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Busch Gardens Food & Wine Festival – the many reasons why you don’t want to miss it!
Big Flavors, Big-Name concerts and a Celebrity Chef highlight this year’s festival
Dates: Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from May 25 – July 1, plus Monday, May 28 (Memorial Day)
Time: 11 a.m. until park closing
This is a great opportunity to sample cuisine from around the world and we do mean cuisine – this is not your ordinary amusement park fare.
Admission to the festival is included with park admission, and individual tastings range in price from $3 – $7. If you have an Annual Membership make sure to present it when you purchase your food for a discount.
Busch Gardens is offering free admission for U.S. veterans and three of their guests to enjoy time together this summer. Offer is valid for a one-day free admission today through July 4. Learn more about this offer from their Waves of Honor Program here.
If you are looking for a ticket discount – check out our latest Busch Gardens & Water Country USA discounts post for all the coupon codes, Groupons, Military Discounts and Special Offers we can find – HERE
First, let us say that “Yes, the Food & Wine Festival is kid friendly. There are many options kids will love to eat. ” And, “Yes, this is a great date night option too – because the food, wine, beer, and desserts plus the beautiful park as a back drop all add up to a great night out.” We did not even mention the shows and rides!
Here is how the Food & Wine Festival works; 15 different kiosks are set up throughout Busch Gardens on Friday, Saturday and Sunday only. Each one is easily identified with the Food & Wine Festival logo and a four-sided billboard telling you about the country you are sampling from and interesting food facts. Large signs with that country’s menus are near each kiosk. Pick up a Food & Wine Festival Guide located at each participating country, these guides include a map of the park, locating each kiosk and it also includes menus for each country. Keep an eye out for live chef demonstrations located throughout the park.
Plant-based options (vegan friendly) are available in India, Spain, Japan, South Korea, Mediterranean and American Southwest.
Enjoy authentic tastes from around the world including 4 new menus: Brazil, Cuba, Japan & South Korea. Here is a short run down including our favorite samples, for the full menu go here
AMERICAN SOUTHWEST
Located in Scotland by the Loch Ness Monster. Why not start with dessert and go straight for the Chocolate Lava Cake it is delish and you know you’ll walk it off! If you like spicy (which I do) then go for the Ghost Pepper Guacamole but I will warn you it is HOT and your eyes will water.
Located in New France, next to the Trapper’s Smokehouse. We’ve heard wonderful things about the Brazilian Kiosk! The Churrasco is a must, this is grilled beef with a chimichurri sauce. The Linguica (Brazilian sausage) is also worth a try. Also to note if you enjoy mixed drinks this is your opportunity to try the Caipirinha, made with rum, lime juice & simple syrup!
CRÊPES & COFFEE
Located in France, next to the Royal Palace Theatre. In the past Busch Gardens has tried to bring a twist to the crepes they offer. We are glad to say that this year they gave us what we wanted…Banana Nutella Crepe!!!
NEW – CUBA
Located in France. I love a Cuban sandwich and this one did not disappoint and it comes with plantain chips.
HAWAII
Located in Ireland, next to Castle O’Sullivan. Those that were a fan of Mac n’ Cheese then Hawaii is your place! The ham & pineapple cheese is going to be a hit with the kiddo’s! We loved the Tuna Poke (fantastic sushi – yes, sushi!) and Huli Huli Chicken with purple and orange sweet potatoes. The iced Hibiscus Lemonade is a great non-alcoholic treat on a hot day if you have non-drinkers or kids with you. Also see if you can spot the little pineapples growing nearby in a potted plant!?
INDIA
Located in Germany, this is one of our favorites. We enjoyed the spiced yogurt marinated chicken with cardamom ginger rice & cucumber raita…it is delicious. The samosas which is an Indian savory pastry filled with curried potatoes & peas, it is spicy, but the mango chutney is the perfect balance. And finally the Spicy Potato Curry rounds out this yummy sampler.
NEW – JAPAN (used to be the Asian Kiosk)
Located in Italy, near The Battering Ram. GET the Mushi-Gyoza (steamed chicken dumplings)!!! I had to try the Bubble Tea, it was good, cold and sweet. I am not a huge fan of tapioca balls but lucky they tend to stay at the bottom so it wasn’t a big deal.
MEDITERRANEAN
Located in Italy, next to Escape from Pompeii. Highly recommend the Dolmades (not pictured) delicious and perfect on a hot day! The Spanakopita (left in pic) was good however I was not a huge fan of the Falafel (right), which were dry and bland. I really enjoyed the Iced Cafe Au Lait! It was tasty, cold and served in a nice large cup.
