Best and Worst of Epcot Food and Wine Festival 2021
If you’re like me, you don’t live in Florida and flying or driving to Disney during a Food and Wine Festival means you’ve done your research on the dishes you don’t want to miss out on and which ones to skip. That’s why I’ve created a list for my foodie travelers out there to save you time, money and have a solid plan at the Festival.
Keep reading to find out which dishes are worth every calorie and which ones to skip from my weekend trip to Epcot’s 2021 Food and Wine Festival!
After entering through the International Gateway I made my way to the right and stopped at the first booth in the France Pavilion. This was around 11 am and seemed the perfect way to start my foodie experience. I was so hungry too!
The first dish was the Creme Brûlée. I was very disappointed and would not get this dish again. The consistency of Creme brûlée should have your spoon cutting through like luke warm butter. This consistency was like soft yogurt. It should be firm and hold on your spoon. While the crust layer on top was as expected, the rest of this dish fell short. The creamy portion should be tender and creamy. This was nothing like that.
Next up: The warm Beignet filled with three cheeses. I was so hopeful for this dish tasting good from food reviews I’d seen but the beignet was not what you get when in New Orleans French Quarter and to me, the three cheese filling tasted like peppered gravy. It wasn’t cheesy gooey goodness. It was a gravy like dripping hot mess. Both these dishes were a bust and I would not fly back to eat.
The name is way fancier than it sounds and tastes. To me it tasted like warm peppered gravy, not three cheeses. Instead of being cheesy goodness it was a thick gravy like mess. I’d skip this one.
Oh my! I fell in love with this dish at the Greece Booth in World Showcase! After my first booth was a major dud on my foodie trail, not only did this taste amazing, but you can taste it in the air as the aromas from this dish are being pan fried. I tried to savor every scrumptious bite as long as possible and practically licked the plate clean. It took everything in my power to not go back for seconds. The only thing holding me back was the many other items on my list to try. Yes, I would fly back for this. Is it exactly like saganaki from any Greek restaurant I’ve been to, not really but it’s pretty darn close!
This dish is also on the Cheese Formage Crawl which you can read my review here:
Watch my review here: https://youtu.be/8F387K23538
More please! Even on a 90 degree day, this dish was amazing From the Germany Booth in World Showcase. The line gets long for this one so try to have this one before the noon hour. This dish does have a prominent onion taste and consistency. So if you like onions hidden in your dish, this one is not for you. But if your like me, I love onions and this dish hit all the marks for cheesy, oniony, creamy pasta goodness. Yes, I’d fly back for this in a heartbeat.
I’m not a pork rind girl and I’ve never had pimento cheese before so this was an epicuriosity experience I wasn’t too sure about. At the Swanky Sauce Seine booth near Disney Traders is where you can find this dish. While I did enjoy it and didn’t have a comparison for this style of cheese when I ate it, I wasn’t blown away and it’s not really my style so I’d probably not get it again. But, I will say that this could be a great dish to munch on while watching the fireworks.
Since this trip, my sister brought over pimento cheese to my house from a grocery store and in comparison, the one at Disney was far superior. It is full of texture and has a kick to it. Not bad just not my thing.
The best part about the Apple Crumble Tart and Blake’s Hard Cider was not only was this an excellent way to start the day but it was inside the Canadian Theater at the Appleseed Orchard. I slowly savored every bite and drop as I sat in the cool air conditioning. It felt sooooo good. Seriously, savor every moment in here, especially if you go in the dead of summer like I did.
OH. MY. YUMMY GOODNESS! I’m writing this blog about two months after I ate this and I’m still dreaming of this dish. Hands down, best of the fest and a dish I’d eat again and again. It was messy, it was spicy, it has all the tastebud elements of sweet and spicy in a perfectly packaged combination of glazed goodness. I saw reviews on this and knew I had to have it. From the first bite, I fell in love.
Their wings. Not the biggest. Not the freshest, it’s a food festival. But pretty darn tasty! I had the mango habanero wings. Super messy and sticky which is how I like my wings. They do not skimp on sauce here. If I were at the park, I’d get these again. They’re certainly a ’crowd favorite’ type of meal. The blue cheese dressing tasted like a very mild blue cheese bordering on the lines of ranch consistency and taste. I like my blue cheese full of chunks of cheese with that pungent flavor it’s known for.
