Stop Throwing Tissues on Me! – September 2023 Food and Wine Fest Trip Report! (Updated 2/12!)

[suse66]

Well, as we were getting out of the vehicle, I turned to offer my hand to help my mom up, which she gladly took. This whole thing took maybe three seconds, but apparently this was too long for the CM unloading the ride who snapped at us that we were taking too long. Like seriously? My mom was clearly struggling to walk, no need to yell at us! In the end, not the end of the world, and she was the only not great CM we experienced, so not horrible, just a bit surprising.

That is terrible! Glad it was an one off but I definitely would have said something.

We also had Genie+ this day. We were using the leftover tickets from the hurricane last year which had pre-booked genie+ already on them, so it kinda felt free since we didn’t have to pay for them that day (since you know, things purchased 18 months prior don’t count )

Disney math!

Not too shabby!

Not at all!

On the way to FEA we saw that Donald was about to come out at Mexico, and there was only two groups in line, so we decided to hop into line as well, I’ve never seen such a short line to meet him there so I figured we couldn’t pass up this opportunity!

Donald in Mexico is such a cute meet!

We decided to just split everything this trip so we could try more items.

I loved everything we got this round, the pickle fries were delicious, a welcome addition! Also, I just got an air fryer, and one of the recipes it came with is fried pickles, so I will definitely be trying these at home too! The swine brine was shockingly good, we’ve avoided it for years since it just sounded gross, but it was actually really good!

As we were finishing up with the first round of food, I saw the line had died down for Coastal Eats, so headed over there to grab the crab cake and the cape codder.

Everything looks yummy!

After saying hi to Pooh, we once again we headed off to do a loop of WS, but just as we got to the intersection of FW and WS, my mom commented that maybe we should just head to our DAS for Remy and head out. I was also starting to feel the heat and early wakeup so agreed that it would be smart to just take the short way to France, ride Remy, and then head out for some rest.

Smart choice!

We made the quick walk over to the wine bar after Remy, and were thrilled that it was empty, so we started talking to the CM about the wines. We wanted to make sure the one we tasted, we could also get a bottle of. While we’re asking this, suddenly a line forms for the bar. And to make matters worse, the group that got “in line” behind us kept trying to shove their way in front of us. Ugh, so annoying.

So we ordered some wine to taste, but meanwhile another CM started to help the group who was trying to wedge themselves in front of us. It was so awkward, especially since the CM who was working the registers was the one helping us, not the other CM, and it seemed she was the only one who was working them, so the group who tried to get in front of us even tried to cut us in paying, but fortunately the CM just ignored them shoving their credit card at her. Seriously, some people.

so much entitlement!! That's when I "accidentally" step on someone's foot and gently bump into them. Then smile sweetly and say "oh I didn't realize you were so close to me!"

This room was amazing. The view was phenomenal, it was a short walk to the elevators and lobby, and it was quiet! The hat trick of hotel rooms!

Love that!

While mom napped, I sat out on the balcony enjoying the view and some grapefruit beer while jotting down some notes in my journal.

Nothing better!

 

[VAtink]

We have met Mickey twice in that spot inside of the Imagination pavilion. Both times it was unexpected and both times we were the only ones there. I hope they keep Mickey there.

I don't think it was a permanent move, I saw a few days later he was back there. The CM we spoke with said he had just moved over to meet at the front of the park that day, and I think they may have closed it for a day or two to switch over to the 100th stuff?

That is a great location! We had the room directly across from your room but hiding behind that big shrub. You can't see the fireworks from that side of the courtyard.

It was amazing, I hope we can get a room in this area again!

That is the big disadvantage to SAB. They have to close it when lightening is ten miles away, or some such parameter. That is why I will usually go to the Admiral pool if my husband isn't going to join me. He likes SAB but mostly only goes in the lazy river.

Yeah, we got lucky that we had had a good amount of time down there before the closed the pool. Although this does bring up the question for the quiet pools will someone eventually kick people out during storms or will they let people stay out there even during storms?

I love the grapefruit beer and often drink it while DH naps.

It is so good, it's become a tradition over the years to enjoy one while my mom naps!

 

[VAtink]

That is terrible! Glad it was an one off but I definitely would have said something.

Yeah, it was really shocking. I couldn't believe she was so impatient!

Disney math!

Gotta love Disney math right?

Donald in Mexico is such a cute meet!

