Nightlife in Casselberry

Beautiful waitresses clad in plaid mini kilts crisscross Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery, hoisting trays of Celtic-themed pub fare as sports fans catch games on high-definition TVs. Almost a decade old, the Tilted Kilt franchise originated in Las Vegas, where restaurateur Mark DiMartino first conceived of a sports bar with Irish touches—an idea that has since spread across the country. Patrons can stay out late at the pub, spending the night sipping on beers while sampling burgers, fish ‘n’ chips, or shepherd’s pie filled with beef and veggies. On a weekly basis, musicians enliven the already party-like atmosphere, strumming tunes or throwing up fistfuls of counterfeit money on the eatery’s patio.

Don’t let the shepherd's pie, fish 'n' chips, and draft beers fool you. Though Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery snatches up the best cultural fragments of Scotland, England, and the Emerald Isle, the eatery started in Las Vegas. Restaurateur Mark DiMartino sought to combine the communal, rousing feel of pubs in the British Isles with the campy fun of American sports bars, pairing hearty food and traditional trappings with televisions and waitresses clad in mini kilts and alluring plaid halter-tops modeled after William Wallace’s eveningwear.

Since its founding, Tilted Kilt locations have popped up in 25 states and two Canadian provinces, serving all manner of hybrid dishes such as the Scottish cheese steak, the Sloppy Jane made with sliced turkey or shaved rib eye, and the Tilted Guilt, an ice-cream sundae perched atop a cookie.

Conceived by Las Vegas restaurateur Mark DiMartino, Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery evokes Ireland by way of Vegas, with waitresses dressed in plaid mini kilts shouldering trays of chilled beer and pub fare. Like an enchilada stuffed with four-leaf clovers, the eatery’s Irish nachos interpret a south-of-the-border classic in a Celtic way, slathering potato chips in cheese sauce and seasoned ground beef; alternatively, pot roast and vegetables simmer traditionally in the Olde Dublin Irish stew’s Guinness-infused beef stock. Barkeeps pour a full bar’s worth of wine, cocktails, and beer, which surfaces in bottles, bombers, and multi-brew mixes such as the Blue Moon and Guinness combination. High-definition TVs glow with a ceaseless parade of professional and college baseball, basketball, and hockey, and live bands add to the entertainment smorgasbord on Friday and Saturday nights.

Conceived by Las Vegas restaurateur Mark DiMartino, Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery evokes Ireland by way of Vegas, with waitresses dressed in plaid mini kilts shouldering trays of chilled beer and pub fare. Like an enchilada stuffed with four-leaf clovers, the eatery’s irish nachos interpret a south-of-the-border classic in a Celtic way, slathering potato chips in cheese sauce and seasoned ground beef. Alternatively, pot roast and vegetables simmer traditionally in the Olde Dublin irish stew’s Guinness-infused beef stock. Barkeeps pour a full bar’s worth of wine, cocktails, and beer, which surfaces in bottles, bombers, and multi-brew mixes such as the Blue Moon-and-Guinness combination. 56 high-definition TVs—including three jumbo TVs and four screens on the outdoor patio—glow with a ceaseless parade of professional and college baseball, basketball, and hockey, and live bands add to the entertainment smorgasbord on Friday and Saturday nights.

Whiskey Dicks’ bartenders dispense a fleet of libations to wash down the lively neighborhood watering hole's menu of hearty American pub fare. Fried pickles and stuffed jalapeños rev up appetites, and burgers and sandwiches dress up with toppings such as grilled pineapple, cranberry mayo, and pesto ham. Bottles of vodka, whiskey, and tequila glow behind the fully stocked bar, where patrons can perch to watch sports games and C-SPAN slap fights on multiple flat-screen TVs. DJs create a spirited soundtrack daily from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m., and live entertainment graces the stage once a month.

Unlike restaurants where drinks are an afterthought, Draft Orlando makes them an integral part of each meal. They stock their marble-topped bar with 40 draft beers and 100 bottled selections. In October of 2011, Orlando magazine restaurant critic Joseph Hayes recognized their efforts, stating, "whatever food you are contemplating, there is probably a matching beer." Hayes goes on to laud the eatery for its "well-executed takes on pub food like fish and chips and impressive crab-cake sliders." The chefs also branch out from classic pub cuisine by deep-frying calamari and sprinkling flatbreads with toppings such as Angus rib-eye steaks, which they age for 21 days.

The restaurant's walls incorporate geometric textures, and, depending on the time, the interior can be lit by everything from natural light to the gentle luminance of flat-screen TVs displaying staff screen savers of their pet rocks.