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Worth the Drive
By CHRIS SHERMAN
© St. Petersburg Times, published March 29, 2001
Old South's taste in a theme-park world
Orlando would seem the last place to go for a taste of the South. If you look past Disney and under the city's expressways you'll find Louis' Downtown, a turreted lakeside mansion that preserves gentle country flavors, from fried green tomatoes to buttermilk dressing, as grandly as anywhere.
The house dates back to a pioneer citrus baron in 1893. Flavors belong to the Chathams, mother and son, who arrived in Orlando 15 years ago with South Carolina heritage and classical culinary training. Their first restaurant, Chatham's Place, became a local legend for sophisticated service and nouvelle southern cooking; their new downtown restaurant is already a contender for Orlando's best.
Louis' new place is as genteel as a parlor, but the servers pick up their plates through a back porch window from a kitchen that knows the old ways. Louis Chatham, above with Bettye Chatham, makes his own pimento cheese, and also fries and bakes the crackers to go with it. (He makes his own potato chips too.) His fried tomatoes are crisp and sharp, rustic foils for lump crabmeat and lush Hollandaise. Here, smoky twice-cooked collards and double-bone chop achieve their natural elegance.
Muscovy duck, Georgia pecans, old-time tomatoes and po' boys get uptown presentation plus perfect Sunday-dinner desserts, from buttery, custardy apple pie to simple lemon cake with a fresh pansy.
If you make the trek over and want a respite from the Orlando you fear, Louis' Downtown provides a surprising oasis of peace and style. Louis' Downtown Restaurant, 135 N Lucerne Circle E, Orlando, (407) 648-4688. Lunch prices run $8.75 to $14; dinner entrees, $24 to $34.
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