There’s been a lot of buzz lately since the release of the new Avengers film where Iron Man, played by Robert Downey, Jr. gets the gang to try shawarma at the end of the film.

What is Shawarma?
Shawarma is a popular Arab meat preparation, where goat, lamb, chicken, beef, or mixed meats are placed on a spit and grilled and can be served in shavings on a plate or as a pita bread sandwich or wrap made with shawarma meat. Shawarma is eaten with tabbouleh, fattoush, taboon bread, tomato, and cucumber. Toppings include tahini, hummus, pickled turnips and amba.

There are a few places in Orlando where you can pick some Shawarma up, in both platter and gyro sandwich form:

Middle East Market & Deli
http://www.middleeastdeli.com/
8100 S Orange Blossom Trl
Orlando, FL 32809
(407) 855-6555

Habibi USA
http://habibiusa.com/
2451 South Hiawassee Road
Orlando, FL 32835
(407) 802-4242
6651 S. Semoran Blvd. #108
Orlando, FL, 32822
(407)730-3958
8607 Palm Parkway Drive
Lake Buena Vista, Florida 32836
(407) 239-0128 ?

Flame Kabob
7536 Dr Phillips Blvd
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 248-2280

Whitewood Mediterranean Grill
www.whitewoodgrill.com/
1 South Orange Ave
Orlando, FL 32801
(407) 999-8959

Mediterranean Deli and Gyros
9430 E Colonial Dr
Orlando, FL 32825
(407) 271-8937

Chaat House
www.chaathouseorlando.com/
9472 S Orange Blossom Trl
Orlando, FL 32837
(407) 240-4922

Cedar Halal Food & Deli
http://www.facebook.com/Cedarhalalorlando
12100 E Colonial Dr
Orlando, FL 32826
(407) 381-8004

Mediterranean Deli
www.myspace.com/med_deli
981 W Fairbanks Ave
Orlando, FL 32804
(407) 539-2650

Cedar’s Restaurant
http://www.orlandocedars.com
7732 W Sand Lake Rd
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 351-6000

Falafel Cafe
http://www.falafelcafe.com
12140 Collegiate Way
Orlando, FL 32817
(407) 382-6600

Mediterranean Blue
mediterraneanblue.net
435 E Michigan St
Orlando, FL 32806
(407) 422-2583

Balagan Kosher Mediterranean Café
UCF Student Union
4000 Central Florida Blvd
Orlando, FL 32816
(407) 882-0701

Tangierine Café
at Disney’s EPCOT – Morocco Pavilion
1510 North Avenue of the Stars
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830
(407) 939-3463

Avalon Pockets
http://www.avalonpockets.com/
3564 Avalon Park East BLVD
Orlando, FL 32828
Phone: 407-601-6997

Fantastic Hummus Food Truck
Tasty Tuesday in Milk District,Food Truck Bazaar,
Maitland Farmer’s market,College park farmer’s market
http://fantastichummus.com/
Follow them on Twitter
Check their Location

Disney’s Magic Kingdom is currently undergoing some major renovations at its theme park with the new developing Fantasyland, rolling out in phases over the next few years. At the center of the new Fantasyland will be an exciting new ride based on the mine shafts prevalent in the world of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. There is also a new game called “Secret Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom” being played out at the park right now (more on that in a later post).

Not just the theme park itself, but the food and beverage offerings are slowly starting to get a upgrade as well.

Imagine my surprise when I found out – from the very informative and expansive DisneyFoodBlog - that there is a place that serves up waffle sandwiches at Magic Kingdom. On a recent visit with some family and friends, I knew I had to try it.

Located at the Liberty Square, Sleepy Hollow is a little hidden spot just to the left of Cinderella’s Castle probably best known as the only place to get funnel cakes in the entire Kingdom. The small counter-service spot is designed, like the rest of Liberty Square, with a Colonial American period style architecture with brick walls and cobble stoned streets. The staff, also dressed up in colonial garb, can be seen from the window working the waffle irons and making the waffle sammies fresh to order.

They actually had to get rid of the Mickey shaped waffles to accomodate the new menu, much to the chagrin of some Disney purists. The waffle sammie options include a sweet Nutella and fresh fruit waffle sandwich ($5.59), a sweet and spicy chicken or a ham, prosciutto and swiss waffle sandwiches (both $6.99) .

