• Wine Quest, the annual tasting event that supports the work of Quest in assisting people with developmental disabilities, is going to be virtual this year. It will feature a live show from 6:30 to 8:15 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25, with a raffle, a live auction and a silent auction, the latter, I suppose, for those who don’t know how to unmute themselves. There will be a wine tasting, too, of course, led by Tim Varan of Tim’s Wine Market. But if you want to taste, you’ll have to buy the wines ahead of time. For information on how to do that and to reserve your free ticket, visit the Virtual Wine Quest site.
• Christner’s Prime Steak & Lobster is hosting a virtual Maker’s Mark tasting on Sept. 21 or 24 hosted by the bourbon maker’s distillery diplomat, DeNiro Fisher. The Zoom session begins at 7 p.m. on both dates, but you have drop by the Lee Road steakhouse beforehand to buy a bottle (or two) of Christner’s Private Select ($70 for one or $130 for two). I guess if you buy two bottles you can Zoom in on both evenings. Details here.
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Fall on the Farm sounds like it might be a case for a personal injury attorney, but no, it’s a brand new celebration at Grande Lakes Orlando’s Whisper Creek Farm every Saturday and Sunday in October and November.

The event, a way to say welcome to autumn and what the heck took you so long, is open to the general public – you don’t have to be a guest at the Ritz-Carlton or JW Marriott (but if you want to be, I have details on how to do that below).

Throughout each day, our friends at the resort will offer family-friendly activities, such as hayrides, arts and crafts and pumpkin carving. And because this is Grande Lakes Orlando, the resort’s Olympic medalist and two-time world champion culinary artist and carver Victor Dagatan will be on hand to help you get past the classic triangle-eyed gourd.

Need more? How about learning about falconry and beekeeping and getting tips on fly fishing?

And of course there will be food and drink from some of our favorite restaurants there.

And all of this is just $35 per person, but keep in mind that reservations are required and space will be limited to assure social distancing.

Fall on the Farm will take place every Saturday and Sunday in October and November from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. To purchase tickets, call the resort at 407-206-2400 or send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

And for information on booking overnight guestrooms, go to grandelakes.com and use promotional code MAJ. Use that link to get more information about the Fall on the Farm event. And be sure to watch your step.

I wasn’t at all sure how it would travel, but I knew I had to have the lavas when I got takeout from Bosphorous, the Turkish restaurant on Park Avenue (and other locations).

Lavas, as anyone who has dined at Bosphorous knows, is the signature “hollow bread,” also sometimes called balloon bread because it poofs up with steam when it’s baked. The first time I saw it I called it Jiffy Pop bread because that’s what it reminded me of.

The reason I had to have the bread was because instead of two entrees, my companion and I decided to get just one main dish and then order the mixed appetizer platter. And because the meze includes such things as hummus, babaganoush and other dippy things, the bread was a must-have-too.

Want a chance to taste a lot of burgers? You’ll want to be at the Promenade at Sunset Walk for its “Best of” Challenge: Burger Edition, Saturday, Oct. 3 beginning at high noon.

It’s an outdoor event, and if you’ve seen the sizable Promenade, you know it’s amenable to social distancing.

The event will pit the burgers of 12 restaurants from the Promenade and adjoining properties of Margaritaville Resort Orlando and H2O Live! Water Park. VIP limited tasting admission is $15 including tax and fees. And you will get a chance to vote for your favorite via text. There are a limited number of tickets, so click here to reserve yours now.

The emcee for the event is the eponymous host of the Jim Colbert Show on RealRadio 104.1. (They’d never hire a host from FakeRadio.) The day will also include a live band and a car cruise.