Reviews of General Exhibits and Experiences
Reviewed by bellebookworm9 Review Date: 09/12/2018
Rating: (9) Recommended
We visited on Days 2 and 3 of this year’s Food & Wine Festival, August 30th and September 1st. For being both the opening weekend (Friday-Saturday) and the Labor Day holiday weekend, the crowds were much more manageable than expected, which was a pleasant surprise. Of course there were choke points but I was planning for much worse. We didn’t even witness any drunken debauchery, which I had heard was becoming more of a problem over the years.
Saw lots of cute F&WF merchandise in MouseGears as well as the merch booths scattered around the park. Visited the Festival Center briefly for breakfast at the Mimosa Bar. It was pretty empty at 9:30-9:45am but it looked like a nice setup (my first time ever in the building!).
We sampled many options from the Marketplace booths and I’ll review those separately. Overall, I really like Food & Wine (I was happy when Flower & Garden started offering some food kiosks as spring travel has worked better with my schedule for the last 5 years or so) and I’m glad I was able to visit again this year since our last visit during this time was back in 2011!
Pros:
Crowds much better than expected; lots of cute merchandiseCons:
—Reviewed by nlg0517 Review Date: 12/19/2015
Rating: (8) Recommended
I have long dreamed of spending my 40th birthday at the EPCOT Food & Wine Festival. My husband felt that a year early would be better! We went the 1st week of November. I did not realize that this was the week leading up to the marathon. I believe it was more crowded because runners were arriving. However, this didn't ruin my experience at all. We did a mixology seminar as well as a culinary demo, both of which were great! I didn't get to try all the booths that I wanted to try but the ones we got to were very good. I really enjoyed every item I tried. The bacon mac'n'cheese was the best! I also liked the beer flight from the Florida booth & I don't drink beer. The only problems were the night time crowds. It was crazy! We had no interest in the musical act that week but everyone else in Orlando did. The lines were very long making it very difficult to navigate the World Showcase. I hope to go back some day but will definitely avoid EPCOT at night.
Pros:
Food!!Cons:
Crowds!!Reviewed by Fitzboyzmom Review Date: 04/25/2015
Rating: (4) Recommended
I attended this for the first time in September with my son. We had planned to hangout here for a couple days, but never came back after the first day. Some of the food was good and it was fun to try some new things. It was not fun eating on top of garbage cans or trying to beat someone to a table. At one location, my son sat at a high table while I was in line and some woman went and stood in front of it because I guess she thought he was invisible or didn't count. She left as soon as I arrived....but weird.
There were so many people drinking so much, that it really wasn't place for children of any age. I get it and like to indulge, but it was not a place for families at all. I was really disappointed and don't plan to attend again.
Pros:
—Cons:
—Reviewed by Imjustababyduck Review Date: 10/11/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
My husband and I bought the premium package for the late night food and wine street party (or whatever it's called). Our package included the following for each of us -- a bottle of Chianti, a wine glass, a insulated gift bag, a box made of chocolate that held 4 truffles, a premium package lanyard and badge. I like the wine glasses better than the ones you could buy in the Festival Shop. The chocolates were pretty and tasty.
The premium lanyard and badge gave us roped off seating and "cut in line access" to several booths and were located throughout the festival. These areas were kind of hard to locate, but they were never busy and were well staffed.
The Thursday Night Street Party was really a lot of fun. You had to get your food/beverage lanyard for your free items from guest services. During the Thursday Night Party these lanyards allow you to get 6 free items from the booths that remained opened. You can use them for food or alcohol. If you use them wisely, you can recoup upwards of $75.00 of your money paid for the package back. For those who bought the $99.00 package, it makes it a really good deal.
The lines weren't long, and the staff was very friendly. There was great entertainment and different areas. There was a techno/dance area; a singer/songwriter area, and a bar type area.
We went for the first party and things went very smoothly, especially for the first night. I loved this and would definitely do it again. I think it was worth the money.
