Orlando’s Oldest Restaurant

January 11, 2024

Reading time: 5 minutes

Good afternoon, Orlando! Without peeking, can you guess what Orlando’s oldest restaurant is?

In today’s Orlando Signal, Thursday (weekend fun) issue:

  • Orlando’s oldest restaurant

  • Persevering with Paws

  • The Acre

  • + loads of weekend recs

Let’s roll!

- Philip

P.S. If you enjoy this issue, please forward it to a friend.

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P.P.S. 🎂 Happy birthday to Luna Ryder!

3 QUICK NEWS BITS ⏲️
Racing to Meet Crisis: Youth Mental Health Storm Brews in Orlando

A youth mental health crisis is brewing in Central Florida. The Mental Health Association reported a 15-20% spike in children's mental health crises over three years across six counties. Some young people isolated at home showed anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts. Others witnessed gun violence and domestic abuse.

To address this swelling storm, the Association is expanding free therapy services starting Monday. A new Orlando clinic near Exploria Stadium will assess children ages 6-17 and create customized treatment plans. Services could include counseling, group sessions, and arts therapy.

The Association chose Orlando after distress calls from a local elementary school. Students received counseling after experiencing violence at home. The school reported positive results.

Roughly 60% of Orange County residents lack mental health access, especially uninsured families. The Association's pilot program will help fill this gap for children regardless of ability to pay. As Central Florida races to meet this youth crisis, experts hope free services will provide shelter from the storm.

For families needing help, click here to book an appointment.

Persevering with Paws: Pet Alliance's Comeback Story

Two years after a devastating fire destroyed their Orlando animal shelter, killing 17 cats, the Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando is rising from the ashes. Executive Director Steve Bardy still feels uneasy when he hears sirens, but remains focused on the future. Final permit approvals are nearly complete for a new, permanent shelter that will allow Pet Alliance to save more animal lives.

The isolation wards and on-site veterinary facilities will enable critical care for pets other shelters would euthanize due to illness, as well as increase their capacity to assist pets impacted by natural disasters nationwide. Though returning to the site stirs mixed emotions for Bardy, hope now prevails.

Optimistic that ground will break by January’s end on the new shelter, Bardy envisions opening their doors to adopters by June 2025, closing this tragic chapter. He then plans to convert their current downtown cat shelter into an affordable veterinary clinic serving the Orlando community.

Through resilience and vision after disaster, Pet Alliance now sees light at the end of the tunnel towards a brighter future for homeless pets.

Inside Plans for Florida's Biggest Holocaust Museum

The Holocaust Memorial Resource & Education Center has unveiled an ambitious $106 million plan to build Florida's largest Holocaust museum in Orlando, slated to open in 2026. Spanning over 44,500 square feet, the museum aims to memorialize the Holocaust through immersive experiences.

Key legislators are currently pushing for $25 million in state funding to support the project. Senator Linda Stewart (D) and Representative David Smith (R) are championing the bipartisan bid, which philanthropist Alan Ginsburg has vowed to match dollar-for-dollar through $25 million in private donations. Early backing has already raised $31 million.

Groundbreaking artificial intelligence will breathe new life into over 55,000 video testimonies, allowing visitors to engage in intimate, interactive dialogues with Holocaust survivors. This pioneering technology aims to digitally preserve their stories while simulating face-to-face conversations.

Senator Stewart praises the public-private partnership as instrumental for catalyzing support. For Executive Director Talli Dippold, whose family lived through the Holocaust, the museum carries deep personal meaning as beacon for future generations.

HISTORY + FOOD 🍲
The Tap Room at Dubsdread - Orlando’s Oldest Restaurant

📍549 Par Street Orlando, FL 32804. Map to this location.

🕐 Monday - Saturday | 11am to 10pm. Sunday | Brunch 10am to 2pm. Dinner 4pm to 9pm

It was 1924 when a scrappy young entrepreneur with a fourth grade education opened the doors to Orlando's oldest restaurant and public golf course. Carl Dann was his name, and his brainchild, Dubsdread, would withstand the tests of time.

As Dubsdread's doors creaked open for the very first time, welcoming golfers and diners into its stately confines, no one could have predicted that it would still serve up hospitality nearly a century later, in the exact same building it started. Through war and peace, failure and success, the vintage building has stood resilient. A landmark to Orlando's history.

When World War II thrust Dubsdread into prominence as the favorite haunt of over 100,000 servicemen stationed nearby, its popularity skyrocketed, cementing its reputation as a place where everyone was welcome. The officers certainly felt at home within its walls during that turbulent era.

Despite the constant flow of guests and golfers over decades, Dubsdread saw its fair share of failed management. But in 2001, Steve Gunter breathed new life into the establishment, guiding it into an era of renewed success.

