Welcome to the 2017 Food and Wine Festival at Busch Gardens Williamsburg!
This year at the Food and Wine Festival they have two new kiosks: India and Mediterranean. I decided that in order for me to give you the best review possible I needed to buy ALL the food at these locations (the sacrifices I make for my readers!). Some are not items that I would eat so I took my friend Joel with me to give me a fair assessment. He was more than willing to give his opinion and take some pictures.
If you want to visit the park yourself check out the Busch Gardens Williamsburg Coupons– you may as well save some money!
They took my favorites- the things I missed!
For those of you who read my review of the 2016 Food and Wine Festival (you should re-read because most of those foods are back this year and still as good) you may remember I raved about the Root Vegetable Chip With Maui Onion Dip. It’s gone.
I also loved the Hibiscus Lemonade- they changed the recipe this year. It’s a cranberry base now and not as refreshing.
One of my favorite desserts was the Lemon Tart in France. They got rid of the whole France booth this year.
What Are The New Booths This Year?
The Greek booth from last year has been replaced with Mediterranean. For those who have visited before you will notice some carry over from the menu.
Here are the four new dishes (from top left clockwise):
Lamb Burger Slider- Seasoned ground lamb on pita bread with feta cheese spread, cucumber, tomato & olive
Joel’s Opinion- You definitely get a nice portion of lamb here. The cucumber adds a refreshing bite along with the tomato. Unfortunately, I found the cheese spread to be grainy and detracting to the point where I wouldn’t order this again.
Baklava- Sweet pastry with nuts and honey between thin crispy filo pastry layers.
Laura’s Opinion- YUMMY. As good as any home made I have ever had. Very light and the nut taste wasn’t overwhelming. LOTS of yummy honey.
Joel’s Opinion- Let’s face it, it’s hard to go wrong with baklava if you have a sweet tooth. Definitely sweet. Definitely flakey. Very enjoyable.
Halloumi- Griddled Greek cheese with clover honey & crushed pistachios
Laura’s Opinion- I was hot and this was the last food of the day so I passed I was so full. But it smelled good!
Joel’s Opinion- If you like cheese, which I do, then you’ll really enjoy this. They literally throw slices of greek cheese on the griddle and let it get a little melty before drizzling it with honey and serving with a light crouton. The cheese is slightly earthy and salty. Combined with the sweetness of the honey and crunch of the crouton, it’s very enjoyable. I’m not quite sure what the purpose of the crushed pistachios were, other than to add a little extra visual pop.
Falafel- Chickpea fritter with sesame dipping sauce
Laura’s Opinion- Almost anything fried tastes good to me! The dipping sauce was good and while the falafel wasn’t full of taste it wasn’t bad either.
Joel’s Opinion- This was a miss for me, but I’m not a falafel expert by any stretch. I would have preferred the inside to be soft with a crispy outside. To me, it tasted like a light breading that has been fried too long. But, like I said, I don’t have much experience with falafel. Maybe it’s supposed to be that way? The sauce was good, so use plenty of it.
The India booth is in Oktoberfest- prime real estate if you ask me. The building is completely adorable (this picture is from before it opened). They had to move it into the park with a CRANE!
How cute is this guy?
Here are the new dishes:
Samosas- Indian savory pastry filled with curried potatoes and peas with mango chutney
Laura’s Opinion- I am a WIMP when it comes to spicy food. And this mango chutney has a bit of a kick. It’s sweet and spicy at the same time! The pastry was good but I wish it had a little bit of crunch. So maybe cooked a bit more on the outside?
Joel’s Opinion- I was really looking forward to this dish, as I’ve heard good things about samosas. I didn’t find these to be particularly good through. The outside was not very crispy, and the potatoes and peas on the inside were a bit bland. That said, the mango chutney is great and if the samosas are merely intended to be a delivery device for the chutney, they do their job well.
Mango Burfi- Mango and coconut snowballs
Laura’s Opinion- I’m not the biggest fan of coconut and this dish is ALL about it. The taste, the texture- I ended up spitting it out.
Joel’s Opinion- If you like coconut, this dish is definitely for you. If you don’t, stay away. I do, and I enjoyed the chewiness of the coconut combined with the sweetness of the mango. This is probably the lightest dessert in the park, so that’s a plus.
Spicy Potato Curry- Garbanzo beans, sweet peas and potatoes stewed in coconut milk with curry spice.
Laura’s Opinion- I ate most of this one. The curry taste was strong but not too spicy (which is hilarious because of the name). I assume the green stuff across the top had some kind of peas in it- it cooled the dish right down for me. It was also a nice portion size!
Joel’s Opinion- I like my curry spicier than how this dish is prepared, but you definitely get the nice curry flavors you would expect and it’s enjoyable. Of special note, the chef shared that this recipe was submitted to Busch Gardens by the Humane Society.
Tandoori Chicken- Spiced yogurt-marinated chicken with cardamom ginger rice and cucumber raita
Joel’s Opinion- Here I was disappointed in the serving size, but the chicken was moist and tasty. The cucumber raita is a nice complement, adding a cool creaminess to the chicken that makes you want more.
Pairings of Note
Busch Gardens has a new offering this year- Pairings of Note. In the beautiful Castle O’ Sullivan (it’s really decorated lovely for this event) you will find a live jazz band with a singer on stage. The event lasts about an hour and fifteen minutes. All attendees receive 6 wines to try and 6 foods specifically designed to go with them. The foods look really amazing. If you happen to like the wines you can purchase them at the event- they are not available anywhere else in the park.
You can check out the menu!
I would write more but with the $50 price tag I don’t know that I would recommend it. With so much other amazing wine and food throughout the park I’m not sure financially it makes the most sense. However it is a very romantic atmosphere and if you want a date night at Busch Gardens Williamsburg this is how you do it.
What Are The Best Dishes This Year?
The Pineapple Rum Upside-down Cake at the Caribbean booth is AMAZING. DO NOT MISS IT. This was the best of the new food this year.
The Ghost Pepper Guacamole in the American Southwest booth (which has moved over by Loch Ness Monster) is a new menu item and we enjoyed it! Don’t let the ghost pepper mention in the dish’s name keep you from ordering. The pepper notes are light, and the guacamole is served very cold, making it a refreshing snack.
In the French Quarter I am always sure to get the Beignets. It’s fried dough with powdered sugar and caramel. I’m not sure how they could be bad! This is a repeat from last year’s favorite dishes!
The Chicken & Andouille Gumbo was also in the French Quarter. This was delicious and the serving size was generous. The sausage was flavorful and lean and the entire dish is very well seasoned with a very enjoyable amount of spice.
For the third year in a row we practically ran to the Asia booth to get the Mushi-Gyoza (Japanese-style steamed chicken dumplings with citrus ponzu sauce made by angels). We talk about the ponzu sauce all year long. We wish they sold it by the jar. Also pictured is the Thai Tea, which is lightly sweet and refreshing.
There Is One Way To Save!
The Food Sampler deal is back- just pay and they give you a necklace to carry around. They scan it each time you check out and this year it includes drinks!
- Mix and match 10 entrée, drinks or dessert dishes from any of the Food & Wine Festival kiosks with the Food & Wine Festival Food Sampler for only $45!
- Or you can get the Food & Wine Festival Deluxe Food Sampler and try 15 Food & Wine Festival entrées, drinks or dessert items for only $60!
