In a somewhat spur-of-the-moment decision, Chris and I decided to go back to Epcot over Easter for a day at the EPCOT Flower and Garden Festival! This was our second Epcot festival this year and I had two main objectives: food and flowers.
I’ve decided that EPCOT is one of my favorite parks because of all of the food offerings. The Flower and Garden Festival has two dozen outdoor kitchens. The food is garden and flower-inspired— think lots of edible flowers, snacks featuring honey and fresh fruits, vegetables, etc. We love to peruse the festival offerings and try all of the fun snacks!
Flower and Garden Festival Passport
As a first-timer, I recommend picking up an EPCOT Festival Passport from one of the kiosks or outdoor kitchens asap. The Festival Passport is your guide to food offerings, entertainment, topiaries, and gardens. It gave us an idea of which snacks we wanted to try!
The Food at the Flower and Garden Festival
As I mentioned, food was a priority for us on this trip. We were looking forward to enjoying the weather, being together, and milling about through Epcot. Below are the festival foods we tried throughout the day. I’ve broken them down by the outdoor kitchen where you can find them.
EPCOT Sunshine Griddle hosted by Adventhealth
- Shrimp and Grits Blackened Shrimp and Cheddar Cheese Grits with Brown Gracy and Sweet Corn Salsa
This was delicious! The gravy is a little spiced and the shrimp are cooked perfectly.
- Froot Loops Shake (non-alcoholic)
Chris and I split this one. If you are planning to enjoy other sweet treats around the park, you might want to consider splitting it, too! It’s delicious but very sweet.
The Honey Bee-stro
- Lavender Honey Mustard-marinated Chicken Flatbread with Whipped Honey-Ricotta Cheese, Marinated Vegetables, and Purple Haze Lavender Goat Cheese
I got this flatbread to start the day off just after 11 am. It was delicious and light enough to not weight me down for the rest of the day.
- Local Wildflower Honey-Marscapone Cheesecake with Orange Blossom Honey Whipped Cream, Whipped Honey, Crystallized Honey, Honeycomb, Dehydrated Honey, and Fennel Pollen Meringue Kisses
Chris chose the cheesecake. He said it was delicious but the honeycomb was his favorite part!
- Honey-Peach Freeze in a Souvenir Spike the Bee Sipper Cup (non-alcoholic)
Chris and I came back to the Honey Bee-stro later in the afternoon for something cool. The honey-peach freeze was delicious but not what we expected! I had imagined a slush like ice drink, but it was definitely more like a milkshake and very rich. The sippers come with adorable commemorative cups. Spike the Bee is the commemorative cup at the Honey Bee-stro.
Pineapple Promenade
- Frozen Dessert Violet Lemonade (non-alcoholic)
I loved this drink. Such a pretty color, too!
Funnel Cake American Adventure
- Mini Funnel Cake topped with Lemon Cheesecake Ice Cream, Blueberries, and Powdered Sugar
Chris was all about some funnel cake. He was generous enough to let me try his and the lemon cheesecake ice cream was the best part, in my opinion.
Fleur de Lys
- Beignet Caramelise Fourre Creme Vanille, Glace au Caramel Fleur de Sel: Caramelized Beignet filled with Vanilla Cream and Glazed with Caramel Fleur de Sel
If you like donuts, don’t miss the beignets! The glace au caramel fleur de sel is like crunchy candy on top and the vanilla cream inside is rich and delicious. Definitely one of the better things we tried!
- La Vie en Rose Frozen Slushy Vodka, Grey Goose, L’Orange Vodka, St. Germain Liqueur, White and Red Cranberry Juice
I couldn’t resist this girly drink. It is definitely stronger than it looks!
Festival Favorites World Showcase
- Beef Brisket Burnt Ends and Smoked Pork Belly Slider with Garlic Sausage, Chorizo, Cheddar Fondue, and House-made Pickle
I passed on this one because I needed a break from snacking but Chris was a big fan.
- Frozen Lemonade (non-alcoholic)
Sweet and tart. The perfect beverage to cut the richness of the beef brisket and pork belly slider.
The Flowers and Gardens
Normally, if you asked me when my favorite time to visit the parks is I’d immediately reply with “between Thanksgiving and Christmas.” I love the cooler weather and seeing the parks decked out for the holidays. However, after spending a day at the EPCOT Flower and Garden Festival I might hesitate. EPCOT was stunning. The flowers and topiaries were so beautiful and everything was so green and lush. Chris brought his EnChroma glasses (he is colorblind and they help him see color) and it was really a joy to spend the day looking at all of the floral colorscapes with him. One of our favorite attractions from the day is the Goodness Garden Butterfly House.
The Goodness Garden Butterfly House
The Goodness Garden Butterfly House is located in Future World West, adjacent to Journey Into Imagination. This walk-through garden is encased in outdoor tents and houses the most lovely butterfly garden you can imagine. There were many butterfly varieties that were free-flying throughout the exhibit and tons of butterfly and pollinator-attracting plants. We spent a good 20 minutes meandering through the garden, looking at the butterflies, and making notes of the plants for our garden back home. A cast member observed us talking about the flowers and shared that an email has been created for people with horticulture questions! Disney thinks of everything. It’s like they were expecting us plant-nerds. The email is WDW.Disney.gardener at disney.com.
We loved this exhibit and thought the butterfly chrysalis house was so cool that Chris built one the day after we got back!
Topiaries
I loved to see the creative topiaries throughout the parks. Disney does a fantastic job with these. They are so fun and creative. Here are some of my favorites!
Minnie, Mickey, and Goofy 
Tigger, Eeyore, and Piglet 
Donald and Daisy, with Huey, Dewey, and Louis
Gardens
The festival gardens are spread throughout the park and many are within the park landscaping. If you’re a plant person, be sure to make note of where they are located so you don’t miss them! Two of my favorites are the English Tea Garden in the United Kingdom Pavilion and the Tropical Rainforest Garden in the Mexico Pavilion.
While this isn’t an exhaustive list of everything you can expect from a day at the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival, I hope it gives you some inspiration for planning your own visit! Be sure to check out my suggestions for what to pack in your Disney park bag.
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