Excellent! But beware of how salty these nachos are. These unique Buffalo nachos are a unique combination of pulled pork, Wisconsin cheese curds, pickled onions and house made chips. My mouth is salivating just thinking about my epicurean experience with this. Winner in my book. I enjoyed eating these under a shaded tree before continuing my day.
Yes! I’ve had this dish from past festivals and it didn’t disappoint this time either. Although this year the chocolate bread pudding seemed stronger on the chocolate flavor and denser. Still a super flavorful and filling dessert that is very shareable. This is a LARGE portion and a favorite of mine. I couldn’t wait to cap my night of with this.
Also at the Mexico booth is this amazing chorizo dish!!! I seriously could not stop eating eat.
You CANNOT skip the Mexican booth! Year after year their booth puts out amazing dishes that’ll knock your tastebuds out. I literally inhaled this. It was that good! My mother would’ve told me to slow down if she saw me eating. This is a dish you want to lick the plate clean and happily go back for more. I almost did but I had to pace myself and have some sort of restraint.
While the wild mushroom tart may not win any awards for presentation, it does for flavor!
The best part about this mushroom tart is the combination of it being chock full of mushrooms AND eating inside the air conditioned pavilion where the Voices of Liberty normally perform.
How much did I like this? Seconds please! I wanted to eat a whole pan and wished I had bought two of these as I found it to be on the smaller size of the dishes I purchased. If you love mushrooms, you’re gonna love this.
I bought this at the Hops & Barley Booth and carried it to the air conditioned pavilion around the corner where I can escape the summer Florida heat.
Oh my! Beware! If you buy this carrot cake, you will have eyes craving it and get lots of comments about how good it looks. I loved this dish. While it may have been a weird combo with the mushroom tart, it wasn’t any weirder than the dishes this carrot cake is paired with at the Hops & Barley Booth.
This yummy carrot cake lives up to it’s looks! It is very rich with a warm icing they pour over it when you order. And there is plenty of it, drizzled all over. I don’t think they miss one spot of cake with icing. I had this to start my day and it proved an excellent way to begin my foodie tour. Warm carrot cake and a coffee. Ahhh! This is rich and sweet. While I wasn’t able to finish it, I’d definitely have this again.
Say no to this dish unless they seriously upgrade the meat. I have a thing about meat. For one, the consistency and flavor needs to taste like meat and not tenderizer. Second, I can’t stand cheap meat. I basically spit these ‘tenderloins’ out into my napkin and didn’t eat it. These meat skewers got alot of glances and comments from people like the carrot cake. But don’t be fooled by it’s looks! It’s not as good as it looks. I’ll be skipping this next time unless I read some rave reviews about it.
The only good part of the dish was the creamy corn mealie pop. Now that; I’d have more of and practically licked every bit off the plate. It was creamy and very satisfying to my taste buds.
Hello Indian Booth! I was so glad this booth opened early before it’s October advertised opening date and instead, opening in August! I love Indian food and the bounti of flavors you find in Indian dishes. And this did not disappoint. While I’m not a big fan of jasmine rice, I was still in love.
This is the Madras Red Curry dish from the Indian Booth. While this dish wasn’t as good as the Korma Chicken, it was still a winner in my book. If you don’t like Indian spices, don’t eat at the Indian Booth! If you haven’t tried Indian dishes before, these dishes are mild enough for you to test your tastebuds and the price tag won’t break the bank.
For me, these flavors sing to my heart. I bought these before the fireworks started, held them in my hands, and carried them all the way through the international gateway to my Boardwalk DVC resort before eating them. I didn’t even reheat them when I got to the room. I ate them cold and loved every bite of this post fireworks delight.
My favorite of the sweets and big winner for me is the pistachio cake.
It was so light and fluffy and delicate on flavor and not overly sweet or even sweet at all; minus the fondant which I never eat. Ewe!
I must of spent a half hour savoring every bite of this pistachio cake. I found a quant, quiet corner snd really savored this dessert before ending my day with some shopping and fireworks. Each time I sat down to put pen to paper to try and describe it, I felt the need to fly back for more. It’s that good!!!
Some of my favorite flavors are in here like cumin and some other light spices I happen to love. I drink chai lattes almost daily so this dish is highly appealing to me. The only part I did not like was the fondant layer on top. I pealed that off and left it to the side.
Those are my worst and best dishes of this year’s 2021 Epcot Food and Wine Festival. I love traveling to different parts of the country and tasting foods from different regions. The festival brings it all together in one location where you can experience not only varying cuisines but you get to learn a little bit about different culture. This Mickeygander can’t wait for next year!