Gluttoberfest: Food and Wine 2009 - Updated 12/24 (Review is complete!)

[disneyfav4ever]

Can't wait to hear about everything!

 

[jeminni]

on board for your reviews

 

[ChelleinNC]

I just got back tonight, and my menus and such are still in my suitcase.

I figured I could mention that I thoroughly enjoyed the festival. My waistline...might not thank me too much.

I'm also addicted to a daily visit to The Ditch. Except today, I did not visit because I had a wine seminar and wanted to catch some items around the kiosks that I missed over the weekend.(For those who don't know, TDC Nala started calling La Cava del Tequila "The Ditch" because the translation of "cava" was "excavation" or "ditch".)

I have plenty to say about how insanely crowded the weekend was, but I'll cover that as I get to it. I'm thankful that I was only in Epcot on Saturday because I had pre-paid or pre-arranged seminars/meals.

I have plenty to say about the culinary demos, wine seminars, and festival event signature dinners. We have the range of good, bad, and ugly.

Welcome home!

 

[redzinner]

Welcome back Lori! Looking forward to your review of V&A's dinner!

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

Welcome back - looking forward to the reviews!

 

[disney_princess_85]

Welcome home, hope you had a good trip. Looking forward to your reviews!

 

[PNO4TE]

Welcome home, Lori!

 

[Disneygrl36]

Welcome home........hope you had a blast.
We leave Friday. WOOT!!!!

 

[mcarthur205]

Welcome back! I hope you had a great trip, can't wait for the reviews!

 

[Hedy]

Welcome home, can't wait for more!

 

[MickeyNicki]

Welcome home...now lets get down with the good stuff!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I have plenty to say about how insanely crowded the weekend was, but I'll cover that as I get to it. I'm thankful that I was only in Epcot on Saturday because I had pre-paid or pre-arranged seminars/meals.

I have plenty to say about the culinary demos, wine seminars, and festival event signature dinners. We have the range of good, bad, and ugly.

Welcome back! Hope the crowds didn't take away from the fun too much or *gasp* delay access to The Ditch

 

[AngVT]

Hope your trip was GREAT!!!!! 2 more days til we leave for WDW! (can't wait!)

We're looking forward to the reviews!

 

[MrsSpratt]

I can't wait for this!

Mrs. Spratt

 

[kungaloosh]

Welcome, Cathy! (Love the DIS name, btw. I miss the AC.) I am sure your girls' trip will be a blast! My V&A seating is at 5:15pm, so we'll probably be done before you check in. I expect to gain weight after the festival, but hopefully all the walking will burn off some of the indulgences. [/QUOTE]

Hi Lori,
I think you may have still been at V&A when we got there at 8:45 PM. If I had realized it I would have stopped and said hi. Later in the evening I mentioned the DIS to our server and she mentioned that the "rowdy table" when we first came in also was someone from the DIS and I think she even mentioned the name Briar Rose. Of course this was near the end after I drank all the wine pairings so she may not have known your name.

We had such an incredible evening. I would do it again in a heartbeat but unfortunately it's not something my husband would get into.

I walked between 10.5 and 12.5 miles per day and still managed to gain 6 lbs in 6 days! Every bite was worth it though.

Cathy

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Can't wait for your reviews!

 

[BriarRosie]

Hi Lori,
I think you may have still been at V&A when we got there at 8:45 PM. If I had realized it I would have stopped and said hi. Later in the evening I mentioned the DIS to our server and she mentioned that the "rowdy table" when we first came in also was someone from the DIS and I think she even mentioned the name Briar Rose. Of course this was near the end after I drank all the wine pairings so she may not have known your name.

We had such an incredible evening. I would do it again in a heartbeat but unfortunately it's not something my husband would get into.

I walked between 10.5 and 12.5 miles per day and still managed to gain 6 lbs in 6 days! Every bite was worth it though.

Cathy

Um, yes, we were the rowdy table still there when you arrived.
But I didn't identify myself as BriarRosie to any of the servers.

And I gained 5 lbs. Could have been the salt intake. More about that later.

 

[Sandy321]

cant wait to read all about it!!

 

[BriarRosie]

Wednesday, October 14, 2009:


So I arrive at the Walt Disney World resort, take Disney's Magical Express to Beach Club (Villas), and finally get to hit Epcot sometime between 1 and 1:30pm.

I'm ready to start my gluttonization process!

Since the International Gateway dumped me between the bridge of the UK and France, I made an executive decision. As Yogi Berra is quoted as saying, "When you come to a fork in the road, take it!"

So I did. I took a left at the UK because I had a mission. Today's theme was going to be all about seafood. I was going to avoid all land creatures today and buy critters that were fished out of water. And for my first item, I had seen pictures of the Lobster and Scallop Fisherman's Pie at the Cork, Ireland kiosk. And it was going to be mine, all mine.

