2022 Epcot Food & Wine Festival Top Picks

Aug 24

Are you headed to Disney's International Food & Wine Festival this fall? Are you overwhelmed by all the social media posts about what food and drinks are offered at the festival? Say no more! I am an Orlando-local and visit Disney often, so I am here to break through the noise of what is actually worth the hype at this year’s festival.

Below are some of my top picks!

Fry Flight - The Fry Basket

This is the new item at Food & Wine that has been all over social media, and honestly, I think it lives up to the hype. We got warm, freshly made fries, and there is a nice variety between salty and sweet. The Sea Salt and Vinegar fries taste exactly like Thrashers Fries to me (those who have visited the Ocean City, Maryland Boardwalk will know what I am talking about). The sweet potato fries reminded me of Thanksgiving. My friend liked the barbecued bacon fries and said the aioli sauce was good. Overall, this is an excellent item to share, so you get a variety of things to try, and it is not too heavy that you will feel stuffed and not want to try other booths after.

“Le Cellier” Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon - Canada Booth

I feel like this is a hidden gem of the festival. This is a smaller version of one of the steaks at Canada’s Le Cellier Restaurant. It is perfect for sharing between two people, but I would get more in any groups larger than that as these lean on the smaller side. The sauce always pairs nicely with the steak, and it is not too much beef that you feel bloated or stuffed in the hot Florida sun. This comes back to the festival yearly because it is a crowd favorite.

As an aside, if you like your steak cooked to order or a certain way, I would not order this as it is not cooked to order, and you are just handed one at the booth.

“Le Cellier” Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon

Braised Beef Poutine - Refreshment Port

The Refreshment Port is never considered an “official booth," but they usually add menu items related to each festival. This year they added a Braised Beef Poutine with French Fries, Boursin Garlic & Fine Herbs, Cheese Sauce, Cheese Curds, and Gherkin Relish. The portion is large for festival food, so I would definitely share this! And I think this has been my favorite new things I have tried at this year's festival so far. My fiancé wished there was more gravy (as a true Canadian), but we both were pleasantly surprised and would get this again.

Bold Rock Blackberry Hard Cider - Refreshment Port

I was so mad to hear they had gotten rid of the Pomegranate Beer in Germany a few Food and Wine Festival's ago, and I have been on the hunt to replace that go-to Food and Wine drink. This Blackberry Cider is that go-to drink replacement. I am a fan of ciders, so this hit the spot for me and reminds me a lot of that pomegranate beer. So, if you miss that drink as I do, I would recommend trying this!

Braised Beef Poutine & Bold Rock Blackberry Hard Cider

Warm Raclette Swiss Cheese with Baby Potatoes, Cornichons, and Baguette – The Alps

Okay, you need to get over the smell of the cheese for this one. But once you get over the scent, this dish is fantastic. You pair warm melted cheese with small pieces of bread, potatoes, and cornichons. This has been around for a few festivals and has slowly become a favorite of mine (after getting over the smell of the cheese). This dish can also come with ham if you want to add meat to the mix. This dish is heavier, so I would recommend getting this later in the day and not in the hot Florida midday sun.

Stone-baked Moroccan Bread with Hummus, Chermoula, and Zhoug Dips – Tangierine Café: Flavors of the Medina

I love the bread service at Sanaa, so I try bread any time it exists at Disney to see if it would compare (so far, nothing beats the bread service at Sanaa). But I love how warm and soft this bread is and how well it pairs with each dip. The hummus they pair with the bread always hits the spot, and this is the perfect snack if you are looking for "real food" but not something too heavy.

Grilled Kebabs (Chermoula Chicken) with Carrot Chickpea Salad and Garlic Aioli – Tangierine Café: Flavors of the Medina

They brought this back from last year, but flipped the couscous it used to come with for chickpeas. I am not a big fan of chickpeas unless it is in hummus, but it pairs well with the Garlic Aioli sauce on top. I always love getting this and the lamb kabob. I recommend getting more than one of these if you plan on splitting it, as it comes with one meat skewer.

Rocky Road Chocolate Cake – Flavors from Fire

I am so happy to try a dessert from the Flavors of Fire booth! In years past, they had a s'more whoopie pie that had the bacon baked in, so I was never able to modify the dish and try it. They brought a new dessert to this booth, the Rocky Road Cake, which did not disappoint. It has marshmallows, spiced almonds, and chocolate ganache. If you want something chocolatey from the festival, I would grab this. My only complaint is that my cake had way more almonds than marshmallows compared to my friends' cake. So, I wish I had more marshmallows. But when all is said and done, this is now my go-to dessert at the festival.

The festival is still going strong, and several booths opened the week I am writing this (Hawaii, Noodle Exchange, Coastal Eats, and Mac and Cheese). I am excited to head back to the festival throughout the fall and try more exciting festival foods (and continuously ride Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind because I will never get sick of that attraction!).

I hope you found this helpful, and make sure to let us know what your favorite Food & Wine item is from this year's festival!

Frances Sherlock

Shoreline Destinations Disney World contributor

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Blog by: Frances Sherlock

Frances is an Orlando local who visits the Disney Parks weekly. She is a Disney College Program alum and a former Disney Store Cast Member. Frances is also an avid Disney pin trader and she and her fiancé enjoy trying new restaurants on Disney properties.

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