SoDo After Dark shows off the Orlando neighborhood’s nightlife this weekend
First Earth Fare reopens and now this event? Everything’s coming up SoDo. This weekend you’ll have a chance to acquaint yourself with the nocturnal side of this neighborhood with an evening of music and revelry dubbed SoDo After Dark. Orlando Brewing hosts a Saturday night of sounds from the Swamp Donkeys and Mars Wagon, food…
Orlando Police draw guns on stunt cyclists in viral TikTok clip
@riskie_e What you think happen ♬ original sound – Riskie _E A cyclist who records bike stunts around Orlando on a GoPro and posts them to TikTok caught a first-person view of a terrifying interaction with Orlando Police. Ian Adams, who posts to TikTok under the username Riskie-E was ordered off his bicycle and onto…
Florida Senate approves unemployment benefits increase
Despite opposition from Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida senators plowed ahead Thursday with a proposal to increase state unemployment benefits, which are among the lowest in the nation. The Senate voted 40-0 to approve a bill (SB 1906) that would increase maximum weekly payments from $275 to $375 and add more weeks in which benefits would…
Florida Supreme Court rejects recreational pot amendment on belief that Florida’s voters are stupid
The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a proposed constitutional amendment aimed at allowing people to use recreational marijuana, saying it would be misleading to voters. Backers of the proposed amendment sought to put it on the 2022 ballot and had submitted hundreds of thousands of petition signatures. But in a 5-2 ruling, the Supreme…
Florida woman hit in the head when flying turtle shattered her windshield
A Florida woman was hit in the head on Wednesday when a turtle crashed through the windshield of her car. The woman, 71, was riding in the front passenger seat while her daughter drove down Interstate 95 near Daytona Beach when the reptile flew through the car’s windshield. The woman suffered a half-inch to inch…
Hamlin Fair carousels into Winter Garden on April 23
The Hamlin Fair opens its gates in Winter Garden tomorrow, April 23. The fair will include thrill rides, a Kiddieland, fair food, and carnival games. Iconic rides to expect include the Fireball 2000, Speedway, Jumbo’s Flying Elephants, Showtown Merry-Go-Round, Ferris Wheel and more. What’s a visit to the fair without food? Along the Hamlin Fair Midway, there…
Orlando’s favorite tax-exempt tourist attraction, the Holy Land Experience, returns for two free days this month — then closes again
Praise be! Orlando’s favorite tax-exempt tourist attraction, the Holy Land Experience, will reopen for two glorious days with free admission at the end of this month. Why? If we had to venture a guess, it must be tax season again! The Holy Land Experience — which closed in March 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, and has…
World’s largest White Castle to open in Orlando on May 3
The World’s Largest White Castle is hotly anticipated in Orlando. Locals crave their tiny burgers so much that they recently crashed a ghost kitchen that was selling them ahead of the opening. That fruitless desire will soon be a thing of the past, as the mega-restaurant is set to open on May 3. A ribbon-cutting…
Dave Matthews Band adds Tampa date to summer 2021 U.S. tour
Is there a statute of limitations for cracking wise about a certain rock star’s tour bus dumping 800 pounds of raw sewage on unsuspecting sightseers in a nearby passenger boat? Only asking because Dave Matthews Band has announced a rescheduled U.S. tour set for this summer and now there’s a Tampa date added to the itinerary. DMB…
Get rid of pills and vape cartridges on National Prescription Drug Take Back Day Saturday
By now, the toll of the U.S. opioid epidemic is clear — encouraged by Big Pharma, doctors overprescribed pain pills, leading to widespread misuse, addiction, and an estimated 453,000 overdose deaths between 1999 and 2016. The 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that a majority of misused prescription drugs were obtained from family…
Portillo’s plots second Orlando location on I-Drive
Portillo’s has yet to open its first Orlando location, but it might be eyeing another one. According to a report from Orlando Business Journal, the hot dog chain is looking to take over the former home of Ponderosa Steakhouse on I-Drive. The sprawling steakatarium at 6362 International Drive is 16,199 square feet of restaurant sitting…