Pros:
All of itCons:
NothingReviewed by Imjustababyduck Review Date: 10/08/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
During our weeklong stay at WDW, my husband and I did several culinary demonstrations and mixology classes. We found the culinary demonstrations to be a very nice way to try some nice food that was cost effective, and didn't take up 4 hours of your day. (We also did a lot of food and wine pairings which take hours out of your day). I think if you enjoy the food booths, then the culinary demonstrations (which take about 45 minutes and give you a tapas sized plate) are a great way to maximize your time at food and wine. With the demonstrations, you are not stuffed full at the end, and you have the time (and room) to try the food at the booths. The mixology seminars were fun and informative, but I did prefer the culinary demonstrations over the mixology.
Pros:
Quick and inexpensiveCons:
None, reallyReviewed by dcdeb Review Date: 10/05/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
I went to the Mixology session, which is held in the Vineyard area of Epcot's Festival Center, on Saturday, September 20, the second day the session on gin was offered. The format for these Mixology sessions hasn't changed since the program's inception three years ago -- and that's not a complaint. As they say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it! And this format works. The presenter tells you a little bit about the background of the spirit, in this case gin, and of course about his/her particular company. Interpersed with the history lessons, the Mixologist shows the audience how to prepare three different cocktails using the spirit, while sharing "insider" tips and tricks for preparing the best cocktails possible. And then of course there is what is arguably the "best" portion of the event: the audience is treated to samples of the mixed drinks themselves. You can read the rest of my review of this Mixology session here:
http://allears.net/tp/ep/fw14/2014-epcot-food-and-wine-festival-mixology-gin.htm
Pros:
Fun atmosphere, chance to try 3 cocktails and learn tips from a mixologistCons:
Interferes with dinner hour a bitReviewed by wattage Review Date: 11/20/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
This was our third time attending the F&W Festival. We were there on 11/3/13 form 11am until 4pm. We really enjoyed the Canadian, French and US booths. The real stand out was the French beef bourguignon, and the US lobster tails and clam chowder. The only negatives I’ll mentions are the crowds (but I expected that on a Sunday), and the number of drunks. I think Disney needs to do a better job of limiting the number of drinks a person can have in a day. The Escargot we had at the French booth was way over cooked which made them chew like little rubber bands – not very pleasant.
Pros:
Great foodCons:
Drunken foolsReviewed by SharW Review Date: 11/14/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
All the food we tasted was excellent. Noticed the visible presence of much more security this year which may have cut down on the excessive drinking and drunk behavior that has occurred in prior years.
Pros:
Good FoodCons:
Can be very crowded on SaturdayReviewed by solaya062007 Review Date: 10/29/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
I was at Epcot's Food & Wine Festival on October 14th. Eat to the Beat Concert Series was featuring Wilson Phillips that day. They were fantastic; after all these years. Had never seen them in concert before but always liked their music. Very inspiring and strong performers!
Pros:
Great EntertainmentCons:
Shows not long enoughReviewed by hstuck Review Date: 10/23/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Attended the Food & Wine Fest 10/18-10/21. Great as usual! I think unless you are in the food bizz, you can't truly imagine how hard this type of event is to pull off. I am impressed every year..truly, how hard everyone works to make this a truly incredible event. The food booths churn out this massive amount of food that is PERFECT...my white wines are cold, my reds are even perfect temp...and the food is just amazing. The crowds are handled very well on the weekends...yes, it's crowded but the lines move. There will always be drunk folks but I didn't think it was any worse this year. You can't control that. I will say, bringing more beer in is a great idea to get the beer drinkers involved and spirits for those that like liquor, but that drunk factor is going to rise now. We'll see if that causes some changes in the years to come. I still love this though and the special events are extraordinary!!! The festival shops are great and LOVE the paintings by Heather French - visit her Whiskers and Wine paintings while at the F&W fest....she is one GREAT artist! Looking forward to next October!!
