My favorite food fest hands down is the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival; held every fall at Disney World. This year’s festival, in its 20th year, highlighted 30 different countries or regions. Several new booths and menu items were added to the festival this year however I was very sad to see Terra, the all vegan kiosk not included. Instead it seemed like Disney tried to incorporate vegan food items into other booths but this did not make up for the fantastic offerings Terra had in pervious years. Here are my favorite dairy free finds:
Vegan Moussaka at the Greece Pavilion made with Gardein Sausage Crumbles. I went back 3 times – it was that good! My husband had his own serving, too good to share, and thought it was excellent. The dish was filling and extremely flavorful. Greece also offered a salad that could be made dairy free upon request Dean had the version with cheese and said it would have been better if it didn’t come dressed as the lettuce was a bit soggy.
My second favorite offering came from Patagonia featuring flavors from Argentina and Chili. The Roasted Verlasso Salmon with Quinoa Salad and Arugula Chimichurri was outstanding, so much so I had two servings. The salad is very refreshing and the salmon was cooked to perfection. The arugula sauce made for a perfect topping.
The Dominican Republic offers a dairy free seared Grouper dish with Pigeon Peas and rice with coconut sauce. It was very tasty especially if you like the flavor of coconut.
Japan has two dairy free offerings: Miso Udon: Steamed Shrimp, Vegetables and Noodles ina Spicy Broth. I tasted Dean’s and found it to be too salty for my tastes. The Tempura Shrimp Roll was fresh and tasty.
In Australia you can find dairy free Grilled Sweet and Spicy Bush Berry Shrimp with Pineapple , Pepper , Onion and Snap Peas. Dean said the sauce was sweet and savory at the same time.
The other vegan dish is in South Korea and I can’t say it loudly enough , stay away from this offering. I actually excitedly waited in a very long line to try the Vegan Korean BBQ which simply put was awful. It gives vegan food a bad name.
The festival has plenty of other offerings including many gluten free ones. If you’ve never been to this festival I encourage you to go. There’s something for everyone including the food, cooking classes and demos, bands and other culinary experiences.
What is your favorite food festival? Share in our comments section.
