Italio Hosts REIGNING CHAMPION Orlando City Soccer Lions Players Jamie Watson and Dennis Chin November 9th

On Saturday, November 9, from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m., Orlando Fan-favorite Lions players Jamie Watson and Dennis Chin from the reigning champion team, Orlando City Soccer Club, will make an appearance for a meet-and-greet and signing at Italio in Winter Park. Italio will also be offering a complimentary entrée to all fans who visit Italio that day wearing Lions paraphernalia.

With the recent excitement surrounding the Orange County Board of Commissioners’ fund approval for a downtown soccer stadium, Italio, a fast-casual Italian restaurant, is proud to announce an Orlando Lions signing and complimentary entrée event on Saturday, November 9. For the entire day, guests that wear Orlando Lions paraphernalia will receive one complimentary entrée. From 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., fan favorite Lions players Jamie Watson and Dennis Chin will be onsite for the meet-and-greet and signing. A complimentary photograph will be given to guests for the players to sign during the event.

The Orlando Lions are part of Orlando City Soccer Club, a fully-integrated professional soccer organization that is aiming to be in Major League Soccer by 2015. Customers are encouraged to share images from the day via Italio’s social media outlets: Facebook.com/ItalioKitchen, Twitter.com/Italio and Pinterest.com/ItalioKitchen.

Italio offers fresh Italian ingredients at affordable prices for the everyday, casual diner. The quick-service restaurant encourages guests to create their own experience with a menu designed to mix and match proteins, vegetables and house-made sauces to build custom dishes. Unique to the menu are Italio’s signature piadinas that nod to Roman street food. The Winter Park location is situated at 276 South Orlando Avenue and is open Sunday through Monday from 10:45 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

Italio
276 South Orlando Ave.
Winter Park, FL 32789

Wine Room On Park Hosts 5th Annual Winefest November 10, 2013

The Wine Room on Park Avenue’s presents:

The Wine Room’s 5^th Annual Winefest

Sunday, November 10, 2013 from 2-5pm

$75 Per Person, Tickets may be purchased at www.thewineroomonline.com

The Wine Room on Park Avenue will be hosting a wine tasting event featuring over 50 exquisite, hand-selected wines, complemented with hors d’oeuvres and premium artisan cheeses imported for this exclusive event. Tickets are limited and each wine will be offered at very special purchase prices, valid only during the Winefest event.

Here is a partial sampling of some of the wines available to taste and to purchase by the bottle:

Ghost Block Cabernet
Pahlmeyer “Jayson” Red
Autard Chat du Pape
Alto Moncayo “Veraton”
Zuccardi “Q” Malbec
Shaya Verdejo
Dr Thanisch Bern. Badstube Kabinett
Rossignole Sancerre, Veille Vignes
Trentadue Chocolate Amore
Cloudy Bay Te-Koko Sauvignon Blanc
Newton “Unfiltered” Chardonnay
Domaine Chandon Pinot Meunier
Moet & Chandon “Ice Imperial”
Chandon “Etolie” Brut
Bodega Norton “Privada”
Ornellaia “Le Volte”
Groth Sauvignon Blanc
Star Lane Cabernet
Chat. Montelena Chardonnay
Pride Mountain Cabernet
Royal Tokaji 5 Puttonyos

To elevate the winefest experience, The Wine Room on Park Avenue has brought in a special variety of artisan cheeses and cured meats selected based on seasonality, tradition and flavor. Expect premium local cheeses like Cremont and Snow White cheddar as well as European favorites of Comte and Manchego. The anticipated cured meats include the iconic Jamon Serrano, Prosciutto di Parma, along with new American Salumi, La Quercia and Framani.

During the event, the wine serving system is not not available for use. The Wine Room on Park will be opening to the public at 7pm and the machines will be once again be available. Contact the Wine Room on Park  for further information and be sure to sign up for their email list for more special event information.

The Wine Room on Park Avenue
270 Park Ave S
Winter Park, FL 32789
(407) 696-9463

Operating Hours:
Monday – Wednesday • 3:00pm – Midnight
Thursday • 12:00pm – Midnight
Friday – Saturday • 11:00am – 1:30am
Sunday • 1:00pm – 11:00pm

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Brunch: Prato

My last few visits to Prato have been for brunch. The substantial weekday lunch menu is expanded on the weekends to offer Colazione, which is Italian for breakfast.

