While I was Wandering: Epcot International Food and Wine Festival

The Epcot International Food and Wine Festival is a month old! And we’ve  already been there three times! We were even there on opening day which was a fun experience.

For Epcot Festival newbies – pretty much from Labor Day to Memorial Day Epcot has some sort of Festival. The two main Festivals are the Flower and Garden Festival and the Food and Wine Festival. During the holidays they have a Festival of the Holidays and in January and February the have the Festival of the Arts. During all of the festivals they have Global Marketplaces that are basically food huts that serve three to four food items and about the same number of drinks. All of these festivals are a great time to try new foods and drinks affordably and they are educational too! How many times can you try food from Japan, Greece, Thailand, and Hawaii in one day? They also host seminars, demonstrations, and special meals during the Festivals.

While I was Wandering: France’s Global Marketplace at the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival

On to this year’s Festival. There are 34 Global Marketplaces – and we have eaten at almost every one of them – not too many left to go! We’ve had some good, some OK, and only 1-2 bad (we wouldn’t even call them bad – we just wouldn’t get them again).

This is our top list of items:

• The Steakhouse Blended Burger at Earth Eats
• Maple Boursin Cheesecake from The Cheese Studio
• Seared Scallops AND Butternut Squash Ravioli from The Wine and Dine Studio
• Grilled Lamb Chop from Australia
• Beijing Roasted Duck Bao Bun from China
• Teriyaki Chicken Bun from Japan
• Moqueca from Brazil
• Carbonade de Boeuf, Puree de Pommes de Terre from France
• St-Germain Sparkling Kir from France
• Roasted Irish Sausage AND Warm Irish Cheddar Cheese and Stout Dip from Ireland
• Moosehead Radler from Canada

Here’s some pictures of our favorites!

As Passholders we have extra incentive to go to the Festival a lot (well 4 times minimum). On our first visit we got specially themed magnets for our cars and on our fourth visit we got these mini cutting boards. The cutting board isn’t that big, but it’s a fun souvenir!

This year we also attended the Parisian Breakfast held in Chefs de France in the France Pavilion (can you tell we are still obsessed with France)! This was served buffet-style. When we walked in we were handed a Mimosa – which was bottomless. The buffet was loaded with croissants, pain au chocolat, baguettes, Croque Monsieurs, and so much more! I love any day that starts out with bottomless Mimosas and unlimited bread!

Oh my! So much Food and Wine! This Festival has been great this year. We’ve got one more trip planned to tour the world and maybe even get to all the Marketplaces! We’ll see.