Food and Wine Festival

[GeoUSA]

I read the reviews and have to take issue with the "bad" rating of the Steak au Poivre (Peppered Steak). Someone stated that it was too heavily peppered, but that's what it is supposed to be.

It is good to hear someone else with this opinion about Steak au Poivre. It was one of my top three favorites I tried. The cut I had was so tender it literally melted in my mouth. A friend heard me rave about it and ordered it a few minutes later. His was tough. It cannot be easy to prepare so many dishes in bulk approaching gourmet status. I am impressed, BGW. (Y)

 

[Nicole]

Something I didn't put explicitly in my report, but we all discussed was the inconsistency in the quality and flavor of the food. Dishes we have tried multiple times over the course of the event have literally been fantastic one day and terrible the next. For the sake of the experiment, we limited ourselves to what we ate on that weekend. It is an issue I plan to address in a follow-up post.

My point is that it is entirely possible that the Steak was fundamentally different for us than y'all. It could just be a matter of differing tastes, however, as well.

Thanks for the feedback! It is awesome to know someone actually read the review...

 

[Zachary]

I didn't actually have a huge problem with the amount of pepper on the steak- my problem was the steak itself- it was incredibly overcooked when we tried it.

 

[Celticdog]

I noticed there has been a lot of inconsistencies with the food quality throughout this year's event. Some items on one visit were outstanding, but then on the next were overcooked (schnitzelwich) or sloppily prepared (Coq Au Vin). Some items were better last year (Coq Au Vin) and others just didn't get better (schinken nudel). I was disappointed in the major overhaul of Crepes and Coffee. I could see swapping out one or two, but to replace all was a bad idea, especially when the replacements were of poor quality and preparations. I was expecting better. Some food items were still outstanding, Bangers and Mash (Ireland), Kottbullar (Scandinavia), Scotch Egg, and Pumpkin Mousse (Canada). Overall I still rate is a success.

 

[Jrbgwfan06]

I hated how they had nothing sweet at Crepes and Coffee this year. It was a let down, mainly because I'm all about the sweet things. You could consider the Banana and Nutella crepe as sweet, but it's not really the 'sweet' I was looking for. I was looking forward to a crepe with blueberries, raspberries, or strawberries. I desperately needed something sweet. I was very disappointed.

 

[Thomas]

I thought they had a Brie and marmalade crepe...

 

[Shane]

I didn't actually have a huge problem with the amount of pepper on the steak- my problem was the steak itself- it was incredibly overcooked when we tried it.

Over cooking steak is a SIN. And in France they eat their steaks virtually rare. While the amount of pepper on it may have been accurate (I don't know) I feel like over cooking it is inaccurate.

 

[Zimmy]

I didn't actually have a huge problem with the amount of pepper on the steak- my problem was the steak itself- it was incredibly overcooked when we tried it.

Zach and I had the exact same reaction. The only thing that kept the steak from being rubber was the sauce.

The empinadas were another example of the inconsistency Nic was talking about. On day one we all thought they were bland and flavorless. They had been my favorite dish the previous year, and so, and not at part of the tasting but because I felt I owed it to my taste buds, I gave them a second try. They were amazing on day 2. They were pipping hot and full of flavor and spice.

 

[Unagi]

Over cooking steak is a SIN. And in France they eat their steaks virtually rare. While the amount of pepper on it may have been accurate (I don't know) I feel like over cooking it is inaccurate.

+1

I hate it when I'm at a restaurant and hear people order their steaks well-done! You might as well chew on a tire!!!

 

[chickenking]

The Dessert Wine Tasting booth in Germany was very interesting.  Finally got to try out the wines on the last afternoon.  

I enjoyed all of them, but my favorite was definitely the Grapefruit followed closely by  the Chocolate (could really smell this one in the air when the bottle was uncorked).

Supposedly, the booth is staying put to continue with the dessert wines.  That's 1...2...3...4...FOUR wine tastings around the park!!!!

 

[pandorazboxx]

Dessert Wines? Eww.

 

[Shane]

Didn't realize they added this booth. The booth itself looks really nice. While I don't like dessert wine I am never against the addition of something like this.

 

[Mad Ludwig]

How much do you guys estimate the park made off of the F&WF?

 

[Zimmy]

I expect that the food itself was a planned loss. Margins on food are thin to begin with (3% is considered amazing), and the waste must have been huge. The question is of course did they draw significantly more guests and did those guests buy up charges. quick cues really do not cost the park anything for example, and the cost of Cabanas is all up front and I am sure has long since be amortized. From the outside I bet they are looking for up-ticks in season pass buys in this period as well as in merc sales.

I would love to look at their trend lines from last year over the course of the season of some of these factors and run a comparison against this years. I would expect an increase due to an increase of awareness and repeat year to year sales. (locals and season pass sales are non factoring here)

Can anyone get me their numbers? This calls for a pivot table or two.

/me opens excel in excitement