Together With:
Welcome to Thursday Morning, Orlando!
Hold on to your carry-ons because I recently read MCO is ripping out the green carpet throughout the terminals. So long, 1970’s! 🤣
Now, in today’s issue:
- Long Live the King
- Festival of the Arts
- Pickle Fest
- + lots of weekend recs
Did a neighbor forward this to you? Subscribe here.
Let’s roll!
- Philip
P.S. Want some hawt community sourced foodie recommendations? Check out the Orlando Signal Restaurant Guide, right here.
P.P.S. Check out tons of open Orlando area jobs at the Orlando Signal Job Board, right here.
TOGETHER WITH:
ABODE | KELLER WILLIAMS WINTER PARK
Modern elements with farmhouse charm
There's a front door at 1125 Munster Street, Orlando, FL 32803 older than most of Orlando. We’re talking leaded glass rescued from an old Sanford schoolhouse and custom-fit, a century later, to its current home originally built in 1985.
It hints at what's inside: gleaming hardwood pine, stained-glass flourishes, a brick fireplace begging for s'mores, and a 2020 kitchen with quartz counters and (yes) a pot filler. Upstairs, the primary suite hides a peacock stained-glass window above the spa tub.
🏡 New pool & pavers (2022). New metal roof (2022). New HVAC (2025). Four beds, three baths, 2,400+ sq ft in Orwin Manor, a quick stroll to Park Ave and Mills/50.
🔥 Price improved to $849,000. Sellers offering a 2.5% buyer's agent commission.
Listed by Steven Ritz, head agent and team leader of ABODE at Keller Williams Winter Park.
🖱️ Click Here to Take a Narrated Tour →
3 QUICK NEWS BITS ⏲️
Long Live the King
Above North Bumby Avenue in Orlando, a crown-wearing bull glares down from a white and yellow sign like he owns the place, because, frankly, he does. Freeman and Peggie Smith planted their flag here in 1968, freshly escaped from Detroit winters, and never looked back.
Southern Living recently crowned Beefy King one of the South's best roast beef sandwiches. Orlando residents respond with a collective shrug and a satisfied smile. Obviously it’s the King!
The recipe hasn't budged in nearly six decades: fresh top round, pinned, roasted to a perfect 135°F, sliced paper-thin, then steamed with cheese and onions into something gloriously messy and deeply satisfying.
Granddaughter Shannon Woodrow runs the show today, and the king isn't abdicating anytime soon.
Check out Beefy King right here, then check out the full Southern Living piece right here.
Now, the bull wants to know….. 👇
| 🐂 Have you ever made the pilgrimage to Beefy King? |
| 👑 Heck yes!🗺️ Not yet, but it's officially on my list🥩 What's Beefy King? (we need to talk) |
| Login or Subscribe to participate in polls. |
Downtown Orlando Is Ready to Rise, Literally
Hold onto your lake views. Downtown Orlando could be getting a whole lot taller. Architectural firm Kobi Karp has drawn up plans for a soaring 37-story tower at Washington Street and Rosalind Avenue, stuffed with 252 apartments and a 221-room luxury hotel, right in Lake Eola's backyard.
City planners are buzzing about it, noting the tower could claim the title of downtown's third tallest building while giving Orlando's surprisingly thin hotel scene a serious boost.
Developers want the design to nod to the neighboring St. George Orthodox Church. The planning board decides May 19th.
(Learn a lot more about Orlando's sky-high ambitions with Keith Landry, right here)
From Japanese Gardens to Rooftop Pickleball
Now, a few miles northeast of downtown, Orlando's Mills 50 District just got its next big chapter, and even MORE swagger.
Emi on 50 has broken ground at the corner of East Colonial Drive and Hampton, bringing a 9-story, 336-unit residential high-rise to one of the city's most walkable, culturally rich neighborhoods.
Drawing on Japandi aesthetics, blending Japanese minimalism with Scandinavian warmth, the building features a Japanese garden-inspired courtyard, rooftop fitness center, elevated pickleball court, pool deck with beer and wine taps, a Night Lounge, and the Work & Wisdom Loft for remote workers.
For a neighborhood already dripping with character, Emi on 50 looks ready to fit right in.
🇯🇵 Check out Emi on 50’s bad-assery, right here!
WEEKEND SPOT HIGHLIGHT 🔦
St. Johns River Festival of the Arts
Source: Tom Wrenn, St. John’s River Festival of the Arts
📍Historic Downtown Sanford. 120 W 2nd St, Sanford, FL 32771. Map to this location.
🕐 Saturday, April 25th & Sunday, April 26th
Art, Eats, and Good Vibes on Sanford's Brick Streets.
The St. John's River Festival of the Arts brings nationally juried artists, live music, roaming performers, and genuinely great food together for one unforgettable weekend.
Watch painters and sculptors work their magic in real time, let the kids unleash their inner artist, backed by Florida's arts councils and the National Endowment for the Arts, and soak it all in.
