Around Town—The Meatball Stoppe

You are probably wondering why I am featuring a restaurant that caters to meatballs today when I have been promoting a plant-based diet.  Well, the Meatball Stoppe has it all—vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free selections, as well as scrumptious traditional Italian cuisine!

New Surprise on the Menu--Keep Reading!!

The Meatball Stoppe is located at 7325 Lake Underhill Drive, which is in East Orlando, not far from Florida Hospital East.  The restaurant is a convenient 10 minute drive from downtown Orlando if you take the 408 East and exit at Goldenrod Road.

The Meatball Stoppe

The owners, Jeff and Isabella Morgia are a lovely couple.  They are welcoming and make you feel like part of their family.  If you go to the restaurant, it is likely you will meet one of them; they are so dedicated to the smooth operation of their pride and joy.  Jeff has been in the restaurant business for over 45 years before opening the Meatball Stoppe.  Isabella grew up in an Italian family in Brooklyn, New York and came to Orlando in 1970.  Her family has owned six Italian restaurants in the Central Florida area since then.  Isabella's passion for Italian cooking came from her grandmother, who lived with her family. After Jeff’s retirement from 27 years of working in the corporate restaurant world, he joined forces with Isabella’s catering business and they eventually opened the Meatball Stoppe.

I want to make sure that you know, if you want a traditional Italian meal, you can get it at the Meatball Stoppe.  Many of Isabella’s recipes have come from her Italian-born grandmother.  But Isabella has painstakingly developed vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options that are delicious, so anyone can enjoy a homemade Italian meal.

My sister, Glenna, told me about The Meatball Stoppe after it was featured on Guy Fieri’s Diners, Drive-In’s and Dives on the Food Network.  Here are Recipes  from that episode.  You can actually buy the episode for $1.99 on Amazon Prime Videos.  It is Season 27, Episode 2 titled Wonder Woman.  They do air the segment from time-to-time on the Food Network, and The Meatball Stoppe always gets a lot of business from that repeated airing.  Once Glenna told me they had a lot of options I could eat, I accompanied her.  Now we go there almost every Saturday for lunch.  Service is spectacular at the restaurant!! Ask for Brittany!!  What a sweetheart!!

So what is on the menu?  Here are the first vegan meatballs that Isabella developed that Guy Fieri raved about!  They are served with a vegan pesto sauce over a white bean ragu, a side Stoppe salad (you can request no cheese), and delicious focaccia bread!

Vegetarian Meatballs with Pesto over White Bean Ragu--Vegan

Vegetarian Meatball Lunch To-Go!

The vegetarian meatballs have a mushroom base that is not on the yeast-free diet, but is perfect for vegans and vegetarians.  However (playing trumpet music in the background!!) Isabella just developed an eggplant/quinoa based meatball that works for the yeast-free diet, vegans, and vegetarians.  It comes with a vegan pesto sauce and you can have it served with the white bean ragu. You can also order it with the creamy polenta (shown).  Polenta is not technically on the yeast-free diet, but I usually order it because of its creamy goodness!  Back to the meatballs--they are light and delicious.  They have crunch!  They are spectacular!

Eggplant/Quinoa Meatballs with Pesto over Polenta

In addition to meatballs, The Meatball Stoppe serves pizza, beer and wine, as well as homemade desserts!  The cannolis are full of creamy goodness!  They have a Monday-Friday Happy Hour and Lunch Specials.  The Meatball Stoppe also has catering services!  In fact, Glenna and I used them for catering recently with completely positive comments from our friends and family.  The restaurant also has a backroom that can be used for events.  Isabella and Jeff will work with you on any need you may have for a business group, civic club meeting, or family events.  Isabella features cooking classes from time-to-time, and they often have a special themed evening.  In the past they have had a Sinatra night! 

So, if you haven't been to The Meatball Stoppe, I hope you will go!  If you live in the Central Florida area, it is a must!  Come visit when you are traveling to Orlando, too!  You will love it!!