My wife and I went to F&W over "Jersey Weekend" (Wed Nov 6 - Sun Nov 10) and I figured I would summarize our trip.
We went for Food and Wine, and not much else. The only park we entered was Epcot. We did go to Disney Springs one day. We do this every other year or so, and try to cram in as many special events as we can.
Italian Wine vs. Beer - Excellent. Great hosts, wonderful food - bread, salad, pizza, sea bass, cheese course, dessert and a beer and wine to compare with each. Some very nice wines (one was a $35 bottle according to Vivino) and some very interesting beers (lots of bottle conditioned/naturally carbonated ones). Generous initial pours, and refills were offered. The only thing I can complain about is the noise. The event is held in the side room of Via Napoli. That room is all hard surfaces. The hosts also had no PA system. Lots of echos, lots of noise, and hard to hear some of the descriptions. This was our third time doing this event (it used to be just wine) and it is still on the list of things to do again. Also got a small box of cookies when leaving.
Parisian Family Lunch - Excellent as well. Very different from the Italian event. Much more subdued and quiet (host had a PA and it was in Monsieur Paul). Amouse Bouche, Shirred Egg, Salmon, Cheese Course, Dessert and a wine with each. Refills on wine were offered. I thought the food was very good, especially the salmon. Of course that is dependent on your tastes. The host was great and very interactive. Very good descriptions of both the wines and food, and how it fits into French culture. I would do this again as well.
Wine & Cheese seminar - Not so thrilled with this one. Same host and experts as the last however many years this has been running. Everything was pre-plated and pre-poured this time. Four cheese and two wines. I did not think the wines were anything special. I know the wine guy is an expert (his background is impressive) but when he makes factually incorrect statements about tasting, it just ruins his credibility. The cheese expert is also an expert but seems to like to talk more about his book, and making odd comments such as "This is the type of cheese you want to spread on your partner and then eat off of them". There was not much discuss about the taste of the cheese or the wines. The cheeses were excellent though, and some are quite expensive. No refills on wine, in fact we were told numerous times that we had four cheeses to taste so be sure to take small sips of the wine so it would last. This may be off of our list for next time.
Coral Reef - I had never eaten here before (amazingly) and I don't think I will go back. The staff was excellent, but the restaurant really needs a refurbishment, especially with all that carpet everywhere. It feels really dated. I was not impressed with the food either. Starters were OK, in fact the lobster bisque was good (and a Caesar Salad is hard to ruin). But a filet that was ordered medium came out dead rare, as in still cool in the center and was accompanied with a side over overworked mashed potatoes. The mahi-mahi was cooked nicely, but then coated in a pineapple salsa mess that was no where near balanced and had pockets of jalapeno inconsistently placed throughout that had small tasteless overcooked shrimp added to it, because ... why not? All served over a smattering of jasmine rice (allegedly, but who could tell it was jasmine with all the mix of inconsistent flavors going on)
Oh, and we had lunch at The Edison. Really cool interior. Food was good, but portions were huge. Edison burger was good, verging on being Guy Fieri-esque mess of too much stuff piled on a burger just so we can pile stuff on a burger, but it stopped short of going there and instead all worked together. Tomato bisque was also quite good. Grilled cheese was insanely huge (why do places insist on doing that) but was an interesting mix of cheeses.
As for F&W itself, I was pleasantly surprised to see many booths actually cooking, as opposed to just bringing in pre-cooked items in hot boxes. Places were actually smoking their own meat on grills, or making sauces from almost scratch. It was nice to see, and I hope the trend continues.
So there you go, my opinions of food on a recent trip, for whatever they are worth.
We went for Food and Wine, and not much else. The only park we entered was Epcot. We did go to Disney Springs one day. We do this every other year or so, and try to cram in as many special events as we can.
Italian Wine vs. Beer - Excellent. Great hosts, wonderful food - bread, salad, pizza, sea bass, cheese course, dessert and a beer and wine to compare with each. Some very nice wines (one was a $35 bottle according to Vivino) and some very interesting beers (lots of bottle conditioned/naturally carbonated ones). Generous initial pours, and refills were offered. The only thing I can complain about is the noise. The event is held in the side room of Via Napoli. That room is all hard surfaces. The hosts also had no PA system. Lots of echos, lots of noise, and hard to hear some of the descriptions. This was our third time doing this event (it used to be just wine) and it is still on the list of things to do again. Also got a small box of cookies when leaving.
Parisian Family Lunch - Excellent as well. Very different from the Italian event. Much more subdued and quiet (host had a PA and it was in Monsieur Paul). Amouse Bouche, Shirred Egg, Salmon, Cheese Course, Dessert and a wine with each. Refills on wine were offered. I thought the food was very good, especially the salmon. Of course that is dependent on your tastes. The host was great and very interactive. Very good descriptions of both the wines and food, and how it fits into French culture. I would do this again as well.
Wine & Cheese seminar - Not so thrilled with this one. Same host and experts as the last however many years this has been running. Everything was pre-plated and pre-poured this time. Four cheese and two wines. I did not think the wines were anything special. I know the wine guy is an expert (his background is impressive) but when he makes factually incorrect statements about tasting, it just ruins his credibility. The cheese expert is also an expert but seems to like to talk more about his book, and making odd comments such as "This is the type of cheese you want to spread on your partner and then eat off of them". There was not much discuss about the taste of the cheese or the wines. The cheeses were excellent though, and some are quite expensive. No refills on wine, in fact we were told numerous times that we had four cheeses to taste so be sure to take small sips of the wine so it would last. This may be off of our list for next time.
Coral Reef - I had never eaten here before (amazingly) and I don't think I will go back. The staff was excellent, but the restaurant really needs a refurbishment, especially with all that carpet everywhere. It feels really dated. I was not impressed with the food either. Starters were OK, in fact the lobster bisque was good (and a Caesar Salad is hard to ruin). But a filet that was ordered medium came out dead rare, as in still cool in the center and was accompanied with a side over overworked mashed potatoes. The mahi-mahi was cooked nicely, but then coated in a pineapple salsa mess that was no where near balanced and had pockets of jalapeno inconsistently placed throughout that had small tasteless overcooked shrimp added to it, because ... why not? All served over a smattering of jasmine rice (allegedly, but who could tell it was jasmine with all the mix of inconsistent flavors going on)
Oh, and we had lunch at The Edison. Really cool interior. Food was good, but portions were huge. Edison burger was good, verging on being Guy Fieri-esque mess of too much stuff piled on a burger just so we can pile stuff on a burger, but it stopped short of going there and instead all worked together. Tomato bisque was also quite good. Grilled cheese was insanely huge (why do places insist on doing that) but was an interesting mix of cheeses.
As for F&W itself, I was pleasantly surprised to see many booths actually cooking, as opposed to just bringing in pre-cooked items in hot boxes. Places were actually smoking their own meat on grills, or making sauces from almost scratch. It was nice to see, and I hope the trend continues.
So there you go, my opinions of food on a recent trip, for whatever they are worth.
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