This Taste of Busch Gardens review is to let you know what happens at the new event! Besides the food and drinks we were thrilled that Verbolten, Alpengeist, Finnegan’s Flyer, Invadr and Griffon were all open for riding along with a few other small rides. The night we went the weather was beautiful for both eating and riding rides!
This time I took my BFF L and her daughters S and J who are both in high school. They have a more selective pallet than my usual companion for this event so it was interesting to get their feedback!
When Is It and How Much?
Taste of Busch Gardens will run Sept. 2 – 27, Wednesdays and Thursdays, from 5 – 9 p.m., and Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Labor Day from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. and 5 – 9 p.m. If you are a current membership, season pass holder or fun card holder and would like to attend all you have to do is reserve a spot. If this isn’t you admission starts at $44.99. Single ticket holders can bundle admission and a tasting card for $68.99 (includes five menu items) or $92.99 (includes 10 menu items).
How To Save
Right now if you grab a Busch Gardens Williamsburg 2021 Fun Card you can get in for all the 2020 FALL events (before you ask Christmas Town- if it happens- is not a fall event).
If you are looking to save a little bit more of money on Food consider grabbing a Food and Beverage Sampler at the park- you pay a flat fee and get 10 dishes and/or beverages. For 5 items it is $30 or for $60 you get 10 items. I think everything we tried was atleast $6 so we did save.
Be sure to check out my Busch Gardens Williamsburg Visit During Covid so you will be prepared!
What You Should Eat
Churrasco (on the left) – Grilled beef with chimichurri sauce. The meat was cooked to a beautiful medium-rare and you can smell it as you walk by the Trapperhouse. The chimichurri sauce added a fresh pop of flavor. Highly recommend by L- the others were not going to have the green sauce.
I love the Creamy Mushroom Risotto (finished with truffle oil, basil pesto and a shaved, prosciutto ham) once we moved the ham over. It was VERY rich and well made. Equally impressive is knowing how difficult it is to make a good risotto- this isn’t a dish they can make the night before and throw in the microwave the next day. I highly recommend this one and L enjoyed it as well. S and J were not about mushrooms so skipped it(pictured in the middle).
The Jerk Chicken Slider (on the right) was so good that the girls who went with us asked their mom to make it at home. They said the contrast of the spices in the chicken and the sweetness of the mango were PERFECT. And the bread was good as well. Highly recommended by all the meat eaters.
Loukoumades are fried dough covered with cinnamon and honey. I’m not actually sure HOW they could be bad but they did not disappoint. The honey was JUST the right amount of sweet. These are at Three Rivers and are the only Taste of Busch Gardens food there so don’t miss them! Thumbs up from everyone.
I dream about these all year. The Beignets (fried doughnuts squares topped with powdered sugar and drizzled with caramel) are a favorite. It’s fried bread- it’s hard to ruin fried bread. These are just magic. There were happy noises through the whole group as we ate.
Mushi-Gyoza – Japanese-style steamed chicken dumplings with citrus ponzu sauce. Every year I tell you to get these dumplings. LISTEN TO ME. The ponzu sauce is magic.
I always enjoy the Baklava. It’s just kind of regular Baklava but I don’t generally eat it outside this event. I found it enjoyable.
The Bangers and Colcannon (basically mashed potatoes and pot roast) also received the thumbs up from the meat eaters. There were leftovers so it wasn’t as popular as the chicken but no one turned it down!
The Strawberry Lemonade was good ONCE IT WAS STIRRED. Be sure to stir it if you don’t want a mouthful of sour!
What You Should NOT Eat
Pictured with the Beignets above is the Cannoli. Save your cash- other things were much better!
This Cookie Dough Cone was a big miss for all of us. It’s a soft waffle cone, filled with raw cookie dough (which we all thought might be peanut butter dough), Reeses Pieces, chocolate syrup, whipped cream and sprinkles. This was WAY TOO SWEET for any of us to really like it. It’s sold at the same place as the Beignets so just grab those.
Italian Fries– they were out of Irish Fries so we went with the back up choice and it was a big fail. You can get these all year anyway so don’t waste any money on these!
Siopao Pork Dumplings– Thumbs down from everyone. In the dumplings defense most people in this group don’t really prefer Asian food.
What are your favorite dishes? Leave a comment below!
