There’s no disguising the time of year when it comes to EPCOT and the sudden surge in attendance at Walt Disney World’s second oldest park. It can mean only one thing: It’s time for the famous International Food & Wine Festival.
It’s a “season” that even the locals pay serious attention to, partly because it also coincides with Orlando’s Magic Dining programme, but mainly because it sees Disney’s culinary team go into overdrive with all the extra dining flavours of this fab event.
And, if you happen to be here between now (August 29) and November 23, there is a real treat in store with everything that goes with this highly imaginative dining option – which is actually a LOT more than just food, as it also includes the Eat To The Beat concert series and some tempting exclusive gifts and souvenirs.
But we know that the food and drink offerings are the key element of the Festival, and they are what visitors most want to know about, so we thought we would mark your card on some of the great new dishes in store for your tastebuds this autumn.
Just to start with, there are five (count ’em – FIVE!) new food kiosks – Disney calls them Marketplaces – sprinkled around the World Showcase, World Nature, World Discovery and World Celebration areas, including one called Festival Favorites that looks like being a ‘Greatest Hits’ of past festivals. Located in the new CommuniCore Hall, this year’s Favorites include a super-tasty Kielbasa dish with potato pierogis, caramelised onions and sour cream, and the must-try Irish Milk Shake (Guinness, Bailey’s and vanilla ice cream – yum!) that used to be part of the Ireland kiosk that is not making an appearance this year.
Also new at CommuniCore Hall is Macatizers, which pays homage to the humble Mac & Cheese combo by featuring four tasty variations on this particular theme, including our favourite, the Truffle Macaroni & Cheese. We think this will be one of THE big hits of 2024.
Another highly tempting new Marketplace is something called Bramblewood Bites (and, yes, Disney are being kind of pastoral this year, with other newcomers called Milled & Mulled and Forest & Field, along with existing rustic flavours from Earth Eats and Flavors from Fire). This is another one that takes relatively humble ingredients and gives them a gastronomic twist. In this case, they involved pork tenderloin, grilled bison and a root vegetable medley that is wonderfully tasty.
Of the other two new kiosks, Forest & Field features a heavenly Pumpkin Mascarpone Ravioli, as well as a Chocolate Peanut Butter Imperial Stout that is possibly Simon’s best drink of the year! Milled & Mulled goes for a trio of flour-based desserts – including one of our 2023 faves, the Carrot Cake with walnuts and cream cheese icing – and a beverage threesome with another real highlight in the Coppertail Brewing Blueberry Pie Cider.
If those are the headline newbies, there are another 33 Marketplaces that all make a welcome comeback this year and which put the true ‘International’ flavour into the event. From Hawaii to Greece and Belgium to Morocco, these are the core elements of the Festival and they include some of the essential tastes we have grown to love in recent years.
Five are in the World Discovery area and two in World Nature, while the remaining 26 are in World Showcase, including the Joffrey’s Tea & Coffee kiosks that all offer four special flavoured lattes just for the Festival (hint: the Coconut Banana Cream Pie Latte is an absolute gorgeous concoction that is more dessert than mere coffee!).
Sprinkled throughout those 33 are no fewer than 86 brand new dishes and drinks for 2024 and, while we certainly can’t say we’ve sampled them all (we’d need the whole festival for that, and even then it would be a squeeze), we can point out what we think will be the new highlights for this year’s event.
For those who like their food on the spicy side (as Simon does), we’d heartily recommend the Curried Chicken and South African Boerewors Sausage Stew at the Refreshment Outpost, as well as the Wagyu Temaki Sushi from Japan, another rich combination of pickles and spices, and the Grilled Bushberry Spiced Shrimp Skewer with sweet-and-sour vegetables and coconut chili sauce from the Australia marketplace. A true temptation from Down Under.
For hot dog fans, it’s worth pointing out that this year’s Flavors of America kiosk features a completely new menu of frankfurter satisfaction, with four different varieties on offer, including the Southwest Style, an all-beef hot dog wrapped in bacon with warm pinto beans, tomatoes, jalapeños, avocado crema and queso fresco in a French roll. A bit messy to eat but totally scrummy!
For new desserts, look no further than the Liquid Nitrogen Frozen Sweet Potato Mousse at the Swirled Showcase at the entrance to World Showcase and Pan de Elote from Mexico, traditional Mexican cornbread topped with chocolate sauce and queso fresco.
As for the drinks, this is an area that has mushroomed in recent years to include a magnificent array of craft breweries and boutique wineries, to the point where there are now a whopping 140 different beverages to choose from, from beers and wines to elaborate cocktails and frozen coffee concoctions.
It is an absolutely dazzling array of luscious libations, and we can honestly say there is something for absolutely everyone among this heady array. And, when it comes to that special alcoholic tipple (which, after all, is one of the prime attractions of the Festival), you should definitely pay attention to the UK Beer Cart, which features a Strawberry Basil cocktail that is positively the bees knees, mixing Beefeater Pink Strawberry Gin, St Germain Elderflower Liqueur and Seagram’s ginger ale with strawberry and basil syrups.
Finally, it’s worth pointing out that the most convenient way to enjoy the Food & Wine Festival is definitely with a special edition Disney Gift Card wristlet that you can buy at merchandise locations throughout EPCOT and then use at any of the Marketplaces as you would cash or credit card. They feature either Mickey or Minnie and make for a great souvenir when you are all Festival-ed out.
Now, you’ll have to excuse us, as there are another 200 items we’d like to try…!
What is your favourite taste at the EPCOT park? Tell us about it on the friendly AttractionTickets.com Community Facebook page, on X (formerly Twitter) or Instagram.
