11/10/16 11/10/16

Africa Marketplace Booth at 2016 Epcot Food & Wine Festival

*This dining experience took place in October 2016.

For Food & Wine Festival Gluten Free marketplace booth options, be sure to click over to the marketplace booth page for more info.

The Africa marketplace booth has been around since 1997 at the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival and, believe it or not, has been one that I've actually never visited. They usually have at least one gluten free option (but it almost always contains dairy). This year, there is one dish listed as gluten free.Because this booth is NOT 100% gluten free, there is always an increased risk of cross-contamination. Use your own judgement when consuming items that are not in dedicated gluten free booths (this year only Brazil and the Greenhouse Guru have entirely gluten free food items).The Berbere-Style Beef Tenderloin Tips served with onions, jalapenos, tomato, and pap is a marked as gluten friendly. I decided to try this dish with the recommended wine pairing, the Simonsig Pinotage, a hearty red wine. Alexis from Alexis's Gluten Free Adventures recommended this when she tried the dish back in 2014 (you can read her full review on her blog).Overall, I thought this dish was good, but wasn't as amazing as the dishes from the Greenhouse Guru, my favorite booth of the festival (that is entirely made of gluten friendly items). The beef was a bit spicy, so if you're not a fan of spice, I would skip this dish. I would also warn against tough meat. My beef was really fatty and tough, not exactly tender like I expected it to be.I don't think Africa will be a repeat booth for me, but I'm glad I tried the dish. It was good, but definitely not as delicious as some of the other festival offerings.What do you think of the Africa Marketplace Booth? Would you try the Berbere-style Beef?

10/7/14 10/7/14

Terra — International Marketplace — 2014 Food and Wine Festival

*This information on this booth was obtained by me on September 25, 2014 by visiting the booth first-hand. This is not “official” information from Disney. Please always check with the cast members at each booth to confirm ingredients and safety based on your specific dietary need. For additional booth information visit the 2014 Food & Wine Festival Gluten Free Offerings Page.A few years ago, Disney announced the addition of Terra at the Epcot Food & Wine Festival, which is an entirely vegan booth. You can imagine how excited I was when I first learned about it. An all vegan booth? That's a huge step for Disney and also huge for those of us who can't consume dairy. I had hoped that there would gluten free options here as well; however, as I learned a few years ago when it launched, that is not the case.Terra is great if you are only dairy free, but if you're gluten free, this is not a booth for you. Terra highlights Gardein products (plant based protein), and the varieties currently utilized by the culinary team at this booth all contain gluten.This year's Terra booth at the Food & Wine Festival was no exception. There are no gluten free options short of beverages (including Redbridge gluten free beer). I did stop by and try one of the vegan wines available. I tried the vegan vine chardonnay, and I have to say that I wasn't too impressed. I found the wine to taste like the stuff you get out of a box and definitely not worth the $3.25 for the pour.I do hope that someday the Terra booth includes gluten free food options, in addition to their drink options (it does seem a bit odd that they carry gluten free beer but don't have gluten free safe food). But, if you're looking for a dairy free, plant based option, this is definitely the place to go! You can also check out Alexis from Gluten Free in Orlando's review. She always heads to the Terra booth for their watermelon juice. Have you been to this booth yet? What did you think of the gluten free & dairy free options here?

10/2/14 10/2/14

Puerto Rico — International Marketplace — 2014 Food and Wine Festival

*This information on this booth was obtained by me on September 26, 2014 by visiting the booth first-hand. This is not “official” information from Disney. Please always check with the cast members at each booth to confirm ingredients and safety based on your specific dietary need. For additional booth information visit the 2014 Food & Wine Festival Gluten Free Offerings Page.This year's Food & Wine Festival is all about Puerto Rico! With lot of culinary demonstrations, mixology sessions and a huge Food & Wine Festival booth area, Puerto Rico has a huge presence this year the festival.In looking at marketplace passports, two of the four dishes served at this festival booth are listed as gluten free - the Ensalada de Carrucho (conch salad) and Carne Guisada con Arroz Blanco (slow-braised beef with Puerto Rican-grown rice).I stopped by the booth with Gluten Free in Orlando, and we each ordered one of the gluten free dishes. I first inquired with cast members at the cash register if the conch salad was gluten free and dairy free (I suspected it was, but it's always important to double-check). At this booth, they radioed a chef and they also showed me the allergy binder with the ingredients. I wasn't able to take a photo, but it was indeed gluten free and dairy free.The conch salad was quite good. If you've never had conch (essentially a sea snail), essentially it takes a bit like calamari or clams -- a little chewy but not really fishy in any way. This dish was a nice way to highlight the conch; it was very flavorful and light. It had lots of nice flavors with onion, tomato and cilantro too. I expected this to just be seafood and was pleasantly surprised to find rice at the bottom of the salad.Alexis from Gluten Free in Orlando tried the slow-braised beef, and you can catch her full reviews over at Gluten Free in Orlando.I wouldn't say the conch salad was my hands down favorite dish of the festival but it was really very good. It will be perfect on a hot day at Food and Wine Festival and delicious as a lighter meal option. I would definitely order it again.Have you been to this booth yet? What did you think of the gluten free & dairy free options here?

