food IS a theme park
Hello from the 2021 EPCOT Food and Wine Festival!
EPCOT Food and Wine
We’ve been here since day one, trying out all the amazing food booths that opened with the festival, including the Australia booth, Hops and Barley, The Noodle Exchange, and The Swanky Saucy Swine! But nine booths aren’t set to open until October 1st…except..
The 2021 EPCOT Food and Wine Festival is just around the corner!
©Disney
We’ve been keeping a close eye on EPCOT as Food and Wine Booths have popped up, and we have an update for you today! Let’s take a look at every Food and Wine Booth that’s up right NOW!
The Taste of EPCOT Flower and Garden Festival may be going on right now, but we’re already starting to prepare for EPCOT’s 2021 International Food & Wine Festival!
2020 Taste of EPCOT Food and Wine Festival
The Food & Wine Festival will start on July 15th, 2021 and last ALL the way through November 20th, 2021. Earlier today, we shared a look at the NEW Corkcicle that will be available during the Festival, and a list of all of the new booths that guests will get to enjoy this year. Now we want to put a special focus on some booths that will be at the Festival this year, but they’ll be a bit late to the party.
We’re back at Walt Disney World’s EPCOT today stuffing ourselves silly with all the 2020 Food and Wine Festival offerings we can fit in our mouths as the Taste of EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival has made its official debut on the same day as the park itself has started to welcome guests again!
2020 Food and Wine Festival
In what will go down in history as EPCOT’s longest-running festival, this hybrid fest is part Flower and Garden, part Food and Wine, and ALL KINDS of yumminess!
Now that we know Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival will be returning (in a modified and slightly smaller [but LONGER!] form), we’re looking forward to seeing which food booths will be returning!
2019 Epcot Food and Wine Festival
Disney has told us a Taste of EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival will feature 20 signature global marketplaces and will “continue into the fall” making it Epcot’s longest festival of ALL TIME! But with only 20 slots to fill, some of our favorite food booths won’t be coming back this year!
We’ve successfully made it through the FIRST DAY of the 2019 Epcot Food and Wine Festival!
From now through November 23rd, the Festival will offer a variety of culinary events around Walt Disney World’s Epcot. Of course, the bites and sips from the Food Booths are a festival highlight. Not sure what items to sample? Here are our Best of the Fest recommendations!
2019 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Passport
If you’re planning a visit to this year’s Festival, then you’ll want to start putting together your MUST EAT list… and that’s where we come in! The DFB Team taste-tested every item at the Festival to show you the items you can’t miss!
Are you ready? Because it’s time to DIG in!
Let’s start with warm cheese at The Alps! This one is an AJ favorite!! You guys know that I lived in Switzerland for a year, and raclette (melty raclette cheese poured over bread, boiled potatoes, gherkins, and other goodies) as a staple.
Warm Raclette Swiss Cheese
And Disney’s actually done a great job with it here! The half-wheel of raclette is melted right in the booth, and shaved off beautifully onto the veggies and bread. Pungent and delicious, this one is a must-do for my cheese-fans out there.
is serving a Spanish-style Paella with Botifarra and Roasted Chicken with a little bit of heat! Flavorful and cooked to perfection!!
Spanish-style Paella with Botifarra and Roasted Chicken
If you’re looking for a larger portion, this is a great buy.
For Islands of the Caribbean, Jerk-spiced Chicken with Roasted Sweet Plantain Salad and Mango Chutney Yogurt is a stand-out!
Jerk-spiced Chicken with Roasted Sweet Plantain Salad and Mango Chutney Yogurt
While this dish hasn’t wowed us in previous years, this time around the chicken is cooked on an outdoor grill! You WILL taste the difference. It was a DFB team favorite!
For a refreshing beverage, stop by Joffrey’s for a Citrus Sunshine in Canada. Opt for this drink over the Aulani Sunrise at Hawai’i.
Citrus Sunrise
At the Odyssey cart by Joffrey’s, we like the Chai-quila.
Chai-quila
At Australia, the Roasted Lamb Chop had great flavors. It’s a twist on the lamb chops of the past at this booth and we loved the update.
Roasted Lamb Chop with Sweet Potato Puree
For a not-too-sweet dessert, one member of the DFB team really enjoyed the lightness of this option.
Deconstructed Pavlova
The Spicy Hummus Fries at Morocco were delicious, as always, even with the sauce update — we needed more sauce, though!
Spicy Hummus Fries
The flatbread (it was a taco) had a really good kick to it!
NY Strip Steak Green Shermoula Flatbread
Let’s look at two returning favorites. First, The Cheese Studio is worth a visit for the Maple Bourbon Boursin Cheesecake.
Maple Bourbon Boursin Cheesecake
This creamy, decadent treat is made better-than-your-usual-cheesecake (and that’s saying something!!) thanks to that hint of bourbon in the caramel sauce.
BUT, the Sparkling Blueberry Wine by Florida Orange Groves Winery wowed us again! [Read more…]
Epcot’s International Food and Wine Festival
is a fabulous opportunity to eat lots of great food and to drink lots of great drinks. And while we know we’ll be putting some of our returning favorites on our must-eat list — we also make a second list: New Stuff We Can’t Wait to Try! (Yeah, we’re all about lists here at DFB!)
2018 Epcot International Food and Wine Festival
And this is that list — including a few items we got the chance to sample recently!