And desserts were going to be neutral items, like Switzerland. It was perfectly ok to buy desserts. My theme, my rules.

Underneath the creamy mashed potatoes lurked a bunch of seafood in a creamy sauce. Quite tasty, and a generous portion to boot. It was "Excellent".

I made my way to Santiago, Chile by way of Canada. Which makes me think of those point-to-point maps you see in the Indiana Jones films or "The Amazing Race" when they throw together a graphic of a plane traveling on a red line from one city to another.

I wanted the Rock Shrimp Ceviche, mostly because I wanted to find out if it was still as spicy as previously reported. And I love a good gimmick. The popcorn garnish. Popcorn is an optional ingredient, but I wanted the full gimmick.

It was quite tasty, but I didn't find it incredibly spicy. It rates a solid "Good". This dish must have been a victim of making it more palatable to The Masses.

After my first two tastings, I made my way to visit Jordan, daughter of Michelle (TheDISneyFamily) while she was working at the Art of Disney. I also took the time to go to the Festival Center to pick up my wine seminar ticket and do some merchandise shopping.

I found it odd that they had an Information desk immediately upon entering, and another desk nearby to sell you the tickets. But I had wished there was a sign pointing the pre-paid demo buyers to the seminar areas to pick up tickets.

So if any of you have booked the demos online and want to know where to go, pay no attention to the information area. Culinary demos are off to the right, Wine/Spirits to the left. You check in at each demo area queue. The cast member will be stationed with a list of names. To expedite it easier, I handed my ID to the cast member. You have to initial their sheet to prove you picked up the ticket. These tickets cannot be replaced, so don't lose them!

So I picked up my Bunratty Meade demo ticket a couple hours early and headed back to World Showcase to continue my noshing.

I continued on my clockwise path, and the first kiosk that caught my attention was Champagne and Desserts. Forget the bubbly, I wanted Strawberry Shortcake.

Hello, beautiful. The cream and strawberries were sweet and delicious, but the cake could have been a little less...hard. Sure, it tasted good, but I felt it was a half-day away from being stale. That turned an "Excellent" into a "Good".

Next stop: The Ditch. Aka La Cava del Tequila.

I have seen and heard so much about this place, so I was compelled to enter the Mexico pavilion and give it a go. I went directly to the bar, took a look at the menu, and ordered the Naranja Roja margarita. That's blood orange to the rest of us Gringos.

That's blood orange "on the rocks" topped with creamy blood orange foam. And hibiscus rock salt on the rim. I was not disappointed in the taste, nor the strength of this drink. I felt that it packed quite a punch by the time I was done. Which wasn't that long. This was "Excellent".

I remember what La Cava del Tequila looked like as a store that sold jewelry. It was not impressive. I have to give Disney lots of credit for creating a cozy, inviting place to have a drink and socialize.

Ok, onward to the next fishie item up for the tasting! Barcelona, Spain was the next city, and I wanted to try the Red Snapper Escabeche.

The red snapper was hot off the grill top, placed on top of the marinade that had peppers, onions, green olives, and capers. It was a burst of flavor that had to be eaten with the fish to get the "wow" effect. The fish was good by itself, but when eaten with bites of the accompaniments underneath, this was pretty amazing. Enough that I was a Food Pusher, trying to get everyone I knew to try it. We're talking gastronomic ecstasy here. I'm giving it a "Gluttony" rating.

Bangkok, Thailand was next with the Green Papaya Salad with Shrimp.

This was light and refreshing, and the big honkin' shrimp were cooked perfectly. I liked the vinaigrette for the salad, and it was a well balanced dish. It gets an "Excellent".

I was so tempted by the meat products I saw at the various kiosks, but I continued to stick with my theme and ordered the Seared Barramundi with Blistered Cherry Tomatoes, Arugula and Lemon Oil.

There was a breeze created by fans in the kiosk, so my arugula wanted to fly off my plate. Luckily most of it stayed on my plate so I could give a review. The barramundi was served warm, and it was tender, moist and flaky. The arugula and tomato added a nice little boost of flavor, and I rate it "Excellent".

It was getting close to my 5:30pm demo, so I made my way back to the Festival Center. I was there early enough to be seated in the front row, and I noticed that this demo was only about half full. I wondered if this was going to be the exception or the rule as I did later demos.

We were seated, and I ended up next to a DISer, Tony67. My friends and I sort of adopted him as he was at a few of our events. Like a bad penny, he always showed up! Just kidding, Tony. You're a good guy.

In front of us, we had three glasses with the prerequisite thimbleful samples.
Here's a pic of Nancy Larkin, our presenter, followed by the booze we sampled.

I will start on the right and work my way left. The highball glass has O'Mara's Irish Cream. I liked it way better than Bailey's, and I like Bailey's. This was creamier, less of the "bite" you get of alcohol. This is a sipping drink, and I wished I had more in my glass.

