolling our eyes in front of the staff and just focused on enjoying the Indian sweets, because enjoyable they were. And, besides, who were we to pooh-pooh their presentation? As for those “tiresome theatrics” inflicted on us earlier in the meal, well, that’s all Jala under The Bridge.

    (Jala, 155 E. Morse Blvd., Winter Park, 407-755-3300, jalarestaurant.com)

    There are no shortcuts at Cairo Express, the food truck run by Gigi Elgharbawy and her children

    Dos hombres Jason Campbell and Nick Grecco fire up the kitchen at June

    Just follow the flame-broiled scent from 436 to find this halal burger joint

    Orlando’s daily dose of what matters. Subscribe to The Daily Weekly.

    This article appears in Oct. 15-21, 2025.



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    Faiyaz Kara
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  • June, the contemporary Mexican restaurant in Thornton Park, wows thanks to the chemistry between chefs – Orlando Weekly

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    June in Thornton Park Credit: Matt Keller Lehman

    Since Jason Campbell left Luke’s Kitchen to join forces with Nick Grecco at Team Market Group, the chef bros have been at it, testing and tinkering in their kitchen/lab like the culinary equivalents of Walter White and Jesse Pinkman. They perfected recipes for Sonoran tacos at Taco Kat, experimented with myriad dough permutations for their faultless tavern-style pizzas at Nuri’s, then blew people’s minds (and perhaps budgets) with their revolutionary $15 hot dog at Primrose Lanes.

    But the duo’s “Blue Sky” moment came when they fired up the kitchen at June, the contemporary Yucatecan restaurant with a CDMX pulse in the corazón of Thornton Park. And not with any one dish, either, but rather, all of them. Having eaten my way through the entire menu (with the help of a couple of friends), it’s hard not to bestow June with “Best New Restaurant” honors. But, like Heisenberg’s postulation, there’s a principle of uncertainty when it comes to such things. What really impresses is the depth of detail and technique Campbell and Grecco exhibit in their dishes, be it the sextet of salsas served with a rustic guac ($14) finished with herb oil, or drippy-lush, carnitas-style duck confit ($54) cooked with condensed milk, Mexican Coke and chilies à la Enrique Olvera before being seared and roasted on the wood-fired grill.

    June in Thornton Park Credit: https://www.juneorlando.com/

    In fact, most every protein on June’s focused menu is licked by the flames of Florida oak: Hawaiian kanpachi ($48) looking like the lengua of some crispy-tongued beast set in a pool of blood-red guajillo-tomato butter; chicken al pastor, cooked sous vide with chicken fat before an ice bath and a quick fire; chili-buttered lump crab on tostadas ($20) slicked with brown butter aioli or atop luxuriant esquites ($20) of creamed corn puree and smoky farro verde; or an absolutely bonkers bone-out short rib ($64) set in a demi-glace fortified with ancho chiles, black vinegar and more south-of-the-border cola.

    There are corn-based vessels (made using masa procured from Joe and David Creech of Hunger Street Tacos) served for the purposes of setting, scooping and sopping. A winning formula: Tortillas x Short Rib Dipped in Demi-Glace + Pickled Onions = Flavor Bomba. But winning formulas are what these two cooking chemists compose for a living. A tostada made from nixtamalized corn topped with pressed tuna rubbed with tamarind ponzu and sesame seeds is my kind of chemical romance.

    You’ll notice Asian touches in many dishes – morita XO sauce with black vinegar and crispy fried garlic positively smokes in a tuna crudo ($18) laid beneath slivers of avocado and plum textured with a wee cube of crispy rice; miso mole inside cut halves of sweet potato ($14) with burnt agave, peanut secca and pepitas is the best preparation of the tuber I’ve had the pleasure of ingesting; grilled baby romaine ($14) slaps with a miso-mustard-agave dressing avalanched with ricotta salata; a bracing hamachi ceviche is eased with coconut, kiwi and Thai basil; and tempura-battered cod zings with a tartar-tamarind drizzle in the fish taco ($9).

    June may be influenced by the likes of Baldio, La Docena, Cosme and Acamaya, but, even under the auspices of the TMG cartel, these two chefs, with a big assist from exec sous Tommy Aguilar, inspire. Their tamale dumplings ($17) — “guests keep thinking they are gyoza,” Campbell says — aren’t potstickers, but little gnocchi-like dumplings, or chochoyotes, made from the Creech masa. Florida rock shrimp sauteed in chili butter and pasilla pepper puree are then tossed onto the dumplings with pickled cucumber, lime crema and cilantro and it’s nothing short of signature. Curled scallions on the dish are sliced lengthwise for that fancy finish. 

    June in Thornton Park Credit: Matt Keller Lehman

    More fancy: an onion soubise in the form of a mousse graces chili-dusted, butter-braised cabbage ($12) and, like the grilled lettuce and sweet potatoes, is a go-to veg option. The carrots ($12), too. First they’re lightly roasted, then they’re charred in a cast iron pan, and lastly roasted in a smoke box before being served with Lil’ Moo cheese, salsa macha and a golden raisin puree. The veg set and gluten-intolerant can have a field day here, though vegans may be SOL.

    I asked a very prominent Mexican chef, whom I’ll call “Mr. Salamanca,” about his opinion on June and this was his take: “As a Mexican, I truly appreciate their boldness in offering something unique in a city crowded with so many Mexican restaurants. This is Mexican cuisine as seen through a Southern American lens and the combination works very well.”

    Indeed it does, right down to the decor with its earthy tones and rustic mien.

    Grecco’s chocolate cremosa ($12), ostensibly his take on Cosme’s buñuelo, with creamy chocolate set beneath the snowflake-shaped fried dough, is as stirring as Campbell’s crème caramel ($12). The “flan,” drizzled with espresso syrup, topped with brûléed bananas and served with caramelized banana ice cream crunched with peanut-cacao nibs, is ambitious without sacrificing comfort. I haven’t even touched on the beverages, like the tequila-based “watermelon” ($15) and “pepper” ($14) cocktails but, as Mr. Salamanca noted, “they are well-crafted.”

    Campbell and Grecco will fully immerse themselves in live-fire cooking when Eastwood opens next year in Mills 50, so consider June — a moniker arbitrarily chosen as it gave no real clue to the concept — a precursor.

    But the hype is real, and if you don’t know the restaurant now, you will.

    June. Say my name.

    (June; 700 E. Washington St.; 321-206-1243; juneorlando.com; $$$$)

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    Orlando’s daily dose of what matters. Subscribe to The Daily Weekly.

    This article appears in Oct. 1-7, 2025.



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    Faiyaz Kara
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