Epcot Flower and Garden Festival

Have you ever been to the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival? It's something everyone must experience!

Last year I was in Orlando for The Food and Wine Conference in May. I had a few extra days in Orlando so I decided to do some adulting in Disney.  My friend Kristin from Dizzy Busy and Hungry was my partner in crime and we decided it would be nice to go to the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival. With no teenagers or husbands in tow, we could take our time looking at the flowers, snapping some pictures and eating from all the great food carts. The weather was perfect and the colors were beautiful!

Epcot does a great job in making sure everything looks like a Disney character. How fun to see Donald Duck in garden form!

We both loved the butterfly garden. I could spend hours in there looking for butterflies. A few visitors were even lucky enough to have butterflies land on their arms. I wish I had brought a better camera for these pictures.

Kristin and I were both dazzled by the orchids in the Mexican Pavillion. I was extra glad, this was a girls day. We could oooh and ahh without anyone hurrying us up to go on more rides (sorry hubby and teenage kids). They really were magnificient.

And now to get to the food. The food was fresh, delicious and there were so many choices. I like to eat and graze while I walk around all day. We did not need a meal time to be hungry. There were 13 booths scattered around the park. This year they've added a few more. All the kiosks had several small plates and drinks with an emphasis on fresh food from the garden.

Here was a sample menu from La Isla Fresca which was the Caribbean outdoor kitchen.  As you can see, there was plenty of flavor involved in our choices. We decided to try some Jerk-spice Chicken and Jamaican -braised Beef. Both were wonderful! Who would think you could get food like this at an amusement park? But then again, this is Epcot!

The one thing I knew I had to get was the Beijing style candied strawberries. I had heard about these before and was dreaming about them. They exceeded every expectation! Just pure strawberry decadence from The Lotus House at Epcot.

Two more dishes that I should mention would be the Shrimp and Grits from the Florida Fresh stand and Currywurst with Paprika Chips from the Bauernmrkt booth. The shrimp and grits were perfect and the Currywurst came with this awesome spicy curry ketchup. It was something I had never had before.

Most of the kiosks had several choices of beverages including alcoholic and non alcoholic ones. There were various cocktails, beers and wines. Remember this park is not just for kids. We also stopped at Flavors of Club Cool. It was a warm day and the sodas were very refreshing. This world showcase of sodas is hosted by Coca Cola. It's not part of the Garden Festival but something you can go to every time you are at Epcot.

I heard the Epcot Flower and Garden Show is better than ever this year. I am hoping I get a chance to check it out when I am in Orlando in May. It goes from March 1, 2017 to May 29, 2017.

Have you been to the Epcot Flower Garden Festival? What were your favorite things there?

****For full disclosure, I was not compensated for this post however I received a free media pass for admission. As usual, all opinions are my own.