This was my first time going to Ace Cafe Orlando which opened in the former offices of the Orlando Weekly across from the main Lynx Bus Terminal. Pam Schwartz had been here before and she told me that the BLT sandwich was rich and recommended. The menu cover had old historic photos with some of the history of the place. Ace slowly filled up until it was packed around the time the sun set. Ozzie Osborn and other heavy metal bands were shouting on the TVs that lined the dining area. With all the noise, I couldn’t actually pick out any lyrics.
The Over the Top BLT was indeed a monster of a sandwich. The thickly cut Applewood Smoked Bacon was caramelized along with Iceberg lettuce, herb mayonnaise, and vine ripened tomatoes. The Texas Toast was super thick and covered in an extra layer of crispy cheddar crust on the outside of the sandwich which made it particularly messy to eat. I ended up cutting it up and eating it with my fork. The bacon tasted like candy. The sandwich was served in a metal mesh bread basket which made it tough to cut the sandwich up. The solid crust of cheddar cheese on the bottom of the sandwich was particularly hard to cut through. Despite the eating logistics, it was quite delicious. Pam ordered the buffalo chicken empanada appetizer, which she stated were pretty run of the mill. She ordered based on the plan to enjoy one of their alcoholic ice cream shakes. The waiter didn’t inform her until after the meal that the coffee bar/milk shake area was out of commission. That was a huge disappointment.
After sunset, trucks began to line up outside the restaurant. This was simply an opportunity for gear heads to check out other 4 X 4 rigs. Small jeeps were predominant, but there were several rigs with lifted suspensions and even lights underneath the chassis. I used to own a yellow 4 X 4 Xterra which I rigged up with an Australian deer guard and winch. The winch got me out of several tight spots. I dented up that truck when I was going over a log between two trees and the truck leaned over and hit a tree which smashed a tail light and dented the back chassis. I filled and sanded the dent with Bondo but had to pay to get a decent touch up paint job. Owning a 4 X 4 is expensive, especially if you go mudding often.
My little Toyota Prius got stuck in the mud several weeks ago when Pam and I went to the Thai Festival. She managed to rock the Prius free by pushing on the hood as I eased the accelerator. From my 4 X 4 experience in soft sand, I knew not to gun the accelerator and dig my tires deeper into the mud.