Food and Wine Festival is here!

This past weekend was the Opening Weekend of the 19th Annual Epcot International Food and Wine Festival! This festival brings almost 40 booths to the World Showcase, featuring food from the 11 countries represented year-long, and additional countries that can only be enjoy during the festival. In addition, we have culinary demonstrations, seminars, and exhibits for guests to experience. Every evening, we have the Eat to the Beat concert series, featuring artists in the American Gardens Theatre.

The weekend started on Thursday, with a Cast Member Preview. I went with some of my Vacation Planner friends after work to enjoy the wonderful items from the dozens of booths set up throughout the World Showcase. I had the filet mignon from Canada, the braised short ribs and potatoes from France, and the ravioli from Italy! Everything I had was absolutely delicious!

Cast Member Festival Preview!

The festival officially began on Friday, which means this was set to be one of the busiest weekends that I've had in the booth since I began! I closed both Friday and Saturday night, so I worked from 2:30-8:30! We were PACKED! On both nights, I didn't go more than a few seconds without a guest, and we often had quite a line. It was great to be so busy all night long, and it made the shifts exciting and fun! It got hectic but it was important to remember to just focus on the guest in front of me! On Sunday, I had a morning shift, but ended up extending to close that night as well.  

The beautiful Food and Wine decorations really brighten up the park!

As they say, it's the most wonderful time of the year here at Epcot, and I can't wait for the rest of the festival! It runs until mid-November, so it will be an exciting time and a wonderful experience!