Sharing the Disney Magic with Family & Friends-DL Diamond Anniversary-DCA F&W Fest Kiosks & The End!

You are killing me girl! :rotfl2: All those presentations look awesome! And you seem to be on really good terms with all the chefs! Love the photo of you and chef Andrew!

Both of those two were great and I have one more really good one to post. Chef Robert is just a really nice guy, he's on good terms with everyone. I have been on good terms with Chef Andrew ever since I did his first cooking school. I did it for three years, plus we dined at Napa Rose often enough for him to recognize us by face.

I am so happy that you were able to enjoy the F&WF at DCA so much!! When I heard of the announcement my first thought was: Now Alison can use her VGC points again for herself!! :rotfl2:I guess you are already booked for next year again?

Well, I have one weekend booked. F&W is traditionally after Easter which is April 16, 2017 so only two weekends are available to me now. I've booked the second weekend already, but the first is really expensive. I want to be sure it's a weekend that I will be going for sure so that I book with my banked points first. The weekend after Easter is the highest point season, so I'm not sure I'll keep both nights.

I have heard really good things about the festival as a whole and your presentations sound really wonderful. And the food did not look bad either! ;-)

I didn't get to see much of it (or as much as I would have liked), but I liked what I did do. I'll plan to be around more next year.

Interesting info about the buckle. In Germany there are a lot of cakes that are made that way. But then in Germany cake is not something that is served for dessert. Cake has its own distinct meal: Kaffee und Kuchen (I know that you understand this, but for everyone else: coffee and cake). This takes place some time in the afternoon between 2:30pm and 5pm.

Sort of like English Tea I take it. Sounds good! I could go for Cake and Coffee right now! It's 3:30PM!
 
I had the exact same thought when I heard the F & W was coming back to DL, now Alison can use her points! :cool1:

Since I've been saving them after last year's birthday party, I've got 409 points for next year. I plan to book Friday and Saturday nights for the weekends after Easter. I'll know by February which weekends I need to cancel and I don't have bank my points until the end of April so I'll have plenty of time to figure out what I'm going to do.

That spicy sauce doesn't sound like something you'd do for a big group though, not everyone likes spicey. And Cuban definitely does not have to be spicey.

Well he made it for a room of about 150 people. I'm not sure if we are the only ones who didn't like it. I know Cuban food doesn't have to be spicy, but I think most people feel that way.
 
We were done with our presentation with Andrew Sutton before 3PM and headed right back outside to get in the queue for the 5PM seminar. Guy Fieri was doing this one and he was the only presenter that I know that completely sold out. They were selling his cookbook in the F&W Festival Store so I picked up a copy for him to sign. At 4PM they started checking us in and handing out the lanyards and wristbands. Once Fran had hers, she headed off to the restroom. When she came back, she was holding a Peach Margarita for us to share! While waiting in line it started to sprinkle a tiny bit. They had put up some giant patio style umbrellas in anticipation of the weather and most people in line were covered. I was surprised that at 4:30 the line was still pretty short for a sold out show. However by 10 til people started showing up I'm droves.

We were about 7th or 8th in line so when they finally started letting us in, we got a pretty good spot. Guy was definitely as loud and boisterous as he appears on TV.



He threw T-shirts out to the audience if people got answers to questions correct.





He was energetic and was really out to have fun!







The first thing he made us was a Bananas Foster Milkshake. OMG this was so good! He started off by sautéing sliced bananas in butter.



Then he added brown sugar and cinnamon.



When they were done he added some banana liqueur, vanilla and a pinch of salt. Then he let the mixture cool.



He brought his son Hunter along so that he could make him do all the hard work. He was just finishing his Freshman year at Guy's Alma Mater, UNLV also majoring in Hospitality.

In a blender he combined vanilla ice cream, Meyer's Dark Rum, and cooled banana mixture.





