Brandon McGlamery’s Prato and Luma could’ve easily made this list but Luke’s Kitchen, his Maitland boîte, deserves mention for its impeccable curbside manner and executive chef Jason Campbell’s open-fire eats. His blackened fish collar with salsa verde is takeout gold, especially when paired with poblano-crema corn, smoked okra and a to-go cocktail jar of a very summery Peachy Keen. While bottles of wine are no longer offered at half price, a 20 percent discount is nothing to scoff at. 

The New Standard pulled out all the stops to prevent from shutting down, offering virtual wine dinners, streaming live concerts, even setting up a grocery pantry and selling grill kits. But it was chef Ryan McLaughlin and his team who rose to the challenge serving such draws as lionfish ceviche in a watermelon consommé and a game hen cassoulet, both gorgeous even by takeout standards. A weekend brunch menu is available for takeout as are some standout baked goods, most notable the dark chocolate pizelle and glazed crullers. Wine bottles are half off, but the adult juice cocktail pouches, in various flavors like frosé and pina colada, are a pandemic silver lining.

One of the city’s best Indian restaurant just so happened to open mere weeks before the pandemic hit, but that hasn’t affected chef Sajan Prem and owner Nora Jain’s elevated Desi fare. You won’t find besan chillas, savory crepes made from gram flour served with a potato curry, raita, mango pickle and rice pudding, served anywhere else in the city. Plush lamb chops and a redolent palak ghosht have been known to induce head wobbling. Plus, Tabla’s roadside attendants are polished and quick to bring out curbside orders in a demonstratively cordial fashion.

Joe and David Creech, the duo behind one of the most popular taquerias in town, didn’t let the coronavirus stunt their growth any. A couple of weeks into the pandemic, the pair began making tortillas from scratch using imported blue Oaxacan heirloom corn. The result: tacos and quesadillas of the highest order, be they stuffed with veal cheeks or chorizo and potato. They’ve recently started serving birria “machete” – a giant heirloom tortilla rolled in a spicy beef stew – that speaks to the Creech’s Jaliscan roots, and has become the “It Dish” of the summer. Good thing their prickly pear margaritas and white wine sangrias are available by the gallon.

One of the biggest surprises during the pandemic was Dovecote Brasserie chef Clay Miller leaving the restaurant he founded (and partially owned) to become executive chef of the Ravenous Pig. It’s a powerhouse move for the powerhouse Winter Park stalwart, but even before Miller’s arrival, the Pig impressed with their stellar curbside conduct and equally astral Southern-tinged fare. Of note are its convenient curbside “dinners for two” offering everything from prime rib and Nashville hot chicken to shrimp and grits and short-rib tacos. A salad, side, and dessert are included, though most curbsiders won’t drive off without picking up a four-pack of brews courtesy the Ravenous Pig Brewing Co.

Local poultry fiends, and visiting and expat Nashvillians alike, seem to agree that Kwame Boakye may have out-scorched Nashville at their own game with the hot chicken he fashions out of his trailer parked at East End Market. The white meat tenders are procured from Prestige Farms in North Carolina before Boakye brines it, batters it, fries it, and tosses it in a hot oil glaze peppered with hot sauce. This being Nashville hot chicken, even the “mild” can draw out the hashafashashas and transform heads into water sprinklers. For masochists, “hot,” “hot x2,” and “hot infinity” are sure to trigger pain and pleasure receptors simultaneously.

Talk about a pivot. When the Osprey Tavern, a centerpiece in the city’s restaurant scene, changed concepts mid-pandemic into a seafood restaurant, local gastronomes took notice. In fact, a seafood concept is precisely what owners Jason and Sue Chin had in mind prior to opening Osprey Tavern in 2015, so better late than never. With chef de cuisine Anthony Watler (Izzy’s Fish & Oyster) at the helm and Reyes Mezcaleria’s Wendy Lopez acting as culinary director, the focus is, well, osprey-sharp be it in a plump Maine lobster roll, a peppery cioppino or skin-on trout with Jupiter white rice and hoppin’ john. Baked Alaska won’t make the best takeout dessert option, though don’t be ashamed eating it in your car. Watler’s rum cake, a recipe passed down from his grandmother, is just as worthy.

Eliot Hillis, as non-conformist and unconventional a culinarian as they come, seems to have amped up the wizardry at his butcher house/eatery ever since coronavirus put a stranglehold on restaurants. He shows off that creativity in such dishes as shepherd’s pie sausage rolled in a durum wheat paratha, and flat iron steak tossed in alkaline noodles and a spicy cucumber broth. In addition to his daily whim of takeout-friendly offerings, Hillis’s active experimentation with vegan cuisine (from a place called Orlando Meats no less) has led to pop-up collabs at Eola General.

Through the closures, pivots and (re)openings, Tori Tori’s yakitori and kushiyaki still manage to wow. Since chef and owner Sonny Nguyen introduced takeout-friendly Japanese rice box sets, business has been brisk. Doesn’t hurt that transporting a box or two back home won’t affect the binchotan essence of the skewered meats any. A soft-boiled egg, edamame, and cabbage salad make for a filling $14 dinner. This being a bar, their to-go cocktail game is as strong as the Thai chili-infused ancho margarita. As far as sake, wine, beer and other liquor is concerned, their to-go menu says it all: “Everything is for sale!”

The soup kits this Mills 50 newcomer put out during the pandemic positioned the restaurant as one of the best Vietnamese joints in the city, new, old, or otherwise. Patrons can pick up vacuum-sealed packages of oxtails, aromatics and rice noodles, along with garnishes and stock concentrate to make restaurant-quality pho in their Instant Pot at home. A kit of vegan bún bò hue with housemade chili oil is just as killer. Z Asian was already renowned for its duck noodle soup, but its new street food menu with such items as bánh bèo (steamed rice flour cakes), bánh khọt (stuffed pancake-like tarts), and bò lá lốt (beef wrapped in betel leaves) is making Vietnamese fare trendy once again. 

Chinese restaurants have disproportionately suffered during the pandemic due to some good ol’ fashioned racism. But chef Tiger Tang, a skilled perfectionist with a commanding kitchen presence, continues to churn out the most impeccable Sichuan fare anywhere in the Sunshine State. Plus, the servers are consummate pros at the takeout game and as vigilant as ever when it comes to anti-maskers. Tang plans on unveiling Chengdu’s second location in Baldwin Park, though the downturn has temporarily delayed the opening.