'A tasty place to live': Orlando eateries get national TV spotlight after dis by celebrity chef

ORLANDO, Fla. — A nationwide audience can tune in to the Travel Channel on Saturday to watch a celebrity chef eat crow across Orlando.

Last summer, celebrity chef and TV host Andrew Zimmern slighted The City Beautiful’s culinary scene on Twitter, claiming visitors here were “screwed” when it came to decent dining options. Orlando foodies fought back, sending Zimmern a slew of tweets and hometown O-town recommendations.

In September, Zimmern landed in Orlando for an apology tour filming an episode of his Travel Channel show “The Zimmern List” visiting several Orlando eateries, including East End Market in Audubon Park, Orlando Meats, and Black Rooster Taqueria in Mills 50.

You’re kinda screwed... but there is some good BBQ there at 3 rivers and Ravenous Pig
— Andrew Zimmern (@andrewzimmern) June 14, 2018

Dear Orlando, thank you for having so many passionate eaters who believe in their towns dining community and I apologize for being flippant. I dine there frequently and now have a TON of new places to check out come October!
Message received
— Andrew Zimmern (@andrewzimmern) June 15, 2018

John Rife is the founder of East End Market in Audubon Park.

“It’s so great that the community came out and gave him a healthy dose of backlash because we do care about Orlando,” said East End Market founder John Rife. “… We’re working hard to make it a tasty place to live.”

During his visit to East End Market, Zimmern munched on a “Dirty Elvis” at La Femme Du Fromage, tasted one of Gideon’s Bakehouse infamous half-pound cookies, and ate his first-ever serving of avocado toast at Farm & Haus.

“He spent almost three hours here,” Rife said. “So he wasn’t just putting a Band-Aid on that social media mishap, he was genuinely enjoying what Orlando has to offer.”

Tonda Corrente, owner of La Femme Du Fromage, said she loves having the ability to up the flavor profile of Orlando bit by bit.

Farm & Haus co-owner Brittany Lyne said it was fun and rewarding to have the celebrity chef stop by.

“This is one of the hardest industries, and so much of it is putting your blood, sweat and tears into it," Lyne said. "But this is our passion and to be recognized for what we built means more than anything."

🚨🚨🚨 Set your DVR’s! The Orlando episode of The Zimmern List will air this Saturday February 2nd at 10am on The Travel Channel.
Posted by Black Rooster Taqueria on Monday, January 28, 2019

catch us on the Travel Channel this saturday at 10am as Andrew Zimmern adds some of orlando’s best... to his list of favorite restaurants‼️💪🏼 ••• mama we made it 🙌🏼😁
Posted by Domu on Tuesday, January 29, 2019

OUR HIGHLY ANTICIPATED TELEVISION DEBUT IS THIS SATURDAY! WATCH IT WITH US! // Watch The Zimmern List on Travel Channel...
Posted by Orlando Meats on Tuesday, January 29, 2019

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Pretty stoked to have #AndrewZimmern of the @travelchannel in the house exploring the merchants of the market and @domufl today. . He was pretty thorough, exploring, tasting, discussing and really making the time to “take it all in”. . I love that this trip was in direct response to his dis of our food scene and the ensuing outcry and invitation of so many #OrlandoFoodie friends. . Glad @eastendmkt was a stop on his recon trip back to taste and see. . To everyone striving to make Orlando a tastier place to live we tip our hats to you. . #OrlandoIsAwesome #LiveLocally #Mainstreet #AudubonPark #Orlando #WinterPark #FoodHall #Market #Foodpreneur #OrlandoDoesntSuck @farmandhausorlando #IGFood #TravelChannel

A post shared by East End Market (@eastendmkt) on Sep 10, 2018 at 5:06pm PDT