Food & Wine 2008

The Epcot International Food & Wine Festival officially opens on Friday, September 26, but Disney held a preview or “soft” opening today, September 25. This year’s theme is “Cities in Wonderland” and the entrance to Epcot features a large “Alice in Wonderland”-type table, all set with dishes and teapots and waiting for the March Hare and the Mad Hatter to arrive.

Located around World Showcase are a number of banners, depicting many of the cities featured at this year’s event.

One thing that struck me this year was that the food booths are more accurately themed than in previous years. Very few of the booths have a generic look. I feel that Disney did a much better job at depicting the architecture of the given country.

I also feel that Disney has tried to facilitate good crowd and line control by placing a podium with a cash register a short distance away from the food booth. Guests line up at the podium, make their section, them move on to the food booth to pick up their taste treat.

One negative that I noticed was the lack of large, hanging menus that have been used at past events. Instead, a small menu is positioned on the podium.

I saw a number of people peering over the cordons trying to get a glimpse of the menu. Since today’s event was just a “soft” opening, I’m hoping that this is just a temporary situation because I see problems ahead if this is the way it’s supposed to be.

In front of the American Adventure a display has been created to extol the virtues of the pear and its many varieties and uses. The entire exhibit is presented in a cartoon-style format that makes it appealing to children and adults.

The state of Louisiana is sponsoring a large exhibit this year to promote their bounty. But unfortunately, it wasn’t completed for the soft opening and was hidden behind plywood walls.

As with every year, merchandise especially designed for the Food & Wine Festival is available. Most of these wares can be found in booths situated between the Canada Pavilion and the Tower Shops.

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