I love it, usually the line is so long we skip it so I was thrilled there was hardly any line this day!

Everything looks yummy!

It was soooo good!

Smart choice!

Yeah, I'm glad we decided against taking the long way around, we were getting super tired at that point and needed a break!

so much entitlement!! That's when I "accidentally" step on someone's foot and gently bump into them. Then smile sweetly and say "oh I didn't realize you were so close to me!"

Right?!?! Haha, I should start doing that!

Love that!

Me too! Loved this room!

Nothing better!

Exactly! This is one of my favorite traditions, mom naps while I enjoy some grapefruit beer out on the balcony.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Although this does bring up the question for the quiet pools will someone eventually kick people out during storms or will they let people stay out there even during storms?

I don't think I've ever seen them kick people out of the quiet pools.

 

[VAtink]

Day 2, Part 5: An Evening in Epcot!​

After a nice afternoon rest, we started getting ready to head out again. As we were getting ready, we noticed it was starting to get really dark out again, so I pulled up the radar and sure enough there were storms moving our way. They were still to the north west of us, and it looked like they would hit around 7 and then the future radar showed them basically lasting until park close. Ugh.

My moms first reaction to this was we should stay in the room, pick up sandwiches at the store downstairs and just spend the rest of our day in the room.

I was completely against this idea. I can do that at home, I can’t go into Epcot while at home, so I suggested we head over to Epcot earlier than we had planned so we could hopefully get some more food booths in before the rain started.

Mom finally understood my logic and agreed to head over to Epcot, so off we went!

We were just scanning into Epcot, when mom realized she left our water bottles in the room. Apparently in the rush to get to the park before the storm hit, she completely forgot to take them out of the fridge and put them in our bags. Opps. I didn’t think this was such a big deal, we could just buy more inside the park, which I tried to reason with my mom since we hadn’t actually bought water yet, the bottles we were using were the free ones from the Swan. My mom on the other hand almost refused to continue, she wanted to go all the way back to the room to get them and then come back.

I refused, the storms were coming and I didn’t want to waste the dry weather running back and forth, so I told her I’d just pay for the new water bottles. She wasn’t happy, but I think she realized I wasn’t budging (we can both be a bit stubborn at times! ), so into Epcot we went.

Our first stop was Canada where I picked up the steak and a bottle of water. We then made our way to Australia where I had mom hold a table while I got in line for the lamb for her. I also picked up another bottle of water since mom finally caved and agreed to let me buy two. I also got a glass of the viognier.



The steak was sooooo good this year. I like the changes they made. The lamb was also really good, I think this was one of the better years.

While eating the sky kept getting darker and darker so it looked like the storm was getting close, so I suggested we head over to the Odyssey since it was so close…and indoors. Fortunately, my mom agreed.

So once we finished our food we headed over there.

I was surprised to see there was no line for the food once we got there, so we quickly ordered some pickle milkshakes, the garlic parmesan wings, and the beer flight, then took them over to a standing table since all the tables with seats were occupied.

This wasn’t ideal since my moms leg was really starting to bother her, so while we were eating we kept an eye out for a table with chairs to open up.

Now for the food.









We both really like the pickle milkshake! I thought it tasted like dill flavored egg nog. My mom thinks I’m crazy.

The wings were actually pretty good, but super heavy on the sauce.

We were also very lucky with our timing, soon after getting to the table, the skies opened up outside and it poured for like 30 minutes! We were having pretty great timing when it came to the rain this trip!

While eating we saw a table with chairs open up, so I rushed over to grab it, but this woman who didn’t even have food, saw me heading there and sprinted to get there first, I couldn’t run since I was carrying food. Ugh. I wanted to scream at her that we had been waiting and she took away a seat from my elderly mom who was getting over surgery, but then I realized I was being a tad dramatic. Still was annoyed, she never actually ate, she just sat there at a table for four playing on her phone the entire time we were there. Grr.

Anyways, we kept eating and I kept looking out for a table to open. Finally, one across the room did so without thinking I sprinted over there and got it. YAY!!!!!

Of course once I got there I realized we now had a conundrum. Mom now how to somehow bring two milkshakes, a flight of beer, and a tray of wings over to the table by herself. I couldn’t just leave the table to help since someone else would just swoop in a take it.

