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Epcot Food and Wine Festival Events UPDATE! What’s Back and What’s NOT RETURNING!

Today’s the big day: early booking for Epcot’s International Food and Wine Festival opened at 9AM this morning for Disney Annual Passholders, Disney Vacation Club members, Tables in Wonderland Members, and residents of Golden Oak. And for the rest of us, it’s the first look we are getting at what’s on — and what’s OFF — for the 2018 Festival.

Click here to visit our Festival Main Page, where we’ve gathered everything under the sun to help you plan your 2018 visit to Epcot’s International Food and Wine Festival!

2017 Epcot Food and Wine

Most of this information still isn’t available on DisneyWorld.com, and it’s taken lots of time on hold and some virtual digging to gather it. But we’re saving you the trouble!

[Read more…]

Chef Cat Cora Likely Dates for the 2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival

By AJ Leave a Comment

Cat Cora Fans

, it looks like you’ll have a reason to rejoice for the 2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival!

You’ll also want to keep a close eye on DFB and plan to be up extra early the morning that booking opens for 2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Special Events!

Chef Cat Cora has listed on her website that she will appear at the 2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival twice for “cooking demos and meet and greets.”

We think that points squarely to the fact that Cora will be featured as part of the popular “What’s Cooking With” series.

“What’s Cooking With” events include cooking demos by chefs and other celebrities. After the demonstration is complete, the chef sits down with a host and shares a little about his or her story and the demonstrated dishes.

The audience has the opportunity to try a menu of dishes that the chef has prepared, along with beverage pairings. We’ve had the chance to enjoy several similar events, including demos by Chef Norman Van Aken and Chef Rick Bayless.

Currently, the dates to watch for Chef Cora are Friday, October 20, and Friday, October 27, from 9:45AM to 11:45AM. These are subject to change.

In the past, Chef Cora has also participated in the daily low cost cooking demonstration line up, so we’ll be anxious to see if she returns for a few of those as well. We hope so! (Check out a review of one of her cooking demos from a previous Epcot Food and Wine Festival here!)

Chef Cat Cora at an Epcot Food and Wine Festival Culinary Demonstration

And don’t forget — you don’t have to attend any of the events that chefs are appearing at for a chance to get in on a meet and greet.

Chef Cat Cora Book Signing at the Epcot Food and Wine Festival

Just visit the Festival Center on the day that your favorite appears (the earlier the better!) to request a wristband, and line up for your chance to chat with your favorites and get their autographs.

Start Your Planning NOW!

News! The DFB Guide to the 2017 Epcot Food & Wine Festival e-Book is now available for pre-order! And if you pre-order the 2017 edition, you get the 2016 edition (with TONS of great info!) for FREE!!!

This 250+-page guide to the Festival offers insider tips and advice as well as all of the details you need to know to plan your best Festival visit ever.

Your purchase includes several bonus items as well — including a full daily schedule of events at the Festival and a printable World Showcase Booth Menu Checklist to carry with you as you Eat around the World!

Order your 2017 edition today and we’ll immediately send you the 2016 edition for FREE to get started on planning right away! Don’t miss a moment of the fun!

Use code Chefs at check-out for a 20% discount!

Be sure to stay tuned to Disney Food Blog for all of the latest coverage about the 2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival. We’ll have the details FIRST!

Want Even More Details About the Festival?

Here’s what we know so far…

2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Index

2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Booth and Menu Index
2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Special Events
2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Low-Cost Seminars and Demonstrations
2017 Eat to the Beat Concert Schedule
Epcot Food and Wine Festival Fans Facebook Page
2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Wine and Dine Half Marathon
2017 Swan and Dolphin Food and Wine Classic
Food and Wine Festival 101
2016 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Menus and FOOD PHOTOS
2016 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Gluten Free Items

How to Book Epcot Food & Wine Festival Events

To book all special events and demonstrations, call 407-WDW-FEST (939-3378) starting TBD. Join the Disney Food Blog Newsletter to find out as soon as we do about details and booking dates! Culinary Demonstrations and Beverage Seminars and general admission for some special events may be bookable online at www.epcotfoodfestival.com as well as by phone.

