food IS a theme park
For those who love Mickey Bars and Popcorn so much that they don’t just want to eat them…
…they also want to wear them!
Scratch and Sniff Mickey Bar Ear Hat
Scratch and Sniff Popcorn Ear Hat
And don’t forget that these ear hats don’t just look purdy…they [Read more…]
Thanks to Amanda Tinney of Disney Every Day for sending over her report of the Via Napoli media preview! For pics of the restaurant’s decor and atmosphere, check out our First Look! photos! Take it away, Amanda!
I don’t know about you, but for me and my family pizza is something that we order when there are no groceries in the house or we are crunched for time and don’t feel like cooking. It’s not something that we actively seek out, which is strange considering the fact that my hubby is Italian with a grandmother that came to the US from Sicily.
I recently had the pleasure of attending the Grand Opening for Epcot’s newest dining experience, Via Napoli in World Showcase’s Italy Pavilion. Being the huge Disney fan that I am, I’m ashamed to admit that I may have never tried the new pizzeria if not invited to the event, but after sampling some of the cuisine, I will be back for sure.
Knowing that I would be writing this post for the Disney Food Blog I just HAD to take a sample of everything that was offered to me so that I could report directly to YOU the Disney [Read more…]
The brand new Belgium Booth at the 2010 Epcot Food & Wine Festival will offer freshly baked waffles with berry compote and whipped cream paired with Godiva chocolate iced coffee.
Belgian Waffle From New Belgium Kiosk at F&W Festival
Head over to our Belgium Booth page to see a pic of the Godiva chocolate iced coffee!
The United States pavilion also showcases a delicious new dish this year: a sampling of heirloom tomatoes with Oregon blue cheese, red onions and fresh basil. Click here for photo: [Read more…]
Disney’s Animal Kingdom has a dearth of dining establishments. It’s true; we all know it. But what they DO have is…beautiful. While food-wise, Pizzafari could be thought of as leaving much to be desired, exploring the place itself almost makes up for it!
Atmosphere
You’ll find Pizzafari on the path to Africa — just take a left at Discovery Island! And once again, Animal Kingdom comes out on top when it comes to themeing and imagineering decor.
Very rarely will the decor in any corner of the Animal Kingdom be random. Over at Flame Tree Barbecue, you’ve got the intriguing-yet-gross-if-you-think-about-it predator and prey theme. Here at Pizzafari, the theme is a bit more understated, but no less intriguing: [Read more…]
I’ve been contacted by a lot of folks asking what my plan is for touring the 2010 Epcot Food and Wine Festival as well as what the best touring strategies might be for particular situations. I figured that covering it all in a blog post might be helpful to those planning their F&W trips — and for those who don’t need any help, it might still be fun to read!
In this post, we’ll discuss Touring Strategies for Solos and Groups of Adults, Ideas for Touring the Festival as a Family, and AJ’s Picks — basically the stuff I would do if I had a limitless bank account! 😉
Before we begin, here are the resources you’ll need to know what I’m talking about:
1. Check out the Festival Guide and Map here.
2. Our 2010 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Index Page has links to all of the major areas of the festival, so feel free to peruse and get your bearings.
Here we go!
There’s nothing like touring the incredible Food and Wine Festival with close friends or on a solo expedition! If you’re headed in as an adult(s)-only group, here’s a suggested itinerary for a day at the Festival:
Tokyo, Japan Booth
Rope Drop: Get a Ticket To Ride
Head into Epcot when it opens and jump on a few of your favorite rides while the queues are still manageable. The Food and Wine Festival doesn’t head into full swing until after the World Showcase opens at 11am and none of the special events begin before 10am, so you’ll have some time to get your Future World on before “digging in” to the Festival.
If there isn’t anything you’d like to ride, head over to the Festival Center (usually located in the Wonders of Life Pavilion in Future World) to browse the bookshop, check out the wines for sale, look at the [Read more…]
It's Open It's Open!
But first…the news!
AND… Disney Food Blog and WDW Foodie Fest t-shirts are now available! You can check them out over on www.Zazzle.com/DisneyFoodBlog. Remember, you can purchase any design on any size/style shirt, so feel free to mix and match. While the designs are different, the back of each shirt carries our acronym — DFB for Disney Food Blog — and tagline, “Food is a Theme Park!”
And now — on to the round-up!
Stuff From the Parks has a couple of posts showcasing photos from the Tahitian Terrace a la 1966 — check out Part I and Part II.
Pop Century Site explores unique food items at Disney’s Pop Century Resort.
Touring Plans‘ blogger Todd Perlmutter has a great homage to Saratoga Springs’ Turf Club Bar and Grill.