Rosemary-Brown Butter Waffles, Candied Bacon Walnuts on the side.

The most recent addition to the breakfast options is the Rosemary-Brown Butter Waffles with Heirloom Apples and Bacon-Candied Walnuts. The tender waffles had a nice texture and showcased the apples with a light crème anglaise. The predominate flavor of the dish was pleasingly apple, not spices or sweetness. It would be easy to enjoy the waffles solo and they made a very nice plate to share, balancing out our savory selections.

Potato Gnocchi with Alba Mushrooms, Local Corn, Garlic Chive

My dining companion and I also ordered the small plates of the Potato Gnocchi and Butternut Squash Agnolotti. The Potato Gnocchi featured lots of nice Alba mushrooms, which have a substantial meaty texture. Local corn provided pops of sweetness that the garlic chives counterbalanced.

Butternut Squash Agnolotti being hand-formed by Prato’s chef.

We lucked out and arrived as the chef was hand forming the last of the Butternut Squash Agnolotti. Watching the hand filled pasta getting the finishing touches really brought home the attention put into each dish at Prato.

Butternut Squash filled Agnolotti ready to be cooked.

While the pasta was beautiful to look at, I assure you it tastes even better than it looks.

Butternut Squash Agnolotti, Sage-Brown Butter Sauce & Spiced Pepitas

The Sage-Brown Butter sauce is a light and velvety accompaniment to the Agnolotti. The filling is Butternut Squash mixed with ricotta and provides a more savory note that you might expect. Spiced pepitas (toasted pumpkjn deeds) and plump currants round out the dish with pleasing textures and layers of flavor. This is my third time enjoying this particular version of the Butternut Squash Agnolotti and somehow it keeps getting better. The lunch menu is available Wednesday-Sunday 11:30AM-3:00PM, with breakfast additions available on Saturday and Sunday. While you may luck out and stumble upon an open table, reservations are strongly recommended.

Prato
124 N Park Ave
Winter Park, FL 32789
(407) 262-0050

Lunch
Wed-Sun: 11:30am-3:00pm
Dinner
Mon-Sat: 5:30pm-11pm
Sun: 5:30pm-10pm
Late Night Menu Available After 11 PM

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Event Recap: Cupcakes, Cateyes and Cocktails with Emily Ellyn on 10/18/2013

The Winter Park Fashion Week is almost upon us and to get things rolling SEE Eyewear, Gigi’s Cupcakes and Emily Ellen along with delicious cocktails made by Michael Joshua Ring, Master of Whiskey and Brand Champion for the Brown-Forman family of fine whiskies got the party started.

Cole’s Classic Cars For Hire brought this fully restored beauty, perfect photo op with the historic Colony sign as a backdrop!

This fully restored beauty was courtesy of Cole’s Classic Cars For Hire and is popular at custom car shows. The vivid turquoise classic was certainly popular with the ladies! Cole’s will deliver the rented car of your choosing to your own private event and created a memorable photo opportunity. Jim Hobart of Macbeth Photography coaxed and captured the inner retro pinup of the gals who attended.

Retro hats and fascinators from The Rad Hattress Shoppe by Tiffany Namey

Sweet and sassy handmade retro hats and fascinators from The Rad Hattress Shoppe by Tiffany Namey were modeled in several photos and worn by Emily Ellyn at the event.

Emily posed for lots of pictures, autographed items and helped the gals create their own Retro Rad look with the chic frames available at SEE Eyewear.

Food Network star Emily Ellyn was back sporting her Retro-Rad SEE Eyewear Cateyes and helped attendees find their modern and retro Cateye favorites from the extensive SEE frame collection.

SEE has so many ways to wear a cute Cateye!

The fabulous Cateyes were everywhere, from the eyeglass frames guests tried on, to to the Cateye cupcakes from Gigi’s Cupcakes of Orlando, Florida.

Custom Cateye cupcakes from cateye cupcakes from Gigi’s Cupcakes of Orlando, Florida.

The delicious mini cupcakes were Chocolate, Vanilla and a seasonally available Pumpkin with a tasty cream cheese frosting. Mini’s are available at Gigi’s daily in select rotating grab and go flavors, or can be ordered in advance in your favorite flavors. I’d recommend the pumpkin, any day.

Michael Joshua Ring, Master of Whiskey, shook up a delicious Cateye Cocktail featuring Old Forrester Whiskey lemonade, honey simple syrup, and fresh basil.

