Oct. 16, 2026, 5:05 a.m. ET
Sizzle Dining’s 2026 event raised a record-breaking $105,655 for the charity Blessings in a Backpack SWFL.The fundraiser, which ran for the entire month of September, involved 140 restaurants in Southwest Florida.For every prix fixe Sizzle meal sold, participating restaurants donated one dollar to the charity.The donation will help Blessings in a Backpack provide weekend food bags to food-insecure children.
After 10 years of community outreach, restaurant partnerships, and dining deals for a good cause, Sizzle Dining has hit its largest and most important milestone yet.
What was once one of the slowest months of the year for local restaurants is now one of the region’s biggest culinary celebrations, encouraging diners to discover new favorites, revisit beloved spots, and score a deal along the way.
Southwest Florida’s biggest culinary fundraiser kicked off its tenth year on Sept. 1, 2026, with 140 participating restaurants offering prix fixe menus and exclusive dining experiences throughout the entire month. Restaurants donated a dollar from every Sizzle meal sold to Blessings in a Backpack SWFL, which is a local organization providing food for children facing food insecurity during weekends.
This year Sizzle Dining experienced its most successful season yet, with nearly 140 participating restaurants and a new record for most amount of money raised.
How much money did Sizzle Dining raise for charity in 2026?
Restaurants from Marco Island to Babcock Ranch sold 105,655 Sizzle meals throughout September, translating to $105,655 raised for Blessings in a Backpack SWFL.
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It’s the first time Sizzle Dining has surpassed $100,000, which was a huge goal for founder and executive director Guy Clarke.
“People told me selling 100,000 meals was a crazy goal,” Clarke said in a news release. “But Southwest Florida showed up and proved otherwise.
“Together, diners and restaurants sold more than 105,000 meals, creating a record $105,655 donation that will help feed local children who might otherwise go hungry on weekends. For an event that started with just 26 restaurants in Naples, this is an incredible testament to the generosity of our community.”
The new record set by Sizzle Dining completely shattered the previous record of 87,483 meals sold in 2025. This year also marked the first time Sizzle was active during the entire month of September, rather than a few weeks.
Several restaurants donated extra gifts to Sizzle this year, along with their meal sales contribution. Buck & Ryder, the west coast-based seafood spot coming to Waterside Shops next year, wanted to make an impact on the Naples community before even opening its doors. The restaurant donated $766, an amount representing the average number of Sizzle meals sold at each participating restaurant.
Naples spot Bone Hook Restaurant and Brewery doubled its contribution by donating an extra dollar for each of the 313 Sizzle meals it sold this year, making its total contribution $626.
How will Sizzle Dining’s donation impact Naples children?
The Blessings in a Backpack program was created to feed children on the weekend. Schools provide food for students during the schoolweek, but oftentimes children are left without assistance over the weekend. Every Friday afternoon, Blessings in a Backpack provide students with backpacks full of kid-friendly, ready-to-eat items.
Last school year, Blessings in a Backpack SWFL served 31 school programs, fed around 8,000 children every Friday, and gave out 256,000 weekend food bags. With this year’s Sizzle Dining contribution, Blessings in a Backpack will be able to continue its mission and reach even more children in need.
“A gift like this changes what Friday looks like for thousands of kids in our community. For a lot of these children, the food bag they take home on Friday is what carries them through the weekend until they’re back at school on Monday,” managing director of Blessings in a Backpack Tony Ceresoli Sr. said in a news release.
“Every diner who sat down for a Sizzle meal and every restaurant that signed on helped make sure more local kids have food at home this school year. We can’t thank Guy and the Sizzle Dining community enough.”
Kendall Little is the food & dining reporter for Naples Daily News. Questions, comments, or tips? Email Kendall.Little@NaplesNews.com.
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