I was pleasantly surprised by the quality, taste, and value of these waffle sammies (large enough for two to snack on, I reckon). The waffles themselves were soft, fluffy, and slightly sweet, large enough for holding all the fillings inside without being too cumbersome for your hands.

My favorite of the bunch was the sweet and spicy chicken, made with lightly fried chicken breast that was slightly tangy, sweet, and crispy with a touch of black pepper and nicely garnished with some slaw and arugula.

The ham, prosciutto, and swiss was by no means a failure, it was pleasant and light, but it definitely did not pack the punch that the sweet and spicy chicken sandwich did.  I think it may need some more prosciutto or maybe some light sauce to liven it up.

Slathered on with a base of nutella spread and filled with fresh strawberries, blueberries, and banana, the nutella and fresh fruit waffle sandwich made for a wonderfully sweet ending,

All in all, the waffle sandwiches brought a very nice culinary and creative touch to the offerings at Magic Kingdom. Don’t miss it on your next visit!

The Menu at Sleepy Hollow

Working the irons, making the waffles fresh to order at Sleepy Hollow

The Sweet and Spicy Waffle Sandwich with arugula and slaw ($6.99)

The Ham, Prosciutto, and Swiss Sandwich with tomato and arugula ($6.99)

The nutella and fresh fruit waffle sandwich filled with fresh strawberries, blueberries, and banana. ($5.59)

The Orlando Weekly, the City Beautiful’s favorite weekly paper, just released their annual BITE dining guide this week, coinciding with the debut of the annual Orlando Weekly Restaurant Week.

Foodies rejoice.

Though not as big as some other city Restaurant Weeks – yet – Orlando Weekly’s Restaurant Week has over 30 strong local contenders for your must-try-foodie list this year.

Today starts the Orlando Weekly’s 5th annual Orlando Restaurant Week (it’s actually 9 days long) from May 3 – May 12, 2012. Restaurants offer a high value, three course prix fixe menu (2 courses for lunch), in addition to their regular menu, from May 3rd to May 12th. No need for special cards or anything…just ask for the Restaurant Week menu. Prix Fixe prices range from $10, $15, $25 to $35 for lunch and dinner. Reservations suggested at $25 and $35 restaurants. Find out more on the menus here: http://www.orlandorestaurantweek.com/restaurants.php

There are some great choices this year including local favorites like The Rusty Spoon and K Restaurant, or more fine dining at Spencer’s Steak and Chops and The Capital Grille, as well as newcomers The Gnarly Barley and food truck event TheDailyCity Food Truck Bazaars. (Check out the Weekly’s excellent reviews on some of the best food trucks here: Meals on Wheels)

Participating restaurants this year include: Blackwater Bar-B-Q, Cricketers Arms Pub, Dylan’s Deli, Linda’s Winter Park Diner, Matteo’s Ristorante, Maxine’s on Shine, OLV, Taverna Opa, The Gnarly Barley, The Nou, Tomasino’s/ Lil’ Anthony’s Pizza, Pine Twenty2, The Food Truck Bazaar – May 4 & 5, The Food Truck Bazaar – May 6 & 11, The Nou, Virgin Olive Market, Copper Canyon, The Capital Grille, Urban Flats, 310 Restaurants (Lakeside and Park South), David’s Club (at the Hilton Orlando on I-Drive), Terrace 390, The Rusty Spoon, Fleming’s Steakhouse – Sand Lake, K Restaurant, Morton’s Steakhouse, Spencer’s for Steaks and Chops, The Melting Pot, The Oceanaire Seafood Room, Treasure Tavern.

I had to look up Treasure Tavern, it appears to be quite intriguing: an adult themed (but not X-rated) dinner variety show with contortionists, singers, dancers, jugglers, and more. Sounds like a fun night on the town.

Whatever you decide to do, get to it, you only have a week and three days to check them all out!

Also….Food and Drink Editor Jessica Bryce Young challenges Restaurant Week diners to an eat-and-snap bout, calling for shots of your edible adventures to be shared via Twitter, Instagram and Foodspotting, using the hashtag #ORW2012 .

Now the Bacon Off is on between two of some of the best food trucks in Orlando:

Big Wheel Truck vs C&S Brisket Bus.

