Spork Orlando - Page 24 of 72 - Finding Orlando's Tastiest Tables

There’s a New Wine Bar in Town

Mar 162016

We recently walked into the newest venue from Concentrics Restaurants, SOMM, which is now open in Orlando’s I-360 entertainment complex. SOMM offers a curated selection of boutique and fine wines developed by Beverage Manager Leslie Johnson.

SOMM offers a focused selection of wines from the world’s top wine producing regions. The wine list features 60 varietals, which are available by the bottle or three-ounce, six-ounce or nine-ounce pours as well as create your own flight options and sommelier-guided tours of the wine list. SOMM also carries Florida craft beers and artisanal sodas.

The design efforts at the 1,200 square-foot space were led by Bob Amick from Concentrics Restaurants. He describes the décor and mood at SOMM as, “Urban, contemporary, sophisticated, but approachable.”

SOMM is open daily from 4 p.m. to 10 pm (Mon.-Thurs.) 4 p.m. to 12 a.m. (Friday) noon to 12 a.m. (Sat.-Sun.). The management team is currently in the process of developing a happy hour program that will be announced in the near future.

Photo Credit: SOMM

Appetite for the Arches

Mar 132016

A few weeks ago a handful of chefs from some of Central Florida’s best restaurants accepted a unique challenge for the third annual Appetite for the Arches fundraiser. The concept? Use McDonald’s ingredients to create a signature dish, all to benefit the Ronald McDonald House. This culinary event with a twist supports RMHC of Central Florida, their goal is to keep families together when they need it most —during the treatment of a critically ill child.

From deconstructed Big Macs and crispy fish tacos, each served with a wine pairing, to a cellar selection from Tim’s Wine Shop – Orlando’s finest stepped out and served up some tasty treats and sips. Here’s a sample of what we tasted and enjoyed over the course of the evening!

4 Rivers: McFish Baja Street Taco, Filet-o-Fish with a spicy sauce topped with fresh pico de gallo and Mexican cotija cheese.

Capa 4 Seasons: Strawberry Gazpacho created from strawberry, tomato, cucumber, and strawberry Go-GURT, served with crispy smoked bacon and fried brioche breadcrumbs.

Emerli’s TCHOUP CHOP: Big Mac Three Cheese, Bacon Souffle with Sriracha Aioli.

Hamilton’s Kitchen: Our favorite dish of the night! A taco duo, one barbacoa beef taco and a pacific chicken taco.

Luma: Le Pig Mac, pork belly with reuben flavors using Big Mac sauce.

See you next year Appetite for the Arches!

Photo Credits: Jeff Leimbach and Trung Nguyen

The Science of Wine

Mar 092016

Whet your palate and your mind at one of Orlando’s largest wine events on Saturday, April 30 at Orlando Science Center. The Science of Wine is not just another wine tasting, but an oenological odyssey with presentations on multiple aspects of wine growing and wine tasting as well as the opportunity to sample more than 150 fine wines from the world’s most important wine regions. The event will also feature food from local restaurants, entertainment, live music, a silent auction and more!

This Science of Wine is a fundraiser for Orlando Science Center celebrating its sixth consecutive year. Southern Wine & Spirits returns as the exclusive wine provider and an education partner providing presentations and workshops on the science of wine.

In excess of 150 fine wines will be featured from the world-class portfolio of Southern Wines & Spirits, and every major wine region will be represented. Whether you are a novice or a wine aficionado, you will find a vast variety of wines to please your senses. There will be plentiful gourmet and casual food offerings to accompany the wide range of wine selections.

In addition, a limited number of seats are available for a seminar on wine-making techniques. Presented by Julie Pepi with Southern Wine & Spirits. Attendees will have the opportunity to taste wines produced in that area and take a virtual tour to both the region and inside the wineries to discover how these great wines are made. The hour-long Wine Seminar begins at 6:30 p.m. and can be attended at an additional cost.

Educational wine experiences in addition to the seminar will include a wine jelly snow cone presentation by television chef and culinary educator Emily Ellyn. Put on your lab coat and cook up some fun! Retro Rad Chef Emily Ellyn is hard at work testing her latest hypothesis. Can her favorite adult beverage be remixed into a familiar frosty treat? Using scientific method, Emily will formulate a Peanut Butter and Wine Jelly Snow Cone for a fun, delicious throw back to your childhood science experiments.
Delight in educational presentations, wine and food tastings and more at the Science of Wine fundraiser benefiting Orlando Science Center’s mission to inspire science learning for life.

Early bird tickets to are available for $85 through April 9, 2016, after which tickets are$95 per person. Special rate tickets for Science Center members are $75.

Tickets and additional details are available online at www.osc.org/wine.

Photo Credits: Orlando Science Center

Burgers, Burgers, Burgers

Mar 042016

Ahh the hamburger. It’s basically an American pastime. Couple with some salty french fries and you’ve got the quintessential American dining experience. Thanks to some chefs and restaurant ingenuity, the burger has recently blossomed and taken it’s rightful seat across restaurant chains and local joints alike. So now we live in a burger saturated food culture, but what’s new and what’s next in this beefy world? We recently spoke with Jamie Schweid, President of Schweid & Sons for his take on the future state of this beloved American classic.