Makes me want some right now! In fact I wrote this about a week ago, purchased all the ingredients and finally made it the other night! Whew! The Rum was strong! I don’t think they put as much rum in there as the recipe calls for!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/bananas-foster-milkshake.html



He took a few questions and noticed that this gal in the front had a dress made of material with his head all over it.



Then he was all about getting down to business once we had a nice stiff drink. His next dish featured corn. He said that it was one of the under respected foods and it doesn't get nearly the credit it deserves.



He put the corn on the grill in the husks. He had hunter remove the silk before grilling. He suggested this would be a great thing for a summer barbecue as you could have a toppings bar and let people fix their corn up the way they liked it.



This was his serving suggestion.



This wasn’t very practical to serve everyone an ear of corn, so he showed that you could also cut it off the ear.



And this is how we were served our corn.



He was really funny in the way he addressed the audience. He would cuss and use a lot of non-Disney words. And funniest of all he was so easily distracted, he'd be in the middle of one story and he would be like, "squirrel!"

He took questions from the audience and one couple asked him if he had a preference for cooking a turkey on the stove top or in the oven, and he was like "what????" I think most everyone in the audience had a similar reaction. He was so blown away by the fact that anybody would cook a turkey on a stove top I think he told them he would get back to their question. He did tell us what he does for his turkey. I believe he said that he makes at least two because they have so many folks over. Basically he butchers the entire turkey, and reserves the wings for stock. He butterflies the breast, grill or roasts the breast and thighs. Then he cooks the legs confit style. That means it is slowly cooked, supposedly in it’s own fat, but I think he said that he uses olive oil as there is not enough fat in the turkey to cook it that way. Interesting concept, but it sounds like a lot of work!

They started slow braising some pork at this point, I believe that it was shoulder meat. And then he got on a roll. The event was supposed to go up until 6:30PM, but I think it was 6:15 and he had just started the last dish. After I took this picture, the battery in my camera died.



I had one of those boost chargers in my purse, so I charged the camera while I took this margarita picture with my phone.



He went on for quite some time talking about various things that had happened to him since becoming a celebrity chef. One thing was that he never wore a chef’s coat, totally hated them, but the Food Network required him to wear one. He had a friend design him the denim style ones like he was wearing with his corporate logo “Knuckle sandwich” on the back.

He talked to us for the next half an hour to 45 minutes about all kinds of things. He kept stressing that his son Hunter was available, so if there were any young ladies out there, and the poor boy kept blushing. He also mentioned about how all his buddies always stop by at the house, so they need to keep lots of provisions on hand, and they’re always whipping up something good, usually on the grill. He made an offhand comment about how his wife loves that! I don’t remember what all else he talked about, but no one seemed to mind that he was almost an hour over the time for the presentation.

He talked long enough that my camera got some life in it. He turned the braised pork into Bahn Mi tacos, which is weird because that means “bread” in Vietnamese, so maybe I have remembered it wrong. He used the braised pork and topped it with a Kim Chi slaw.







I was actually so full from the previous demo, the milkshake, and the corn, that I could only eat one of the tacos, but they were delicious. Then the folks in the celebrity experience portion were set loose while those of us who sprung for the VIP experience, waited for our turns to get autographs and pictures. Fran sat this one out as well.





After the seminar we headed back out of the park, we looked for Francisco, but he wasn’t there that night. So we headed home and to bed.
 
What a fun seminar!!! You portrayed his excitement fabulously! Sounds like he was enjoying himself as well, telling stories, going over the time. Cool that he brought his son with him.
 


Love the Food and Wine culinary demonstrations, so great that you got to see Guy Fieri! He does seem like he would put on a fun presentation, so cool that he brought his son.
 
You were right when you said you had another great presentation to post. This looks awesome and I guess I need to research that recipe for the milk shake as this is totally something Tom would like.
And that corn looks delish! Thanks for sharing.
 