And rounding out the fun event was the Cateye Cocktail. The refreshing drink was somewhat dangerous, as the well-balanced cocktail was very smooth and went down easy. Very easy! Michael also whipped up the quintessential Old-Fashioned- also delicious. Check out the Macbeth Photography Facebook page for event photographs and the retro guest pin up portraits and join in the many festivities of Park Avenue Fashion Week.

Cows ‘n Cabs- Gourmet Evening For A Great Cause

I recently had the chance to speak with John Rivers of 4 Rivers Smokehouse about the upcoming Cows ‘n Cabs event, held under tents on the Central Park West Meadow on Saturday, October 26th. For the third year running, 100% of the proceeds will go to charity, this year the proceeds will benefit Community Food and Outreach Center and Elevate Orlando. There will be food, wine, craft beer and live country music from Jill’s Cashbox along with a series of silent auction items. The walk-about event will feature wine and craft beer tastings, along with gourmet food stations from popular area restaurants including 4 Rivers Smokehouse, K Restaurant, Cask & Larder, Cress, Cuisiners Catering and more. If you are in search of culinary delights, this is an evening that should not be missed.

When I asked about organizing such a large affair, John indicated that the chefs and restauranteurs he approached were immediately excited to be a part of the charity event. “I think this is a great opportunity to let the Chefs and their staff spread their wings and get creative. Being outside with the Western theme, allows everyone to have some fun.” Indeed. John is expecting a 225-250 pound whole hog at the 4 Rivers station, where a traditional southern pig pickin’ will be presented. First, the hog will be brined, then cooked low and slow over hickory and charcoal embers for about 28 hours in a cinder block oven that is being custom built for the occasion. The perfectly done hog will then be laid out, in all its glory, center-stage for guests to walk around to indicate what succulent bits they would like picked by the 4 Rivers staff. Listening to the enthusiasm (unadulterated glee) in John’s voice as he described the locally sourced hog and cooking process was only matched by his anticipation of cooking great food in a new way to serve up to happy guests.

Cowboy attire is encouraged so grab your cowboy hat and boots, or don your spangled cowgirl chic and get ready for a night of great food and great people working together for a great cause. Both VIP and regular tickets are currently available online.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2013
VIP hour 6 – 7 p.m. / General Admission 7 – 10 p.m.
Tickets are $110
VIP Ticket is $140, VIP ticket attendees are allowed to enter at 6 p.m.

Central Park – West Meadow
150 New York Ave.
Winter Park, FL

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Sunday Bloody Sunday: Bloody Mary Bar At Marlow’s Tavern Brunch

I’m a fan of Brunch. I’m not a breakfast person during the week, so eating breakfast foods during the lunch hour on the weekends is pretty swell. Add a mimosa or Bloody Mary and I’m in the zone. Marlow’s Tavern in Winter Park has added a full à la carte brunch menu on Saturday and Sunday. My first visit was very enjoyable and the food was great.

The extensive Bloody Mary bar at Marlow’s Tavern, so many choices.

During brunch hours on Sunday, the Bloody Mary bar takes over the enclosed patio bar area. There was every component imaginable to make a delicious Bloody Mary from scratch or somewhat scratch.

The helpful staff guides you through the process table-side, but the signage is helpful!

After choosing your vodka and rim seasoning, start with a base of plain tomato juice, V8 or one of several premade Bloody Mary mixers. From there, add some savory spice with garlic powder, celery salt, onion powder, crushed red pepper and more.

Pipettes of Worcestershire sauce allow the addition of your perfect amount of savory goodness.

Pipettes of Worcestershire sauce, bottles of hot sauce and fresh horseradish finish the makings for the perfect Bloody. Then it’s on to the garnish section! So many fresh and pickled veggies to skewer and finally, several types of regular and stuffed olives.

Old Bay rim, my from scratch family recipe Bloody Mary with lots of horseradish, Tabasco, Worcestershire sauce and a garden of veggies to garnish. Blue cheese stuffed olives were great!

The perfect Bloody Mary? Yep. The Bloody Mary fixins bar is available for $2.00, in addition to the price of the vodka. My friend and I enjoyed the house vodka, for $6.95 (+ $2.00) which was a generous pour of Smirnoff. Premium and ultra premium brands are also available. On my visit I was informed that the Bloody Mary Bar will soon include premium garnish items like bacon and cocktail shrimp. Thinking I may need a small plate for my next trip through the Marlow’s Tavern Bloody Mary fixins bar.

