Sophia's Trattoria — Restaurant in Dr. Phillips

We had a wonderful experience at Sophia's Trattoria. This is where we had brunch during the days we stayed at the Conrad Orlando at Evermore. It was inclusive with our stay and conveniently located on the level below the main lobby entrance.

We had wonderful service from start to finish. Mackenzie was the lovely hostess that greets you with a smile from the moment you walk into Sophia's. John was our server on day one and he was very accommodating and attentive. He didn't miss a beat. I think Mackenzie worked on our 2nd visit too with Fonzie seating us to our table. Fonzie was full of personality and very upbeat. Paulina was our server on day two and she was wonderful as well, very polite and friendly and always good at checking back on us.

DAY #1: Keto Bowl $23 Avocado Toast $21 Steak & Eggs $28 Overnight Oats $15 Smoked Salmon Lox Bagel $24

I had Keto Bowl and it was healthy and delicious. The only disappointment was cutting into my poached eggs and got no runny eggs, more like soft boiled eggs. Egg porn fail. Lol. My husband's Avocado Toast looked beautiful as presentation was on point, one of the prettiest Avo Toast I've ever seen. Even my daughter's Smoked Salmon presentation was beautiful with the salmon beautifully decorated on platter and the bagel and cream cheese served on a separate plate. My son asked for medium rare on his Steak & Eggs but it looked more medium, still tasty.

DAY #2: Egg White Caprese Omelette $24 Eggs Benedict $25 Belgian Waffles $21 Steak & Eggs $28

I was going to get an Eggs Benedict on the second day but opted out since my husband and daughter were getting it. I could steal bites from hubby's dish. I decided to go with the Egg White Caprese Omelette. My omelette was very fluffy and had good flavor with the Pine Nut Pesto. I wanted to sub the side of crispy potatoes with fruit but forgot to do so. Still good. My son got the Steak & Eggs again and asked for the poached eggs and chimichurri sauce on the side, he didn't like that the sauce touched his scrambled eggs the first time around. Ha. My daughter got the Belgian Waffles and great presentation but the waffles were slightly overcooked and crispy. She still enjoyed it. Eggs Benedict was delicious with the brioche bread.

All in all, Sophia's Trattoria is a beautiful and very spacious restaurant in a great location at Conrad Orlando with amazing views of the lagoon. The vibe, service and food quality...

In Summary: If you are staying on site, then this is an ok option for dinner as the option is even more expensive. If you are not staying at the Conrad then this is 100% not worth the drive and cost with so many incredible Italian restaurants in Orlando.

The Menu: An odd menu for sure with many things that you have to ask what they are. Cocktails are also strange all over the resort and Sophia's is the same. An Espresso Martini is $26 which is absolutely crazy. Glass of wine is $18.

Food allergies: Do not come here if you have any food allergies, they will not accommodate you. The menu is of course not marked, the server had no idea what anything had or didn't have, and he gave a strict warning that Gluten Free is not the way to go with the Chef's in the kitchen. The menu is very tough for someone with a gluten intolerance.

The Service: We were a group of 10 and this restaurant cannot accommodate large groups at all. Service was snail pace slow at 3 hours from start to finish and of course the bill comes in a single check as he did not ask and it was a mess to get it sorted.

The Food: Despite the mess this restaurant is, the food was delicious but ultimately not worth the high prices and hassle. The Pork Ragu was top notch. Portions are SMALL so be aware that the $25 dish of pasta will leave you hungry.

Technology: This is a brand new restaurant in a luxury hotel and they are using pen and paper to deal with orders. The staff is highly inefficient in placing and running out orders and its clear they are leaving endless money on the table due to slow speed to order and check in and slow table turnaround times. Please for the love of meatballs, get Toast and make your lives and the guest lives easier. Our checks were all 100% wrong after waiting 45 minutes for the server to figure it out.

This is a hard no in every conceivable way.

Feedback to Management: -Do not take groups larger than 6, your staff can't handle it -Update your POS to something modern, this will increase your check sizes and turnaround times on tables -Mark you menu for food allergies -Add one or two GF friendly options -Train servers to smile at least one time during service -Valet guys were the nicest people we encountered in all of Conrad Orlando, please...

I am so glad we decided to try this place first. Our first time to this property and we were undecided where to go for dinner our first night. Cieba was booked so we went to Sofias instead. SO glad we did. Our server, Demi, was amazing. Couldn't have been more excited to explain the menu to us. All her suggestions were delicious. Service was impeccable, love the open kitchen. We actually went back for breakfast in the morning, which was also amazing. The avocado toast was probably the best I've had. We planned on trying Ceibo that night but again it was booked. Ended up back at Sofias, this time with Iris as our server. Again, absolutely perfect experience. Went again for breakfast the next day. That night we actually did get in to Ceibo and I was not impressed. Food was good, view was pretty but the atmosphere was way too pretentious for me. Stuffy vibe, service was mechanical, portions were small. We actually left after apps and went back down to sofias. Packed Saturday evening and the manager still squeezed us in and with Iris! We are going back for breakfast tomorrow morning before we check out, hopefully we see Taz, our server from breakfast. In my 30+ years in the restaurant industry, I have never felt so welcomed at an establishment. Demi. Iris, Taz, the manager Antoine...remembered our names and made us feel like family. I seriously cannot wait to come back. Get the carpaccio, you won't be...