Chefs de France Mac and Cheese
Parkeology remembers the Disney Handwich (and scorns the up-and-coming copycats).
Theme Park Mom allowed yours truly to do a fun guest post on Character Meals in Disneyland! Thanks, Leigh!
Everything WDW has an in-depth review of Chefs de France in Epcot.
Pee Dee Foodie takes a look at the Main Street Confectionery in Walt Disney World.
Main St Gazette has pics of the Via Napoli bathrooms! (Oh, and the pizza, too. 🙂 )
Disney Parks Blog showcases their pastry creations (and pastry chefs!) in a cool video.
I’ve got some great news! For those of you considering heading to Orlando to enjoy the 2010 Epcot Food and Wine Festival, now you’ve got an extra incentive to make your plans! The Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resorts have just announced their first Annual Swan and Dolphin Food & Wine Classic, which will be taking place on October 8th and 9th, 2010! There are also some incredible hotel deals to go along with it. Here are the specs:
Friday, Oct. 8 and Saturday, Oct. 9
4:30pm – 5:30pm = Beverage Seminars (Wine Blending, Riesling, Sake, Champagne, Beer, Mixology)
5:30pm – 9:30pm = Tasting Stations Open on Causeway (incredible tastes from the Swan and Dolphin’s famous restaurants)
For those who haven’t been there, the Swan and Dolphin resorts are located [Read more…]
The holidays in Disney Parks are an incredibly magical time, and because we’re well into the Disney World dining planning window for folks who are headed to Orlando during the holiday season I wanted to add a few resources to the planning sessions!
will always feature special treats! At the request of several readers, I did a quick poll of our facebook fans and twitter followers to determine the answer to this question, “If you could dine at one Disney World restaurant for your holiday dinner, where would you go?” I was quickly rewarded with some fantastic answers! Here are some of the most popular responses:
Liberty Tree Tavern
This location wins with our readers for Thanksgiving, and it was an overwhelmingly popular choice for Christmas as well. Most readers indicated that the cozy atmosphere at Liberty Tree Tavern and the traditional holiday dinner fare is what would bring them here.
Liberty Tree Tavern Pot Roast
‘Ohana
Mele Kalikimaka! ‘Ohana was tied for first place with Liberty Tree Tavern, so clearly DFB readers share my affinity for the islands! 🙂 After growing up in the snowy tundra of western New York State, Hawai’i sounds pretty good as a Christmas destination right about now! Plus, this location has [Read more…]
Dipping Caramel Apples at Disney
According to WDWMagic, the brand new Werther’s caramel shop in Germany, Karamelle-Küche (or Caramel Kitchen) will open September 22, 2010!
You’ll recall, this is the shop that will be replacing the old Glas und Porzellan shop at the entrance to the Germany pavilion in Epcot’s World Showcase.
The store will be branded with Werther’s, and will feature a show kitchen where cast members will be creating caramel popcorn and apples, caramel-covered strawberries, and more for guests to see!
The shop will also sell gourmet caramels, cookies, brownies, fudge, and cupcakes. This is the only free-standing shop in the world for Storck, the makers of Werther’s candies, so there will be some one-of-a-kind items there as well.
We’ll see you there!
As we saw last year, several rarely (if ever) open restaurants will be serving steadily through the weeks when Disney World is offering its free dining promotion. Here are the details:
Tomorrowland Terrace Cafe Will Offer a Table-Service Buffet on Sunday Evenings
From 5:30pm to 9pm on Sundays, beginning August 22nd and running through September, Magic Kingdom’s Tomorrowland Terrace Cafe will offer a dinner buffet for guests. Pricing currently stands at: Adult: $37.28, Child: $19.17. The menu for the buffet will include beef and pasta dishes, vegetables, fried rice, rolls, and desserts. Booking is available on the DisneyWorld.com site.
Also, the Tomorrowland Terrace “Noodle Station” has changed up its menu to serve American classic fare (burgers and sandwiches, chicken nuggets, salads, etc.) for lunch and will switch to its Asian menu after 4pm.
El Pirata Y el Perico Restaurante Will Be Open for Lunch
This Adventureland location serving quick-service Mexican cuisine will be open for lunch from August 15th through September 4th, 2010.
Diamond Horseshoe Will be Open for Dinner
This Frontierland eatery will extend its hours through dinner time (5-9pm) from August 15th through the 28th, and from September 19th through October 2nd, serving a table-service style turkey dinner akin to what you’ll get at Liberty Tree Tavern next door (via WDWMagic; booking for September/October dates not available on Disney site at time of this writing). Counter-service lunch will still be available at the Diamond Horseshoe from 11am-3pm serving sandwiches and other grab and go items.
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