New features added to the Chase Lounge at this year's Epcot Food and Wine Festival

Suzanne LarmarkNov 04, 2015

So it looks like fastpass seating for the "Eat to the Beat" shows is the front section right? I'm assuming, you had great seats for 38 special!!! I also booked a ETTB dinner package and those look like middle section uncovered seating. Am I right? Going next week and want to be aware. Wondering if I should even try the chase lounge for reserved seating. I much rather spend time at the other parks the morning of.

mbtohillOct 19, 2015

DW and I just spent the weekend and thouroughly enjoyed ourselves as usual: Favorite food: Ricotta and Zucchini Ravioli - Sustainable Chew Olive Oil Poached Salmon and NY Strip - Chew Lab Beef Tenderloin - Africa Buttered Chicken - Africa Lettuce Wrap - South Korea Pork Belly - Brazil Chicken Sausage with Polenta & Onion Jam - Canada Everything from New Zealand Kielbasa and Pierogi - Poland Haggis - Scotland We went Friday and Saturday. Crowds on Friday were totally manageable, never felt like we were overwhelmed. Saturday was a different story, by 2pm it was INSANE, we actually left for a few hours and did the Monorail Pub Crawl, which was a lot of fun. Came back for a 6:45 ADR at Spice Road and then saw The SOS Band at 8pm (THEY PUT ON A GREAT SHOW). After the concert we were able to hit a bunch of kiosks without much wait at all. All in all, Food & Wine is still a GREAT experience. We will be back again next year, but will be sure to go during the week.

SonconatoOct 13, 2015

I would have no idea since it's during the week because we, unfortunately, can only make the weekend events. You might be able to see all three shows but your seats might not be all that great. When we went to see "38 Special", we made sure to make fastpasses as early as it were possible and then, to get the best seats we could, we followed the guests that were in the first shows fastpass line so that we were first in line for the second show which we had fastpasses for. We had to stand an hour and a half but we were able to watch the first show from there and then, once seated, we couldn't get any closer. We were about 5 feet from Don Barnes! It was well worth the wait. If you try and sit to see the first show before your fastpass (if you choose to get one), you will run the risk of being way in the back of the fastpass line. It all depends on where you want to sit. If you want up front, get a fastpass, be the first in line, and first pick is yours.

TBrooker11Oct 13, 2015

Going Wednesday mainly to see Sugar Ray. What do you guys think the chances of getting a seat for all 3 shows is like? Also any other tips? First time going to Food & Wine at Epcot. Thanks!

flyerjabOct 13, 2015

We were there on Saturday, but not in the evening. We went for the Parisian breakfast at the France Pavilion (which was quite enjoyable). Our breakfast was late and we stayed for quite some time before venturing out to DHS to do 2 quick rides (half of the park's rides). Then back to Epcot we went, only to find that it was a mob. This was early afternoon though, but you would have thought that all of Orlando was there. It was not an enjoyable experience at all when compared to Thursday afternoon. And yes, at that time there already were people there on their way to loaded-ville, USA. Quite sad really.

SonconatoOct 12, 2015

We would agree with @flyerjab about Saturday. We were there about mid afternoon and were floored by the crowds! We were there just to see "38 Special" so we couldn't speak about the lines to the rides. The lines for booze were huge. My guess is that the lines to the rides were short because most of the people were there only to drink...a lot! Something we had never seen before until this year is that on Saturday, there were groups of people with matching T-shirts boasting their goal of getting drunk. And many were just that, unpleasantly drunk! It also seems like there aren't as many food booths as before, the majority are for drinks, but I could be wrong. Sunday was a much, much better experience. We went back for a second time, again to see "38 Special", and it was clearly less crowded. We saw NO groups with matching T-Shirts and most of those drinking were responsible. We liked Sunday so much better, when we were watching "38 Special" we felt like this guy! (Sound quality is bad)

mbtohillOct 12, 2015

I know, I know, we normally go during the week, but DW's job doesn't make that possible any more. Last year we went at the same time of year and did Thursday evening - Sunday morning and it was fine. Crowds this year seem CRAZY!

michmousefanOct 12, 2015

Too bad you can't go Thursday evening...

mbtohillOct 12, 2015

We're you there this past Saturday? Someone on another board posted that they crowds Saturday around dinner time were very manageable. No more than 10 minutes wait for anything. We don't get to town until Thursday evening, so we'll do as much as we can on Friday and go from there I guess.

flyerjabOct 12, 2015

Then you should go on Thursday and Friday during the day. We just came back from a Wednesday through Sunday trip. We went first thing Wednesday morning and it was really nice. There were so many new booths added into the mix. Something else that was greatly improved upon is that there were more places to eat your food. Many were standing tables but they were welcome, and some areas even had covered places to eat. The cheese and wine booth area was very nicely done, as were the new sustainable chew locations outside of the Innovations West building. And the crowd level was very manageable as we found that we did not wait long at any of the booths. Saturday, however, was absolutely ludicrous. Epcot was completely packed to the gills with people (some being rather unpleasant as the alcohol was obviously starting to set in). We ended up not even getting in line for anything because the amount of people in line at each kiosk was ridiculous. I mean, in Mexico, the line was probably just shy of 100 people! It was a complete waist of our time as it was hot in the sun, and the queues are not covered. Cars were actually parking on the grass areas around the parking lots. Aside from capping the number of people allowed in Epcot on any given day during this event, I don't know how else to avoid that from happening. For me though, it was completely not enjoyable on Saturday. We were not there at night however. What I would tell anyone that asked me about this is go to Epcot during the week early in the day. The crowd levels are much lower and it provided for a genuinely enjoyable experience for us. There were ample areas with tables to eat, with some providing cover from the sun. Also, if you enjoy fish, the grouper in the Dominican Republic is excellent.

mbtohillOct 12, 2015

What's the report on this past weekends crowds? Heard things were a bit more manageable on Saturday night? DW and I arrive on Thursday.

Cmdr_CrimsonOct 12, 2015

I'm going to be more focused on what's going on in the background during the show..And wishing I was doing some Ride time in Epcot...

wdwmagicOct 12, 2015

The Chew at Epcot's Food and Wine Festival airs all this week on ABC

DisneyDebRobOct 05, 2015

I understand what your saying to the poster but no congrats to the waitstaff for turning him/her down. They are paying for whatever they order and they are well aware of what it might taste like. If I want a burger come out like a hockey puck they should do it. Glad they brought back the chicken sausage at Canada.:)