Tables in Wonderland members, Annual Passholders, Disney Vacation Club Members, and Golden Oak Residents may be eligible for a $2 discount (per person, per event) for beverage and seminars and culinary demos taking place Mon-Thurs during the festival. These members will be able to book seminars and demos TBD. Discounts are by phone only at 407-WDW-FEST (939-3378). Stay tuned to DisneyFoodBlog.com and the Disney Food Blog Newsletter for details.

Chase Disney Visa Cardholders can book select special events, demos, and seminars on TBD as well. A limited number of seats are available for the booking date.

Are you excited to see Chef Cat Cora return once again to the Epcot Food and Wine Festival? Leave a comment and let us know if you’ll be attending one of her cooking demos!

Pictorial Review: Victoria and Albert’s at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort

By Kim LaPaglia 8 Comments

Today we are sharing a pictorial review of the new Victoria and Albert’s Ten Course Tasting Experience from guest photographer, Tom Welsh. Thanks, Tom!

Learn About:Victoria and Albert’s Restaurant

Grand Floridian
Disney World Restaurants

Let’s take a closer look at a Chef’s Ten Course Tasting experience at Victoria and Albert’s. This award-winning restaurant at Disney World’s Grand Floridian Resort exudes elegance and is helmed by James Beard Award-nominee (again in 2016!) Chef Scott Hunnel.

We took the monorail over to the Grand Floridian Resort for our dinner at Victoria and Albert’s. Viviana and Sharon greeted us at the door with hugs for all. Sharon introduced her associate for the evening, Anita. We also met Elizabeth, the harpist. We selected the Chef’s Ten Course Tasting Menu with the recommended wine pairings. First came a lovely fruit punch with a little vodka.

The Amuse-Bouche was a Cauliflower Panna Cotta with Siberian Caviar and Tattinger Brut “La Francaise.”

Cauliflower Panna Cotta with Siberian Caviar

The nine courses that followed were: (2) Roulade of Smoked Salmon and Alaskan King Crab with Chateau Rahoul Blanc, Graves 2011.

Smoked Salmon and Alaskan Crab

(3) Alaskan Sablefish with Baby Bok Choy and Lieu Dit Chenin Blanc, Santa Ynez Valley 2013.

Alaskan Sablefish

(4) Scottish Langoustine with Nage Crema and Hanzell “Sebella” Chardonnay, Sonoma 2013.

Scottish Langoustine

(5) Truffled Bell & Evans Chicken with Hedgehogs (mushrooms) and Copain “Les Voisins” Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley 2011.

Truffled Chicken

(6) Berkshire “Porchetta”, Sherry Vinaigrette and Arboldea Carmenere, Colchagua Valley 2009.

Berkshire “Porchetta”

(7) Australian Kobe-Style Beef with Comte Potato Gnocchi and Chateau Rauzan-Segla “Segla,” Margaux 2008.

Australian Kobe-Style Beef

(8) Selection of Cheese from the Trolley with Quinta Do Crasto Late Bottled Vintage Port 2010.

Selection of Cheese

(9) Green Apple Mousse with Sour Cream Ice Cream.

Green Apple Mousse

(10) Peruvian Chocolate Crunch.

Peruvian Chocolate Crunch

We each had a pot: coffee for Lyd and tea for me.

Vacuum Coffee Pot at Victoria and Albert’s

Thanks for sharing your meal with us, Tom!

Is Victoria and Albert’s on your Disney Food bucket list? Let us know in the comments below.

Disney Food Post Round-Up: September 7, 2014

By Kim LaPaglia Leave a Comment

Fall is in the air at Walt Disney World where the Magic Kingdom has transformed into a Not-So-Scary setting for the annual Halloween parties.

Candy Corn Cotton Candy

Not only do we love the decor, we are quite fond of the special food and beverages that have begun to materialize.

Click below for all the details on this week’s Disney Food News!

Disney Food News

Check out the exclusive treats and drinks you can expect to see at this year’s Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom!
Epcot’s France is debuting several new dishes at the Epcot Food and Wine Festival
Signs of autumn are upon us all as we travel to all four Parks in Disney World to see What’s New!
Pizzafari in Disney World’s Animal Kingdom debuted three new items on the breakfast menu. We’re trying the Breakfast Burrito, Breakfast Croissant, and Ancient Grain Hot Cereal.
Disney World’s Beach Club Resort announces wine pairings on select dates at Martha’s Vineyard Lounge.

