Walt Disney World Resort will introduce its new Garden Marketplaces, offering food and drink, at the 2013 Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival.
The move aligns Disney’s 20th annual spring event more closely with the theme park’s popular Epcot International Food & Wine Festival (Epcot Food & Wine Festival). Similar to the kiosks at the fall event, the Garden Marketplaces at the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival (Epcot Flower & Garden Festival) will be located at several World Showcase locations.
The Gardens Marketplaces will serve food and drink (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages) designed especially for the festival. Among the highlights are the Florida Fresh marketplace, with its focus on regional offerings, and an alcoholic version of the iconic Dole Whip made with spiced rum.
Provided below is a partial look at the food and drink menus being developed for the 12 Garden Marketplaces being introduced at the 2013 Epcot Flower & Garden Festival.
See the complete Epcot Flower & Garden Festival food & drink menus.
Garden Marketplace culinary creations will debut a range of foods, from smokehouse barbecue and shrimp with grits and Zellwood corn to sweet “frushi” made with fresh fruits and coconut rice. Chefs are designing menus for marketplaces that will include Florida Fresh at World Showcase Promenade, Smokehouse Barbecue and Brew at American Adventure courtyard, Primavera Kitchen at Italy showcase, Hanami at Japan showcase and eight others.
Garden Marketplace refreshing libations will offer drinks with a kick, such as the Hot Sun Tomato Wine from Florida Orange Groves Winery and the Dole Whip with Spiced Rum, as well as non-alcoholic drinks like Frozen Desert Violet Lemonade and Wild Berry Slush. Beverage specialists will feature brews and beverages at food marketplaces and at Fruits by the Glass and Pineapple Promenade.
The 12 Marketplaces, with items representing some of Epcot's 8 World Showcase pavilions countries and the Florida region, offer fewer food and drink options than found at the Epcot Food & Wine Festival. But their addition marks a substantial increase from last year; the 2012 Epcot Flower & Garden Festival introduced a limited drink menu at its Haiti: Garden of Many Colors display as well as festival food and drink at Italy and the Festival Welcome Center.
The Garden Marketplaces is one of several new elements added to this year’s festival. Other additions to the 20th annual Epcot Flower & Garden Festival include new topiaries (including characters from “Phineas and Ferb” and “Monsters University;” illuminated night gardens; the circus-like “Land of Oz” and the interactive “Radiator Springs” play areas; and two new musical acts for the Flower Power concert series, The Village People and Tommy Roe.
The 2013 Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival, presented by HGTV, takes place at Walt Disney World Resort. The festival runs for 75 days, taking place between March 6 and May 19, and is included with Epcot theme-park admission.
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