NEW – SOUTH KOREA
Located in Festa Italia, near the train station. Get ready for a little Kimchi sampler…we passed on this dish as there were a lot of other samples we really wanted to try and honestly I’ve never been a Kimchi person.
CARIBBEAN
Located in Germany, across from the Wilkommen Haus. Mojo Shrimp over Heart of Palm Salad is a must! For those with a sweet tooth you need to try the Pineapple Upside cake…yummy!
IRELAND
Located in Ireland, near Battle For Eire™. This is on our “To Do” list
FRENCH QUARTER
Located in France, near the Griffon
SPAIN
Located in Italy, near Da Vinci’s Garden of Inventions. We had the Tapas sampling, Gazpacho con Ceviche and White Sangria, for a moment I forgot I was at Busch Gardens…ohhhh!
VIRGINIA
Located in Scotland, near Tweedside Train Station
ITALY
Located in Italy, near il Teatro di San Marco
Admission to the festival is included with park admission, and individual tastings range in price from $3 – $8. Food portions are generous sampling size so you can visit several countries. You can save a little cash if you choose to do a Food or Wine Sampler.
The Food & Wine Festival Food & Beverage Sampler – Mix and match 10 entrées or dessert dishes, beer, wine or specialty beverages from any of the kiosks for one delicious price of $49. (this is enough food for 2 people).
The Food & Wine Festival Deluxe Food Sampler – try 15 Food & Wine Festival entrées or dessert items for $62.
Wine tastings the park has five wine-tasting experiences and everyone receives a complimentary souvenir glass. One tasting is $14.99 or (3) for $29.99.
Argentinian Wine Tasting – located in front of Castle O’Sullivan
French Wine Tasting – located at La Belle Maison
German Wine Tasting – located at German Gifts
Italian Wine Tasting – located at Bella Casa
Niagara Wine Tasting – located at Acadia Traders
Scotch Tasting
Scotch Tasting located at Tweedside gifts, includes three 2 oz pours and a commemorative glass..
Talisker Storm
Highland Park 12YR
The Macallan 12YR
NEW Tequila Tasting
Located in Oktoberfest village, you can sample the following:
Don Julio Blanco
Herradura Reposado
Patron Extra Anejo
And for those who want to “add a little extra ambiance to their tasty adventure” check out a Wine on the Rhine river cruise where you will swing to live music while you enjoy fruit, cheese and a chocolate truffle with a glass of wine. Wine on the Rhine is for the whole family and is throughout the day, Date Night on the Rhine is a river cruise for guests 21 and older.
Now here are a few insider tips
If you like wine, and who doesn’t? They have tastings at 5 different locations. Each tasting runs $14.99 or you can buy Wine Tasting Trio for $29.99 which is like getting three wine tastings for the price of 2. However if you are not planning on three tastings in one night – just do one and then your wine glass that they give you will allow you to get your next wine tasting for $9.99. So why do the trio at all? Well, if you are planning on doing the Ice Wine tasting you will get you that tasting at no extra fee but there is an upcharge with the wine glass. Ice wines start at $90+ a bottle so this tasting is more costly for the park.
Wine tastings is a fun addition to the Festival. If you like the wine and want to buy a bottle – you can buy right at the tasting. They will even uncork it so you can enjoy it all around Busch Gardens with your friends. They will put it in a gift bag (if it is a red) or you can purchase a cooler bag from a gift store and fill it with ice if it is a white. We saw many folks walking around with their newly purchased bottles and sharing them with their party.
This year there’s also a star-studded concert lineup. Starting with country music hit-maker Scotty McCreery on June 9, the park’s Royal Palace Theatre will also play host to country music headliner Hunter Hayes on June 16; and multi-platinum selling pop artist Andy Grammer on June 30. The concerts are included with park admission. More info below
Your kids will delight at The Art of Food – where food becomes art. In 2016 in Ireland Greg Butauski and his team made a turtle from a butternut squash! (See picture below)
For the complete menu visit Busch Gardens Menu tab on the Food & Wine Festival page
Food and Wine Festival 2018
Dates: Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from May 25 – July 1, plus Monday, May 28 (Memorial Day)
Time: 11 a.m. until park closing
Admission to the festival is included with park admission, and individual tastings range in price from $3 – $7. If you have an Annual Park Pass make sure to present it when you purchase your food for a discount.
Need a ticket discount – check out our latest Busch Gardens & Water Country USA discounts post for all the coupon codes, Groupons and Special Offers we can find – HERE
Visit Busch Gardens Website for more info.
Cheers to another great Wine and Food Festival!
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WilliamsburgFamilies.com is a blogger for Busch Gardens. Affiliate links are included in this post.
Can you buy the sampler packages in park or only in advance?