Here are some quick tips for fun food events this week, including a honey tasting, local strawberries, mushrooms, and more.
Just like oysters and yogurt, it was a brave culinary explorer who first ate and enjoyed a mushroom. Duck and Drake Kitchen at College Park’s Digress Wine has a Japanese-influenced mushroom risotto you can make at home in the current print edition of Edible Orlando. It works as both an entrée or a side dish. Also look for The Drake Kitchen + Bar opening on N. Rosalind Ave. later this spring.
Edible Orlando is here for you with news of local restaurants, fresh recipes, and each week in the column, the best bits of fun food events in Orlando and nearby. Writer John Graham collects all the options and narrows it down to the big five. (Okay, sometimes six…)
We included St. Patrick’s Day in last week’s roundup, but here’s a bonus Kegs & Eggs Irish Brunch on Saturday at American Social on Sand Lake Rd., 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. Menu specials include Irish Benedict, Jameson French toast, $10 frozen Irish coffee and $6 Guinness.
If you sample 20 kinds of honey in one afternoon, do you get a honey “buzz?” Saturday, 1:30 – 3:00 p.m., you can take a honey-tasting class at Harry P. Leu Gardens and learn your clover honey from your orange blossom honey — and around 28 more. You’ll also learn a bit about beekeeping and the history of honey hunting. Your teacher is environmental scientist and backyard beekeeper Christopher Stalder. Tickets are $23.18, or $17.85 if you’re a Leu Gardens member. 
JoJo’s ShakeBAR celebrates its grand opening at Pointe Orlando on Saturday and Sunday. You might guess from the name that JoJo’s specialized in wild milkshakes such as the limited time Get Lucky (Andes mints, shamrock sugar cookie, pot of gold donut hole, chocolate pretzel, candy ribbon, and optional Jameson Irish Whiskey). In addition to shakes and other sweet treats for both the kids and adults, JoJo’s also serves sandwiches, salads, dinner entrees, cocktails, and weekend brunch.
Just a few tickets left for Wednesday night’s spring edition of Wine & Dine at the Winter Park Farmer’s Market, 6:30 – 9:30 p.m. Expect food samples, beer, wine, liquor, desserts and live music. General Admission to Wine & Dine is $75 plus fees and tax in advance or $100 at the gate of there are any left. VIP tickets are $200 (or $250 at the door) with one-hour early entry and free cocktails and champagne. Wine & Dine is a 21 and older event and no pets are allowed.
Margie Samuels was the person who decided each bottle of Maker’s Mark bourbon should be dipped in red wax. She’s also the first woman from a distillery to be inducted into the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame. Wednesday night, Four Flamingos at Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress will pay tribute to Margie with a three-course Maker’s Mark bourbon pairing dinner, 6- 9 p.m. The menu from Chef Shelby Farrell includes “bruleed” chevre with bacon jam and spiced pecans, bone-in short rib braised with sweet tea and Maker’s 46, and truffled honey peach semifreddo. Tickets are $150 per person plus taxes and fees.
From now until Sunday, March 26, Jaleo at Disney Springs is featuring a seasonal strawberry menu in partnership with Clermont’s Southern Hill Farms (that’s Jaleo’s culinary team up top). The savory side includes a cold strawberry soup with olive oil yogurt ice cream, foie gras mousse with strawberry marmalade, and a salad with cherries, strawberries, goat cheese and Pedro Ximenez sherry reduction. On the sweet side, you might try fresas con nata (strawberries and cream) or Jaleo’s signature Basque-style cheesecake with fresh strawberry sorbet. Southern Hill Farms is also letting folks pick their own strawberries at the farm, Wednesdays through Sundays.
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