Jane’s Short & Sweet is a unique Orlando company crafting shortbread cookies with local Central Florida products. Aside from their tasty creations, what makes Jane’s unique is their commitment to give all of their profits to organizations serving at-risk women and children. Jane’s cookies are truly making a significant impact locally and worldwide.

The secret to Jane’s shortbread cookies? Real (quality) butter! An essential ingredient for that melty buttery shortbread taste. Flavors rotate seasonally but her staples for the most part include: Classic, Gluten Free Classic, Almond, Chai, Lemon, Lime, and Orange. Occasionally you may find flavors such as Peppermint Buttercreme, Toasted Cinnamon Roll and more! They can even customize a flavor and shape for any special occasion or gift.

In addition to her buttery shortbread cookies, Jane’s also creates the most luxurious sugar scrubs! We’re currently crushing on their grapefruit variety, the scrub smells amazing and will leave your skin feeling like butter. Also available in lavender, orange and peppermint, Jane’s scrubs are sure to transform your shower from ordinary to a mini-spa oasis.

All of Jane’s fabulous products are availble online at www.janeshortandsweet.com and locally in these shops:

• Holieanna Groves
• Peterbrooke Chocolatier
• The Alfond Inn/Hamilton’s Kitchen
• The Ancient Olive
• Fatto in Casa (East End Market)
• Smart Coffee
• The Spice & Tea Exchange
• VESPR Craft Coffee & Allures
• Tea and Tea
• Five Star Florida Finds

Photo Credits: Jane’s Short & Sweet

“In Asia, the best food is on the streets,” says Hawkers Asian Street Fare founder Kaleb Harrell. “Groups will go to these hawker stalls. Everyone gets something from a different stall, and then you come back to a communal table to sit and share the food.”

Hawkers opened in the Mills 50 District in 2011, with the goal of recreating the street food experience using input from each of its four founders.

“We actually all grew up together eating foods similar to what we serve. Because of our diverse backgrounds, we have a large representation of different regions within Asia on our menu. I think we make for a great team since we each have very different skill sets,” Harrell said.

Read more of our interview and menu picks on Orlando My Way! What’s your favorite Hawkers dish?

Photo Credits: Skewers by Hawkers, all other images by Spork.

Sushi, wine and grilled avocados probably don’t come to mind when you think about bowling. For a sport recognized by ESPN, it sure is a shame that bowling has a reputation for being unglamorous and associated with inedible food. But, at Downtown Disney’s Splitsville, this two story 50,000 square foot space is redefining the modern bowling experience.

Splitsville’s space is large, but broken up by a variety of bars, an outdoor patio with live music and laneside tables. Most impressive is the ability to make everyone in your party content here, you can watch football, enjoy a myriad of food and of course challenge your friends and family in bowling.

During our visit we dined right at our lane, which was the perfect combination of enjoying our food while competing in several rounds of bowling. Just for the record I won, except for one round when my husband and I tied. I know, who ties in bowling? It’s probably statistically impossible, but it happened to us! During our healthy dose of competition, Splitsville was kind enough to bring out a grand array of food and beverages. We originally intended to just “sample” all seven dishes, but ended up devouring most of food. Oops!

Here’s the menu lowdown and our favorite Splitsville dishes!

Grilled Avocado: Seared ahi tuna mixed in a special sauce and served over a large grilled avocado and sushi rice. It’s then topped with spicy mayo and served with wonton chips. Perfect for sharing (or not)! I’ve yet to see a grilled avocado on another menu in town so it was refreshing to taste familiar flavors in a new combination! The ahi tuna was fresh and the grilled avocado was tender and perfectly ripe.

Filet Sliders: Two sliders with soft baked bread served with juicy slices of beef tenderloin and served with onion rings and horseradish cream. Talk about melt in your mouth, craveable mini sandwiches! The sliders were perfectly portioned, filled with an interesting array of flavors and full of juicy, tender goodness.

