Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017 – Overview Plus Full Menus With Prices

Entrance - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Who’s ready for the Epcot International Festival of the Arts?!!

By way of introduction, and I don’t think I’ve mentioned this before, but my very first visit to Walt Disney World very early in our marriage occurred with a complete lack of preparation. On our first day we even showed up in the early evening at the Magic Kingdom only to learn it had already closed for the day. (We hadn’t even checked the park hours in advance!)

One my goals in creating RideMax is to help *you* be better prepared for a trip to Disneyland or Walt Disney World than I was, as I’ve learned that the line between an *enjoyable* visit and a semi-miserable one can be fairly thin — and a little preparation can make all the difference between the two.

I’ve noted before that RideMax plans include some important tips to help you navigate the park, and sometimes these tips are critical to a successful plan (like if your RideMax plan has you visiting the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train first thing in the morning).

Sometimes though, the space for those tips in your RideMax plan just isn’t large enough to cover a given topic, and that’s where this blog comes in handy. It’s certainly the case with the Epcot International Festival of the Arts. The Festival is new this year, and just opened today, running Fridays through Mondays, from today through February 20th.

My goal here is to give you a quick overview of the festival so you’ll know what to expect, and to help you decide if you want to include the festival as part of your visit. I’ll also provide here a list of the unique food items available especially for the festival, complete with full menus and prices. I haven’t sampled all of the menu items, but will give a brief review of those that I have tried, along with pictures of several that I haven’t.

Stage - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

The festival includes music performed on the stage behind the Future World Fountain…

Photo Ops - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

…as well as photo opportunities designed especially for the festival. Above is just one of many examples.

Odyssey Festival Center - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

The old Odyssey building, which lies along the pathway between Test Track and the World Showcase, serves as the main showcase for the festival.

Odyssey Flowers - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

The entrance greets you with a hint of Flower & Garden.

Art Class Inside Odyssey Center - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Inside, you can take an art class. Some of these classes charge a fee, others are complimentary. Here, artist Rachelle Eason demonstrates some of the techniques used in making “Boiled Books.” (More on those later.)

Art Class Fun - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

Odyssey Center Menu Painter's Palate with Prices - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Also inside the Odyssey building is the Painter’s Palate. You can see the full menu above (and you can click on any image here for a larger view).

Croissant Doughnuts - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

The Trio of Savory Croissant Doughnut dish definitely caught my eye. These are each somewhat smaller than a regular-sized doughnut, and as you can see, are artfully presented. I had intended to try these on my way out of the park today, but the line was very long by then, so they’ll have to wait for a future visit.

Mary Blair Art Exhibit - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Art by Mary Blair is also on display in the Odyssey building.

E=AT2 Menu with Prices - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Most of the food kiosks are clustered around the entrance to World Showcase. Our tour will start here at the E=AT2 booth, which stands near-ish to the Mexico Pavilion.

Looking at the menu here, one thing that stands out is the higher price points than what we’ve seen previously at the Food & Wine and Flower & Garden Festivals. The portion sizes are slightly larger, however, helping to compensate for the higher prices.

Classic Reuben - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

While I was here, I ran into Josh from easywdw.com, who was touring with another group of Disney bloggers. Josh was kind enough to invite me to take pictures of the food items they had just purchased. Above is the Classic Reuben.

Deconstructed Breakfast and Pop-Artsicle - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Here are both the alcoholic and non-alcoholic versions of the Deconstructed Breakfast, along with the Pop-Artsicle.

Cobb Salad - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

The Cobb Salad.

El Artista Hambriento - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

As we proceed closer to the Mexico Pavilion, we find El Artista Hambriento…

El Artista Hambriento Menu with Prices - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

…along with the full menu. Note that I didn’t try any of these dishes today, but that Huarache looks good enough to sample on a future visit.

Cuisine Classique Full Menu with Prices - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

As we move clockwise around the World Showcase, the next booth isn’t seen until we get closer to Germany. Even though Cuisine Classique is right across from the Germany Pavilion, the menu seems to hint at a French inspiration. Not sure why the kiosk isn’t closer to… France? 🙂

Seared Red Snapper - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

I ordered the Braised Beef Short Rib here, and found it delicious. The beef was very tender, so much so that I didn’t end up needing a knife. The balsamic reduction drizzle and tomatoes added a nice bit of zing to help complement an otherwise very mellow, comforty-food-like experience.

Seared Red Snapper - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

The Seared Red Snapper, also available here, looks to be worth trying.

