Liz and I recently attended Epcot’s Second Annual Festival of the Arts! This was my first time attending and I had high expectations for this festival. They were definitely met. I’ll be talking about the fun activities we took part in and all the yummy treats we ate. I hope this will be your guide if you attend the festival this year!

Festival Gift Card

If you have been to any of Epcot’s festivals you are aware of this gift card bracelet. For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, it’s simply a gift card anyone can fill with money to spend throughout the festival areas of the park. You can either gift these or get one for yourself. This was the first time I ever got one and I found it to be pretty handy. Having money on this gift card makes purchasing food items easer and quicker. This also helps balance the amount of money you want to spend at the festival. I highly recommend this, especially if you’re going to splurge on food and drinks!

Canada

First stop on our list was Canada. Here Liz ordered the Wild Mushroom Risotto. I am not a fan of mushroom so I didn’t try it, but Liz loved it. She would definitely order it again and says it was very flavorful and creamy. Liz also ordered the Pinord La Dama Reserva Familiar Brut Rosé, which was delicious and sweet.

Morocco

After  Canada, Morocco’s menu caught our eyes. Here we both ordered the Hummus Trifle which was outstanding! The trifle was equipped with layered hummus, spice beef, pine nuts, and dry cherries. This small dish also came with pita chips. We both enjoyed every bite and spoonful of that trifle. That is a dish we’d both order again. The flavors all mixed so well with each other. They also give you a lot for what you pay for, this dish almost filled me up!

Italy

Wanting something light after the trifle, I stopped in Italy for the Sformato di Melanzane e Pomodori, Mozzerella Fior di Latte. To summarize, this was diced tomatoes, wrapped in eggplant with Fior di Latte Mozzerella. I did enjoy this dish, but I am going to say it was a little bland. It just seemed like it was missing something. This really isn’t something I would order again, but I would recommend it to people who love those vegetables.  Liz didn’t order food here, but ordered the Villi Sandi Prosecco. This one was also sweet and tasted a bit like champagne.

Germany

Liz was ready for dessert so she went to Germany to get the Saint-Honoré Tart. It was a caramel tart with caramel glaze topped with cream puffs. Liz absolutely loved this dessert. She said it was very creamy, not too overly sweet and the cream puffs on top tasted heavenly.

China

I had been dying to stop here after seeing the menu. I honestly wanted everything on the China menu, but I had to force myself to choose one. Of course, I went with the Coconut Panda Rice Cake, which looked absolutely adorable! I almost didn’t want to eat it. All in all, the rice cake was okay. I did like the way it tasted. It was not as sweet as I thought it was going to be, but still pretty yummy. To be honest, I wouldn’t order it again, but I would recommend trying it! Plus, it’ll be a great photo op.

Decadent Delights

Last on our food list is Decadent Delights. This stand is the first one you see on your right when walking towards World Showcase. We had seen it at the beginning, but said we would come back to it. Here I ordered the Chocolate Caramel Mousse Bar and Liz ordered the S’mores Tart. Let me tell you, my mousse bar did not only look amazing, but it also tasted AMAZING. I really tried to enjoy every single bite. Every part of that mousse bar was magnificent. The passion fruit sauce went so well with that chocolate caramel taste and meringue kisses were the icing on the cake. I was so close to going and ordering another one! This was, by far, my favorite food item I had that day. For your sake, go and order this mousse bar. Your taste buds will be in another dimension. Liz said the S’mores tart was good, but not really her favorite. The chocolate in the tart was very rich.

Fun Photo Ops

There are so many fun and creative photo opportunities around World Showcase for the festival. The two pictures above are just two of the cool photo ops you can partake in.

Expression Section 

This was one of my favorite aspects of the festival. Everyday there is a blank mural posted up at the beginning of World Showcase. This mural is like a paint-by-numbers were guests can partake in painting it throughout the day. A cast member gives you a container with paint, a paint brush, and a assigns you a number. You then find that number and paint five squares of it. The mural is usually finished around 5 PM and all the guests can come and look at the work they have all put in. The day we were there the mural was a monorail.

Other Activities/Events

• Disney On Broadway Concert Series
• Animation Academy
• Figment’s Brush with the Masters
• Chalk Art
• Art Walk

All photos by: Elizabeth Padilla, Bismarie Plasencia, and Walt Disney World