Marlow’s Tavern, Winter Park

1008 S. Orlando Avenue (17-92)
Winter Park, FL 32789

Hours of Operation
Sun -Thu: 11:30am – 11pm
Fri – Sat: 11:30am – 12am

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Enjoying The Local Scene in Winter Park

Hubby and I had friends in town visiting and followed my usual suggestions of how to enjoy a Saturday morning in Winter Park. Coincidentally, we were celebrating our anniversary with a night at the new Alfond Inn.

The Alfond Inn

Which, is a lovely treat. I’ll write more later on our festive Alfond experience- for a sneak peek you can check out my Instagram or Twitter feed. We walked the few blocks down New England Avenue to the Winter Park Farmers Market to meet our friends.

A beautiful morning at the Winter Park Farmer’s Market.

The great weather meant a busy market morning, we enjoyed looking at the unusual plants and goodies. Our group left with ripe tomatoes, olive tempenade, a few starter tomato plants, golden thyme and a small staghorn fern.

Asian Snow bush at the Winter Park Farmer’s Market

I’ll be back for the Asian Snow bush, since we were off to walk Park Avenue and explore we had to limit ourselves. Our group enjoyed strolling the Avenue window shopping and picking up items in the local shops while we chatted- before we knew it, lunchtime arrived and we were ready for a bite. Prato offered a nice lunch menu with two brunch options.

Lunch starter at Prato: Grilled Candy Stripe Fig Crostini

We started with the Fig Crostini to share and enjoyed salads, pizza and pasta for the main meal. Our guests enjoyed the experience and raved about the meal. Before we knew it our time was up and they had to head back out of town. They are already looking forward to heading back for another visit to explore more of what Winter Park has to offer. Though we live here, we know just how they feel!

The Wine Room on Park Extends Artisan Fromage Cave To The Classroom

Tasting order: Honig, Lamborn, Markham, Frog’s Leap and Twenty Rows

Walking through the newly remodeled Wine Room on Park, you pass numerous banks of Enomatic wine dispensers, cozy seating areas and a welcoming bar area with a fully stocked gourmet cheese counter. Continuing on, you leave the social bustle behind as you descend into the lower lounges and special events rooms. I attended a recent cheese pairing class to learn more about some of the best United States female artisan cheese producers. Along with the five cheeses, there were five perfectly paired wines. If you are interested in those wines and on Vivino, follow me to sip along with what I’m sampling.

Artisan cheeses waiting for the wine pairings. Cheers!

Those who attended the sold out class were fortunate to have the experience of Maitre Fromager Waldemar Albrecht select the cheeses from properties he has personally visited and worked with over the years. Wademar received training in cheese from industry leaders, including Debra Dickerson, Janet Tarlov, Daphne Zepos, and Juliana Uruburu. Waldemar became a full time Maitre Fromager at Artisanal restaurant, is a member of the Faculty at Artisanal Premium Cheese and he now consults while traveling the world seeking out the best artisan cheeses.

Maitre Fromager Waldemar Albrecht wraps up his class.

Waldemar spent quite a bit of time going through why certain wines pair best with certain cheeses and encouraged us to embrace all things fermented. And, yes, sampling through rare and decadent cheeses is a very nice way to spend an evening.

Lamborn Family “Mary-Hana” Rosé with Montenebro from Avila, spectacular pairing!

While I thoroughly enjoyed all of the cheeses, I thought the Montenebro from Avila Spain was really something unique and special. The goats milk cheese was rich and nutty; complimented by the well rounded Lamborn “Mary-Hana” Rosé, which had a nice floral nose and delightfully balanced acidity. The Montenebro also paired beautifully with both the mild and the bolder red wines poured.  The class enjoyed the luxurious Cremonte (cow & goat mixed), Marieke Gouda (cow’s milk), Quicke’s Cheddar (cow’s milk) and Point Reyes Original Blue (cow’s milk) – each cheese completely delicious for different reasons. Attendees learned about the origins of the cheese and how each is made, sampled the cheeses with paired wines and dissected the flavors. This is an informative and enjoyable evening for a beginner, intermediate or advanced wine enthusiast who loves artisan cheeses. After class, a few of us headed upstairs to make some selections to enjoy at home.