Check out all the latest Disney Food News — even the stuff we don’t mention in posts on the blog! — on our Disney Food News Pin Board, including restaurant closures, Rix Lounge Party at the Coronado Springs Resort, and more!

DFB Reader Finds

If you find a fun new food — or other edible awesomeness — in or from Disney, share a photo with us on facebook or twitter so we can add it to our DFB Reader Finds each Sunday!

This week we’re sharing desserts from Disney’s Vero Beach Resort! Facebook Friend Margaret tempts our appetites with these gorgeous desserts — French Style Vanilla Cheesecake and Triple Chocolate Semifreddo!

French Style Vanilla Cheesecake

Triple Chocolate Semifreddo

What’s your Favorite Find? Send it in!

The DFB Guide to the 2014 Epcot Food & Wine Festival e-Book

Pick up your copy of the DFB Guide to the 2014 Epcot International Food & Wine Festival e-Book!

The DFB Guide to the 2014 Epcot Food & Wine Festival e-Book features all the info you need to know before you attend the Food and Wine Festival this year, from what’s NEW this year to touring strategies — and a new section with top tips on how to use MyMagic+ at the Epcot Food and Wine Festival!

As always, we’ve made this guide instantly downloadable for your convenience, and easily installed on your mobile devices. It’s a PDF guide with over 220 pages of detailed information about the Festival as well as photographs and customized bonus items to help you get the best experience possible. On a budget? Find out how to make those dollars (or Disney Dining Plan snack credits) stretch all around World Showcase. And we have a fully updated FAQ section that answers questions you didn’t even know you had!

Bonus Items

The DFB Guide to the 2014 Epcot Food & Wine Festival includes customized bonus items that go above and beyond any other Food & Wine Festival coverage currently available. These include:

A full, daily schedule of events for every day of the festival
A printable World Showcase Booth Menu Checklist that you can use to plan, and easily bring with you to the festival
Themed World Showcase booth crawls (there’s even one for the kids!)
Food and Wine Festival customized Touring Strategies for One Day visits, Budget-Conscious visits, visits with kids, and more
A chapter dedicated to all [Read more…]

News! Wine Pairings Offered at Martha’s Vineyard Lounge at Disney’s Beach Club Resort

By AJ 4 Comments

If you’ve been hoping for a reason to spend a little more time at Disney’s beautiful Beach Club Resort, you just may have one now! Martha’s Vineyard Lounge is hosting wine pairings on a few select dates.

Disney’s Beach Club Resort

Martha’s Vineyard Sign

Upcoming dates are [Read more…]

News! January Wine Dinner at BoardWalk Inn’s Flying Fish Cafe

By Kim LaPaglia Leave a Comment

The Flying Fish Café at Disney’s BoardWalk Inn Resort has announced the first dinner for the 2013 Winery Series!

Learn About:Flying Fish

Boardwalk Restaurants
Disney World Restaurants

Be sure to block off Wednesday, January 30th, 2013, on your calendar for this fun and high end meal!

Kicking off the 2013 Season with Style and Elegance

Featuring the Exciting Wines of Grgich Hills Estate – Napa, California.

With Special Guest, Violet Grgich – Co-proprietor, Vice President of Sales & Marketing
Violet’s passion for wine began at an early age, as she grew up accompanying her father in the vineyards and cellar.

Grgich Hills Estate

She spent her summers at the winery, doing everything from bottling line work to laboratory analysis and working in the tasting room.

Violet Grgich

After attending the University of California, Davis, Violet returned home to Grgich Hills. She’s now responsible for daily management of the winery, as well as sales and marketing. She says that she has the ideal job: “I believe that wine is part of a healthy, happy and long life. Wine brings people together and makes them happy, which makes my job extraordinarily fulfilling.”