This Father’s Day June 17th noon-4pm,  the battle will be over which truck has the best house cured and house smoked bacon from a worthy list of categories:  Best Original Bacon, Best Novelty Bacon, Best Bacon Side, Best Bacon Product, and Best Grand Champion.

As a first event of it’s kind in Orlando, the $30 ticket price includes a bacon sampler plate from each truck, with tastes of bacon in 5 different categories; guests will vote on their favorite, and the winner of each category receives bacon bragging rights. Ticket price also includes access to a bacon-filled buffet and a free beer.

Tickets are $30 each, and can be purchased at www.baconofforlando.com. Tickets can also be purchased directly from the Big Wheel Truck or the C&S Brisket Bus during service hours.

The competition takes place at the new East End Market in Audubon Park. To be opened in late 2012, the East End Market will be an indoor farmer’s market, open to the public 7 days a week, and will also feature a commercial kitchen, restaurant, event space, office space and adjacent outdoor garden.

Event Producer, Miami’s Sef Gonzalez of Burger Beast, is making his event debut in the Orlando market. Burger Beast’s widely reaching blog promotes Comfort Food in the Southeast, and has supported the rise of Florida’s food trucks. Additional event sponsorships include local blogger and producer Mark Baratelli of The Daily City, and local food blogger Julius Mayo of Droolius.

Let’s get tummies ready to RUMBLE.

Flyer by Jeff Matz of Lure Design Inc, Orlando, FL, Image via TheDailyCity

About:
Big Wheel Food Truck: With a mission to feature the best of Central Florida’s locally sourced food, the Big Wheel Truck rolls around Orlando 6 days a week, bringing handmade, locally sourced food to the masses. Within a year of opening, Big Wheel was named 8 times “Orlando’s Best Food Truck, featured on The Cooking Channel’s Eat Street, the cover of the Orlando Sentinel, the cover of Orlando Weekly, filmed a commercial with Square, and featured in countless Orlando blogs and magazines. www.bigwheeltruck.com www.bigwheelprovisions.com
C&S Brisket Bus: Mobile Gourmet Delicatessen. We cure. We smoke. We braise. Fresh baked bread. House made condiments. Generous portions. http://www.facebook.com/CSBrisketBus
Burger Beast: Sef Gonzalez, better known as Burger Beast, is a respected South Florida Food Blogger, with national reach, who writes about unique food experiences. Although his blog was originally created to find the best burger in Miami, it now represents a publication with the aim to shine light on the often overlooked, undiscovered, and unappreciated culinary gems of South Florida and other noteworthy destinations. Burger Beast has also written for Broward New Times, edible south Florida, The Miami Herald and Ocean Drive Magazine. www.burgerbeast.com

Off of Park Avenue on Morse Blvd, Croissant Gourmet is one of the many joys that I think of when wandering around Winter Park’s popular shopping and restaurant area. In addition to some of the most gorgeous pastries in town this little French bakery, founded by brothers Francois and Phillipe Cahange, also serves up some very delectable sandwiches, quiche, crepes, and salads for lunch. Brother Francois is a patissier, a classically trained pastry chef, from France with a resume that includes several restaurants along the famous Champs-Elysees in Paris. Brother Phillipe along his wife Stephanie have recently started their own bakery shop in nearby College Park called Les Petits Pleasures.

Two display cases hold the wonders of Croissant Gourmet: fruit tarts topped with raspberries and blueberries, éclairs, Napoleons, assorted croissants, apple turnovers, macarons, and many more all made fresh and locally.

Try the almond croissant, a flaky, buttery croissant with a nice sweet, creamy filling of almond paste and topped with almonds and dusted with confectionary sugar. Also good is the rectangular jalousie pastry, similar to a strudel and a play on jalousie-style windows, it’s filled with almond cream and raspberries.

The croque madame sandwich, a variation of the croque monsieur, is deftly made with ham and Gruyere cheese, hand-dipped in egg, then pan-fried in butter to a nice crisp. Finally, the croque is topped with a luscious golden-yellow yolk, sunny-side up egg. The egg yolk oozes down the sandwich when you cut into it, preferably with fork and knife, and eaten together the Croissant Gourmet’s croque madame makes for a truly transcendent experience.