Basically he butchers the entire turkey, and reserves the wings for stock. He butterflies the breast, grill or roasts the breast and thighs. Then he cooks the legs confit style. That means it is slowly cooked, supposedly in it’s own fat, but I think he said that he uses olive oil as there is not enough fat in the turkey to cook it that way. Interesting concept, but it sounds like a lot of work!

You know what, I always thought that roasting that whole turkey kind of really did not do the bird justice. And I see that Mr Celebrity Chef (I think I have heard his name, but have no clue who he is besides what I just read about him in your update) kind of agrees with me there: Most parts need different ways of cooking them in order to make the most of it. Like who would grill a whole cow?

(To be honest, we Germans do at the Oktoberfest: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oktoberfest_tents#Ochsenbraterei "Ox on a skewer" is popular on other fairgrounds, too...)

I had one of those boost chargers in my purse, so I charged the camera while I took this margarita picture with my phone.

That was smart of you!! But what is this mystery margarita? Is this the one from when you were in line or did they give you margaritas after the milk shake? The milk shake sounds absolutely amazing btw!!

He talked to us for the next half an hour to 45 minutes about all kinds of things. He kept stressing that his son Hunter was available, so if there were any young ladies out there, and the poor boy kept blushing. He also mentioned about how all his buddies always stop by at the house, so they need to keep lots of provisions on hand, and they’re always whipping up something good, usually on the grill. He made an offhand comment about how his wife loves that! I don’t remember what all else he talked about, but no one seemed to mind that he was almost an hour over the time for the presentation.

I think this guy sounds absolutely amazing and a lot of fun. I am normally not at all a fan of cooking shows, but I can see why his show was the one that was sold out.
 


The seminars all looked amazing. I am glad for you that the Food and Wine Festival has finally returned to California Adventure. Francisco looks really cute.

Corinna
 
All of the seminars looked like tons of fun, so excited that it came back this year and that y'all go to go. I might have to try that banana milkshake
 
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Love Guy Fiere! He drives Michael nuts but I love how over the top and engaging he is. Cute pic of the two of you. And next trip, we'll meet up for those Bananas Foster milkshakes.
 
That banana drink looks unbelievable amazing! I'm so gonna try that recipe. I'm a banana hater, but that looks divine! Everything else looks so yummy too. I've never been to a cooking show, but they sure look fun!
 
Wow! Looks like a couple of more good seminars! You guys really do this F&W thing right! I'm glad that you were able to go and enjoy them.


His next dish featured corn. He said that it was one of the under respected foods and it doesn't get nearly the credit it deserves.
::yes::

I'm not a foodie by any stretch of the imagination, but I was pretty pumped to see that he grills corn the same way I do. But I don't get the toppings part... I mean, what do you really need besides butter??? And not serving it on the cob? That's just un-American!
 
Those are very cool experiences - thanks for sharing. While I know who both those chefs are, we really only watch Guy Fieri and Triple-D. While we appreciate a fine meal, we are more of a "good home cookin'" type and enjoy his show and try to stop at the restaurants he visits if we get a chance. (We've been to most of the ones in Buffalo that he has visited.) He can be a little annoying at times, but enjoy his shtick.
 
What a fun seminar!!! You portrayed his excitement fabulously! Sounds like he was enjoying himself as well, telling stories, going over the time. Cool that he brought his son with him.

Thank you. It's hard to portray someone else's excitement. He seems like the kind of guy who has a good time wherever he goes. His whole family was there actually but the oldest son was doing all the dirty work onstage.

Love the Food and Wine culinary demonstrations, so great that you got to see Guy Fieri! He does seem like he would put on a fun presentation, so cool that he brought his son.

He was really a fun presenter.

You were right when you said you had another great presentation to post. This looks awesome and I guess I need to research that recipe for the milk shake as this is totally something Tom would like.
And that corn looks delish! Thanks for sharing.

The milkshake was great. I need to refine mine. A little less rum, more ice cream and banana.
 
