You wouldn’t expect a restaurant next to a UFC gym to be charming, but that’s only because you’ve yet to experience Stefano’s Trattoria.

Hi, I’m Courtney—also known as @courtneydoesflorida on Instagram—and I want to share with you one of the sweetest, most charming little eateries in Winter Springs, Florida! Tuffiamo dentro, my friends. (In other words, let’s dive in!)

Backstory

How does anyone find a new favorite restaurant? By being bored.

A little over a week ago, my husband and I were just having one of those days when we felt desperate to break out of the bubble. For fun, we tend to do the same things: Disney or Goodwill. Maybe an estate sale, if we’re lucky.

For meals, we order the same things. Make the same favorite, albeit comfortable, familiar dishes like my mother’s homemade chicken soup or beef stroganoff.

We love routine.

But it gets stale after a while, right? Enter last Tuesday.

To avoid going home and falling victim to the couch or doomscrolling, we decided to grab a bite to eat. We contemplated Olive Garden. Anyone who grew up with Olive Garden being reserved as the “special occasion” restaurant understands the gravitational pull that place (and its breadsticks have). But it was too far out of the way.

“What about this place?” John asked, flipping his phone screen over to reveal Stefano’s Trattoria. “It’s apparently right over there.” Pointing in the direction of the Home Goods and Hobby Lobby I’ve spent countless hours hunting for viral food stools and painting supplies, was the restaurant. “There?” Our disbelief was painted on our faces because in the year we’ve been in that shopping center, not once did it register for either of us that there was a sit-down restaurant.

Too busy thinking about the food stools, I guess.

“Want to go?” he asked. And I did. I wanted to try something new. And I really wanted stuffed shells.

Visiting Stefano’s Trattoria

The charm smacks you in the mouth the second you round the corner of the vestibule. Immediately to your right is a piano with a live pianist serenading the guests. The walls are hand-painted—murals of Italian architecture. In the back, string lights dangle from the ceiling, and on each table, soft mood lighting.

The restaurant screams romance, which may or may not be why my husband suggested it for Valentine’s Day (to be fair, his choosing of a quaint little Italian eatery for Valentine’s Day is very on-brand for him, not that I’m complaining). And if we do, I might give the stuffed shells a try. I was torn last time between that and the cannelloni (meat and ricotta cheese stuffed inside long pasta tubes). The dish had been referenced in the film, The Terminal (shoutout to anyone who’s watched it because it always seems like such a niche pick to many people) and since 2004, I’ve been dying to try it.

I’ll admit that, at first glance, the portions looked small – my cannelloni was just two tubes of meat and cheese, not over a bed of spaghetti or with a side. And, at first, I felt a little jilted and underwhelmed. In today’s economy, you want to get what you’re paying for ($18). But, I was pleasantly surprised by just how filling my meal was! Sure, it was accompanied by an earlier bread basket and a choice of soup or salad, but even so.

And let me tell you about the food—it was all fantastic! The bread was soft, with a pool of seasoned olive oil for dunking. I ordered a Caesar Salad, which had a healthy mix of soft greens, instead of just the watery hard ends of romaine like most places.

And our waiter—I didn’t catch her name, but she was absolutely charming. Probably the epitome of it. Always checking in on our table, always asking if we wanted more bread, and making lighthearted jokes. And that was what actually caught my eye about Stefano’s Trattoria: the people.

Back home, a local eatery like this would have been reserved for a special occasion. But, our arrival on Tuesday night sent off a very specific message: life is the special occasion.

If the tables weren’t occupied by couples (actually conversing face-to-face instead of on their phones), they were filled with families. Generational families. It made me nostalgic for a time long passed in my life when I had the privilege of sitting down to a meal with my parents. There was even an elderly couple nearby that reminded me of them— sitting together, kids probably long grown and busy with their own adventures. I wonder if he would text his daughter to tell her about the lasagna he ordered and how it tasted…like my dad used to do with me. Or, if she was known by the owner, much like my mom was at our local diner. Always hugging. Always smiling. Always happily coming back for more, whether it was food or conversation.

That’s the kind of old-world charm you find at places like Stefano’s Trattoria. Sure, the food is divine. And the environment is fun and functionally decorated because it’s designed to transport you.

But it’s the people and the interactions that appeal to you the most.

It was the way a young waiter shook hands with one of the guests at the table, who was bright-eyed and excited to see him.

It was the way my waiter told me to get the espresso martini on my return visit.

It was the way she complimented my necklace, making a shy woman burst from her soft shell.

It was the way laughter occupied the space.

And it was the way my husband looked at me, face dimly lit by candlelight, smiling and saying “This is so nice.” Because it was.

It was so nice.

So nice to break free from the traditional meals.

So nice to try something new.

And so nice to be pleasantly surprised.

Like I said in the beginning, you wouldn’t think that a restaurant next to a UFC gym would be charming, but that’s only because you’ve yet to step inside the world of Stefano’s Trattoria. And they pride themselves on welcoming you with the biggest of open arms.