Best of 2012: 10 Most Notable Event Venue Openings in Orlando

Southern Brazilian steakhouse Fogo de Chão opened near the Orange County Convention Center in March. The restaurant’s menu is based on the gaucho tradition known as churrasco, the art of roasting meats over an open charcoal fire. A prix fixe menu offers 15 different cuts of beef, lamb, chicken, and pork carved tableside. There is also a large, four-sided, self-serve bar in the middle of the restaurant offering more than 30 salad and side items. The restaurant is available for buyout and has seating for 400 people. Smaller groups can use one of the five private dining rooms, which can be combined to accommodate 150. Each of the rooms has motorized projection screens, audio and lighting controls, Wi-Fi, and portable projection equipment.

The Embassy Suites Orlando-Lake Buena Vista South opened in September less than four miles from Walt Disney World. The hotel has 40,000 square feet of meeting space, including the 15,000-square-foot Palms ballroom and 5,000-square-foot Magnolia ballroom. There are also 15 breakout rooms, 10 boardrooms, and two terraces.

The JW Marriott Orlando and Ritz-Carlton Orlando have transformed a large piece of their property at Grande Lakes into an outdoor event space and garden. Whisper Creek Farm opened in October and is located on the edge of the resort’s golf course. The 6,000-square-foot event lawn has three coquina rock pads that hold grills for cooking on-site. The adjacent 7,000-square-foot garden is filled with two dozen varieties of citrus trees, bananas, mangoes, avocados, sweet potatoes, cucumbers, and many other fruit and vegetable plants. The lawn can accommodate 250 people for receptions or host a seated dinner for 140 at a 100-foot-long rustic table.

Kilt-clad waitstaff serve a variety of British pub fare at the Pub Orlando, which opened in February at Pointe Orlando. The nearly 8,000-square-foot restaurant and bar can seat 175 people and is available for buyout. Various sections can be roped off for semiprivate events, including a rear area that has seating for 30 and a front patio that can seat 25. The Pub Orlando has two Tap Walls allowing guests to pour their own draughts and pay by the ounce. The bar menu also has a variety of single-malt Scotches, small-batch and single-barrel bourbons, wines, and specialty cocktails.

A second new venue at Pointe Orlando is the first Florida location for Atlanta-based Marlow’s Tavern. The restaurant opened in October and has indoor and outdoor seating for a total of 215 guests. The decor is warm and comfortable with exposed brick walls, dark wood accents, large leather booths, and communal tables. The menu changes seasonally and may include items such as grilled turkey meatloaf and shrimp-and-crab nachos.

South Florida’s Rocco’s Tacos & Tequila Bar opened its first Orlando location on Sand Lake Road in September. The 8,500-square-foot restaurant has a large patio with table seating overlooking Big Sand lake. For private groups, a 2,500-square-foot banquet room can also be combined with the patio for an indoor-outdoor event. Smaller groups can use the semiprivate Milagro room, a candlelit space with seating for 10. The restaurant also has 18 large flat-screen TVs and a DJ booth and proclaims to have “the largest selection of tequila in the southeastern United States.”

Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center completed a $50 million renovation in March that added several new event spaces, including a 10,000-square-foot lawn that can hold 1,000 people for a reception. The lawn can be tented and also has three fire pits for more intimate gatherings. A second outdoor event space surrounds the resort’s new South Beach-style pool, furnished with white lounge furniture and private cabanas. The hotel also added a two-story sports bar with seating for 400 people and more than 50 televisions.

The Sheraton Lake Buena Vista Resort completed a $25 million renovation project in October that added new event space and updated the existing facilities. The new 7,000-square-foot Majestic Palm ballroom can accommodate 800 people and can be divided into three sections for smaller groups. The renovation also created a new outdoor event space on the pool deck that has a fire pit, bar, and outdoor kitchen. The hotel now has 20,000 square feet of meeting and event space.

Groups looking for an activity venue have a variety of choices at Whirlydome, which opened on International Drive in May. The facility has two courts for WhirlyBall—a combination of bumper cars, basketball, jai alai, and hockey—as well as a Formula One racing simulator, laser tag, billiards, bowling, an arcade, and a full restaurant and bar. The 25,000-square-foot facility is available for buyout and can accommodate 750 people. There are two private rooms with Wi-Fi and TVs.

Drury Inn & Suites opened on Sand Lake Road in July, less than three miles from the Orange County Convention Center. The main meeting space is a 2,180-square-foot ballroom that can accommodate 154 people theater-style or 100 for a banquet; an air wall can divide the room in half. Adjoining the room is a smaller meeting space for 30 people. Groups can also use a corner of the dining room for private events for 40 people. For parties that want food service in the meeting rooms, the hotel can provide breakfast food or light snacks, or food can be catered from a nearby restaurant.