Sushi Rolls:

• Fantasy Roll (Gluten Free): A sushi lover’s paradise, fresh salmon, ahi tuna, cucumber, avocado and steamed shrimp are rolled in soy paper and drizzled with spicy kimchee ponzu sauce. Freshly made and one of the most unique rolls we’ve ever tasted! I’m especially fond of the presentation, the colors and the shrimp, all exquisite!
• Volcano Roll: Tempura shrimp, avocado, cream cheese and a spicy volcano krab mix. With this roll, I didn’t even ask what’s inside; at this point I knew Splitsville could do no wrong with their sushi! A perfectly crunchy, creamy and balance of flavors with this roll.
• Ninja Crunch: Mmmmm fried salmon(!), Kani Kama krab, tempura crunch and delicately drizzled with spicy mayo and eel sauce. Again, an absolute surprise and delight tasting this roll, the fried salmon and spicy mayo are layered with complimentary flavors.

Grilled Salmon with Broccoli (Gluten Free): Before tasting this dish my inclination was that the salmon would taste fishy and frozen. Boy was I wrong! I’ve tasted a lot of salmon in my life; it’s usually my go-to dish when I’m not in blog eating mode. This tender, flaky fresh salmon is covered in a sweet yet savory glaze, topped with mango chutney and served with broccoli and sushi rice. No frozen or fishy flavor here, this salmon is a dish I’d highly recommend if you are in the mood for something from the sea!

Fiesta Chicken Bowl (Gluten Free): One of four rice bowls, all gluten free, the Fiesta Chicken Bowl is filled with grilled chicken breast, stir-fried veggies in tataki sauce, topped with avocado, cilantro and served over sushi rice. The cilantro and tataki sauce are the real heroes of this dish combining together to bring a unique flavor to the chicken and veggies.

Whether you’re on date night, kids night out or you have friends in town, Splitsville is worth the trip down I-4! You’re sure to leave with memories and a full, happy belly! Downtown Disney’s parking deck has officially opened, so you’ll never search endless for a parking spot again in this lot. And now through November 22, enjoy Cirque du Soleil’s La Nouba and meal from Splitsville starting at $99.00 per person! Splitsville is located at 1494 E Buena Vista Dr, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830 and www.splitsvillelanes.com.

Photo Credits: Filet Sliders from Splitsville. All other images owned by Spork.

The number of people seeking food assistance in our community continues to rise. Today, 187,940 children struggle with hunger – an 8.9 percent increase over last year. With the rising need, local organizations have stepped up to respond in ways beyond a traditional food drive. Founded in 2013, Feed the Need, is an unprecedented community-wide effort to raise funds for Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida. In its inaugural year, the campaign raised $100,000 in 22 days. As part of this effort many local businesses have partnered with Feed the Need to help end hunger in our community.

Here are some ways you can help our neighbors in need during this holiday season:

Happy Hour for Hunger:

• The Winter Park Chamber of Commerce has partnered with Winter Park Village to host Happy Hour for Hunger on Thursday, November 13, from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. at Winter Park Village. The evening will include drinks and appetizers provided by Winter Park Village restaurants, plus live entertainment. Tickets are available at www.winterpark.org and at the Winter Park Welcome Center, $20 in advance and $25 at the door.

Panera Bread:  

• 100% of Harvest Cookie sales sold  November 1-11 will be donated to Feed the Need.

Bosphorous Turkish Cuisine:

• Partial proceeds from Lavas Bread sold during the campaign will benefit Feed the Need.

The Ancient Olive:

• $1 per bottle of aged balsamic vinegar sold (200ml and larger) within the campaign dates at the Winter Park location will benefit Feed the Need.
• November 10 at 5:00 p.m. meet “The Fabulous Beekman Boys” and have their latest book, The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook” signed by the authors. Part of the proceeds from the purchase of the cookbooks will support Feed the Need. Pre-order your book at www.theancientolive.com.

Shake Shack:

• November 11 – Bring in this flyer to the Winter Park Shack and they’ll donate 20% of sales from your order to Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida.

Photo Credits: The Beekman Boys, Bosphorous