You know what, I always thought that roasting that whole turkey kind of really did not do the bird justice. And I see that Mr Celebrity Chef (I think I have heard his name, but have no clue who he is besides what I just read about him in your update) kind of agrees with me there: Most parts need different ways of cooking them in order to make the most of it. Like who would grill a whole cow?

I do agree that there are better ways to cook a chicken or turkey, but both of these are among the few animals that lend themselves to cooking the whole animal at once.

(To be honest, we Germans do at the Oktoberfest: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oktoberfest_tents#Ochsenbraterei "Ox on a skewer" is popular on other fairgrounds, too...)

Interesting. In Hawaii they cook a whole pig.

That was smart of you!! But what is this mystery margarita? Is this the one from when you were in line or did they give you margaritas after the milk shake? The milk shake sounds absolutely amazing btw!!

He gave us a margarita to go with the tacos, but he talked so much, everyone drank them before the tacos arrived. This was a traditional margarita. I believe that he said there was Tequila, Lime juice, triple sec and a pinch of salt in the drink.

I think this guy sounds absolutely amazing and a lot of fun. I am normally not at all a fan of cooking shows, but I can see why his show was the one that was sold out.

He's also (controversially) one of the hottest chefs in America right now.

The seminars all looked amazing. I am glad for you that the Food and Wine Festival has finally returned to California Adventure. Francisco looks really cute.

Corinna

They were great. I have one more post for this TR from F&W. That should be coming up this weekend.

All of the seminars looked like tons of fun, so excited that it came back this year and that y'all go to go. I might have to try that banana milkshake

They were all great seminars. I have no doubt that I would have enjoyed the others if I had gone, but they were too pricey to do all of them.

Love Guy Fiere! He drives Michael nuts but I love how over the top and engaging he is. Cute pic of the two of you. And next trip, we'll meet up for those Bananas Foster milkshakes.

I think he's fun too. A lot of people don't like him. Definitely do the milkshakes next time!

That banana drink looks unbelievable amazing! I'm so gonna try that recipe. I'm a banana hater, but that looks divine! Everything else looks so yummy too. I've never been to a cooking show, but they sure look fun!

I'm not a huge banana person, but this one was really great!
 
Wow! Looks like a couple of more good seminars! You guys really do this F&W thing right! I'm glad that you were able to go and enjoy them.

Me too! :teeth:

::yes::

I'm not a foodie by any stretch of the imagination, but I was pretty pumped to see that he grills corn the same way I do. But I don't get the toppings part... I mean, what do you really need besides butter??? And not serving it on the cob? That's just un-American!

I think the "toppings" is a California/Mexican sort of thing. There are folks on the street who push little carts and sell corn on the cob. You can pick all kinds of seasonings to go with them. I like mine with butter, salt and pepper.

Those are very cool experiences - thanks for sharing. While I know who both those chefs are, we really only watch Guy Fieri and Triple-D. While we appreciate a fine meal, we are more of a "good home cookin'" type and enjoy his show and try to stop at the restaurants he visits if we get a chance. (We've been to most of the ones in Buffalo that he has visited.) He can be a little annoying at times, but enjoy his shtick.

We like all kinds of food, but Fran is encouraging me to get more interested in Triple-D type places. We have been to a number of the places he's been too, but none in So Cal. He seems to visit very eclectic places here and we're not quite as interested in the ones locally, but when travelling we always look up to see if he has been anywhere in the area.
 
Two super fun seminars. Thanks for sharing.

At least I brought my lunch into this thread before reading it. Sadly, my lunch wasn't a patch on licking the screen!!!
 
Two super fun seminars. Thanks for sharing.

At least I brought my lunch into this thread before reading it. Sadly, my lunch wasn't a patch on licking the screen!!!

They were definitely a lot of fun and really good food! Good job on remembering to have some food, you'll want to do that on the next one too!
 