After a minute of debating what to do, I decided to ask the group at the table nearby if they would mind holding the table for us. These people were awesome and agreed to help, the one woman from the group actually came and sat at the table so I could run back to my mom and help bring the food over. I was so thankful for these people, they definitely made my moms night!

Once seated at the table we finished up our food before heading back outside.

We were lucky and headed out just as the rain was ending!

Next up: Our First Encounter with a Wheelchair​

 

[2xcited2sleep]

I remember that week and we had a LOT of rain. Glad that you were able to navigate it well, for the most part. Definitely a good call to head into EPCOT early and forego the water bottles. I can identify with your mom and the principle of the matter, but I'm also a pro at employing Disney math and if you ask me if it's "worth it" to spend an extra $15 to spend more time in the park pre-storm! I don't care for dill or egg nogg so feeling pleased with my decision to skip the milkshake. Glad you were able to eventually find a table and how nice of that other family to assist. I get that they don't want people camping out in there but why not do all tables & chairs?

 

[blabbermouth]

Dill egg nog sounds good, thanks for that description

 

[SimplyGoofy]

We decided to just split everything this trip so we could try more items

That is the right approach to the food booths! My only regret from Flower and Garden (my only festival so far) is I was by myself and therefore limited to how much I could try.

The corned beef, lamb, and wings all look especially good! I’m glad you enjoyed most of the things you tried that day.

We headed into the LL queue and I was shocked to see there was absolutely no one in it!

What great luck! I know you had long waits with LL on your last trip (which, really… why?!) so you were due a short wait!

This room was amazing. The view was phenomenal, it was a short walk to the elevators and lobby, and it was quiet! The hat trick of hotel rooms!

Those views are incredible! I’m thrilled you got such a fantastic room!

I was so thankful for these people, they definitely made my moms night!

That’s wonderful, especially considering your experience buying wine earlier in the day. It’s nice that the universe gave you the nice people to balance the demanding and crazy people.

Also, I’m glad you timed it so well to be indoors when the skies opened up! Well done!

 

[Stacybaeasm]

OK, I may have gagged a little just looking at the picture of the pickle shake. No way would I go anywhere near that...but I'm glad you liked it. There's something for everyone, I always say. And what great luck missing the rain. Now, if I had been you, I would have just sat down at that table with the woman who was by herself. No such thing as a stranger when it comes to tables with chairs at Disney.

 

[Wood Nymph]

While eating we saw a table with chairs open up, so I rushed over to grab it, but this woman who didn’t even have food, saw me heading there and sprinted to get there first, I couldn’t run since I was carrying food. Ugh. I wanted to scream at her that we had been waiting and she took away a seat from my elderly mom who was getting over surgery, but then I realized I was being a tad dramatic. Still was annoyed, she never actually ate, she just sat there at a table for four playing on her phone the entire time we were there. Grr.

That was really rude, especially since she never ate any food.

The steak was sooooo good this year. I like the changes they made.

We really enjoyed the steak this year, too. It is the one thing we get every time we go to Epcot during F&W.

 

[vamassey1]

I see some of the dishes we tried too. Loved the Pickle Fries. I made the comment I wanted to go back for more later but never made it back.

I enjoyed the crab cake too.

The Donald sipper is adorable.

Sorry the lines for the food were long but looks like it was worth it.

I can't wait to see the original Soarin' when we go back.

Nice room! I'm sure you enjoyed it your whole trip.

 

[vamassey1]

I was completely against this idea. I can do that at home, I can’t go into Epcot while at home, so I suggested we head over to Epcot earlier than we had planned so we could hopefully get some more food booths in before the rain started.

This would be my thoughts. You're so close, go and enjoy what you can.

The steak was sooooo good this year. I like the changes they made. The lamb was also really good, I think this was one of the better years.

The beef in Canada is my go to. Love it. I wanted to try the lamb but never made it there.

I was surprised to see there was no line for the food once we got there, so we quickly ordered some pickle milkshakes, the garlic parmesan wings, and the beer flight, then took them over to a standing table since all the tables with seats were occupied.

We brought our food into the Odyssey too and had to settle for a stand up table at first. Be place to get out of the heat and/or rain.

We both really like the pickle milkshake! I thought it tasted like dill flavored egg nog. My mom thinks I’m crazy.

Something else I wanted to try but the line was long when we got in there so we skipped it.

While eating we saw a table with chairs open up, so I rushed over to grab it, but this woman who didn’t even have food, saw me heading there and sprinted to get there first, I couldn’t run since I was carrying food. Ugh.

