Location: Tavares
Top Restaurants in Tavares
Top Things to do in Tavares
Most Popular Restaurants in Tavares
Tavares (pronounced tuh-vair-ees) is a city located in the central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Lake County. The population in 2015 was 14,583, with a total of 5,000 households and an average household income of $40,000. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area. The name is a popular Portuguese surname and toponym.
Things to do in Tavares
1. Twistee Treat
Overall Ratings
4 based on 60 reviews
Reviewed By Yorkiemom19 - Manassas, Virginia
It's decent soft serve, nothing extraordinary. The shape of the building is fun. Employees were mediocre - bordering on leaving the impression they don't want to be there.
Several reviewers pointed out the minimum charge for credit cards, which is understandable for a small business, but not conducive to friendly customer service. Use your debit card since they can't put a minimum on it, according to the rules.
2. Oakwood Smokehouse & Grill
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 205 reviews
This is a chain with other locations in Florida, namely Clermont for one and maybe Lady Lake.
Reviewed By Geriwkr - St. Augustine, Florida
I travel through this area every weekend as I work on one side of FL. And live on the other. The BBQ here never disappoints. Tonight was Texas Sandwich with pulled pork and coleslaw on Texas Toast. I had sweet potato side and an ice tea. Love the big class of cold tea (next size comes on wheels). Staff always pleasant and attentive. Sauce is good although their hot n spicy could be hotter for me. I have a Teflon tongue. Highly recommend. Comfortable for couples solo or family. After dinner run next door to Starbucks for coffee to go!
3. Tiki West Raw Bar and Grill
Overall Ratings
4 based on 185 reviews
Reviewed By Regina D - Tavares, Florida
We went here for a quick, late-night oyster break! Abby was very friendly and happy to help us decide on what appy to get. We were hoping for oysters, and she said they were good. Well, they were. We got a dozen - crackers, hot sauce, horseradish, lemon, etc. Add a couple of brews and the night was complete!
4. Rockin Cafe On Donnelly
Overall Ratings
5 based on 111 reviews
Reviewed By reesag2015 - Scarsdale
warm and friendly employees plus the good homemade food makes for a casual, nice dinner out. The menu is understandable, simple, fresh food and They are super accommodating. The decor is underwhelming but the wonderful folks and food make up for the lack of ambience!
5. Wild Bear Coffee
Overall Ratings
5 based on 8 reviews
Reviewed By Travel2Enjoy - Florida
We love to support our local entrepreneurs and thoroughly enjoyed a superb latte and gunpowder/mint tea here today. The owner is extremely knowledgeable and takes great pride in the quality and presentation of his product. Ask for a "real" vs paper cup. This is the first time ever anyone warmed our porcelain cup before pouring coffee in.
Eclectic; comfortable seating inside and a small table outside - both with views to Lake Dora which is just a 4 minute walk away.
6. The Goblin Market
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1 reviews
Reviewed By Chris E - Lake Mary, Florida
On Friday night we finally tried The Goblin Market and it was wonderful. First of all we made reservations for their dinner opening, starts at 5 PM. We were seated immediately upstairs near the bar. Decor was like you’re in a plush private library with individual 4 seat tables. Once our waiter Brian made it over I knew we were in for a great time and experience!
We started with Martinis and Manhattans that rival Ruth Chris for craft drink excellence. Our apps were Pumpkin Bruschetta and deviled eggs. The Eggs were the best I’ve ever had while the Bruschetta was above average. My family ordered Mahi Mahi, Atlantic Swordfish, Crab cakes, and River trout. I ordered the Filet with Gorgonzola. All meals come with a salad and a starch so an appetizer is really unnecessary!! Key point... As for the meals all were perfectly cooked, warm on delivery, and perfectly setup!!
Service was timely, funny, and just the right amount.Brian made our drinks, took care of GF questions with the chef, and was also entertaining.