The wine glass in the middle was the same Bunratty Meade sold at the Ireland kiosk. It's a thick, sweet wine, unlike most wines people tend to drink. I find it unusual, and I like it as a dessert type of wine.

And the glass on the left contains Potcheen, otherwise known as moonshine. Yes, moonshine. As in the stuff the "revenuers" were trying to tax Mammy and Pappy Yokum, Li'l Abner, Daisy Mae and the rest of the Dogpatch community. It was grain alcohol, the stuff I would never usually have tasted from a shot glass. I haven't seen it since my early 20's, when it was normally soaked into a watermelon, or some fruit punch served in a plastic-lined garbage can.

Before I describe this part, I have to give props to Nancy Larkin. She was such a terrific presenter, and she gave us lots of background on the Irish traditions sparked by these drinks. The word "honeymoon" came from the tradition of newly married brides and grooms drinking honey meade for the length of a moon cycle after the marriage, to ensure fertility during the "honey" "moon".

So Nancy asked us to tell her what Potcheen tasted like. As I was in the front row in front of her, I told her my first honest reaction:

"This tastes like jet fuel!"

Other people said strawberries (huh?) and licorice. Yes, there was a bit of the anise background, but I stand by my jet fuel comment!

I enjoyed the demo and rate it "Excellent".

Since I had some fumes coming off of me from the hooch, I had a couple more items from the kiosks before walking back to Beach Club Villas.

I visited Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for some Shrimp Stew with Coconut and Lime.

Put the lime in the coconut and drink them both up, baby! Well, there was no drinking involved, here. But this was wonderful. They plate up some white rice, cover it with the sauce and more big honkin' shrimp. Add the tomatoes and cilantro, and you have a winner. The coconut was in the background, so it did not overpower. "Gluttony"!

I regret never returning for this dish during the festival.

I ended my tour of gluttony and sloth with another dessert. Warm Chocolate Lava Cake with Bailey's Ganache.

The late afternoon sun gave this quite a glow, and this dessert, while on the tiny side, gave me a glow of chocolate abandon. I fully admit that I gave the plate a lick or two. The chocolate gooey center was great, but the Bailey's sauce mixed with it made me swoon. This gets a "Gluttony" rating.

I went back to Beach Club Villas to shower and change, because I was meeting Brenda (oybolshoi) and her husband Jason at the Polynesian for some sushi at the Kona Sushi Bar.

To be continued in the next post...

 

[BriarRosie]

Continued from the previous post for Wednesday, October 14, 2009.

As I left off, I had showered and changed and made my way to the Polynesian by way of Downtown Disney busses to meet Brenda and Jason at the Kona Sushi Bar.

The text messages were flying fast and furious, because they were trying to leave the Wishes Dessert Party early and were thwarted by massive crowds. They tell me it took them 45 minutes.

In the meantime, while I was waiting, I had a drink at the bar in the Tambu Lounge. Pineapple Flambé. When I see flambé written, I think there will be open flames shooting out somewhere. There were not. The flambé referred to a habanero lime in the drink.

This is an item on the homogenized, standardized drink menu found in every bar and lounge owned by Disney. Yet I definitely would order this again. Myer's Platinum Rum, Butterscotch Schnapps, Pineapple Juice and "a touch" of Habanero Lime made this an "Excellent".

It was getting close to 9:30pm, and I was getting hungry. The sushi bar closed at 10pm, so I sat down and ordered the crab cake appetizer from Kona Cafe while waiting for Brenda and Jason.

They look like giant tater tots, don't they? The outside of the crab cakes were crispy and not greasy, and the inside of them were full of creamy crab goodness. Not tons of breadcrumb filler. That gave these an edge. The salad in the middle was not swimming in the vinaigrette, and it went well with the crab cakes. The tartar sauce on the bottom was perfect, so this gets an "Excellent".

Brenda and Jason arrived just as I had finished two of the three crab cakes, so we placed our orders. I did not take a picture of the Lapu Lapu (not on the drink menu) I ordered, but normally this comes in a pineapple. I ordered it in a regular glass, one of those tiki-faced glasses they serve mai tais in. I liked it, but the pineapple flambé had been better.

I ordered the Volcano Roll, which is normally a spicy tuna roll. But I was able to ask them to make it a spicy salmon roll instead. Since they have tuna, salmon and yellowtail as their basic nigiri choices (which Brenda ordered), they had no problem substituting it. Jason ordered the Volcano Roll the way it came on the menu.

Andres, our sushi chef, sprinkled his pixie dust on our plate. It looked remarkably like tempura crunch.

That's awfully pretty, isn't it? The roll comes with the little piles of shrimp salad, tempura crunch, and some edible flowers and fish roe as garnish. The roll itself was fairly decent, but not mind-blowing. The shrimp salad was good, so this gets a solid "Good" rating.

We took a taxi back to Beach Club Villas to sleep off the gluttony.