During February, Scott Joseph’s Orlando Restaurant Guide is featuring restaurants that are Black-owned or that have Black chefs in observance of Black History Month.
The most interesting thing I learned about Seana’s, a Caribbean and soul food restaurant in West Orlando, is that there is no Seana. Owner Joshua Johnson said that it was just “a name I’ve always loved; it just feels like a warm embrace.” That’s a pretty good description of the restaurant itself.
Seana’s occupies a small space in a little strip mall at the corner of Good Homes Road and Colonial Drive. A counter-service operation with the menu hand-written on a white board that also serves as a screen to the kitchen area, Seana’s gained some renown when it was chosen as one of the local restaurants to serve members of the National Basketball Association during its stay in a pandemic “bubble” at Walt Disney World Resort last season.
The teams ate well.
Especially if they had Seana’s smothered pork chops. Breaded and fried and served atop rice and peas, the tender chops were doused in a light gravy and accompanied by my side choices of baked beans and cabbage.
The meatloaf, listed on the menu as Uncle Jerry’s meatloaf, was almost as good. The meat in the loaf was dense and well seasoned and topped with a slightly sweet barbecue sauce. I chose mashed potatoes and gravy, as if there was another proper pairing for meatloaf, and the collard greens. All of it delicious.
Other menu highlights include oxtails, jerk chicken spiced tacos, and Grandma’s turkey wings. (I assume that’s Uncle Jerry’s mom.)
Takeout ordering is done by phone. The food was all well packaged and hot – no reheating was necessary. And the young woman who took the order and ran the credit card was friendly and welcoming.
Just what you’d expect at a place called Seana’s.
Seana’s is at 719 Good Homes Road, Orlando. (It fronts Colonial Drive; (map).) It is open for lunch and dinner daily. The phone number is 321-800-6846.
