Oftentimes when people think about Orlando, they don’t normally think about good food. They think about tourists, the different theme parks ranging from Disney World to Universal Studios to Seaworld or Aquatica. And with that comes the dreaded thought of overpriced theme park food that is either too bland, too salty, and too expensive.

Having come here a number of times for work travel, I realize that Orlando actually has quite a number of good food options as long as you are open to spending a little time to research. Cuban food is quite plentiful and popular here. A handful of delicious “New American” type restaurants are sprinkled throughout the city, in downtown and outside. And funnily enough, this trip, when looking at restaurants within a close radius of my hotel in downtown Orlando, I even found a Laotian restaurant. I don’t believe I’ve ever been to an actual Laotian restaurant before. I had this delicious crispy sticky rice with pork served in lettuce wraps, as well as a dry spicy beef noodle dish that was quite fishy and fermented. The restaurant decor was quite attractive, too, with an entire wall painted to depict gorgeous elephants and even some random dragons.

If you look, you will find it. I certainly did. And as I ate my dinner, more and more diners came in to fill up all the seats in this casual eatery.