Meticulous Preparation - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Something I found rather amusing was the care that went into the visual preparation of the dishes here, presumably due to all of the bloggers in the park today taking pictures. Once the cook here finished plating the dish, she handed it off to what appeared to be a food stylist, who applied finishing tweaks to the appearance.

I’m expecting that by Monday, they’ll be cranking these out much more quickly. My hope is that even if the quality of presentation drops a bit as time goes on, the food quality will remain high. I do plan to stop in here again later in the festival to see if that is indeed the case.

Merchandise - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

There were several tent-like structures around World Showcase displaying merchandise and various forms of art.

Boiled Books - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

One of these featured the Boiled Books I mentioned earlier.

Boiled Books Closeup - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

The larger books here will run you $84.95. The smaller ones are a bit under $20.00.

Boiled Books Again - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

Hats and Bags - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

No festival would be complete without hats and bags.

Art - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Each tent seemed to sort of specialize in an art style and/or artist.

More Art - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

Star Wars Art - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

The Star Wars art booth was one of my favorites.

Han Solo Princess Leia Kiss - Art - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

Fairy House Ladies - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

You’ll have to click on this one for a closer view, but these structures built by the Fairy House Ladies looked pretty cool.

Don Ducky Willaims Artwork - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

More Disney art.

Joe Kaminski Artwork - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

The Artist's Table - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Here is The Artist’s Table kiosk, over in front of the America pavilion.

The Artist's Table Full Menu with Prices - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Full menu with prices. I’ll be back to try the Scallop.

Block & Hans - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

Block & Hans Full Menu with Prices - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

I don’t drink alcohol, but there appear to be at least a couple of festival-specific drinks here.

Alice in Wonderland Artwork Backdrop - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Nice touch here near the Alice meet-and-greet area.

Masterpiece Kitchen Full Menu with Prices - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Note that as we move clockwise past the America pavilion, we don’t encounter the next kiosk until we’re closer to Canada, where we find the Masterpiece Kitchen kiosk. That means there was nothing at Japan, Morocco, France, or the UK. Hopefully we’ll see this rounded out more in future festivals.

Painted Wall - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

One really nice touch is this huge paint-by-numbers wall art, which hangs close to the Wrold Showcase entrance. Guests are given small cups of paint, and allowed to contribute to the overall mural.

Painted Wall Closeup - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

Handing Out Paint - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Here, a Cast Member hands out paint cups and directs guests to the mural.

More Paint - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

Paint Cups - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Very little paint goes into each cup. My guess here is that they’re trying to maximize the number of guests who participate, rather than the amount of painting done by each guest.

Expression Station - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

Decadent Delights - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Just past the mural, we find Decadent Delights.

Decadent Delights Full Menu with Prices - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

The menu offers various desserts.

POP Eats! - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

We finish our kiosk overview with POP EATS!

POP Eats! Full Menu with Prices - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

Almond Frangipane Cake - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

Above is the Almond Frangipane Cake…

Pop't Art - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

…and this is the Pop’t Art.

Be careful when ordering this one. I asked for “the Pop Tart,” but the cashier quickly corrected me… “The Pop-t-Art?” Apparently that glottal stop between the “t” and the “Art” is important.

Practice before you go, folks.

This is available at several of the kiosks, and is basically a thin sugar cookie, topped with a thin layer of hazelnut filling and a very sweet icing. The icing here was very thick, making this an extremely sugar-rich dessert. Proceed with caution.

Pop't Art Paint - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

I should have included this earlier, but here is the decorative icing used on some of the cookies back in the showcase.

Joffrey's Specialty Beverages - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

To finish things up, I also wanted to mention that the various Joffrey’s locations around World Showcase also offer some Passport Specialty Beverages.

More Joffrey's Specialty Beverages - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

(Click for a larger view of the beverage itself.)

More Joffrey's Specialty Beverages - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

 

Japan Workshops - Epcot International Festival of the Arts 2017

I also thought these workshops near the Japan pavilion looked fun. They seem to run only on Saturdays and Sundays though.

I hope this overview gives you at least enough to go on if you’re on the fence trying to decide whether to include the festival in your upcoming visit. My personal opinion is that it’s worth checking out.

If you’re using RideMax to plan your visit, you may want to either include one of the various World Showcase tours in your plans, or create a RideMax plan with an early start time and later ending time which includes just the major attractions. This should leave the plan with a large-ish gap of “free time” at some point in the day, which you could use to visit the festival.

Bon Appetit’!

Facebooktwittergoogle_pluspinterestlinkedintumblrmailFacebooktwittergoogle_pluspinterestlinkedintumblrmail