Taste of Winter Park

Excellent advocate for business community. Great org to network with.

Rain or shine… Today it was RAIN but I had a fantastic time.
My wife and I managed to find our way to EVERY tent but since ONE of us can’t drink alcohol, SHE made sure to let me know which wines she likes. This way I can make sure she never runs out of her favorites at home. lol
On a serious note… There were a few stops that made me take notice. Since I never know what my taste buds are going to crave, I added a few bookmarks to the short list…
Carmel Kitchen — That gazpacho was the bomb…
Orchid Thai Cuisine — That explosion of flavor was incredible…
Canope Café — I feel pressed for a Cuban experience…
Umi — Now that’s a bar that I CAN treat myself to… lol
Bosphorous — Stuffed grape leaves and red lentil soup…
John and Shirley’s Catering — Can you deliver the swamp to me???
Peterbrooke Chocolatier — You just forced that chocolate into my mouth… lol
Everybody had something to be proud of but those stops wowed me today!
I felt bad for a few places that the weather played serious havoc on their offerings but that will not stop me from coming to see what the version mother nature did not make soggy… I never let the rain stop me from a getting a sample for my wife and I. It did however allow us to make some new friends under the tent. My determination to keep my wife dry and mother nature’s fury will left me all wet behind the ears. I chose to have fun no matter what mother nature dished out…
After we came back to say hello my new friend at The Wine Barn, I ran into one of my new friends on Unilocal… Apparently her husband and my wife have a similar issue… They both get annoyed at us for making them wait to take a picture of their plates… My wife was a sport and took a picture of us… Give me a Unilocal some time my friend…
After making a silly face with the flat Good Morning America, my wife took a picture of me with the REAL cast. First I had to make a mad dash to Carmel Kitchen’s tent so I could see the expression on your face as you tasted their food. That was a moment in itself my friend! See you in the morning!
After eating all of that food, we took a nice long walk back to the car and soaked in the hot tub taking about all of those tidbits from heaven! I hope to see you all there in 2016 along with a few MORE tents to sample! Until then… you can follow my food adventures on Unilocal!
Mike P

Always a fun springtime foodie affair in Winter Park! This year’s rendition (2014) was an absolutely perfect spring evening to stroll amongst tasty offerings from some of the best restaurants in the area! There are just too many good tastes offered in every direction.
If you go home hungry (no matter of your possible level of ‘finickiness’) then you just ‘need’ something to complain about — There is a little of everything for just about any personal taste! Good job Winter Park Chamber of Commerce — We look forward next year’s Taste of W.P. already!
Side Note: There is commercial firm that seems to play off of the good will of the W.P.C.C. by hosting similar style food/​restaurant tasting events around W.P. for personal profit. Sure, they will ‘parade’ a beneficial charity in the event marketing materials, but only shift a very few, small ‘cash crumbs’ their way following the event. Beware.

Eat and drink ALL THE THINGS! Very few booths not worth waiting for. It sounded expensive until we left stuffed and happy.

First and certainly not last time! Great, chill unpretentious event! Can’t wait until next year!

What a great event!
This year happened to also have phenomenal weather, but the highlight wasn’t even the crazy circular halo around the sun today! As has always been the case– the food was the obvious champion here.
There were so many vendors represented that I couldn’t even count them! There were the standby older restaurants and some that haven’t even opened yet! One example is John Rivers’ The Coop (which only opens tomorrow!). I have been seeing pictures on all of the blogs of private tastings I’ve missed for The Coop and was so excited to get to try the food. And man, oh man, was it outstanding!
Another great dish was the bacon-​wrapped shrimp at Shula’s. I heard tons of people talking about this dish and when I finally got to try it I was not disappointed!
The festival was comfortably full and I never noticed any confusion or issues from an event planning perspective– clearly a well oiled machine! And the singer on stage was really good! She played both new an older songs and had a crowd dancing along by the end (the free booze probably helped!).
I can’t wait to make some reservations at some of these restaurants! FABULOUS event!

This was such a great event, especially for free! I would definitely pay $ 40 for admission next year though. I loved being able to try all the different offerings Winter Park has and speaking to the owners of the restaurants. People attending ranged from Winter Park swank elite to student hipsters. It was a really nice atmosphere, and there was plenty to eat and drink (all included!), and quality was not skimped upon. Really loved coming here, and look forward to it again next year (regardless of comped tickets!).

Huge thanks to Unilocal Orlando for hooking me up with these tickets!
What a great event! There are tons of vendors sharing some wonderful food. By far, Meat House topped my list. Their brisket was absolutely delicious — dare I say it rivaled 4Rivers!?! Winter Park Fish Company’s tuna sashimi is definitely worth a mention as well. It was accompanied by a beautifully fresh seaweed salad.
For the most part, it was the sweets that really got me going. Jeremiah’s was at the top of that list with their mango Italian ice. 4Rivers came in a close second with their margarita Italian ice which was delightfully rimmed with salt. yum!
My only complaint is that there wasnt enough standing tables which made it difficult to enjoy the food at times.

Awesome event — especially for the price (Colleen — great job securing some comp tickets!). Tons of great food from most of the best restaurants in Winter Park — they all did an excellent job putting out quality food with minimal waiting. Almost every restaurant put out 3 – 4 legit different items, which was the perfect way to taste lots of different things.
The best part, everything was inclusive. It wasn’t the type of event where you pay an entry fee, and then get nickel-​and-​dimed for everything you want to eat/​drink. ALL food and ALL drinks were included. Also, there was good live music, plenty of tables to eat at, and a lively crowd — the event had a good energy.
I would definitely pay to attend next year… the only reason it didn’t get 5 stars is because the booze ran out too soon, but next year I’ll just get there earlier.

What can I say that hasn’t already been said?! Oh wait, EVERYTHING because I’m the «honorary first to review», meaning my review will float to the bottom of the list like the Heart of the ocean in Titanic when the stupid old lady selfishly threw it away. Think about how many starving childern she could have saved with all that money! Ok, wow, way off topic…
The Taste of Winter Park was the perfect, not overcrowded food festival that comes second to NONE. The places that participated are every eatery that makes Winter Park so cool. I seriously ate about 5 types of tenderloins, 4 kinds of shrimp, 3 desserts,…the list really could go on in detail about each unique menu item, but that would take forever. The quality of the food was unmatched. The live music was vocally pitch perfect and the casual chill jazz also was a hit with the crowd. There were enough tables to eat off of, and the drinks were plentiful. A PERFECT happy hour/​dinner event that would have otherwise been a boring Wednesday evening.
Will I go back? Of course! Is it better than some OTHER food festivals? ummmm maybe like the disney’s food and wine festival? Hmmm, let me see. Pay to get in Disney, pay to do the food and wine festival, pay for each tiny plate of food… OR pay one fee and eat the best food Orlando has to offer! Game. Set. Match. Taste of Winter Park wins in 3 sets.