You'll want to come back next year.
👉 Check It Out
TOP 3 FUN RECS FOR THE WEEKEND 🍊
Central Florida Earth Day
Source: Vegetarians of Central Florida
📍Lake Eola (East Side). 512 E Washington St, Orlando, FL 32801. Map to this location.
🕐 Saturday, April 25th from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Central Florida's biggest, longest-running Earth Day festival is back for its 21st year, and yes, it's completely free.
Brought to you by Vegetarians of Central Florida, this all-vegan, dog-friendly, smoke-free party features live music, food demos, an Earth Kids Zone, an Artist Corner, and vendors who actually walk the talk.
Oh, and 2026 marks Earth Day's 58th anniversary. No better excuse to show up.
👉 Get more info, right here
Orlando Pickle Fest 2026
Source: Battle Bros
📍Festival Park. 2911 E Robinson St, Orlando, FL 32803. Map to this location.
🕐 Saturday, April 25th, 12 p.m. - 9 p.m.
Orlando's most gloriously unhinged food festival is back.
For $10 or less, you can graze through creative pickle-themed bites, sip drinks that absolutely did not need to be pickled (but were), and shop a marketplace full of handmade goods from local makers.
Live music runs all day, free axe throwing gets the adrenaline going, and a pickle eating competition plus mechanical bull round out the chaos.
Weird? Absolutely. Worth it? Without question.
👉 Get the full details
Virginia Drive Live!
Source: Ivanhoe Village
📍Ivanhoe Village. 1001 N Orange Ave, Orlando, FL 32804. Map to this location.
🕐 Saturday, April 25th, 5 p.m. - 9 p.m.
Some neighborhood events come and go. Virginia Drive Live! just keeps showing up.
Ivanhoe Village and Mills50 are joining forces again, lining Virginia Drive from Orange Avenue to Mills Avenue with local artists, retailers, food vendors, and live music.
Grab a $5 wristband at Ten10 Brewing or near The Yard at Ivanhoe to unlock specials at participating locations, and know that every dollar goes straight back into the Main Street programs that keep these neighborhoods thriving.
👉 Check it out, right here
THIS WEEKENDS HAPPENINGS 🎭 🥁
Multi-Day
Lavell Crawford @ The Funny Bone | Fri, Sat, Sun | I-Drive | More
The Merry Widow | Fri & Sun | City District | More
Orlando Franchise Show | Sat & Sun | Winter Park | More
Friday
🔥Opening Reception: " A loom, a fence, a wire, a thread" by Mär Martinez | 6:30 p.m. | Maitland | More
Drop In D&D | 5 p.m. | UCF | More
New Worlds Reading Book Bash | 6 p.m. | Mills 50 | More
Concrete Boys | 7 p.m. | City District | More
Month of Jazz: Anthony Stanco Quintet | 7:30 p.m. | Wadeview Park | More
Swae Lee: Rolling Loud Pre-Roll Party | 8 p.m. | City District | More
One Direction Dance Party | 8 p.m. | Winter Park | More
Two Feet | 8 p.m. | Milk District | More
Saturday
🔥Night in Berlin | 6 p.m. | Casselberry | More
🔥The Ultimate Sound-Off Yoga Glow | 6:30 p.m. | City District | More
🔥Batters Up For Lupus Draft Tournament | 8 a.m. | Lake Fair View Park | More
🔥Bulls Dining Across America | 12 p.m. | West Lakes | More
Florida Puerto Rican Parade | 11 a.m. | City District | More
Florida Waterway Clean Up | 9 a.m. | Kissimmee | More
Art Workshop: Pet Portraits | 9:30 a.m. | Maitland | More
Central Florida's 61st Annual Daylily Show | 10:30 a.m. | Winter Park | More
Acrylic Painting: April Showers | 11 a.m. | Eatonville | More
Poetry Walk: Ink & Drink | 2 p.m. | Audubon Park | More
Sunday
Brechner Speaker Series: Tracing Florida Journeys with Leslie Kemp Poole | 2 p.m. | City District | More
Hardy | 7 p.m. | City District | More
Cardichu Card Trading Show | 11 a.m | I-Drive | More
The Merrie Melodies Strollling Saxes | 3 p.m. | Winter Park | More
Lucía | 5 p.m & 7:30 p.m | Downtown | More
Millionaires, Whitney Peyton, Waiting 4 April | 7 p.m. | Winter Park | More
Dion Kerr Trio | 7:30 p.m. | Wadeview Park | More
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit | 8 p.m. | City District | More
🎭 Have an event to share?Submit it here.
THANKS!
🧠Interested in reaching smart Orlando readers like you? Grow with us right here.
🌟 Know a community superstar? Tell me about them, right here.
We’ll see you on Monday.
My Best,
Philip - Publisher, Orlando Signal
