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Orlando Taste of the Nation is Saturday; the Last One?

Written By Scott Joseph On August 22, 2016

Orlando Taste of the Nation

Unfortunately, It’s time once again for Share Our Strength’s Taste of the Nation, the event that each time it comes around I find myself hoping it’s the last one.

Oh, don’t get me wrong, it’s a fine event. It features about 65 area restaurants and beverage professionals dishing up tasty representations of their menus’ best and serving wines, beers and cocktails to go with it. It’s a walkabout event, so you can wander around and nibble and sip wherever you wish. You can even keep going back to the ones you like the most.

It takes a venue the size of the grand ballroom at Orlando World Center Marriott to hold it all, and it’s big enough to still have room for a sprawling silent auction display and a stage with live entertainment.

It’s all a lot of fun, and I wish it would stop.

The purpose behind Taste of the Nation is to benefit No Kid Hungry and to end childhood hunger in Central Florida. The mere fact that this event has been going on for nearly three decades demonstrates that the problem of childhood hunger persists. Every dollar raised stays right here in the community and benefits the Coalition for the Homeless, Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida and Florida Impact. Tickets are $150 per person, a pittance considering all of the fine restaurants that are participating, but I’m going to tell you how to get a couple of tickets for less. Read on.

First, some of the basics. The Orlando Taste of the Nation is Saturday, August 27, from 6:45-10 p.m. at the Orlando World Center Marriott, 8701 World Center Dr., Orlando. Tickets are $150 per person and can be purchased at the strength.org website. But when you go to check out, type LASTCHANCE in the box that asks for a Promo Code (this is found on the page after the Citi Cardmember promotion; don’t type it there) and you can get half price on the second ticket when you purchase a pair. (And with the savings, I hope you’ll consider bidding on a silent auction item or four.)

So, two tickets for $225. If the cause alone isn’t enough to tell you it’s worth it, consider the restaurants that will be participating. They include flog favorites Highball & Harvest, Whisper Creek Farms: The Kitchen, K Restaurant and Wine Bar, the Rusty Spoon, The Whiskey, Tapa Toro Tapas Bar and Paella Pit, and Taverna Opa. See below for a full list of participants.

I plan on being there on Saturday. Please consider joining me because, who knows, maybe this will be your LASTCHANCE to experience it.

Here is a list of the 2016 Taste of the Nation participants:

Artist’s Point at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
B Resort & Spa | American Kitchen
Benihana
Black Fire Brazilian Steakhouse
Bosphorous Turkish Cuisine
Café Tu Tu Tango
Canvas Lake Nona
Capa at Four Seasons Resort Orlando
The Capital Grille
CFHLA Food & Beverage Council
Cress Restaurant
Cuba Libre Restaurant & Rum Bar at Pointe Orlando
Dragonfly Robata Grill & Sushi
Eddie V’s
Empress Sissi Cake & Specialty Pastries
Florida Nitro
FreshPoint Central Florida
Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center | Old Hickory Steakhouse
Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center | MOOR
Hemisphere Restaurant at the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport
Highball and Harvest at Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes
JW Marriott Grande Lakes Orlando, featuring Whisper Creek Farms: The Kitchen
K Restaurant and Wine Bar
Marlow’s Tavern
Nestle Professional
Nova Scratch Kitchen
Orlando World Center Marriott
The Osprey Tavern
RA Sushi
Red Wing Restaurant
Restaurant ASH
Rosen Shingle Creek │A Land Remembered
Rosen Shingle Creek │Cala Bella Restaurant
The Rusty Spoon
Seasons 52 Fresh Grill
SeaWorld Orlando
Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida
STK
Tapa Toro Tapas Bar and Paella Pit
Taverna Opa Orlando
The Whiskey
Universal Orlando
Yak & Yeti Restaurant at Disney’s Animal Kingdom

SOS chefs

Beverage Suppliers:

Boricua Beer
Brew Bus USA
Cigar City Brewing
Coca-Cola
Cooper’s Hawk Winery and Restaurant
Crooked Can Brewing Company
Florida Farm Distillers, Home of Palm Ridge Whiskies
JM Smucker Co Beverage/Folger’s Coffee
Lakeridge Winery
Nespresso
Onli Beverage Co.
Orange Blossom Brewing Co.
Orlando Brewing Company
Pernod Ricard
Redlight Redlight Beer Parlour
S. Pellegrino
Small Town Brewery
Tito’s Handmade Vodka
Tsingtao Beer
Uinta Brewing Company
Vermont Hard Cider Co.
Woodchuck Cider

We hope you find our reviews and news articles useful and entertaining. It has always been our goal to assist you in making informed decisions when spending your dining dollars. If we’ve helped you in any way, please consider making a contribution to help us continue our journalism. Thank you.

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