Florida McDonald’s offering people $50 just to show up for an interview
Florida has some of the paltriest unemployment benefits in the nation. At the same time the local service industry is experiencing a record shortage of employees willing to work for less than the $275 per week provided by the state. In an effort to attract new employees, a Tampa McDonald’s is now promising $50 to…
Gov. DeSantis’ anti-protest bill faces first legal challenge
Civil-rights attorneys are challenging a new set of state laws that establish a crime of “mob intimidation” and enhance penalties for riot-related violence and looting, arguing in a federal lawsuit that the measures unconstitutionally “seek to arrest the peaceful expression of free speech.” The challenge was filed Wednesday, two days after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed…
Ted Nugent tests positive for coronavirus after performing at ‘anti-mask’ Florida grocery store
COVID-denier and NRA-mouthpiece Ted Nugent admitted this week that he tested positive for coronavirus, telling followers : “I have had flu symptoms for the last 10 days. I thought I was dying. Just a clusterfuck.” Now it appears Nugent, a part-time Florida resident, found out he was sick with symptoms just a week after playing…
Orlando food news: Stackd Brownies, Golden Hour Wine, a food truck park in the Creative Village and more
OPENINGS: A new food truck park will open in Creative Village at 639 W. Robinson St. as early as this fall. It’ll also be the new home of the Winter Park Distilling Co. and Bear & Peacock Brewery, which will close the doors of their current Winter Park tasting room April 25 … Golden Hour…
Orlando free-jazzer Syoma Klochko drops guitar/accordion improv album
Whether you know Syoma Klochko from her work as the unpredictable percussionist for free-jazz collective Bongus or as the stalwart guitarist for ska/reggae army Florida Man, you’re going to be surprised by her new solo album of guitar and accordion improvisations, Tall Tales, for Cosmo Sound Collective. I mostly know you as a drummer, so…
Ann Wilson of Heart to play Orlando in June
Legendary Heart vocalist and godmother of Seattle rock Ann Wilson is jumping right into the deep end of the touring pool with Wednesday’s announcement of a (yes) Florida tour set for June. Dubbed “Rite of June: An Evening With Ann Wilson,” the tour will hit Clearwater, St. Augustine, Fort Meyers and then Orlando’s Hard Rock…
Naples police seek witch they believe stole $100,000 in money-blessing scheme
Police in Naples are looking for a woman they claim scammed over $100,000 in fraudulent offers of witchcraft services. The woman, who the victims seemed to know only as Rosalia, advertised her services in newspapers, Hispanic radio stations and posters around Naples. Naples Police claimed in a release that the woman had at least 10…
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis implies Derek Chauvin was convicted because jury feared ‘what a mob may do’
The murder of George Floyd by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was blatant and obvious enough that it sent half the country into the streets for months at a time. A bystander captured footage of Chauvin kneeling Floyd’s neck until he was dead. A jury, faced with this video, voted to convict Chauvin of…
Reward for information about person who scraped “Trump” into manatee upped to $8,000
The Animal Legal Defense Fund has raised the amount of their reward for information leading to the person who wrote “Trump” on the body of a manatee in Citrus County. The animal rights org bumped their reward by $5,000. raising the total offer for information leading to an arrest to $8,000. “The U.S. Fish &…
‘America’s Got Talent’ star Joseph Allen plays Will’s Pub on Friday
You saw him on the 14th season of America’s Got Talent and now you can see singer/songwriter Joseph Allen in the flesh this Friday at Mills 50 venue Will’s Pub. Allen made a big impression on the Talent judges, during Aa performance of his song “Footprints,” judge Howie Mandel got so hyped up he deployed…
You are cordially invited to the annual Baby Owl Shower at Maitland’s Audubon Center in May
Celebrate the newly-arrived owl bbs — some years as many as 100 — at the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey next month during their annual Baby Owl Shower. The Baby Owl Shower takes place over three days during early May at Maitland’s Audubon Center — Friday, May 7, Saturday, May 8 and Sunday, May 9. Each day’s…