Wines to be paired with Chef Tim Keating’s California-inspired Menu

Grgich Hills Fume Blanc 2009
Grgich Hills Chardonnay 2009
Grgich Hills Zinfandel 2008
Grgich Hills Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Grgich Hills Violetta 2008

A menu from a seasonally-influenced market will be offered at the 6:15pm dinner. A reception [Read more…]

News! Flying Fish Cafe Epcot Food and Wine Festival Events and July Wine Dinner

By Kim LaPaglia 5 Comments

Learn About:Flying Fish

Boardwalk Restaurants
Disney World Restaurants

The Flying Fish Café Team at Disney’s Boardwalk Resort has scheduled a July Wine Dinner!

Also, Winery Series events that will take place during the 2012 Epcot Food and Wine Festival have been announced (including a brand new dessert-focused event)!

July Wine Dinner

This Winery Event will take place July 26, 2012. Special Guests Ronald and Marianne Lachini –- Founders/Owners of Lachini Vineyards in Newberg, Oregon — will be on hand to greet guests.

Time and Cost
6:00 pm Reception; 6:30pm Dinner
$149.00 per person, (inclusive of gratuity) plus tax

Flying Fish Cafe Tables and Murals

Lachini Vineyards Bio - click image for larger version.

Call 407-939-5102 at your earliest convenience to [Read more…]

Tips For Visiting the 2012 Epcot Food and Wine Festival

By AJ 16 Comments

The 2012 Epcot Food and Wine Festival is coming up soon, and we’re already covering the latest news about the event.

Shrimp Tacos, Rib Eye Tacos, Flan and Strawberry Lime Margarita from the Mexico Booth

You can “follow the festival” on our Food and Wine Festival page here, and start making plans to attend September 28-November 12, 2012.

This annual event showcases food, wine, and other beverages from around the globe at marketplaces set up around Epcot’s World Showcase. You can also take advantage of some of the great seminars, demos, and events going on throughout the festival!

So, to kick off our coverage appropriately, let’s take a look at our…

Fun Tips for Visiting the Epcot Food and Wine Festival

Here are a few of our favorite dining tips when it comes to the Epcot Food and Wine Festival! I hope they’re helpful, and that you’ll share some of your great tips, too!

1. Make It A Meal

The World Showcase Booths around the Lagoon offer some great eats in small, appetizer sizes! Save one or two (or three!) meals for “eating around the World” Showcase.

Some of the perennial favorites include: Canada’s Cheddar Cheese Soup; Australia’s Shrimp on the Barbie; Italy’s Baked Cheese Ravioli; Argentina’s Grilled Beef Skewer; Poland’s Pierogies; and Germany’s sausage. We’re hoping that griddled cheese is [Read more…]

Wine Dinner Announced at La Luce, Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek

By AJ 3 Comments

La Luce has announced their first Wine Dinner at the Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek resort (within the gates of Walt Disney World Resort!). We love this place for awesome risotto specials each day, killer fresh pastas and sauces, and…wait for it…the Butterscotch Pudding! No, I’m serious! Check out a review of La Luce here.

Il Cibo Della Vita – La Luce’s Celebration of Food & Wine

Chef Donna Scala and the La Luce family are proud to announce this Wine Dinner featuring Antinori Wines from Italy.

Date: Saturday, March 10, 2012
Reception: 6:30 pm
Dinner: 7 pm
Price: $85++ per person. Price does not include tax or gratuity

The Antinori Family has been making wines for over 600 years, and the menu (below) created exclusively by Chef Donna Scala will [Read more…]

Tables in Wonderland: March 2012 Events

By AJ 5 Comments

Tables in Wonderland

has announced three special events for March 2012 — An Illuminations Dessert Party on St. Patrick’s Day, a specialty Irish lunch at Raglan Road, and a dinner at The Wave!

Illuminations Dessert Party

Location

: Italy Pavilion at Epcot
Date: Saturday March 17, 2012 8:00pm – 9:30pm
Cost: $55 per person, plus tax. Gratuity is included.

You are invited to a private Tables in Wonderland Dessert Party! Come enjoy a front row presentation of IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth, while you sample platters of delectable desserts and rich coffees.

Dessert Party - click image for larger version

Dessert Buffet Menu
Trio of Mini Gourmet Doughnuts (!!!!!) with Coffee Gelato
-Tennessee Bourbon Glazed Dark Chocolate Doughnuts
-Carmel Nut Glazed Apple Pie Spiced Doughnuts
-Raspberry Glazed Buttermilk Doughnuts
-Served with [Read more…]

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