Epcot’s Food & Wine Festival – Hawaii Booth

You know how they say everything tastes better in Disney? Well, it does. But it tastes even better in Hawaii. Don’t get me wrong, I have no desire to live there. But while I’m relatively convinced that most of it was fairly normal food, every damned thing that I ate during my 2 week honeymoon on Maui, the Big Island, and Oahu tasted better than pretty much anything else I’d ever had. The pizza was divine. The kimchi popped. The bibimbap was a downright religious experience. The shrimp trucks… don’t even get me started on the shrimp trucks. It’s the joy of eating in a place that brightens every color and forces you into the moment. If you’ve ever eaten miracle fruit and sucked on a lemon……I’m pretty sure it’d taste just as sweet on the North Shore.

So basically when you’re trying to serve up some Hawaiian food, you’d better do it right.

So how did Epcot do? They did good.

• Kalua Pork Slider with Sweet and Sour DOLE(R) Pineapple Chutney and Spicy Mayonnaise ($4.75)

My only issue with this this is that it ended a few bites after I started eating it. Why is pork hitting it out of the park at F&W this year?? The pineapple chutney was SO good and the spicy mayo was more of a little kick than real spice. As far as the roll, I don’t know if it was actually King’s Hawaiian or just channeling one, but either way it was alright with me.

• Grilled Tuna Tataki with Seaweed Salad, Pickled Cucumbers, and Wasabi Cream ($5.25)

Yes!! Here is my simple seared tuna dish – while Japan is over there serving up BLT sushi. Simple and delicious – give it a swirl in the wasabi cream sauce and eat up. The seaweed salad and pickled cucumber were mild and added the necessary texture. (Plus we all know seaweed basically gives you superpowers….)

• Teriyaki-glazed SPAM(R) Hash with Potatoes, Peppers, Onions, and Spicy Mayonnaise ($4)

I so wanted to love this. I mean – teriyaki SPAM(R)?! How fun! And judging from others I’ve spoken to and the people I’ve watched around the Hawaii booth, a lot of people *do* love it. For me, it was not a favorite. The mix of ingredients sounds amazing on paper but it just didn’t come together for me and the overall taste was a little bland. I was expecting a major punch of flavor from the description and it just didn’t get there.

• Passion Fruit Cheesecake with Toasted Macademia Nuts ($4)

Unquestionably one of my top 3 desserts at F&W this year. This is a creamy cheesecake, lightly flavored with passion fruit sauce and sprinkled with macadamia nuts that bring their typical soft texture. Unless you are vehemently opposed to any of those things, please eat this. More than once if possible. Your thighs will forgive you and your taste buds will be forever grateful.

• Florida Orange Groves Sparkling Pineapple Wine ($6)

Oh sadness. I love sparkling wine. I love pineapple. I love a pretty drink in a tall glass. And at $6, the price (for a F&W alcoholic beverage) wasn’t bad. I so wanted to love this. As always, just my most humble opinion, but this didn’t work for me. It was syrupy sweet – almost like an ice wine, but not in a good way, and I honestly had to force myself to finish it so as not to have wasted the money. Oh well. Many others will love it and plenty of other options for me.

In short, I think that so far Hawaii overall hit it out of the park more than any other booth I’ve tried so far. I didn’t love everything personally but what I did love I’d rank as among the best dishes at all of F&W.