Some favorites on the menu, like the legendary crab cakes overflowing with fresh crab, have never changed. The chicken milanese always makes return customers out of first-timers.

Now a centenarian in its own right, Dubsdread stands, layered with stories and memories, still making them today.

TOP 3 FUN RECS FOR THE WEEKEND 🍊
The Acre Orlando

📍4421 Edgewater Dr, Orlando, FL 32804 Map to this location.

🕐 Saturday & Sunday, Jan 12th-13th, 5 pm - 12 am

A secret garden oasis in College Park is unlocking its ivy-lined gates for the first time this month - The Acre. Known among Orlando's elite as an ethereal wedding venue, the whimsical one-acre refuge is shedding its air of exclusivity thanks to new owners Team Market Group.

Starting January 12th, the venue opens to the public weekends from 5pm-midnight on Fridays and Saturdays with a more relaxed vibe Sundays, 11am-8pm.

Wander the chandelier-strewn oak grove and lush English-style grounds while sipping craft cocktails. Graze on simple but scrumptious ciabatta pizzas with ingredients from the onsite market.

The opening weekend celebration January 12th-13th features live music and outdoor movies under the stars. Future events include cannabis-infused wellness and pop-up dining showcasing dishes from Team Market Group's upcoming Eastwood restaurant in Mills 50.

Judy Collins: The Folk Icon Returns to Enchant Orlando


📍The Plaza Live. 425 N. Bumby Ave., Orlando, 32803 Map to this location.

🕐 Friday, January 12th at 8 p.m.

At over 80 years young, the legendary folk songstress Judy Collins is gracing Orlando with her presence to make up for a missed 2022 performance. This much-anticipated show brings Collins' latest album, "Spellbound" - a collection of original songs - to life on the Plaza Live stage on January 12th at 8 pm.

Indeed, Collins' music has always spoken to the human condition with both gentle wisdom and respect. Her enduring voice continues to enchant old and new fans alike - a rare feat for an icon with such longevity.

Lucky Orlando fans can still get tickets for this special evening. And together with Willie Nelson's February show in Apopka, these two legends offer a one-two punch of concerts not to miss this winter.

Laughter Returns to Orlando's FestN4


📍Fringe ArtSpace. 54 W Church St Suite 201, Orlando, FL 32801. Map to this location.

🕐 Thursday - Sunday, Jan. 11-14

Roll out the red carpet, Orlando!

Four fan-favorite comedy acts are reviving laughs at this year’s FestN4 (formerly the Orlando Fringe Winter Mini-Fest). Running January 11-14 at downtown's Fringe ArtSpace, this short-run festival packs a punch with over 20 fascinating shows performed in 70 minutes or less.

1️⃣ Leading the pack is Florida Deaf Theatre Project’s visual masterpiece, “Becoming Grandma Kat,” performed entirely in spellbinding American Sign Language. Though some jokes get lost in translation for non-ASL speakers, performer Keith Banks’ zeal still elicits hearty guffaws as he channels his inner Madea, suiting up as “Grandma Kat.” His pizzeria disguise teaches that laughter is a universal language.

2️⃣ In "A One-Woman ‘Titanic’ Parody," Katie Thayer trains her satirical sights on James Cameron’s blockbuster, wielding a vast array of props. Thayer's punchy wit and physical comedy keep tensions buoyant before the inevitable tragic ending, sinking the ‘90s classic in a whole new light.

3️⃣ For musical theater aficionados, “The Complete Works of Stephen Sondheim [Abridged]” sees Bryan Jager, Jarrett Poore, Rachel Hope Ihasz and Marissa Volpe merrily spoof Sondheim’s extensive catalog, revealing easter eggs even diehard fans may have missed. Nailing each song’s distinct melodic nuances, the foursome playfully mocks signature tropes along the way, bringing down the house through sheer comedic rhythm and harmony.

4️⃣ Finally, Bruce Ryan Costella’s “Rat Man Happy Place” envisions an unexpected post-apocalyptic future for a certain family fun park. With the wisdom of a battle-worn survivor, Costella walks a tightrope, parodying the park’s fantastical illusion while admiring its ability to spark imagination.

👉 So escape reality for a spell with these four sidesplitting shows! The Fringe awaits...

MORE WEEKEND HAPPENINGS 🎭 🥁 

Friday:

Saturday:

Sunday:

ORLANDO WEATHER 🌤️

Friday

77🌡️ 59 | 🌧️ | Warmer with periods of rain and a thunderstorm, turning breezy in the afternoon

Saturday

63🌡️ 49 | 🌤️ | Breezy in the morning; otherwise, sun through high clouds, cooler and less humid

Sunday

69 🌡️ 59 | ⛅️ | Considerable cloudiness in the morning, then clouds and sunshine in the afternoon

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THANKS! 🙏

We’ll see you on Monday!

My Best,
Philip - Publisher, Orlando Signal