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

Between the Dr. Phillips Center for Performing Arts, a handful of new restaurants and Project DTO, Downtown Orlando is undergoing a major (and much needed) transformation. Soco Restaurant in Thornton is the newest player to join the downtown revitalization featuring southern contemporary cuisine under Executive Chef Greg Richie.

Soco recently added brunch, so naturally we had to try for ourselves! After our experience last Sunday, we officially have a new go-to brunch spot. Here’s our top 10 reasons why Soco is worthy of your precious brunch time.

1. Reservations. Imagine that, a brunch place that ACTUALLY reserves tables for parties. Live in this town long enough and you know to avoid Briarpatch and Keke’s on the weekends. Sorry Winter Park, I’m avoiding your Sunday madness.
2. $5 mimosas with real OJ and champagne. None of that gross orange syrup or Andre in your glass.
3. Expansive outdoor patio space, hello cooler weather. Too hot? No worries, there’s plenty of room inside.
4. Jalapeño Jelly drizzled over Slow-Roasted Barbecue-Glazed Pork Belly Biscuits. Buttermilk melt-in-your mouth biscuits covered in juicy pork. The perfect dish when you can’t decide on “lunch” or “breakfast” food for brunch.
5. $20 mimosa pitchers. See point number two.
6. Good for groups large and small. Brunching with your friends or enjoying a meal with your significant other? Soco’s got you covered, no awkward or cramped seating arrangements here.
7. With 11 main dishes to choose from, you’re bound to have trouble deciding what to order. Next time we’re going for the Korean-Style Fried Chicken. What’s Korean style you ask? We haven’t got a clue either, but we’ll be sure to give a full tasting report when we order the dish!
8. If you insist on eating healthy, try their mason jar of house-made granola and yogurt with local honey, dried cranberries, fresh fruit and pumpkin seeds. Still hungry? It’s okay, you can order their two egg side.
9. The indulgence season is officially here, so go ahead and order that Baked Apple-Stuffed Brioche French Toast with house marmalade, candied peanuts and whiskey syrup. Your New Year’s resolution is months away anyways.
10. Baked Cheddar Grits. ‘Nuff said.

Soco Restaurant is located at 629 East Central Boulevard in the Thornton Park District of Downtown Orlando and www.socothorntonpark.com.

First, and most importantly, you have a mere 10 days left to enjoy Epcot’s International Food & Wine Festival! If you missed our first full event recap or the review from Epcot Food & Wine Late Nights LIVE!, click here. If you haven’t ventured out to the festival yet, here’s why you should go now and enjoy the last 10 days!

1. The festival in total runs for 53 days, so the “I’m busy” excuse doesn’t fly.
2. The chance to taste cuisine from more than 25 international regions.
3. The festival is believed to be the largest food and wine event of its kind in the world, and it’s right in our backyard! Y’all, people travel from overseas to attend, so grab your keys and make that short 30 (or 40) minute jaunt down I-4.
4. 35 new marketplace dishes; more than 250 food-and-beverage menu items total. Each tapas-sized portion or drink priced $3 – $8!
5. More than 300 national and international wines (hello sophistication).
6. Nearly 400 culinary demos, beverage and mixology seminars take place during the festival. These seminars are such a steal and memorable! Click here for the list of remaining demos.
7. More than 1,200 fireworks exploding each night over World Showcase Lagoon in  “IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth.”
8. More than 60 wineries represented at festival marketplaces. For the first time ever, you can indulge in Dom Pérignon at the Desserts & Champagne Marketplace. Enjoy the finest champagne without the bottle price!
9. More than 40 breweries from around the world, including local craft beer and international flavor.
10. More than 80,000 servings of the Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon with Truffle Butter Sauce from Canada are dished up during the festival. So say each filet is 4 ounces, that’s 320,000 ounces of beef in 53 days. OH MY, that’s some Disney magic right there.

If these numbers haven’t convinced you yet, maybe these pictures will entice you to make a trip to Epcot this weekend! Happy feasting.

Photo Credits: Disney Parks

Winter Park is known for its majestic streets, quaint shopping district and extraordinary eats. You’re probably familiar with the mainstays of Park Avenue like Briarpatch or Barnie’s, but there’s a range of hidden gems and culinary finds all over Winter Park. Since it’s January 2014 debut, Orlando Food Tours has set out to showcase some of the area’s finest treasures with the Winter Park Walking Food Tour. Last weekend we ventured off the beaten path to taste some of Winter Park’s finest flavors. While we don’t want to spoil all the tour surprises, we do want to share a few highlights from our experience including our interview with Co-Founder, Kiel Cravatta.

Orlando Foods Tour Highlights:

• Prato Pizza Tasting:Unhealthy as it is, I’ve always had a pizza obsession. There’s something about the cheesy, baked bread goodness that always makes my belly happy. The pizza at Prato is uniquely different as the pizza oven was handcrafted in Italy under the direction of Prato’s Chef! During our tour we sampled three different pizzas, including my personal favorite, the Widowmaker with caciocavallo cheese, romesco sauce, fennel sausage and a farm egg baked into the center. After sampling three pizzas and red wine we were happily full.

• Blood Orange Olive Oil:Our original obsession with The Ancient Olive began with our initial visit. During this tour we sampled the most delicious vanilla ice cream topped with their Blood Orange Olive Oil and a dash of sea salt. These toppings made even the Publix ice cream taste gourmet!

• Scorpion Suckers:Okay, so we don’t quite have the stomach for this craziness, but that’s just one of many finds at Sassafras Sweet Shoppe. Nestled quietly behind Park Avenue, this gourmet vintage candy store will delight kids and adults alike! I’m especially fond of the Cry Baby Gum (I once ate an entire jumbo tub in a single month), so I was quite thrilled with a taste of an old favorite!

In addition to our tour we also recently chatted with Kiel Cravatta, Co-Founder of Orlando Food Tours for more on his new business.

What’s Winter Park’s best kept culinary secret?

I’d have to say The Ancient Olive, they have an expansive variety of olive oils and balsamic vinegars, all hand selected by the owners. Their team is very knowledgeable and helpful with everything from selecting olive oils for your kitchen to incorporating specific flavors into a dinner party with their products.

Besides the food, what can guests expect to experience on the tour?

There are a few historical and cultural architecture stops including Casa Feliz and Morse Museum. Additionally, we stop at the last piece of the original train platform!

What will guests taste on most tours?

There’s a large spectrum of flavors and cuisine, all handpicked by our tour guides and staff. We can also fully support any dietary restrictions as well.

Any plans to expand beyond Winter Park?

Definitely! We are thinking about doing an evening tour and moving to other neighborhoods as well. We do have plans to expand and expect to release more details for 2015 soon. Additionally, we are also starting to accommodate private tours for a minimum of eight guests.

For a unique culinary experience visit OrlandoFoodTours.com and book your tour today. Spork readers will receive a 10% discount using the promo code “spork” at checkout. For more on Orlando Food Tours visit their website and Facebook page.