Overall - Excellent
7. O'Keefe's Irish Pub and Restaurant
Overall Ratings
4 based on 235 reviews
Reviewed By roseynan
This is the 3rd time we have been here. We took friends their yesterday afternoon for an early dinner figuring not many people would be there at 4:00 and the service would be great. Wrong. I had made a reservation for outside for 7 of us. The table had a reserved sign on it for us and menus. The waitress came in a hurry and pushed for drinks and appetizers. Most of the drinks came right away with the appetizers. My husband had to ask twice as to where his beer was. One of my guests had to go inside and locate silverware and napkins. The waitress turned out was an air head. I ordered a salad with blackened chicken. I ordered dressing on the side which took two askings to get. I also thought it was pricy for what I got. There wasn't much salad. My friend ordered a fried seafood plate that looked nice but asked three times for tarter sauce and was half way through his meal before it came. Again had to ask more times for a beer refill. We waited for the waitress to come back to order our meal. I am sorry I didn't notice the time we ordered because it took so long we were ready to leave and forget about it. We asked the waitress to pull down the blinds since the sun was going down and nearly blinding us with the light. She gave us a list of all the things she had to do before she would get to the blinds so someone at our table got up and did it. The quality of the food was mediocre. My husband got the prime rib sandwich which was difficult for him to eat since it was a slab of chewy meat covered in cheese on a roll. Someone sent back their baked potato for not being cooked all the way through. We asked for a check and she only brought ours. We were couples and had separate checks. She didn't bring them all. We had to ask her for each one. It was so exhausting hunting down the waitress every time. She did tell us as we were leaving that their computer system was giving them a whole lot of trouble and they had to enter everything in by hand. Had I know that in the beginning we would have walked down the block to another restaurant. Never again.
8. Mary's Kountry Kitchen
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 80 reviews
Reviewed By jullliette77 - Tavares, Florida
So I have eaten here and hv been concerned about somethings I have seen in the kitchen while I have been waiting for a table. The food is OK tasting but .......... There is an app calld " what the health" , you can look at all the health dept of local food places and all of the violations any place has had. They give the standard A, B , C and U......this place is a big red U ....they have TONS of violations that are not safe and "potentially hazardous" from incorrct food temps, storing raw meat over ready ro serve food, grease and standing water in the coolers.....ughguhgu...get the appp, look it up.....I will not eat here any longer...hopefully the owners get ot together before they get someone really sick......
" what the health" app....get it and review any place before you eat there
Hope this helps
9. Eduardo's Lokos Tacos
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 68 reviews
Reviewed By sfreezer10 - Orlando, Florida
Visited again after being in town for a high school football game. Great visit last year and this was no different. Not very busy on a Friday night but good for us. Our food cane out quick and delicious! Chimichanga and flautas were super tasty. Steak tacos hit the spot too. So much spice just how we like them. We will be back !!!
10. Puddle Jumpers
Overall Ratings
4 based on 162 reviews
Reviewed By Busy-retired - Mount Dora, Florida
We’ve been taking friends and family to Puddle Jumpers all winter for their Tuesday night special burgers. An inexpensive burger gives us the freedom to try out all the unique side dishes including homemade pork skins, onion rings with a terrific dipping sauce and homemade chips with amazing onion dip. We are generally full before the arrival of the excellent burger, juicy and hot with all the trimmings. It is still, however, a fantastic burger.
Until recently we have warned new guests that the service was not always terrific. Our servers have been inattentive and even a bit grumpy. This is a situation we tolerate because of the great food.
This evening our evaluation changed. We had the opportunity of experiencing Christopher Michael as our server. He was attentive to our every request, answered our menu questions with clear information and focused his attention on us. When he was helping us he was never distracted. He never appeared to be rushed. He did not dismiss us while hurrying off to other tables. He was certainly efficient, and our food came out in record time, but he did not sacrifice attention for speed.
He was everything you want your server to be with the addition of great personal charm. We go to Puddle Jumpers for the food, but if we can have another experience with Christopher it will make our experience 100% better. Servers like this personable young man are rare. Puddle Jumpers is lucky to have this outstanding employee.
