EPCOT’s Food and Wine Festival 2025

When it comes to fab festivals and fantastic food, Walt Disney World’s EPCOT park rules the roost. It has no equal for special events and seasonal additions to their regular fare, and it kicks off on August 28 for another three months.

The EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival, to give it its full title, dates back to 1996 and a fairly low-key start that has since built into THE showpiece event at Disney’s most extensive park. Each year, the culinary team surpass themselves with some wonderfully creative – and tasty – food, and this year promises to be no different.

With the addition of concerts, scavenger hunts and memorable merchandise, this is the event that brings out the locals in big numbers and is almost a rite of passage for first timers in our favourite destination. Yes, it’s almost time for a major outbreak of fun and food, so let’s get to it!

What IS EPCOT Food & Wine Festival?

For newcomers to the Orlando scene, the Festival is a genuine international celebration of cuisines from all over the globe, with Marketplaces dedicated to the likes of Australia, Brazil and Belgium as well as the World Showcase pavilions, plus a few kiosks themed around regions such as the Alps and the seasons, like Forest & Field and Milled & Mulled.

The food tends to be of appetiser-sized portions from around $6-$9 each, and they positively encourage grazing around the circuit of World Showcase. Then there are an array of cocktails, which tend to be a little pricier, in addition to a curated collection of relevant wines and beers, the latter of which vary depending on whether they are a 6oz sample or a more substantial 12oz pour.

Then the sounds of the Festival are provided by a series of concerts at the America Gardens Theatre in the American Adventure pavilion, featuring a variety of bands and other performers. These are an enticing mix of the well-known - like Tiffany, Hanson and The Beach Boys – and the up-and-coming, various American and Latino groups who will probably be new to most British visitors. These concerts go by the overall name of the Eat To The Beat series and consist of three roughly half-hour sets each evening, at 5.30, 6.45 and 8pm respectively.

There is even a specially-created children’s outdoor play area and two different scavenger hunts to keep the young ’uns amused, as well as a special cheese “quest” for the grown-ups to enjoy, highlighting five featured cheese dishes.

EPCOT Festival food 2025

If that’s the outline, the specifics for this year’s event are even more impressive. The 2025 version of the Festival features fully 218 menu items, made up of 101 food dishes and 117 drink samples. Of that number, 87 are brand new, providing plenty of options for those who were at previous festivals. There is also the welcome return of the special Parisian Breakfast at the Chefs de France restaurant at the France pavilion (Fridays and Saturdays only from September 5), a buffet option featuring French pastries, baguettes, cheeses and charcuterie. This was a big hit in 2019, but hasn’t been seen since then.

Completely new is the Gyozas of the Galaxy Menu in the World Discovery area (close to the Creations shop), with an array of delicious dumpling dishes, as well as a Pineapple Colada and Pinot Gris from the Willamette Valley Vineyards. Much of the Italy Marketplace menu is also new, including a tempting Tortellini alla Vodka, as is the Flavours of America kiosk, with a Lobster Seafood Roll and New England Slider, filled with slow-braised beef pot roast.

For seafood lovers, there is the Coastal Eats menu, featuring Lump Crab Cake and the new duo of Peruvian Ceviche and Seaside Pot Pie, while another favourite, the Japan Marketplace, will also be serving two all-new dishes in the shape of a Beef Wagyu rice bowl and Osakana Karaage (Crispy-fried pollock with spicy mayonnaise and a sweet-and-creamy yuzu sauce).

Need a drink or two? How about the dazzling array of fruit teas, milkshakes, craft beers and ciders from the Brew-Wing Lab Menu, or the China Marketplace line-up of mango-peach bubble tea, draft beer and cocktails, including the new Frozen Strawberry-Jasmine Cocktail?

EPCOT Festival entertainment

Of course, the live concerts and scavenger hunts are a big part of the event for most people, and this year’s Eat to the Beat series sees newcomers like KT Tunstall, Ben Rector and New Found Glory on the America Gardens stage, as well as the “old faithfuls” who come back year after year, such as Starship featuring Mickey Thomas, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Smash Mouth and Boyz II Men.

Then there’s the cheese blitz of Emile’s Fromage Montage, where you can pick up a Festival Passport and use it to find the key items by purchasing five of the featured dishes and collecting a stamp for each. After collecting five stamps, take your Passport to the Shimmering Sips marketplace to receive a festival treat.

Remy’s Ratatoutille Hide & Squeak is a fun scavenger hunt for all the family. Purchase a scavenger hunt map and stickers (available while supplies last) at any of Disney Traders, Creations Shop, festival markets and other select shops for $11.99 (plus tax). Search for statuettes of Remy around World Showcase and the Global Marketplaces, then add a sticker to your map after each discovery. At the end of your journey (even if you don’t complete the hunt), take your map to Disney Traders, Gateway Gifts, Creations Shop or World Traveler and receive a special keepsake!

By a similar token, Pluto’s Pumpkin Pursuit runs for a limited time from September 5, with a hunt for decorative pumpkins inspired by Disney characters. Again, it costs $11.99 for the game board and stickers from any of the above-mentioned shops, and there is a small prize at the end.

The Details

This year’s Food & Wine Festival runs from August 28 to November 22 (when the Festival of the Holidays takes over), and is included with regular park admission. Be sure to buy your Walt Disney World tickets in advance from our dedicated ticket section on this link.

It also underlines – as if any emphasis was needed – that Orlando is definitely the place for memorable meals and delectable dining, combining as it does for the next month or so with Visit Orlando’s Magical Dining season for an extended period of foodie delights.

Have you sampled the Food & Wine Festival before?