Sometimes the stars collide and really rockin’ things happen. This week, I was lamenting the fact that I won’t be able to get to Disney World to experience the Taste of Africa Street Party. But at the same time it’s been exciting to watch my friend, Brett Young, experience a Disney World trip that’s been a long time coming! Now what do you think happens next…
That’s right! Brett goes to the party — and takes a whole lot of food pictures!
But, first things first, here are the details on the party: It’s currently running from July 9 through July 24, 2010, and takes place nightly in Harambe Village in Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The event is full of games, music, fun, and food; offerings include: food, wine, and beer; a music/dance party with Harambe’s DJ Khalifa and musical group Wasslou; animal education experiences, and more.
Now, let’s get to the photo tour. We’ll begin with a look at the “pamphlet” received by the attendees. This will give you a good idea of the layout and what items are available. I’m especially interested in the sugar cane juicing!
Taste of Africa Pamphlet Side 1
Taste of Africa Pamphlet Side 2
Here are a couple of signs depicting where the “good stuff” can be gotten:
Tamu Kibanda Menu Sign
Beer and Wine Walk
Oh…and here’s the “good stuff!”
Over at the Tamu Kibanda, grab some Samosas with Mango Chutney (stick around to watch the Samosas Demonstration) and some Avocado Shrimp Salad:
Samosas With Mango Chutney
Avocado Shrimp Salad
Next door at the Tamu Tamu, indulge in a Mango shake or enjoy some Bobotie with Blatjang (an apricot fruit chutney) and flatbread with dips:
Mango Shake
Bobotie with Blatjang
flatbread with dips
Here’s what’s on the menu at the Kusafiri Bakery during the Taste of Africa Street Party. The Banana Bread Pudding looks pretty much phenomenal, no? And the curried chicken looks fantastic! That beef looks a bit pink, but I betcha I’d try it anyway!
Curried Chicken
Rubbed Beef With Mealie Pap
Banana Bread Pudding
And finally, head over for some sugarcane juicing and taste-testing — along with a few games and dancing, of course!
Drink Sampler -- Guava, Sugar Cane, Coconut Water, and Sour Sop
Having Some Fun at the Street Party
Thanks again to Brett Young and his wonderful family for these awesome pics! It really makes me feel like I’m right there sampling the food (but, for once, I don’t have to work off the calories!).
Have you been (or are you going to) the Taste of Africa Street Party? Sure looks like fun to me. Share your comments, reviews, and anticipation of the party in the comments section below!
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It’s a shame that this is only running for 2 weeks. It looks really interesting and reasonably priced.
Looks like a mini F&WF! Yummy!!
I really really hope they extend this! We arrive on the 26th—and every review I’ve read makes me want to go more and more!
The foods look great (and I agree—reasonably priced! Especially because we’re on the QSD plan!) I’d love to do the juice tasting and I know my fiance will be all over the beer tasting (again-reasonably priced!)
The entertainment looks awesome, as does the whole atmosphere. Keep your fingers crossed that they extend this!
I had no idea they did this! Looks like great fun. Wish I were there.
Wow, that does look amazing! I wish they had it more often..I would make a special trip to AK just for that.
Rich — Agreed. I think it’s exactly the kind of thing Animal Kingdom needs to keep people in the park a bit later and add some of the richness of experience that Harambe Village is ripe to offer. I’ve always wondered why they put all of that work into the detail of the village, but don’t offer any attractions to help people really explore it.
Griffin — I know! I wish I could attend. I think there’s a lot there for both adults and kids, but on a mini, “do-able” scale.
Dana — I hope they extend it, too. I think the food looks absolutely amazing, and there seem to be a lot of fun things to participate in. I know it probably won’t be there when I arrive in September, but hopefully you’ll get to experience it!
Gray — Me, too. It JUST started last week, so I’m eager to hear more feedback about it.
Jenn — Agreed. AK is one of my favorite parks, and I think this adds a layer of experience that gives it that “Disney plus” effect.
Add me to the list of people who’d love to see it extended!
WOW! This is enticing. I sure hope they make this a regular offering. It’s like a focused Food & Wine event!
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. samosas & a mango shake sound like THE perfect snack! anytime there’s a samosa around i MUST have one! thanks brett for sharing!
Brett is an awesome Disney fan (and a Canadian to boot!). I’m loving his twitter feed….
Im hoping to go see this next weekend before it goes. (Have othe Foodie plans.. haha) But if it comes back, ill definitely be there.
Kelly — No kidding. Wouldn’t it be cool to attend?!
John — Yeah — it seems perfect! They could change out the food items every few months so locals wouldn’t get bored 😉
robin — Doesn’t the mango shake look delectable?
James — Brett is definitely one of the good guys! He’s taking lots of pics on his trip, which is great for me as he’s given me carte blanche to use them all!
Cody — YES! You must go. I don’t care if you’re a picky eater — just have the mango shake and the sugar cane juice 🙂
I really hope they decide to do this again as well – particularly not during AP blockouts!
Changed our touring plans for later this week to attend!
Now isn’t this what an event is supposed to do? Draw you to a particular place. And what better way than sampling of food! (Enough dance parties OK!)
Matt and I checked it out Saturday the 17th and tried all the foodstuffs (with the exception of the Avocado Shrimp Salad & the Mango Shake). My favorite was the Bobotie and his was the Curried Chicken. We also did the Wine & Beer tasting, which, for $9, we thought was a pretty good value for 4 samples (considering F&W Fest Wine Walk is $20 for 6 samples – I could have had 2 margaritas!). Overall, there wasn’t a single thing either of us disliked – we just had preferences of a particular dish over the others.
It was pretty empty when we went, which was right after the Jammin’ Jungle Parade ended. In fact, one of the CMs at the first booth we went to wasn’t sure if they were serving yet! Don’t worry, they were. 🙂 The service was not as smooth and quick as it is at F&W. Although there would be nobody in front of me, I still found myself waiting for 5 minutes for my order.
The experience was certainly that of a mini F&W to get us ready for the real thing in the Fall! We can’t wait!
Everything looks really great minus the bread pudding as it seems a bit on the watery side, sort of like melted ice cream out in the sun too long. The Samosas look every bit appealing, but what I am wondering is what exactly is this “Blatjang”?
Sarah, you missed the Mango Shake?! Most places are dead after parades, which is no surprise, you think they would at least keep the Cast Members in the loop though.
Hey Josh! Just saw your post about the Mango shake. I’m a fan of Mangoes, however, I’m not really a shake person. I didn’t want to feel wasteful in having a sip to try and being done.
The sauce with the bread pudding tasted like a mixture of milk (or maybe water in this case) and powdered sugar and some vanilla (at least to me). A little grainy. But otherwise, the bread pudding loaf was decent, and this is coming from a non-sweets person.
The Blatjang was a dried apricot and raisin chutney. I loved it since I love dried fruits, but Matt wasn’t a fan as it just didn’t have a flavor or texture profile he liked.
Just actually saw this article for the first time (embarrassed to say). We had an amazing time at the Taste of Africa. Thanks for the write-up AJ. The pics do not do the food justice as it was amazing! The mango shake is awesome! Hope they have it again next summer cause we will be back! 🙂
one would think this would be a nice addition to F&W festival? It looks great but I save my WDW time for F&W.