What burger trends do you see emerging for 2016? And beyond?
- The Beef: Beef will be better than ever. More and more farmers are embracing DNA technology and breeding cattle that continuously renders the most marbled beef, which ultimately renders better beef blends.
- Let’s Talk About Bacon: The ‘meat on meat’ trend is here to stay. It’s just too good. Bacon will continue to thrive as the most-used protein to top burgers, but we anticipate we will see a shift to trying a variety of smoked bacons instead. Bacon jams and aioli blends are on the rise as toppings and will continue to gain popularity because of the unique added flavor they provide.
- Hold It Together: In addition to brioche, soft rolls of all sorts will rule as the favorite (including my personal favorite, the potato roll.) We’ll see an increase in more health conscious buns like whole wheat, but it will remain a very small piece of the market.

How do you see the burger space re-inventing itself over the next year or so?
- Burgers do not need to reinvent themselves year after year. They are a food that resonates with almost all people. I think burgers will continue to evolve with unique toppings, buns etc.

What’s your all-time favorite burger combination?
- Cheeseburger with BBQ Sauce!

Most outrageous burger you’ve ever tasted or made?
- Most outrageous burger was a croquetesa burger from the Pincho Factory. It is the burger they make already, but deep fried with Swiss, pickles, mustard, and Mayo on a Brioche roll.

Long live the burger!

Photo Credits: Instagram via Schweid and Sons + Pincho Factory

South Beach Food and Wine Festival 2016 {SOBEWFF}

Feb 282016

There are wine tastings….and then there are Wine Spectator three hour tastings…in South Beach. I’ve officially been spoiled. Last weekend we were invited to the South Beach Food and Wine Festival which features an unrivaled lineup of celebrity chefs and killer events. And after sampling 15+ wines alongside the industry’s finest winemakers and strolling through the white sands of Miami, it’s easy to see why foodies and industry leaders alike flocked to South Florida this weekend.

Wine Spectator hosted a number of seminars and tastings over the course of the weekend. We attend a seminar featuring sparkling Ferrari wines from Italy, treasures from Robert Mondavi and Belle Glos from Joe Wagner. I dare say there is no better breakfast than wine, and over the course of the morning we learned about the growing regions, characteristics of each wine and the generations behind the bottles.

We experienced a vertical tasting of Ferrari sparking wines all made with chardonnay. Not to be confused with prosecco, this wine comes from a vineyard surrounded by mountains in Trentino, Italy which helps to maintain the acidity in the grape and brings out a complexity to an otherwise simple wine. We sipped wines from 1995 through 2008 – each with a range of characteristics. My favorite? The 2008 Ferrari Perlé Trentodoc, rated 90+ over the years from Wine Spectator, it’s a wine that’s both aromatic and interesting.

Next, we were treated to a Robert Mondavi tasting featuring Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. We started with the 1976 and worked through the years to 2013. While tasting five decades of wine, we walked through wine making techniques and discussed its variability through the years. An overall exceptional experience, the structured and smooth 1976 was a special treat to enjoy and we ended the tasting with the not-yet-released 2013. Following Mondavi, we tasted a range of Pinot Noirs and Zinfandels presented by Joe Wagner from Copper Cane Wines. Aaand 18 wines later, we had traveled the world glass by glass.

If world-class wine sampling wasn’t enough, we then headed to the Grand Tasting Village complete with celebrity chef demos and endless food. Never in my blogging “career” have I ever seen a tasting event this grand and expansive. Between corporate sponsors, appearances from the Today Show cast, duck tacos and ever-flowing beverages, we’d highly recommend attending this event next year.

If you need more convincing, here’s why you should make the short drive to South Beach and visit SOBEWFF’s Grand Tasting Event next year:

Rosé….so much rosé. Yass.
Tervis Tumbler wine glass. Yep scored one of those 9 oz. guzzlers.
You might be filmed by Snapchat. We were, but sadly our little exchange about “bagel balls” didn’t make it on the live stream. (sad day)
Duck tacos. Buffalo Mac ‘n’ cheese. Pork belly bao buns. Pineapple drinks from the New York Times. Grilled pimento cheese pork sandwiches. Whiskey slushies. Shall I continue? Just go with a very empty stomach.
Appearances from some of Orlando’s favorite restaurants (like The Osprey Tavern)
People watching, it’s even better than the airport.
The chance to see some of your favorite Food Network starts and have them sign your cookbook!

Okay, that’s enough gushing for now. But seriously, you must go to SOBEWFF next year. See you there.

Swine & Sons + Frog Song Dinner {Recap}

Feb 232016

There’s nothing quite like an impromptu party on a Wednesday night to get you through the rest of the week. When we were invited to attend the Swine & Sons Frog Song Organics dinner, we immediately said yes knowing that the food would be fresh and we’d spend time with friends. Over the course of a few hours we were treated to some of the finest produce in Central Florida, and a few drinks along the way. Here’s what we sampled and sipped last week, and for more on the Swine & Sons + Frog Song Organics partnership, head to our original blog post here.

Crab Toast: With radish, dill, salsa verde, lump crab and pretzel bread.