Chuan Lu Garden in Orlando’s Mills 50 neighborhood has for years stood among the most celebrated Chinese restaurants in the city, winning accolades from this and other publications, getting social media shout-outs by local chefs for its massive menu of delicacies and credit for being among the Sichuan pioneers here in town.

Joyce Cai and her partners acquired the restaurant from its original owners in 2019, and while the food still got raves, the space, sometimes, did not. Cai took the feedback seriously.

“The space was worn and old,” she admitted, “and so when we found the perfect timing, we renovated.”

The project, which began in July 2024 , was on a six-month schedule, but as it often happens with renos and the stringent inspections that go along with them, the undertaking dragged

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