When we cloud our minds at work with thoughts of delicious and beautiful festival foods, one treat readily pops into our heads…
FRUSHI!!! It just wouldn’t be an Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival without our fruity sushi fix!
And if you know what WE know, Hanami located in Japan’s pavilion is THE PLACE to get your Frushi on! But while Frushi has managed to return for another year (we don’t think we can bear ever seeing it go!) the Chilled Soba Noodle Salad and Japanese-style Fried Chicken Karaage with Nanban Sauce we enjoyed in 2019 haven’t made it back on the menu this year!
Time to see what’s taken their place!
Food
First, let’s look at what’s returning! The DFB dictionary defines “Frushi” as the perfect bite-size portions of Strawberry, Pineapple and Cantaloupe wrapped in Sweet Rice and Pink Soy Wrap served with Whipped Cream, Drizzled Berry Sauce and Toasted Coconut! For $6.00, you get three pieces Frushi awesomeness!
NEW this year, Hanami is serving a Menchi Katsu Slider!
For $6.00, this snack features a Japanese-style Panko-breaded Beef Patty topped with Tonkatsu Sauce, Mayonnaise, Cucumber, and Pickled Lotus Root!
This slider was super yummy and filling! It tastes like a crispy deep-fried hamburger! The Tonkatsu sauce and mayo added a lot of flavor and we would have liked to see even more sauce on ours. The lotus and cucumber gave the burger a bit of freshness. We suggest slipping the pickled lotus inside the slider to make it easier to eat!
Also, NEW in 2020 is the stunning Salmon Flower Ikura: Fresh-cut Salmon, Salmon Roe, Spinach and Watermelon Radish, and Chilled Ramen tossed with Poke Sauce for $8.25.
This dish is AB-SO-LUTE-LY gorgeous! We love how it looks just like a potted plant — so does it taste as GOOD as it LOOKS?!
Heads up, this is for the fish fans! If you’re not that wild about raw salmon, you likely won’t enjoy much of what this has to offer. Even though it’s so pretty, we think you’ll want to eat this rather quickly. It seems best consumed cold – which can be tricky if you’re enjoying this pretty little flower pot on a hot Florida afternoon (so…most afternoons!). We also found this to be a little on the oily side, but overall, it was really refreshing and flavorful. Another yummy dish for Hanami!
Beverages
Hanami’s drinks include imported Kirin Draft Beer for $4.50 which was also available last year (or year-round in the Japan Pavilion!). There’s also a new Strawberry Nigori Sake for $7.50!
If you’ve ever been averse to trying sake, this may be a good drink to first try it out! Heavy on the strawberry flavor, we found this sake to taste almost creamy due to the unfiltered cloudiness. Kind of like a boozy strawberry milkshake sip!
Lastly, the Ichigo Sun cocktail has been replaced with the Furano Martini for $7.50!
Made with Vodka, Lavender Syrup, and Yuzu Juice, this mixed drink tastes like a LEGIT cocktail. And for $7.50, we have no complaints (We did have to pluck the lavender sprig out of ours. We weren’t fans of fuzzy plants in our drink!). With a simple ingredient list, we were wowed by how complex this drink tasted. We really enjoyed this drink.
If you’re swinging by Hanami to pick up your must-get Flower and Garden Frushi, you’re not alone! But why not try one of Hanami’s new menu offerings while you’re at it, and see whatcha think! This booth was a slam dunk this year!
Follow along with our LIVE coverage of Epcot’s 2020 Flower and Garden Festival HERE while we STUFF ourselves SILLY!
MAKE THE MOST
OF YOUR FESTIVAL DAYS
DFB's Guide to the EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival details everything you need to know to maximize your time, budget, and stomach space! Know what's worth it and what to skip with our full-photo menus of each booth, complete with DFB's Best of the Fest.
It includes all the must-have information for navigating this one of the most BEAUTIFUL festivals at Disney World, including:
- 🌸 Booth & food photos, maps, and crawls with DFB's exclusive recommendations!
- 🐝 The COMPLETE schedule of events (so you don't have to go hunting for all the dates!)
- 🌳 All the details on special events, topiaries, festival exclusive merchandise, and more!
Are you gonna chow down on some Frushi this year? Let us know in the comments!
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