The Attic Door /// Winter Garden, FL

We might be biased since we grew up in this bar, but this is the best brunch in town. 

I grew up with my moms cooking and I don’t know if I ever realized how amazing it truly was until she opened the Attic Door and started brunch. But damn, this lady can cook. 

It is hard to find a Sunday when she isn’t back there cooking almost all of the food herself. Everything is homemade. From chicken salad, to the family recipe for cheese grits, eggs cooked to order, service with a smile, live music, and bottomless mimosas makes this the place to be on a Sunday morning. 

If you are like me, after brunching for a living (I know, so hard) orange juice can be a bit hard to handle on the bottomless scale, so I like to start off my brunch at the AD with a Pop the Cork, an idea sparked by a rooftop bar in New York City, our second home. This massive glass of Champagne has a delicious popsicle in it. Depending on how fast you eat it, the pop melts into your champagne making the bubbly even better. 

Adding Bloody Micheladas, a regular Bloody but hyped with a cut of a beer to make it a little less thick and the Frosty the Irishman, the decadent, breakfast dessert, grown-up drink on the menu, there is something for everyone. 

Now let’s talk food, because, you know, it is a miracle I’m not 500 pounds. I’m a sucker for sweets so my eyes go immediately to the Berry Bacon French Toast. A family recipe of egg-dipped cinnamon bread baked to perfection with butter, bacon bits, and a homemade berry compote. It is freaking delicious. 

The Yogurt Parfait is next. Greek yogurt drizzled with honey, fresh berries, and local, organic granola from our favorite Farmacy right around the corner, this delicious breakfast is to quench the sweet tooth for those on the healthier side. Yes, the granola is gluten free, and the honey is organic and sweetened by nature. 

Again, if you’re like me and like to pretend to be healthy, order the parfait but don’t forget to add the mini bakery basket. You can share it so you don’t feel too guilty, but it is filled with mini biscuits and cinnamon rolls with butter and jelly on the side. 

If you don’t have a sweet tooth, that is O.K. because I have had everything on the menu. 

The shrimp and grits are famous around town. They came in second in a town shrimp and grits cook off. This hot scoop of southern-style cheese grits is topped with shrimp, tomatoes, and feta cheese, and it is amazing. 

The classic bacon, egg, cheese, and avocado croissant is always a great choice. I suggest trying the eggs over easy if you like to get down and dirty with your food. 

I do not approve of burritos as a breakfast item, however, I make an exception for this one. Sausage, egg, peppers, all wrapped in a corn tortilla and smothered, when I say smothered, I mean smothered, in hot queso. 

Last but not least the biscuits and gravy. All family recipes with two whole sausage patties on top of flakey Pillsbury (the best) biscuits and covered in sausage gravy. Add an egg for an extra boost of more flavor. 

I grew up here. I did my homework on the back high top on Tuesdays, I learned how to pour a beer from a tap, and had my first glass of wine here. I washed dishes starting at 13 so yeah, I could be a little biased. But i’ll tell you this, I have never had a food complaint. 

The inside is eclectic and I have yet, in all my travels, to find a place similar. I you find yourself in Winter Garden, pay me a visit. I am always there when I am home, hanging with locals, welcoming new travelers, and helping out if I’m not on an airplane somewhere else.