What To Eat At Epcot's Food & Wine Festival

I love to eat. It's one of my favorite things to do. I knew I would want to check out the Food & Wine Festival when we were in Walt Disney World.

It's held in Epcot

Now, I'm not big on wine. I know, it shocks a lot of people. It's just not for me. But food? Yes.

Basically you walk to different stalls set up that represent a different country. I told my kids we would be "walking around the world" and we could try whatever caught our fancy.

The first thing was a filet mignon from Canada. My son immediately started to dig in.

"Wait!" I yelped. "I need to take a picture!"

We also got the beer cheddar cheese soup with the pretzel bread.

Both were amazing. And I totally forgot to take a photo of the menu. We were just so excited to eat. I will say that I wish the filet mignon was easier to cut though. Plastic cutlery makes it tricky. But the flavor was totally there.

Then we headed to France.

Here's the menu:

We decided to get the Creme Brulee. I dared my kids to try the Croissant aux Escargots and they were like, "Um, no."

The Creme Brulee? Was spectacular.

And yes, there was raspberry inside. My son didn't like it because he's picky about desserts, so my daughter and I shared.

The area in France is so beautiful by the way.

We can't go to France and NOT stop at the Boulangerie. We got the Croque Monsieur I think it was. And then the macaron.

The World Showcase is so beautiful. It's relaxing when there aren't a billion and five people walking around. But we went when it wasn't crazy busy. I recommend a weekday if possible.

We stopped off at Belgium and decided to try a waffle. Now, I used to live in Belgium so I know real Belgian waffles are supposed to have sugar crystals.

This did not. It was just a regular waffle covered in chocolate sauce and whipped cream. Boring. It needed the sugar crystals.

Natalie loves Japan, so she was excited to eat there. We decided on the Teriyaki Chicken Bun.

It was so neat to look at. And yes, it was delicious.

If you want to try lots of different foods, I recommend sharing with people. Then your stomach doesn't fill as quickly and you can sample more things. I would normally just buy one of something and we'd split it. Granted, things can get tricky when there's a teenage boy in the mix who can finish off each sample in two bites.

By the way, the store in Japan is one of my daughter's favorites.

"It's so kawaii!" She wanted all this Gudetama stuff to go with her backpack that she got for her birthday. (We found it at Think Geek!) I let her pick out ONE thing.

I love my pasta which is why the Keto diet will NEVER be for me, so I was excited to head to Italy.

We went for the Mezzi Rigatoni.

This was amazing. I was starting to get full, but if I wasn't, I'd have bought one for myself. It had such an incredible flavor. If I weren't so lazy, I'd learn to make it on my own. But alas.


Finally, we went for the Croissant Sprinkle Donut at the stand in front of Test Track. I forgot to take a photo of the menu here, but I think it was called Taste Tracks, and it was all sweet stuff.

You wouldn't think that small portions could fill you up quickly, but they can! Even when you share. I wanted to try more but my stomach was done. Also, I was running low on funds. Hence my shirt. (We also did Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party that day.)

I hope to return to the Food & Wine Festival one day. There's so much more I want to try. And I need that pasta again.

Have you ever been to the Food & Wine Festival? If so, what was your favorite dish?

Hey, It's Okay

I got this idea from Glamour magazine. You can link up any day of the week. All you have to do is make a list of what you're okay about. Simple! Please do not link up a post that has nothing to do with Hey, It's Okay. It's rude and I'll delete the link.

Hey, It's Okay....


.....to be bummed that Stan Lee has died. He created so many wonderful characters. But I am glad he lived a long life. (He was 95)



....to have placed many orders for the Kohl's Veterans Day sale. (You could stack 30% off, plus the $10 off $25 order.)



.....to have a meeting with Texas Commission Workforce this week to see about what jobs would work best for Tommy.



....to be celebrating Thanksgiving with my parents, which means I don't have to cook everything! That's a huge plus for me since I hate being in the kitchen.



.....to wonder what is going on in the women's clothing section at Target. I mean? What is this? I thought it was a tube skirt but someone said they thought it was a top. Whatever it is, I dare someone to wear this to their work Christmas party and share pics with me. If you don't like the colors, there was one in silver. I'm not joking.

Why You Should See Bohemian Rhapsody

I've always played good music around my kids because I wanted them to know what it sounds like. So when they were small, I played The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Queen...

When my daughter saw the preview for Bohemian Rhapsody, she was like, "Oh, we have to see that, I love Queen!"

Not many 11-year-olds even know who Queen is. They're too busy listening to auto tune music. But my daughter knows.

I told her I wanted to wait to be sure there wasn't any inappropriate scenes. Freddie Mercury, the lead singer, as many know, had a crazy lifestyle. I did my research and found it would be okay.


So we went. And we loved the movie.

Here are reasons why you need to see it.


1. Freddie Mercury wasn't afraid to be himself. It's a lesson I'm always telling my daughter. Don't be like everyone else. Be different. Stand out. Wear the crown.

Source

2. The songs are incredible. I mean, duh. My parents listened to them when I was growing up so I learned them from an early age. So did my kids. Obviously many songs are in the film.

Source

3. You are reminded that being rich doesn't mean all your problems go away. I admit, sometimes I think, man, life would be easier with money, but it's not the case. Freddie became successful but he wasn't exactly happy all the time. When you get famous like that, it's hard to trust people. You wonder if they truly want to be your friend, or if they just want something from you.

Source

4. Oh yeah, the kid who played Tim in Jurassic Park plays John Deacon, the bass guitar player.  Natalie found that to be neat. Also, yes, that IS Allen Leech from Downton Abbey (he played Tom Branson) as Paul, Freddie Mercury's manager.

Source

5. There aren't any graphic scenes in the movie. Some people were wondering about sex and drugs and all of that, but there's nothing crazy. You see worse in Grey's Anatomy, honestly. You can feel safe bringing your child or your prudish family member.

Source

6. It truly is a feel good movie. You'll walk out singing Queen songs and I can almost bet, if you don't already have them all, you'll head to iTunes to download some.

Source

My daughter has started Middle School, and sometimes she struggles to be who she is. She can be out there. She still loves to dress up. I mean, she went to school dressed like Alexander Hamilton a few weeks ago for Red Ribbon Week.

Not a lot of her peers are like that. They're quiet and want to blend in. Natalie? Well, she doesn't. But I know she's at that age where she worries what people think about her. This movie--FREDDIE--reminded her that she should always be who she is.

Freddie said "The whole point of Queen was to be original."

So I told Natalie, "Be original. Embrace your inner Freddie."

It's a lesson for us all, really.