Empty Bowls luncheon draws crowd to Lakewood Ranch to benefit Food Bank of Manatee

LAKEWOOD RANCH, Fla. (WWSB) - The 26th annual Empty Bowls luncheon is taking place Friday on Main Street in Lakewood Ranch to benefit The Food Bank of Manatee, a program of Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee. Hundreds of people are expected to attend, and dozens of community members had arrived at the time of the report.The event runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.Attendees choose a ceramic bowl to take home. Local artists, organizations and small groups make the bowls and paint them throughout the year.Attendees do not eat soup from the bowl they take home. They receive soup samples from vendor tents set up behind the bowl line. About 100 restaurants from around the Suncoast are serving soups at this year’s event.Florida Strawberry Festival announces 2027 headline entertainment lineup“The high costs of living are really stretching family budgets, causing a higher demand on The Food Bank of Manatee,” said Maribeth Phillips, president and CEO of The Food Bank of Manatee/Meals on Wheels PLUS of Man