It’s almost time! Get ready to sip and munch to your heart’s delight: The 2019 Food and Wine Classic at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resorts is almost here!

We’ve been eagerly awaiting all of the delicious-sounding food and beverages since February when the menus were released, and then once again in April when even more new items were added! Now we’re back with MORE information and more importantly, TASTING NOTES! That’s right, friends, — today we actually SAMPLED many of this year’s new offerings (along with some oldies, but goodies!) during a special preview event!

The 2019 Food and Wine Classic will take place on Friday, November 8, and Saturday, November 9, 2019. Celebrating its 10th year, the annual event is held in the Causeway between the Swan and Dolphin resorts. There are a number of seminars offered as well as a variety of unique food and drink options.

Many of the offerings are from the resorts’ 17 unique restaurants and lounges and the fest itself will feature a total of 69 food and beverage booths this year! This year’s main focus is going to be on delicious wines with selections from over 30 wineries! It will also be the first time South African wine will be offered at the Classic!

See the menus for this year’s Food and Wine Classic here!

The Food and Wine Classic will also be expanding this year to include new areas that will showcase Swan and Dolphin’s culinary artistry in a new light! Get ready to play some beach blanket bingo at the new Beach Bash area which will be home to the new food booth, Hang 10!

Closeby, there will even be an outdoor stage with bands belting out some classic 60s surfers tunes! If beach jams aren’t your thing, check out the live band that will be performing in the Bubble Lounge where you can enjoy some delicious champagne and listen to Gabtsy-inspired 1920s swing music!

And now with even more vegan and vegetarian options at this year’s fest than ever before, we’re ready to give you the low-down on what you’ll be chowing down on in just a few short weeks!

Eats

Shula’s Steak House

Shula’s Steak House is serving up a Roasted Angus Beef Tenderloin with Idaho-Mashed Potatoes, Caramelized Mushrooms, and Sauce Bordelaise! And while it’s not new to the Food and Wine Classic, the flavors of the dish are still singing a great tune!

Our tenderloin was cooked just right! We loved the mashed potatoes, mushrooms and rich sauce that accompanied the beef, too! This dish is still a clear winner in our books, and not to be missed! You’ll be able to snag yourself a tenderloin on both Friday and Saturday!

Smokin’ D’s

Next, we tried the NEW Hand Crafted Smoked Duroc Pork Belly with Beer Bread Puree, Honey Fluid Gel, Pickled Pearl Onion, and Crispy Onion Chards from Smokin’ D’s BBQ!

The pork belly had an amazing smokey flavor with just the right amount of sweetness from BBQ sauce! The texture wasn’t quite as tender as we would’ve liked but that beer bread purée is totally killer — we could have eaten a bowl of it! The pork belly will only be available on Friday, so if this sounds like something you’d enjoy, make your plans accordingly!

Garden Grove

Next up, we sunk our teeth into the Maryland Crab Cake Slider with an Old Bay Remoulade served on a Toasted Brioche Bun at the Swan’s Garden Grove food booth — another festival favorite!

And it still a big hit with us after all these years! We’re total suckers for delicious golden brown crab cakes, but then you throw a brioche bun up in the mix and you got yourself one heck of a delight! Ours featured LOTS of fresh crab! It will be available only on Friday, FYI!

Il Mulino

Now we’re turning our attention to the NEW Organic Kabucha Squash-Filled Ravioli with Pumpkin and Sage “Gremolata”, Pumpkin Crema and Pecorino Cheese!

Another perfect bite! The squash filling was phenomenal — the sage wasn’t overpowering and paired nicely with the earthy sweetness from the pumpkin! There was also a decent kick of garlic to it, which made it kinda hard to stop eating! Oh, and that shredded pecorino was totally addictive (umm…cheese!)!! Ravioli will only be around on Friday, so mark your calendars!

Todd English’s bluezoo

From Todd English’s bluezoo we sampled the NEW Pan-Seared Rock Fish served with Cotechino, Toasted Fregola, Romanesco and Lambrusco!

This dish did not disappoint! The Rock Fish was expertly-prepared with a crispy skin and nice flaky texture while the sausage had a nice sear and gave it some nice saltiness! You’ll only be able to catch the Rock Fish on Saturday, so you have some tough decisions to make!

Hang 10

At Hang 10, we’re feasting on the NEW Hearts of Palm Ceviche with Thinly Sliced Fresh Hearts of Palm, Lime Juice, Bermuda Onion, Bell Pepper and Chili Peppers!

For us, this dish wasn’t a real knock out. It did have a very light and refreshing taste, but we just weren’t blown away. You’ll be able to sample it for yourself both Friday and Saturday.

Read more about Hang 10 at this year’s fest here!

Fresh Mediterranean Market

Meanwhile Fresh Mediterranean Market was serving up a NEW Vegan Pho with Rice Noodles, Bok Choy, Carrot, Bamboo Shoots, Vegan Broth, Hoisin, and spicy Sriracha!

But the pho wasn’t a favorite of ours. It was a little difficult to eat and the broth didn’t pack the umami flavor we were hoping for. It will be offered on Saturday of the Food and Wine Classic.

Cabana Bar and Beach Club

Next, we tasted the NEW Vegetarian Rice Bowl with Roasted Vegetables, Seasoned Sushi Rice, and Tempura Crunch from Cabana Bar.

We thought the rice bowl tasted very good! It wasn’t too heavy and really hit the spot on a warm day — the perfect light, refreshing bite! It will be available for you to try on Friday!

Laurent Branlard Dessert Stations

For dessert we sampled both of Friday’s selections. We started with the Key Lime Curd Frangipane with Carved Caramelized Pineapple, Coconut Sorbet, Coconut Streusel, and Vanilla Coconut Milk Tapioca!

We loved the bright notes of citrus from the lime and of course, you can’t go wrong with all that delicious pineapple! We weren’t exactly big fans of tapioca because we’re just not in love with its texture, but if you’re a tapioca aficionado, we think you’ll find this dessert irresistible!

We also nibbled on the Chocolate Peanut Ganache Filled S’mores with Caramelized Peanuts, Chocolate Fluff, Graham Cracker Sable Cookie, and a rich Caramel Sauce!

We’re not certain which we loved more — the cookie or the ganache!. The cookie was nice and soft, too! As nummy as the Key Lime Curd Frangipane was, this dessert stole the show!

Sips

Phins & Feathers

Our last sampling was this perfectly-balanced American Pale Ale by Brew Hub in Lakeland, Florida.

The beer has a very crisp, but light and citrusy taste. We’ve been seeing it on draft at Todd English’s bluezoo and hope it appears at other resorts throughout Disney World!

A one-night Causeway ticket — including an unlimited sampling of all the food and beverage offerings and The Beer Garden upgrade! — is $145, with additional optional costs for food and beverage seminars. A set of 25 a la carte tickets costs $65. For tickets, seminar pricing, and more information, visit www.SwanDolphinFoodandWineClassic.com, follow along with all the details on Facebook, or call 1-888-828-8850.

And don’t forget that Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival is happening right now and is running through the end of November 23rd!

Read EVERY menu and see photos of EVERY food at this year’s Food and Wine fest here!

There’s so much foodie fun to be had at Epcot and Dinsey’s Swan and Dolphin resorts, so what are you waiting for? Grab your fork and get ready to FEAST!

Will you be attending the Food and Wine Classic this year? Let us know in the comments if you’re planning on going!

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. Today, we were invited by the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resorts to attend their media preview of the Food and Wine Classic. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