10/1/14 10/1/14

Brazil — International Marketplace — 2014 Food and Wine Festival

*This information on this booth was obtained by me on September 26, 2014 by visiting the booth first-hand. This is not “official” information from Disney. Please always check with the cast members at each booth to confirm ingredients and safety based on your specific dietary need. For additional booth information visit the 2014 Food & Wine Festival Gluten Free Offerings Page.Last year the Brazil booth had one of the more popular gluten free dishes, the crispy pork belly, and this year it was back. New to this year's menu was the Moqueca de Pescado which was a tilapia with coconut lime sauce and steamed rice. Ever the optimist, I was hopeful that the tilapia was also dairy free, as the dish sounded awesome!One of the things I loved about this year's Brazil booth is that it was huge. Great places to sit and relax and enjoy the sites and sounds of Food & Wine Festival. Disney has done a great job this year with all the theming!Upon arrival at the booth, I checked in with the cast members at the cash register about the gluten free and dairy free offerings. They were able to radio a chef and find out rather quickly for me. Both the crispy pork belly and the tilapia were gluten free and dairy free. I was with Alexis from Gluten Free in Orlando, and we also asked about the Brazilian cheese bread to confirm it was gluten free, and they told us via radio that it was (we've heard mixed reports from guests that say Disney has stated this is not gluten free). The coconut candy is not gluten free at all.I have to say that I really enjoyed this dish. I do love coconut milk, and I found the sauce to be rich and creamy. The fish was well cooked and the sauce that accompanied it was both sweet from the coconut milk and spicy from the peppers. Yum! This would definitely be a dish I'd get again.On this particular visit, I didn't get the crispy pork belly, but I did last year and enjoyed it.For Gluten Free in Orlando's review, you can head to her site for the latest updates for gluten free only options.Have you been to this booth yet? What did you think of the gluten free & dairy free options here?

9/30/14 9/30/14

Farm Fresh — International Marketplace — 2014 Food and Wine Festival

*This information on this booth was obtained by me on September 25, 2014 by visiting the booth first-hand. This is not “official” information from Disney. Please always check with the cast members at each booth to confirm ingredients and safety based on your specific dietary need. For additional booth information visit the 2014 Food & Wine Festival Gluten Free Offerings Page.When I heard that both of the food items served at the Farm Fresh booth were gluten free, I nearly jumped for glee. I love it when booths have only gluten free items because it means that the risk of cross-contamination is lessened. Both of the dishes also sounded fantastic and I was hoping that I could get the bacon hash minus the hollandaise dairy free.When I arrived at the booth, I checked with the cast members working at the cash register and asked inquired about the dairy in the hash (minus the hollandaise) and the chicken. As with the Australia and Patagonia booths, the cast members radioed for a chef to find out about the ingredients. I was told that the hollandaise in the bacon hash was the only offending dairy item and that I could order it without it (music to my ears). So, I saddled in for two hearty dishes, ordering both the bacon hash and the griddled "yard bird."They say everything is better with bacon, and I have to say, this was bacon at its best. Man, if this was served for breakfast at a Disney restaurant, I'd be all over it. It would be perfect with eggs (poached or over-easy). The jalapeno peppers & pickled onions added a nice spicy zip (note: you can order it without the peppers). The potatoes were well cooked, and the bacon was outrageous. Seriously, every bite was filled with tons of pepper bacon. This was definitely a winner for me.The grilled "yard bird" didn't look like anything special to me, but this dish was also fantastic. The skin on the chicken was super flavorful and crispy (and salty in a good way). It was also well cooked and not rubbery or dry. The greens were fantastic (I never met one I didn't like) and had a nice kick of vinegar and hot sauce -- exactly how Southern green should be.For options, this booth so far wins it for me. I was so glad I was able to get both gluten free and dairy free -- and that they were delicious!Alexis from Gluten Free in Orlando also tried these dishes (and the hollandaise), and you can catch her full reviews over at Gluten Free in Orlando.Have you been to this booth yet? What did you think of the gluten free & dairy free options here?

9/29/14 9/29/14

Australia — International Marketplace — 2014 Food and Wine Festival

9/28/14 9/28/14

Patagonia — International Marketplace — 2014 Food and Wine Festival

*This information on this booth was obtained by me on September 25, 2014 by visiting the booth first-hand. This is not “official” information from Disney. Please always check with the cast members at each booth to confirm ingredients and safety based on your specific dietary need. For additional booth information visit the 2014 Food & Wine Festival Gluten Free Offerings Page.The Patagonia Booth replaces the Argentina booth this year at the 2014 Epcot International Food & Wine Festival. The Marketplace Passports listed 2 of the 3 food dishes to be gluten free, which was exciting! Having seen the recipe for the Roasted Verlasso Salmon, it looked to be dairy free as well.Ever the vigilant special diets diner, I checked with the cast members at the cash register before I ordered to see if both the grilled beef skewer and the roasted verlasso salmon were gluten free and dairy free. The line was slow (it was early afternoon on a Thursday), and the cast member radioed a chef to find out the ingredients. This was a very short process, thankfully, and I learned quickly that the salmon was gluten free and dairy free, but the grilled beef skewer accompaniments were not.Both the boniato puree and the chimichurri sauce contained dairy, so I while I could order the beef plain, there would be no sauce that would be safe to consume with it. Pro tip: You could order the beef skewer plain or ask to have the sauce that accompanies the salmon. It would be delicious with the beef!I went ahead and ordered the salmon, which I was very excited to try.I have to say, so far, this is my hands down favorite dish at the Epcot Food & Wine Festival! The salmon has been well cooked each time I've ordered it (yes, I've ordered it multiple times, it was that good). The quinoa salad was delicious and flavorful -- filled with red onions and tomatoes. The best part is the sauce which is so flavorful and delicious. You know I love my sauces, and this one certainly did not disappoint!I visited Patagonia the next day with Alexis from Gluten Free in Orlando, and she also enjoyed this dish. You can read her full review of gluten free only Food & Wine Festival dishes on Gluten Free in Orlando!Have you been to this booth yet? What did you think of the gluten free & dairy free options here?