Curry Ford West plots butterfly garden pop-up for May
A pandemic year hasn’t dulled the drive of the folks who run the Curry Ford West District. The neighborhood boosters have continued to put on socially distanced shows and other events for residents, providing much-needed third spaces as restaurants and bars became treacherous. That’s continuing in May with a pop-up butterfly garden that will run…
SBA announces guidelines for small eatery-targeting Restaurant Revitalization Fund
The Small Business Administration shared guidelines for its upcoming Restaurant Revitalization Fund, a $28.6 billion pot of money meant to help struggling eateries get back on their feet. “Today, we are starting the process to help restaurants and bars across the country devastated by the pandemic, and this is our message: Help is here. With…
Florida woman claims to have spotted ‘small dinosaur’ on security cam
We’re more than used to strange animal encounters in Florida. Baby gators, snakes and all manner of critters find their way into homes and businesses with stunning regularity. (Well, stunning if you don’t consider that the latest strip mall was built on top of their home.) Even knowing that animals being where they shouldn’t is…
Guns at Sunday School bill heads to Florida Senate
An effort to allow people to carry guns at churches that share locations with schools is going to the Senate floor. The Rules Committee on Tuesday approved a measure (HB 259) that would allow people with concealed-weapons licenses to bring guns on properties shared by churches and schools. Florida law generally allows people to carry…
Despite a short running time, Italian doc ‘The Truffle Hunters’ is no mere trifle
Like the mysterious fungi that inspired it, The Truffle Hunters is inscrutable. You can’t quite grasp the Italian documentary’s journalistic backstory, even after attempting to read between its minimalistic lines. Perhaps directors Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw should have lengthened their movie to provide more historical and culinary context. Or perhaps, at 84 minutes of…
Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis vows state ‘can and will do better’ for the families of children brain-damaged at birth
Patronis: ‘We’ve got to figure out a way to make things easier for them’ Declaring that Florida leaders “can and will do better” for the families of catastrophically brain-damaged children, the state’s top financial regulator has initiated an audit of the state program that oversees care for those injured in childbirth. Chief Financial Officer Jimmy…
An obscure Florida law prevented this Orlando mother from suing her doctor for her son’s fatal birth injuries
Orlando mother Ruth Jacques, distraught over the fatal injuries her son suffered during childbirth, couldn’t sue her doctor because of an obscure state law. When she protested at his medical office, she was told to cease and desist — or she’d be sued. This story was originally co-published by ProPublica and the Miami Herald. On…
Things to do in Orlando, April 21-27: Needtobreathe, Mount Dora Blueberry Festival and Mr. Eddy Mumma
Our selections of the best events this week. Thursday, April 22Frontyard Festival: Grace PotterThree-time Grammy nominee and gutsy belter Potter is kicking off her solo tour right here in the Frontyard. And, as always, that did indeed feel surreal to type. (Read more in our feature on page 49.) 8 p.m., $35-$60. Dr. Phillips Center…
Orlando concert picks this week: Junosmile, Damon Fowler, Grace Potter and more
Roots music fans, it’s your week. And if you go out, respect everyone’s distance, for all our sakes. Grace Potter: Few have threaded the needle between roots and pop in the modern era with as much success as this American powerhouse. Even solo and acoustic, like she’ll be at the socially distanced Frontyard Festival, the…
Grammy-nominated singer Grace Potter graces Orlando’s Frontyard Festival Thursday
Grace Potter has no complaints about her life today, but she could easily have offered a different assessment not long ago. “I’m living my best life, as they say,” Potter remarked in a recent phone interview with Orlando Weekly. “It’s just pretty magical.” The journey that has taken Potter to this place, though, was anything…