The shop is a bit small and narrow, with only a few tables inside and a bar stool area near the glass case for the bakery items. It can get a bit awkward for patrons who want to sit and enjoy their meal along the bar area with out getting bumped into by others browsing the pastries or lined up to order by the register. Sit outside and enjoy the nice Florida weather with your pastries and people watch those people walking by on the Avenue.

C’est si bon.

Pass me another croissant, s’il vous plaît

Video from ChatChow TV interview with Chef and Owner Francois Cahange

Display of pastries at Croissant Gourmet

Fruit Tart pastry

Napoleon pastry

Almond Croissant and Jalousie

Chocolate Croissant

Chicken salad croissant sandwich

Croque Madame topped with fried egg

This past Tuesday, I ventured out to the intersection of Robinson St and Primrose Drive near the T.G. Lee milk factory for Tasty Tuesdays in the Milk District. I’ve actually come by here a few times in the past month or so on the way home from work to pick up a few items to try for dinner. The convenient thing about this event set up is that all the bars (The Milk Bar, Sandwich Bar, Spacebar, etc.) along Robinson Street in the Milk District area open up to allow you to bring the food in so you have a place to sit with your food. You can order a drink, alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverage of your choice, and enjoy the food with out having to stand around awkwardly or on the street corner squatting like you’re fresh off the boat.

The Milk District has steadily grown in popularity these past few years – I don’t think the name for it has been around for even that long – since Lonely Planet featured them for a CNN article on the top destinations in 2012 which included Orlando.

Check out this great 76 second video from Robert Reid, editor of Lonely Planet on the “real” Orlando, which includes pieces on the Jack Kerouac house in College Park, Viet town in Mills 50 district, and the Milk District

The area is growing and so is Orlando, and I think Tasty Tuesdays is a wonderful event to bring this place to life even more.

Food trucks change almost weekly, so check the Tasty Tuesdays’ Facebook page here for detailed info:
http://www.facebook.com/TastyTuesdaysOrlando

I visited a few trucks that evening, and took a few to go as well. My first stop was Big Wheel Food Truck where I tried their Asian braised duck wings and the heirloom chicken quarter dishes. I’m always amazed at how Chef Tony Adams can create a menu that is so unique, locally-based, and so tasty every week, and served gourmet-style straight out of the food truck at that. I trotted off to the Spacebar to find a seat and snap a few shots while enjoying a nice bottle of Captain Eli root beer from the bar.

Asian Braised Duck Wings $9, duck wings slow braised in soy, mirin, nuoc cham, hoisin, scallion, sesame, rice wine vinegar, sugar, and local honey and served with Fresh Scallion Japanese Sticky Rice and Roasted Enoki Mushrooms

Roasted local heirloom chicken quarter with chorizo, pequillo pepper, and Old Hearth stuffing with dark meat chicken with some creme fraiche $10.50

Inside the Spacebar of the Milk District

BBQ Chicken and gouda empanada from La Empanada truck, pretty much one of the most amazing empanadas in existence

I also visited my old favorite, The Crooked Spoon food truck (check out their video on The Cooking Channel’s Eat Street!! ).

I wanted to see how they were holding up since my last visit many months ago, and I am happy to report that they are still as amazing as ever.

I ordered the Crooked Spoon burger, their signature angus beef burger with onion marmalade, spring mix of greens, tomato, swiss cheese, and chipotle aioli all encased in a lightly charred, toasted brioche bun. The burger was cooked to perfection, soft, flavorful, savory and sweet. One of the very best burgers in Orlando bar none. It’s served with a side of housemade rosemary seasoned potato chips in a paper bag. I could seriously eat this every day.

Hats off to the team over there at the Crooked Spoon for all of their hard work in that hot trailer kitchen and still creating some wonderful dishes for us to taste.

The Tasty in Tasty Tuesdays in the making

Homemade rosemary seasoned potato chips

The Crooked Spoon burger, one of the best burgers in Orlando, an angus beef burger with onion marmalade, spring mix of greens, tomato, swiss cheese, and chipotle aioli all encased in a lightly charred, toasted brioche bun

If you’ve ever been out to Lake County on scenic County Road 48, you probably have heard of this authentic little German bakery called Yalaha Bakery, housed in a rather quaint country village building off the road – like out of a scene from the Sound of Music. Known for their hearty multigrain and rye breads and mouthwatering pastries, Yalaha Bakery has been a culinary staple in Lake County for over 17 years now with many a foodie venturing out to the shop there to sample their freshly baked goods.

