jray21 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 (edited) Part 1: First round of the Food and Wine Festival! Part 2: Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party! This fall, Amy and I decided to go to Orlando for the pilgrimage to the Epcot Food and Wine Festival! Amy had never been, and it had been over 13 long, terrible, and starving years since I had been. We also wanted to check out the Orlando halloween offerings, since we usually do LA for halloween. Let me tell you, the Food and Wine festival did not disappoint! The food was absolutely amazing! There were a total of 75 individual dishes, small tapas sized, and I tried them all! It took two days, at about 6 hours each day. To be fair, I didn't eat every dish entirely. A few I didn't care for, and sometimes people would try a bite. There were also 4 'commercial' dishes that I couldn't believe were actually part of the festival, but more on that later. I would guess that I ate a total of 60 full plates. I missed a few pictures of the food, but I have almost all of them! We had a ton of fun meeting up with the TPR members, and can't wait to do it again! On to the pictures! Hello Epcot, it has been a while! Looks so much better without the wand. The cranberries are the first thing to greet you! Where's the turkey? What a tough job. They also had a watermelon patch. You learn something new every day. Yay, I finally made it! Let the eating begin! Each 'country' has a booth like this. It is put up temporarily, just for the festival. I met up with everyone in China because the whole front gate system crashed right when I was about to go through! I was so excited and hungry I devoured the first dish without taking a picture of it! It was the chicken satay from China and it was awesome! Next up was the Lettuce Wrap with Roast Pork and Kimchi Slaw (left), and Mung Bean Pancake with Shrimp and Kimchi Slaw from South Korea. The lettuce wrap was ok. Nothing special. The Mung Bean Pancake sounded terrible, but it was actually really really good. South Africa - Filet of Beef with Sweet Potatoes and Braai Sauce, and Spinach and Paneer Cheese Pocket. Filet anything is always a winner. The Country of Cheese! The fondue was was a little too strong for me, but it was still very good. The Artisan Cheese Selection. It had cheddar, goat brie, and blue cheese, all cheeses I don't like so I only tasted this dish. They had this really really stupid thing where you could stamp a 'passport' each time you visited a country, so of course we all got one. Poland was next with Zapiekanki - Toasted mushrooms, caramelized onion and cheese bread, with homemade ketchup. The cheese was way too strong on this one. They also had Kielbasa and Pierogies! Amazing! Italy didn't disappoint! Cannoli and Cheese Ravioli! Sweet Italian Sausage as well! So good! Morocco was next with Kefta Pocket (pretty good), Merguez Sausage (ok), and Baklava (always delicious!). New Zealand had a Scallop with Kumara, which was amazing, and a Lamb Meatball which was also really good if you like Lamb. Amy approves of the Créme Brûlée in France! France had the Créme Brûlée, Escargots, and Coq au Vin. The Coq au Vin was really dry, but had great flavor. Snails anyone? They were also really good. We decided to take a small break and headed through Jolly Jolly Jolly England. Shirley had never done Living with the Land so we had to do it. Giant bugs like the chairlift of death in Jamaica! I'm suddenly getting hungry again! I love tapioca drinks! I guess this is where it comes from? I tried growing vanilla once. It didn't even get as big as one of these leaves. If you don't know what this is then your nothing to me. Caviar anyone? Fried catfish sounds good about now. It should be like Red Lobster where you pick your fish. These lemons look like tumors. Wait, aren't these supposed to have faces on them and be at Potterworld? Shirley has also never been on the Nemo ride! Deprived! Jellyfish. Having a shark makes this a good ride. Of course I'm particular to the RAY! Yay for the turtles! Real fish, not as fun. Real turtles are awesome! So there can be 100 Nemo's, but only one Mickey Mouse? Steve didn't do very well at the simple trivia. Stupid Gaijin. Did we mention it was also Texas' birthday! He turned 21! I think he might have mentioned it on Facebook. He was very proud of his button. He had to argue with a cast member with an odd sense of humor to get it! Oh no, Amy is stuck with Jake! I'm a terrible husband. Like a grand and miraculous spaceship.... Thank you Phoenicians. Is it terrible that I could only think of delicious garlic through this scene? I never noticed Mouse Trap before! That was such an awesome game. Thank you for an amazing phone and computers that work! (Yes, Disney fanboys, I know it technically isn't a single person or event.) In the future I clone and live with myself! Amy and Jake spacewalk in the future while Jake eats a marshmallow. Cameron has Ed Grimley hair, and Shirley has a permanent smirk in the future. Gotta love free soda! China and Germany are my favorites! Ok, back to the food! The country of Hawai'i is next, with this super delicious Tuna Poke. They also had this perfect Kalua Pork Slider! On to the Country of Desserts & Champagne. Clockwise from top - Lemon Custard, Dark Chocolate Mousse (Amazing), and Yogurt Panna Cotta. All were very good! This is the one thing that annoyed me. Greece just gave you supermarket yogurt containers for the greek yogurt dishes. They could of at least pretended to make it themselves or dress it up. They also had Greek Salad, Griddled Greek Cheese with Pistachios and Honey (Amazing), Chicken Souvlaki (Very Good), an Spanakopita (Very Good). This was my absolute, bar none, number one dish of the entire event - Warm Chocolate Lava Cake with Baileys Ganache from Ireland! Next up was Belgium with some Steamed Mussels (not a fan of mussels at all). The waffle was also awesome. This was also the other place that just had a commercial item. I didn't get a picture, but the Guylian Chocolate Truffles were like a Chirstmas stocking stuffer box of two truffles. Pretty annoying. The waffle was so good I wouldn't share so Amy had to get her own. Jake can now legally drink. It was on Facebook if you missed it. Holy Crap! It's Aunt Edna from National Lampoon's Vacation! The Mahi Mahi from Singapore was one of my favorites. It was so good and flavorful. The Beef Rendang looked like brown vomit, but it was really good. America had Clam Chowder, a Lobster Claw, Lobster Roll, and a Pumpkin Mousse! All very good! The claw was massive and well worth it! Sugar Ray was there. It took us quite a while to think of just 4 songs he sang. Back in Canada I got the Cheddar Cheese Soup (awesome), the Chicken Chipotle Sausage (the polenta was the best part, and the Wild Mushroom Beef Filet (2nd favorite item of the event!). Jake is happy with his drink and dumplings. Since it was raining and storming, it was time for Malestrom! Our last items of the night, China's Beef Bun, Potstickers, and Mango Tapioca Pudding, which were all amazing. Goodbye Epcot, see you in two days! I ate about 54 dishes out of 75! I was so full, so naturally we........ ...went to Alehouse and ordered the 35 shrimp platter! It was such an amazing food filled day. I felt like Augustus Gloop in the chocolate room! Edited January 23, 2013 by jray21 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Johnson Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I hate these posts because they always make me hungry. Bah! There goes my growling stomach again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hilltopper39 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Wow, that all looks amazing, I can't wait to get back to Food and Wine one of these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 So who was it that turned 21 again? I don't think I heard anything about it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcjaco Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Still the best time to go to Epcot. My wife hates onions, so the first year we went she was very picky. Until she had the spanakopita. She went back and had it over and over and over again. Each time I laughed. She had no idea there were onions in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygator Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 How much did you spend on Food? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle11 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I miss Disney World. Looks like a great time to visit, and a great time to blow a few hundred bucks on food! It all looks very tasty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernierocker Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Why weren't people informed that Jake turned 21??? Somehow, someway I am making it down for this next year! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simon8899 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Looked like you had some good fun. Was germany also there with a dish? Didn't noticed anything german... And the Escargots were quite made to please as the snail meat normally boiled in butter en naturel and served that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jray21 Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 I hate these posts because they always make me hungry. Bah! There goes my growling stomach again. I was getting so hungry posting it! Still the best time to go to Epcot. My wife hates onions, so the first year we went she was very picky. Until she had the spanakopita. She went back and had it over and over and over again. Each time I laughed. She had no idea there were onions in it. The Spanakopita was really good. It was one of Amy's favorites! How much did you spend on Food? It ended up being about $350! I definitely think it was worth it. That's just one night at Victoria and Albert's, which is amazing food, but I got tons more, and it fed me for two days! Looked like you had some good fun. Was germany also there with a dish? Didn't noticed anything german... And the Escargots were quite made to please as the snail meat normally boiled in butter en naturel and served that way. The snails definitely had tons of delicious butter and garlic! There was a few more countries I didn't get to yet. We went back two days later and finished them all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 The Wild Mushroom Beef Filet was amazing. And, wait, Jake is on Facebook? Then why didn't he announce that he just turned 21? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeemerBoy Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Holy crap, that lobster claw looks huge....and delicious! Awesome report, Joey. I'm SO sad we missed it this year....along with all you guys. If I had a dollar for every "21" post that day, I could've bought out the park and made it a private TPR F&W event. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pianojohn Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Great pictures! I live in Orlando, and this will be the one year I won't make it to Food and Wine. Oh well, Mickey's Very Merry is right around the corner! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Great pictures! I live in Orlando, and this will be the one year I won't make it to Food and Wine. Oh, no! How come? Do you need Elissa and I to drag you out for some country of cheese? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jedimaster1227 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Why weren't people informed that Jake turned 21??? Jake turned 21?!?! I had no idea! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Movieguy Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I've heard so much about the Food and Wine Festival in the past, it's great to see pics from it. Everything looks delicious, even the snails! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meteornotes Posted October 25, 2012 Share Posted October 25, 2012 Wait, Joey ate an insane amount of food AND Jake turned 21 and really didn't tell anyone?!? This is mind blowing... dt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted October 25, 2012 Share Posted October 25, 2012 You're a hardier soul that I am, Joey. I was pretty much wiped out by Morocco (although I couldn't resist the Country of Cheese). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SLUSHIE Posted October 25, 2012 Share Posted October 25, 2012 I've actually been to EPCOT once while this event going on, but I didn't try anything. This is really making me wish I did. Though I'm sure my wallet at the time was pretty glad I didn't. This was a number of years ago and I remember the prices being similar to what they are now, so maybe it's a bit better value than it was then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted October 25, 2012 Share Posted October 25, 2012 (edited) Wait, I'm 21 now? shoot Yes, you are. It's s shame that you didn't take more advantage of it. Edited October 25, 2012 by cfc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted October 25, 2012 Share Posted October 25, 2012 FYI - Went to Food & Wine today...don't be too jealous! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gisco Posted October 25, 2012 Share Posted October 25, 2012 I'm impressed with the amount of food Joey consumed. Oh, Happy Belated Birthday Jake! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted October 25, 2012 Share Posted October 25, 2012 I envy you. Eating around the world seems much more productive than drinking around the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jray21 Posted October 25, 2012 Author Share Posted October 25, 2012 ^^^when I read that I totally had a flashback of all the best foods. Now I'm super hungry, what a surprise. ^but drinking around the world is so much more entertaining for everyone else! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy524 Posted October 25, 2012 Share Posted October 25, 2012 End of the workday hunger has set in. I'm looking at all this amazing food and all I have with me are wheat thins. Doesn't seem fair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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