4 Best Restaurants in Universal Orlando, Florida

"Bice" (pronounced beach-ay) is an Italian nickname for Beatrice, as in Beatrice Ruggeri, who founded the original Milan location of this upscale Italian chain in 1926. At the Orlando branch, starched linens, frescoed ceilings, marble floors, and bay-view picture windows set the stage for sophisticated (and pricey) dishes such as pan-seared wild halibut with Swiss chard or veal scallopini with lemon-caper sauce. Although prices start at around $30 for pasta dishes and peak at $70 for a rib eye steak, pastas and salads are available in half portions upon request. The Amaretto cheesecake is a splendid dessert.

The premise here is that you're eating at a home-turned-restaurant—there's an actual "Mama Della," who appears nightly, and you'll be serenaded by a strolling accordionist, guitar player, and vocalist. The menu features Italian classics like homemade parsley gnocchi with pomodoro sauce, chicken parmigiana, and lasagna alongside more ambitious dishes like bistecca (steak) with truffle mashed potatoes, roasted wild mushrooms, broccolini, onions, and carrots. Patio seating provides a view of the hotel's nightly Musica Della Notte (Music of the Night) opera show.

Overlooking a tranquil harbor, this is a family-friendly option with a dash of Italiano. The breakfast buffet features both omelets and other hot dishes as well as baked goods and fruit; dinner starters like shrimp polenta and Caprese flatbread segue to entrées such as chicken marsala, grilled beef tenderloin, and shrimp Alfredo.

House-made pasta and inventive cocktails are highlights at the ultrahip Vivo, which is styled after a trendy Roman nightclub. The waiters are attentive, the food—mussels marinara, lamb ragu, squid-ink seafood—is quietly impressive, and the blazing wood-fired oven makes almost instantaneous pizzas.