Gerald hides out behind Charlotte as the servers from BB King's Blues Bar have some fun with us. (Photo by Tanya Wade)

A few notes from Wednesday’s Taste of the Palm Beaches at PGA Commons in Palm Beach Gardens:

• A tip of the cap to the Big Heart Brigade, the charity for whom restaurants and others donated their time and food. Their goal this year is to make Thanksgiving dinner for 60,000 underprivileged people. And the pumpkin bread they were passing out was absolutely tremendous. That tasted like autumn, and so little in Florida right now reminds me of that great season.

• BB King’s Blues Club, you cannot get to CityPlace soon enough for my taste. Charlotte and Gerald were having so much fun serving food. And what food!: A very tasty pulled pork sandwich with a sweet but slightly tangy sauce. Combine that attitude and cuisine with some hot music and CityPlace will have a real winner on its hands.

Chefs Jonathan and Andrew from Nordstrom's Cafe Bistro smile as they serve up some of the best samples at the show. (Photo by Tanya Wade)

• Nordstrom’s Café Bistro (at the Gardens Mall) served up a lovely crab bisque and bread pudding. The bisque was subtle but had the right kind of spice, and as my wife and I found out as we went from table to table, this soup was a perfect sample food.

• Rocco’s Tacos was another hit – they served up a fish taco with mahi and a sauce that was spicy but not overbearing.

• Taverna Opa in CityPlace served up some excellent skewers – I had a flavorful chicken skewer with a good mix of vegetables, my wife Tanya had the steak. It was simple, but you can’t go wrong with simple if you do it well.

• There was also a fair amount of alcoholic beverages to try, and Tanya decided to taste Florida’s own 4 Orange Vodka. She said it was very smooth and not too sweet. If you’re interested in it, read Charles Passy’s great article about the guys who make it.

• The guys at Cods and Capers – a seafood market up in Gardens — showed what you can do with their wares, making some tremendous crab cakes with a tasty mustard sauce. These cakes could hold their own against Maryland’s best.

• We finished the night off with a glass (or two) of refreshing limeade, courtesy of the KeyLime Cook out of Jupiter. It was simple – limes, sparkling water and a touch of sugar – but it was pure thirst-quenching goodness.

• Tanya enjoyed a dessert of vanilla ice cream and toasted almonds from D’lites in Palm Beach Gardens, saying it was a good finishing act.