So on April 2nd and 9th we went out to the park to see several celebrity chefs give demos. These were paid demos and we got to taste the food they made in the demo, plus as part of the VIP Experience we got a meet and greet with the chef.

Actually as part of the Festival there were many other experiences. Daily, chefs were performing 3-4 demos a day on another stage, however samples were not available at those. They also had a "lifestyle" stage, not sure what sort of presenters were there, and then various artists were also showcased at Off The Page throughout the festival. At the Biergarten area of the winery, they were hosting three beverage seminars a day, all priced around $15pp and booked in advance online. Of course there was merchandise available, but the other thing that made me excited was the kiosks!

It was April 15th that Jim and I ventured out to visit the kiosks. I finally was feeling all the way better from the upper respiratory infection and we considered this a warm up for the F&G Festival coming up in a couple weeks. We left my house around 11AM and were inside the park before noon.



We didn't waste a moment and dug right in with LA style.





We had decided that we would just split everything so we got to try more things.

We ordered one of everything and definitely loved each one.



I mean who wouldn't like a pork belly taco?



The tuna was very good.



And this Milk Chocolate Caramel Tart with Almond Brittle and Sea Salt was by far my favorite of the whole festival, but how was I to know when we were just starting out.



We stopped for a photo op.





The next booth included wine flights as well as food.





I got Cabernet flight because I thought it would go better the Zinfandel braised Wagyu beef and BlackBerry Tart.









Both of these were very tasty, but I thought that braising really was a waste of Wagyu beef. We also got the yellow beet salad, but I wasn't a fan. I let Jim finish this.



Jim got the Chardonnay flight.



BTW we carried our little cardboard trays around from stand to stand with us to save on waste.

Next up was Viva Fresca!





We only got one thing here, the fried shrimp soft taco. It was really good.



We hit the motherlode at Gold Rush!





We got one of each!



The triple cheese mac with smoked chicken was creamy and delicious.



The artichoke chips were great, the aioli was a little spicy for my taste.



The Apple Bacon Whoopie pie was a complete surprise! It was great!



At this point we needed a break. It was hot and we were getting sort of full. We went inside the Blue Sky cellar to have a seat and enjoy the air conditioning. They were offering this passport where you paid X amount of dollars and it included six samples. Well by this point we were more than halfway through so it wouldn't help us now! They did give us these buttons and a recipe card.



Back out into the heat to try The Farm.





Here we went for one of the Grilled Beef Tenderloin Sliders and the Meyer Lemon Macaroon along with a glass of the Rodney Strong Cabernet and the Trimbach Gewurtztraminer, both of which are favorites of mine.



By this point, I couldn’t finish the slider, it was just way too much food for me. However I couldn’t resist at least trying the Macaroon.



Look at the center of the Macaroon, all full of blueberry marmalade.

And then we hit the last booth.





We were really struggling to eat at this point. But we pushed on and ordered a white cheddar Ale & Bacon soup, which was very good.

And a chilled shrimp and snow crab cocktail which was only meh.



Then we decided to go home. We were both way too full to go on any rides. I was so glad that Jim drove because I was in a total food coma, not only everything we ate, but from the heat as well. In hindsight a tan top and capris would have been a more appropriate outfit for that day.

When I got home, Fran was still in bed. I crawled in too and went to sleep for a while, I was so bloated and overfull for the rest of the evening that I didn’t eat any dinner at all! I’m glad we had this test run, because after that day, I was surely not going to be overeating at the Flower and Garden Festival in Epcot the next month.



This concludes this trip report! After over a year of dragging out my visits to the park, I will now be including them inbetween regular updates on the trip report with Jim and Alberto at WDW. See ya over there!
 
That looks like a real varied range of food. I would have loved to try some of them. Others are too adventurous for me, but that this the joy of a Food and Wine Festival - you can just pick and choose.

Thanks for sharing. I have thoroughly enjoyed reading along.

Corinna
 

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