It’s officially Mardi Gras season at Universal Orlando!

We’ve been taking you around Mardi Gras today to show you the floats, characters, tribute store, and more. And of course, we had to try the food! We’re rounding up our 7 best eats from International Flavors of Carnival to help you decide what you may want to try at the festival.
Before we dig in, we wanted to tell you about the Tasting Lanyard, which may be a good option if you want to try a lot of snacks. You can buy it at any kiosk! Guests can buy 10 items for $55, and Passholders can buy 15 items for $65. You can then scan your lanyard for any of the festival food or drinks that have the Universal logo next to them on the menu. It’s a great deal and can be used at Universal snack carts even after the festival ends.

Now let’s dive in!
Food
Our first favorite snack was the Beef Short Rib Poutine from Canada. It consists of crispy fries with short rib, cheese curds, and demi glaze. It costs $7.99, unless you’re using your tasting lanyard!

Next up is the Picadillo Empanada from Puerto Rico. This savory snack is a fried pastry dough filled with picadillo beef. It costs $6.99. We’re loving these flags from each country we order from!

The New Orleans food was a hit for us this year. First up are the Beignets. They’re a sweet fried pastry with powdered sugar and cost $5.99.

Then we tried the Shrimp Gumbo. It’s New Orleans-style gumbo with gulf shrimp, bacon, andouille sausage, okra, and bell peppers. It’s $5.49. It looks a little small, but the taste more than made up for it.

Our last food pick was the Twisted Tater, also from New Orleans! It’s a stuffed Cajun twisted tater with sausage, and it costs $7.99.

All that delicious food left us a little thirsty, so we tried some drinks, too! Here’s our top picks.
Drinks
Our favorite drink of the day was the King Cake Milk Punch from New Orleans. It’s a bourbon milk punch using house-made King Cake syrup, and it costs $6.

And our runner-up was the Pina Verde from Puerto Rico! It’s a twist on the classic pina colada that incorporates green chartreuse. This one costs $7.

Those are our top picks from Universal’s International Flavors of Carnival! We’ll be back to try more food and let you know what we think, so stay tuned to AllEars.
Take a Peek at Some of Universal’s Other Mardi Gras Treats!
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Are you planning on trying any of these snacks? Let us know in the comments!

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