In August of 2011, co-owners Juergen and Anna Marie Klumb opened a charming little neighborhood outpost near downtown Orlando off of Orange Avenue just across from Lake Ivanhoe (in the Ivanhoe Village District, just a few shops south of Ethos Vegan).

Anne Marie Klumb manages this location, staffed by friendly and helpful workers who are eager to help out with suggestions. The local Yalaha Bakery in Orlando has their breads and pastries shipped in from their home-base bakery in Lake County fresh each morning.

An impressive wall of freshly baked German style bread loaves and rolls line up one side of the bakery, ranging from pretzel breads to rye to pumpernickel and more. The bread here is of high quality and made with fresh, natural ingredients – free of preservatives and chemical additives. A case of traditional German deli meats, bratwursts, and sandwiches sits on one side of the shop, and an espresso machine stands nearby ready to serve up some great cappuccino and coffee for the early risers.

But to me, the main attraction is the beautiful display of colorful, sweet pastries and cakes at the center.

German apple pies, peach and apple strudels, black forest cake, apple Normandy, lemon ginger cookies, frangipan butter cookies filled with raspberries, and more, line the display, beckoning your sweet tooth to bite in through the glass case. So many choices – it can be a bit overwhelming when you want to try them all.

I would recommend the bee sting cake, a unique, moist cake filled with Bavarian cream and topped with almonds and orange blossom honey, a truly delightful treat. It comes as a huge square, big enough to share, but you won’t because you’ll want to savor it for later, thinking of those rolling hills and country village houses, the place where Yalaha bakes magic into their pastries and breads.

Artistic interpretation of the Yalaha Country Bakery in Lake County

Pretzel cheese loaf – try it

Display of pastries

List of daily bread

Black forest slice cake

The bee sting, filled with bavarian creme, topped with almonds and orange blossom honey

——

A restaurant crawl typical consist on having a group of people walking from one restaurant to another purchasing appetizers. On the other hand, a food tour usually includes the food that will be tasted on the ticket price. There are food tours in New York that combine both the idea of a food crawl and a food tour – and that is when the tour guide already has tastings selected that people can buy or not but they will not be choosing from a menu like in a restaurant crawl.

Now, I don’t know you but when I visit another city I am always confused with the amount of information you can find online on where to have “the best meal” so a food tour is a good option for people that want to discover a city through its diverse culinary offerings.

Miami Culinary Tours offers two distinctive Miami food tours. The South Beach Food Tour takes visitors and locals to try all the different types of cuisine at some of the best restaurants in Miami Beach. Not all of the stops are gourmet restaurants which makes the experience for a more authentic taste of the beach as within one block you can have a top Food Network chef run restaurant and then right next door a small, family owned one. Miami Culinary Tours bring you to places from five star gourmet to off-the-beaten path delicious restaurants so that participants can get a better sense of the options available while learning the ingredients and getting familiar with the culture behind the food.

At the Little Havana Food Tour guests get to try traditional, rustic Cuban cuisine at family run restaurants in the famous neighborhood where you can find roosters on every corner; Little Havana.

At both food tours guests also learn about the area’s history and different types of architecture that can be found in South Beach and Little Havana.

Regards,
Grace Della - Miami Culinary Tours

via Buzzfeed

Morgan C., a reader and friend of TastyChomps.com, recently e-mailed me about Katie Paiva of Heartsong Cookies and her dreams of owning her food truck. Here is what he told me:

“Well, for starters, the woman behind the operation is one of the most generous, kind, and amazing women I’ve ever met. She makes everyone she comes in contact with feel loved by offering a hug with each cookie she sells (or more often than not gives away). She has been working with individuals who have struggled with low self confidence and other challenges by getting them in the kitchen with her, working with her at the Maitland and Lake Mary Farmer’s Market, and naming cookies after them. The effect she has on her surrounding community is incredible.

