Characterized by celebrity chef appearances, vendors, and demonstrations, this year’s Disney California Adventure Food and Wine Festival celebrated California’s food culture and local produce. Inspired by a similar event at Disney Epcot in Orlando, Florida, California Adventure accommodated 13 themed kiosks from March 3 to April 12.
Some featured offerings included White Cheddar Lager Soups from California Craft Beers and spicy, pepper-inspired drinks from Peppers Cali-Ente. On the savory side, Eat Your Greens served asparagus and cucumber bites, and Garlic Kissed offered creamy mac and cheese with garlic bread crumble. Other vendors included Strawberry Patch, Avocado Time, I ♥ Artichokes, and Cluck-A-Doodle-Moo.
This spring, I went to the festival March 8 with two friends. As a Disneyland annual passholder, I was able to buy the pass for myself and the other members of my group. For $45, the Sip and Savor pass had eight tokens, which could be redeemed at any festival kiosk — aside from Brewhouse and Uncork California — for any food or non-alcohol beverage.
I tried a wide variety of interesting and inventive offerings. Off the Cob offered a lot of unconventional corn dishes. One member of our group got the sweet corn nuggets and liked them so much she went back for them again. We tried the popcorn lemonade with whipped cream and candy Corn garnish.
Avocado Time had the longest line out of any kiosk by far. The first time we went to the kiosk, I tried the Avocado Ice Cream Bar. It was sweet, creamy, fatty, refreshing, and delicious. It tasted like avocado with the texture of very creamy custard ice cream — exactly what I needed in the middle of a hot day at Disneyland.
At Peppers Cali-Ente, we braved the way-too-long line to try the Verlasso™ Sustainable Salmon Peruvian Poke with a Cucumber-Lime Salad and Aju Verde Salsa. It was fresh, tasty, spicy, crisp, and refreshing.
Most people think it would be crazy to eat raw fish at an amusement park, but it turned out to be some of the best poke I’ve tried as well my favorite item of the day. In fact, I went back right before the booth closed and used my last token to get a second one.
By the end of the festival, we were satisfied with our choices and glad that we used the Sip and Savor pass. Though it was relatively expensive, it allowed us to try a lot of different options and fully experience the festival.
I can’t wait to go back to for years to come.