The new Guinness Bailey’s Shake from the Ireland booth got us all kinds of excited when we saw it on the menu! We were expecting a frozen, creamy drink with a powerful hit of Guinness and Baileys — and that’s just what we got when we tried it during a preview! PLUS it comes with the glass! We can’t wait to try it again!
Guinness Baileys Shake
The Shimmering Sips Mimosa Bar is brand new this year, and the offerings sound incredible! Mimosas include varieties like the Tropical Mimosa and the Madras Mimosa (which we have tried!), and there’s a tasty-sounding, kid-friendly drink called Frozen Apple Pie!
Madras Mimosa
But aside from those intriguing drinks, the Mimosa Bar is also serving up pastries like an Almond Croissant and a Cheese Danish with Sweet Icing! One of each, please! [Read more…]
The 2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival starts this week and we’re SO excited!
As part of our countdown we’re making a list of all the food and beverages that we MUST eat at this year’s Festival and we’re adding items from today’s featured booths: India, Ireland, and Light Lab!
This year’s Epcot Food and Wine Festival features 35 Marketplace Booths in honor of Epcot’s 35th anniversary!
It’s time to check out the menus at India, Ireland, and Light Lab!
We’re welcoming India back to the Epcot Food and Wine Festival this year! The booth originally appeared in 2009 and we’re excited to have it return this year!
New India Marketplace Booth
Food:
Beverages:
If you were following along during our #RaglanRoadTrip coverage, then you know that I recently returned from spending four days in Ireland with the winners of the Raglan Road Master Chef Contest as well as Chef Kevin Dundon.
Winners and Writers at Dunbrody House in Ireland (photo by Raglan Road photographer Ivan Cummins)
The winners will all contribute a dish to the Raglan Road 10th Anniversary Celebration October! I wanted to get to know our winners a little better, so I asked each of them three simple questions:
What gave you a desire to work with Raglan Road?
What was your first experience with Raglan Road like?
As a home cook, what’s your biggest cooking takeaway from this experience?
Here’s what they had to share with me.
Aaron Von Swearingen
had long been a fan of cooking — and Raglan Road. It’s been a favorite spot of his for nearly as long as it’s been around, and he and his family often choose to go there for special occasions.
Aaron Chats with John Mernagh, Owner of Danescastle Fruit Farm
But recently, his passion had taken a different turn: recipe development. So when Aaron heard about the Master Chef contest, he thought the challenge to come up with a three-course meal would be a terrific way to test his new found interest.
And clearly, he rose to the occasion. Following his successful bid to become a Master Chef finalist, Aaron headed to — where else? — Raglan Road to celebrate!
Aaron Getting Tips from John Cook on Filleting Fish
His time in Ireland was, as with other members of the group, transformative. Aaron says that, more than anything, he’s leaving with a clear vision that a simple approach is the best one; focus on simple, great, pure ingredients, and be creative and thoughtful in your presentation. “To know those things, going home, is very freeing,” he summed up.
Like Aaron, Colleen Kerney has a young family and lives in Central Florida. But her motivation for entering the contest was a little different.
Colleen Receives Some Helpful Hints from Chef Julien
Colleen had been in the process of planning a family trip to Ireland, and had even considered leaving at the same time as the contest was planned for. But budgetary constraints led her to reconsider the timing, and she and her family began to earnestly save for a trip some time in the future.
One day recently, she was flipping through a local Central Florida publication when she came across this headline: “Kevin Dundon wants to send YOU to Ireland.” Well. That sounded pretty good to her. And we can say that the rest is history.
Interestingly enough, Colleen hadn’t ever actually dined at Raglan Road, although she was familiar with Chef Kevin because of his cooking show, which airs on PBS. However, she and her extended family celebrated her winning the contest by booking brunch at the Irish Pub.
Oyster Soup, Colleen’s Dish
While she enjoyed her time in Ireland immensely and definitely plans to return for that promised family visit in the near future, she also had some fun takeaways from the experience. First and foremost? “Butter makes [Read more…]
We are a couple days back from the Raglan Road Master Chef Class in Ireland! And after recovering a bit from the go-go-go pace and jet lag, I’d like to share with you a few more glimpses into my time there.
The Cooking School at Dunbrody House Hotel
Today, we step into the kitchen to get behind-the-scenes insight into how Chef Kevin Dundon and his team create the recipes that we enjoy on Raglan Road’s menu and during special functions.
If you followed along during our coverage of the #RaglanRoadTrip, then you know that Master Chef contest entrants were tasked with creating a three-course menu that would be featured at Raglan Road’s upcoming tenth anniversary celebration this October.
Sancerre and Irish Butter — How Could We Go Wrong?
As it turns out, this exercise set the stage for the curriculum in cooking school this week!
Chef Dundon took each of the finalists’ menus, chose one dish, and refined it. The resulting collaboration turned in five dishes that were at once original and recognizable — but also over-the-top delicious.
Chef Dundon Creates and Heather Takes Notes
Watching the process was interesting in that it gave each of us the chance to see how recipe development for Raglan Road takes place.
Starting with the seed of the finalists’ recipes, Chef Dundon and the finalists experimented with the dishes and tweaked until they were just right. He cooked as the finalists took notes. And at the end of the day, each person tested how well they paid attention by cooking the dish all over again. (They all did great, by the way.)
One of the Winning Dishes — Flash Fried Oyster Butter Soup with Honey Foam
I think the biggest takeaway for all of us was the concept of [Read more…]
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