That stinks!

After a minute of debating what to do, I decided to ask the group at the table nearby if they would mind holding the table for us. These people were awesome and agreed to help, the one woman from the group actually came and sat at the table so I could run back to my mom and help bring the food over. I was so thankful for these people, they definitely made my moms night!

Nice see humanity redeemed.

 

[VAtink]

I remember that week and we had a LOT of rain. Glad that you were able to navigate it well, for the most part. Definitely a good call to head into EPCOT early and forego the water bottles. I can identify with your mom and the principle of the matter, but I'm also a pro at employing Disney math and if you ask me if it's "worth it" to spend an extra $15 to spend more time in the park pre-storm! I don't care for dill or egg nogg so feeling pleased with my decision to skip the milkshake. Glad you were able to eventually find a table and how nice of that other family to assist. I get that they don't want people camping out in there but why not do all tables & chairs?

Yeah, we got very lucky with the rain we got, somehow managed to be indoors for the worst of it!

Totally agree with the Disney math. That, plus the fact we had planned on buying water bottles originally, but then since the Swan had the free ones we just took those, so really we still had the "budget" for the water bottles!

Haha, yeah I can see that milkshake not being for everyone. I was even surprised I liked it!

That other family who helped save the table was amazing. Love when there are good people like that! It would be nice if they just had all the tables have chairs in there, most of them do, but I guess people do tend to camp out when they have a place to actually sit vs a standing table!

 

[VAtink]

Dill egg nog sounds good, thanks for that description

Haha, you're welcome! My mom thought I was nuts for thinking it tasted like that, but to me that's exactly how it tasted!

 

[VAtink]

That is the right approach to the food booths! My only regret from Flower and Garden (my only festival so far) is I was by myself and therefore limited to how much I could try.

Yeah, we oddly never do this, we usually just each get our own dish at each booth, I'm not sure why it took so many years to figure this out!

The corned beef, lamb, and wings all look especially good! I’m glad you enjoyed most of the things you tried that day.

It was definitely a good start to the festival. We did have some not great things later in the trip, but the start was solid!

What great luck! I know you had long waits with LL on your last trip (which, really… why?!) so you were due a short wait!

Seriously! I don't know what was with that ride last year, but it was always a pretty decent wait in the LL. It was amazing to walk through and be the only ones there!

Those views are incredible! I’m thrilled you got such a fantastic room!

We got so lucky with these views. We even changed our plans on our last night there to be back in the room to watch the fireworks.

That’s wonderful, especially considering your experience buying wine earlier in the day. It’s nice that the universe gave you the nice people to balance the demanding and crazy people.

Haha, right? I love when we run into such kind people like that!

Also, I’m glad you timed it so well to be indoors when the skies opened up! Well done!

We got so lucky this trip with our timing with the rain. Somehow we always managed to be inside for the worst of it!

 

[VAtink]

OK, I may have gagged a little just looking at the picture of the pickle shake. No way would I go anywhere near that...but I'm glad you liked it. There's something for everyone, I always say. And what great luck missing the rain. Now, if I had been you, I would have just sat down at that table with the woman who was by herself. No such thing as a stranger when it comes to tables with chairs at Disney.

Haha, yeah I can definitely see it not being for everyone, it was a very unique flavor!

And omg, I should have sat at the table with the woman, I wonder what she would have done.

 

[VAtink]

That was really rude, especially since she never ate any food.

YES! This exactly. The fact that she never got food made it even worse, like she saw I was carrying food, and yet she still decided that she deserved the table more, even though she had no intention of actually eating.

We really enjoyed the steak this year, too. It is the one thing we get every time we go to Epcot during F&W.

It was so good this year, it's always been good, but I loved the sides with it this year!

 

[VAtink]

I see some of the dishes we tried too. Loved the Pickle Fries. I made the comment I wanted to go back for more later but never made it back.

Yes! The pickle fries were so good! I'm going to try to make them at home this weekend. We'll see how this goes!

I enjoyed the crab cake too.

It was really good, we weren't sure how we would like it since we saw so many reviews saying it was too salty, but the serving we got wasn't salty at all and was really good!

The Donald sipper is adorable.

I love it, I was so sad I didn't get it last year, I'm so glad I finally picked one up!

Sorry the lines for the food were long but looks like it was worth it.