A wine for everyone; White- crisp & light, Rose- fruity & balanced acidity, Red- smooth & mellow.

The next cheese class with Waldemar is Monday, September 30th at 6:30PM and Waldemar is planning to be back in Orlando for a December 2013 class. Contact the Wine Room on Park for class and tastings information and be sure to sign up for their email list for more special event information.

The Wine Room on Park Avenue

270 Park Ave S
Winter Park, FL 32789
(407) 696-9463

Operating Hours:

Monday – Wednesday • 3:00pm – Midnight
Thursday • 12:00pm – Midnight
Friday – Saturday • 11:00am – 1:30am
Sunday • 1:00pm – 11:00pm

Winter Park Sip & Stroll

It’s been a year or so since I’ve Sipped my way around Park Avenue. The quarterly function is organized by the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce and the Park Avenue Merchants Association. The popular wine event is a nice way to gain knowledge of the variety businesses along Park Avenue.

We were invited to this Sold Out event by Yelp Orlando, were quickly checked in and with glasses in hand we were on our way. The pink logo (wine glass) signs were posted outside of all participating venues, making the route easy to navigate.

Attendees were also given a map to guide them. As you can see, the participants stretched up and down Park Avenue. Most stops had a white and a red wine with an accompanying food item. Some stops went all out, with several different wine selections, bubbly and numerous gourmet food pairings.

We enjoyed chatting with attendees and merchants alike. Happily, it was a beautiful sunset on Park Avenue and the rain held off until after the 8pm ending time.

Thanks to Yelp Orlando and the many nice shops and restaurants who hosted such a nice event! The Winter Park Sip & Stroll is a fun event that is getting bigger and better with each passing year.

Marlow’s Tavern, Winter Park

I popped into the new Marlow’s Tavern, Winter Park location shortly after it opened in June. The space is divided between a spacious dining room, inside bar and enclosed patio and bar area. I’ve enjoyed the main dining room with a meal and the outdoor patio area with drinks and appetizers. Both are great options!

Enjoying live music in the enclosed patio. Roof+AC means summertime heat and storms in Florida cannot interfere with a fun Happy Hour ambiance!

The service is friendly and the food is prepared well. For meals, Hubby has enjoyed the burger and the steak sandwich, I’ve enjoyed the Shrimp and Grits and a Grilled Salmon Caesar salad. The chefs on the grill make tasty work of their stations. The flame grilled salmon and burger both had a nice smokey char that imparted a great savory flavor.

Drinks from the bar often have some type of unique twist- the signature margarita has a ginger zip added to the freshly squeezed lime juice and agave. Very refreshing on a hot Florida day. The Grapefruit Ricky is made with freshly squeezed Pink Grapefruit juice and gin. If craft beers are more your calling, they are rotated through the taps. On our most recent visit Orange Blossom Pilsner, a popular local craft beer, was what Hubby ordered.

Marlow’s Ginger Margarita- refreshing and great flavor!

If you are a fan of kicking back with an appetizer and a few beverages after work, consider ordering the JT’s kettle chips, one of the flatbreads that rotate out each week or the Firecracker Shrimp. Asparagus Fries and the Shrimp & Crab nachos are also great options to feed a hungry group.

Shrimp & Crab Nacho Plate- Rock Shrimp, Crab, Pepper Jack Cheese, and Fresh Jalapeño

Firecracker Shrimp- Crispy Tempura Shrimp with a Cracklin’ Spicy Sauce and Sweet Chili Sauce

Asparagus Fries- Crispy Thin Asparagus with Tarragon, Citrus Aioli

JT’s Kettle Chips – Crispy Potato Chips Crowned with Gorgonzola Cheese, Bacon, Roma Tomato and Scallions

Live music can be enjoyed Thursday through Sunday, while played live on the enclosed patio the music is piped through the restaurant and bar. On the evenings we’ve been in the performers were so enjoyable that sometimes couldn’t discern when the musician went on break and the satellite radio took over. Though Marlow’s Tavern has just opened, they already have exciting news. September 2013 will being the addition of Brunch, we are looking forward to full details in the near future.

Happy Hour is 3-6 pm daily

Marlow’s Tavern, Winter Park

1008 S. Orlando Avenue (17-92)
Winter Park, FL 32789

Hours of Operation
Sun -Thu: 11:30am – 11pm
Fri – Sat: 11:30am – 12am

 

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