Secondly, her cookies are hands down the best I’ve ever had (and I’ve had a lot of cookies!). She has special baking techniques that require her constant care and attention at the oven, but make her cookies phenomenal. She also experiments with crazy flavor combinations like Andes Mint S’more, Ginger Peach Almond, White Chocolate Blueberry Pecan, Dark Chocolate with Cayenne and Pepitas, and on and on. She even incorporates beer and potato chips to some of her cookies! If you were to ask her to create a special cookie flavor for you, she would show up to the Farmer’s Market next week having experimented with your request and with a delicious treat named after you. And she would probably give you a bag for good measure. And definitely a hug.

Finally, her passion and integrity always astound me. She has been a friend of mine for a couple of years now, and each and every time we talk about the effect the business has on her life she begins to cry. She works a full time job on top of Heartsong Cookies (sometimes more than full time), but still manages to bake for her regular orders at Kappy’s in Maitland and Bikes, Beans, Bordeaux in Winter Park, special orders, charity events like Relay for Life, and then just some extras for people who need some sweetness in their lives. Shes up all hours of the night most nights, but is constantly energized by the effect her cookies have on people. Its like magic.

Shes hoping to have a cookies and milk truck up and running this summer, which is why we’re trying to get the word out about her story. She would LOVE to do a food truck where she can drive her cookies to food truck pod events and charity events and also provide milk with homemade syrups and ice cream for ice cream/cookie sandwiches. Is there anything more comforting to the soul than a good glass of milk and a cookie?

If you need more info on the company/food truck project you can watch the video on her Kickstarter page at: http://kck.st/IBvF0f“

After many hug filled weekends at Lake Mary and Maitland Markets, Heartsong Cookies is ready to take the next step in its business growth. It is ready to be a dynamic part of the Central Florida community participating in food truck pod events, festivals and fundraisers. The owners are in the process of acquiring a 1977 vintage ice cream truck, which will be transformed into the Heartsong Cookies and Moo Truck. To do this they need your help to make the necessary repairs, wrap the truck in Heartsong finery and add equipment such as a generator and portable sink. In addition to a variety of cookie flavors, the Heartsong Cookies and Moo Truck will serve icy cold milk flavored with homemade syrups like chocolate, coffee, caramel and strawberry. Future plans include Heartsong Cookies ice cream sandwiches. Katie promises to continue to produce the best cookies filled with creativity and love, to pass out hugs every day and to foster a groundswell of the Power of Good within our community.

Check them out today and help out Heartsong Cookies and Moo truck become a reality!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2046188010/heartsong-cookies-and-moo-truck

PLEDGE $1 OR MORE
Heartsong Cookies button and a hug.
Estimated Delivery: Jun 2012

PLEDGE $5 OR MORE
A Hug bag with two Heartsong Cookies, a button and a hug.
Estimated Delivery: Jun 2012

PLEDGE $15 OR MORE
A basket of 6 Heartsong Cookies dressed in Heartsong finery, a button and a hug.
Estimated Delivery: Jun 2012

PLEDGE $25 OR MORE
A VIP invitation to the Inaugural Heartsong Cookies and Moo Truck party, a basket of 6 Heartsong Cookies, a button and a hug.
Estimated Delivery: Jun 2012

PLEDGE $50 OR MORE
A Heartsong Cookies T-shirt, a cookie named in your honor, a VIP invitation to Inaugural party, a basket of 6 Heartsong Cookies, a button and a hug.
Estimated Delivery: Jun 2012

PLEDGE $100 OR MORE
A basket of 24 Heartsong Cookies dressed in Heartsong finery, a cookie named in your honor, a VIP invitation to Inaugural party, a T-shirt, a button and a hug.
Estimated Delivery: Jun 2012

PLEDGE $250 OR MORE
A cookie tasting and beverage pairing party for 15, a cookie named in your honor, a VIP invitation to Inaugural party, a T-shirt, a button and a hug.
Estimated Delivery: Jul 2012

PLEDGE $500 OR MORE
A cookie catering for 50, a cookie named in your honor, a VIP invitation to Inaugural party, a T-shirt, a button and a hug.
Estimated Delivery: Jul 2012

PLEDGE $1,000 OR MORE
You are officially a Big Hugger with your name on the Heartsong Cookies and Moo Truck, a cookie catering for 100, a cookie named in your honor, a VIP invitation to Inaugural party, a T-shirt, a button and a hug.