Review: Should You Get the BONE MARROW at EPCOT's Festival of the Arts?

It’s finally time for the first EPCOT Festival of 2022 — the International Festival of the Arts!

These colors are everything!

The festival is set to run from today all the way through February 21st, 2022 and we’re exploring all of the new (and returning) eats and drinks that celebrate the arts! So far we’ve brought you a look at all the tasty bites from a bunch of different booths. And, now we’re headed to one of the booths that will likely be one of your first or last stops on your way around World Showcase — Gourmet Landscapes!

Food

The first new item on the menu this year is the Blood Orange-braised Beet Carpaccio served with mustard vinaigrette, pickled clamshell mushrooms, golden beets, and crostini. It costs $5.50 and is part of the Wonderful Walk of Colorful Cuisine which includes 5 different foods that represent the colors of the rainbow. You’ll have to pay for this one and four other dishes, but at the end, you’ll receive a FREE Artist Palette Cookie as your reward!

Blood Orange-braised Beet Carpaccio

This dish had a plant-based blue cheese on it which was…not our reporter’s favorite (we’ll put it that way). Our reporter who tried this is also not a fan of beets, but the acidity of the vegetables took away from some of that more “beet-y” flavor, which they appreciated.

It wasn’t a dish our reporter particularly enjoyed, but if you’re sticking to a plant-based diet (this item is plant-based) and you’re looking for something to eat at the Festival and you like these ingredients, then it’s something you could consider.

Blood Orange-braised Beet Carpaccio

Also new to Gourmet Landscapes this year is the Roasted Bone Marrow with onion marmalade, pickled mushrooms, mache lettuce, and bone marrow snow.

Roasted Bone Marrow

This was very gritty to us, so we highly recommend using those crostinis served with it to eat this dish. The mushrooms were delicious though, and overall the dish had a very strong meaty flavor. It was also extremely rich in terms of flavor.

Roasted Bone Marrow

It wasn’t bad by any means, but we’d say it’s one of those dishes that is likely more of an acquired taste. You can try it for $10.50.

Returning for what seems like the millionth year in a row is the Wild Mushroom Risotto with aged parmesan, truffle shavings, and Zinfandel reduction. This is priced at $9.25.

Wild Mushroom Risotto

This dish has made it onto our Best of the Fest list in the past thanks to its rich and delicious flavors. Once again the dish was WONDERFUL this year. It was rich and thick, with lots of mushrooms and a strong nutty cheese. There was also lots of truffle flavor, which we loved!

Beverages

If you find yourself thirsty at Gourmet Landscapes, there are FOUR different drinks to choose from including the German Lager for $5 for a 6 oz pour and $9 for a 12 oz pour, the Cuvée Sparkling Wine for $9, the Merlot for $11, and the Frozen Rusty Nail Cocktail for $15. And, if you’re wondering why that cocktail sounds so familiar, that’s because it was featured at The Painter’s Palate booth last year!

Frozen Rusty Nail

The Frozen Rusty Nail Cocktail is made with bourbon, tea, and topped with a chocolate nail. We tried it again during this Festival and it had a very strong chai tea flavor, almost to a degree that was assaulting to the senses. Our reporter said that the whiskey, on the other hand, wasn’t as strong as they would have liked. To our reporter, this drink almost tasted medicinal, so if that’s not the vibe you’re going for then it might be one to skip.

Overall

One notable thing missing from the festival booth this year is the Vanilla, Rose Water and Pistachio Panna Cotta. But, does the booth stand up on its own without this beloved 2020 AND 2021 Best of the Fest dish? The Risotto was a stand out dish (no surprises here). The bone marrow was good, but not something we’d necessarily shout from the rooftops about; and the beet dish wouldn’t rank very high on our reporter’s list at least. So overall the booth has some good things and some we’d likely not get again.