Yeah, I'm never a fan of waiting in line (is anyone?) but the food was definitely worth it!

I can't wait to see the original Soarin' when we go back.

It's so amazing, I missed it!

Nice room! I'm sure you enjoyed it your whole trip.

Loved this room! I wish we could get this room every trip!

This would be my thoughts. You're so close, go and enjoy what you can.

Exactly! I'm glad my mom finally agreed!

The beef in Canada is my go to. Love it. I wanted to try the lamb but never made it there.

Yeah, that beef is always a solid dish, it was so good this year too! The lamb I've found to be hit or miss, some years it's super dry, but this year it was cooked perfectly!

We brought our food into the Odyssey too and had to settle for a stand up table at first. Be place to get out of the heat and/or rain.

I do love that they have this area open, it's such a great place to get out of the heat, or the rain. I just wish they had more tables with chairs!

Something else I wanted to try but the line was long when we got in there so we skipped it.

Somehow we got very lucky when we went there and there was absolutely no one in line. I feel like every vlog I saw there was always a long line at this booth!

That stinks!

Yeah, I was pretty mad about it!

Nice see humanity redeemed.

Exactly, that family was so kind, made up for the other woman!

 

[VAtink]

Day 2, Part 6: Our First Encounter with a Wheelchair!​

We last left off heading out of the Odyssey. The rain was ending thankfully, and it was still pretty early in the evening, a bit before 7, so we decided to stay in the park longer. However, my mom’s leg was really bothering her, so I suggested we head to the front entrance and pick up a wheelchair.

At first she didn’t want to, but I insisted, so off to the front of the park we went!

It took a hot second to find the rental place, but we eventually did and rented one. When we went to pay, the CM told us that it was “on Mickey” that night. So sweet! Although I guess at that point there was only 2 hours left of the day, so it made sense not to charge us.

Wheelchair acquired, we decided to hit up some of the photopass at the front of the park since we were there.








While waiting in line we got to see some of the shows on SE. Love these shows!

After getting our pictures and watching some of the shows, we made our way back into Future World (I will never stop calling it this).

One thing I quickly realized with the park wheelchairs, is that I’m either too tall to be pushing them, or my arms are too short. The handles were sooooo low, like standing straight behind the wheelchair the top of the handles were like 4”-5” below my fingertips, so I had to hunch over to push my mom. This wasn’t too bad on flat surfaces or even going uphill, but going downhill was miserable, and one thing I realized while pushing the wheelchair is that there are a lot of little ups and downs all throughout Epcot.

It probably wouldn’t have been as bad if Epcot wasn’t so crowded, but due to the crowds we had to go downhill very slowly since bowling people over with a wheelchair is generally frowned upon.

So to not crash into people, I had to physically pull the wheelchair back to keep it from going downhill too fast, and having that constant pulling back/tension while in an awkward bent over position absolutely destroyed my back. Even after only the two hours of pushing the wheelchair this night my back was completely seizing up. I joked with my mom that we may need to get a wheelchair for both of us later in the trip!

We slowly made our way through FW and back to WS, this time we decided to go the long way around to see if any of the food booth items interested us.

WS was absolutely jam packed this evening, which while we expected some crowds, we didn’t expect this level of crowds on a weeknight. This of course made navigating with a wheelchair a bit more tricky. Not so much from people cutting us off, but from the large groups who would just stop in the middle of the path blocking everyone from passing. This was so ridiculously common this evening that I became that person who loudly commented that if you need to stop, you need to move to the side. One large family who did stop in the middle of the path actually heard me say this, and one of the guys was like “oh, yeah, guys we’re really blocking everyone, let’s move to the side.” YES! Someone finally understands!!!!

Anyways, off my soapbox.

We eventually stopped when we got to the India booth to get the crispy cheese and the lager. The cheese was one of my top items from last years fest so I was excited to get them again.



Well, sadly this year the cheese was a huge disappointment. I don’t know if they had just been sitting out too long or what, but they were so dry and flavorless, and the dipping sauce didn’t help. The lager also wasn’t great. Oh well, they can’t all be winners!

After finishing up our food we made our way out of the park and back to the YC. We made it to the room just in time to watch the fireworks, and wow, our view was fantastic!





After watching the fireworks we settled in and enjoyed some wine and chocolate before bed!

Next up: A Relaxing Epcot Morning​

 

[2xcited2sleep]

It will forever and always be Future World!