The 2023 Epcot International Festival of the Arts got underway last weekend – I wonder if there were ice sculptures? – and will run through Feb. 20. Everything seems to be following what has become the standard template for festivals a la Epcot.
You’ve got your displays, your merchandise huts, some entertainment and, of course, food kiosks, which in this case are given artsy names instead of, say, geographic designations as in the food and wine festival.
You’ll find Deco Delights (with dulce chocolate mousse, “decadent” Valrhona chocolate, and orange mousse); the Artist’s Table (three-meat meatloaf, duck and dumplings, and hummingbird cake); and Painted Panda (General Tso’s chicken shumai, charsiu pork bun).
You can also fine L’Art de la Cuisine Française in front of the France pavilion, with creme de brie in a bread bowl and a plant-based Napoleon. And Flavors of the Medina at Morocco, with house-made crispy almond phyllo pockets, and something called “carrots three ways,” about which I have nothing to say.
The headline entertainment is the Disney on Broadway concert series, which will either thrill or horrify you. Also available this year are dining packages in conjunction with the concerts where you can book a prix fixe three-course dinner at select Epcot restaurants and get a guaranteed seat at the concert. Check out the concert schedule and list of available restaurants – as well as other details about the festival – here.
