Dinner in the Orchard: A 5-star experience

September 19, 2016

By Gwen Guerke, Communications Coordinator

We could not have orchestrated a better evening for Dinner in the Orchard. The perfect weather, setting, and meal were complemented by a full Harvest Moon rising over T.S. Smith & Sons’ orchard near Bridgeville.

The sold-out event was a benefit for the Food Bank of Delaware which serves the 117,000+ Delawareans who face food insecurity daily.

Five stars to Chefs Tim and Tish and their students from the Food Bank’s Culinary Schools!

They prepared and served a farm-fresh meal, from appetizers to desserts, using ingredients produced by Sussex County growers. Craft beer created by Mispillion Brewery and fine wine from Great Shoals complemented the fare.

Guests also enjoyed dinner music provided by the Swing Noteables, as well as the popular horse and wagon rides offered by Circle C Outfit.

Milford branch director Chad Robinson was pleased with the success of the event.

“I wanted to take an opportunity to thank Chef Tim, Chef Tish, Ruthann (Messick, Culinary School manager), and all the students from TCS Milford for a great Dinner in the Orchard.  Tim, Tish, Ruthann, and the all the students outdid themselves with some amazing food and even better great service.  Everyone had a great time and enjoyed some excellent food. We had over 100 individuals in attendance!” he said.

Special thanks also goes to the Smith family for hosting us for our fourth Dinner in the Orchard at T.S. Smith & Sons.

The evening opened with appetizers, served by the students, followed by a bountiful buffet dinner, then several selections of frozen desserts created with ice cream from nearby Vanderwende Dairy.

The Food Bank thanks our sponsors who helped make this event so successful: Chesapeake Utilities, Trinity Foundation, Insight Homes, Mispillion River Brewing, Tri Gas & Oil, Little Wagon Produce, Vanderwende’s, Vincent Farms, Del-One Federal Credit Union and the City of Seaford.