My family and I hardly ever eat at home. We have a kitchen because it came with the house, my wife likes to say. So I experience a lot of restaurants, good and bad. Dives and Fine Dining, we go to them all.

Often, I have my sketchbook with me. So I thought I’d begin to share here some of the things I draw when I’m out and about. “Live Sketches” I’ll call them for now. ( By the way, yes, that is my wife and I in the foreground. I always stick myself in the drawings somehow. It’s a “Where’s Waldo” kind of thing. ). If I have any thoughts about where I was when I did the drawing, I’ll share those as well.

For this first installment, I’m going to share my review of a favorite restaurant of mine here in Orlando, Fresco Cucina Italiana. I shared it on Yelp! ( I’m a big Yelper… newly crowned “Elite” status, btw ), and now here it is for you:

Fresco Cucina Italiana-

My brother and sister in law lived in Italy for several years, and visiting them is when my wife and I fell in love with real Italian food and Italian wines. Fresco is owned by an Italian family, and the food is the best Italian I’ve had in the U.S. It tastes JUST like “real” Italian. Also, the wine selection is amazing ( and very reasonably priced). Our family’s favorites include the Carpaccio, the Antipasto Plate ( amazing proscuitto), warm goat cheese salad, angelhair pomodoro, and the tiramisu ( the owner’s grandmother’s recipe).   Oh, and for all of you Gluten Free foodies like myself, they have GF pasta and GF Pizza! Yep, PIZZA. And it tastes GREAT!

Don’t go for the myriad of chain Italian restaurants here in Orlando when an authentic, “mom and pop” place like this is SO good.