Good morning, my friends!  Did you catch our food pics yesterday?  No?  Well, then, this recap will come in handy!

After a disappointing start – for us, as we lurked around Epcot all day Wednesday waiting for a soft opening that never came – the “party” kicked off right on schedule.

Food & Wine is no longer a World Showcase party.  Future World (near Imagination Pavilion) has really gotten into the act and is home to Active Eats, Coastal Eats, Earth Eats, and Flavors from Fire.

The first entrée we enjoyed was Epcot’s Roasted Verlasso Salmon with Quinoa Salad.  Formerly served by Patagonia, it can, now, be found at Active Eats.

As usual, it an incredibly outstanding bite.  Great flavors. Perfectly prepared. A definite “must do”!

Sticking with seafood, a few steps away, we sampled the Lump Crab Cake with Napa Cabbage Slaw at Coastal Eats next.

The cake, itself, was fantastic.  The accompanying slaw was flavorless.  Step that up a bit, Epcot, and the dish will really “pop”!

Time for something “meaty”, we popped by Flavors from Fire and grabbed their Roasted Pork Wings with Korean BBQ Sauce.

Mrs. All in WDW said, “Best thing in the festival.  Huge portion.  I don’t care if I ever have chicken wings again.  Just give me these”!

My beloved Lamb Meatball from New Zealand was our next course.  The meatball, itself, as usual, was perfect!  The bread bowl was good.

Having said that, I felt that the chutney, like last year, delivered a bit too much sweetness.  Spice it up, New Zealand!

Australia’s Grilled Lamb T-Bone – a new recipe in 2017 – was a huge disappointment.

Over the past few years, this booth’s lamb chop has been Mrs. All in WDW’s festival-favorite.  No more.  Sadly, this version was tough, hard to cut, and horrible.

The defending festival “champion” – at least as far as we’re concerned – the Kalua Pork Slider at Hawai’i kicked off the festival with a lackluster effort.

The pork was phenomenally tender, as usual, but the dish’s accompanying mayo lacked its traditional ‘zing’.  Plus, the bun – which seemed different from past years – was subpar.

Finally, we followed the rules.  Remember our “Top 10 Rules for Successfully Conquering Food & Wine!”?

Rule #5:  Share a table!  If someone asks to share your table, by all means, say ‘yes’.  It might be you looking for a place to dine next time!

In doing so, another Guest allowed us to present her dessert – Australia’s coconut-laden Lamington.

She and her husband agreed with Mrs. All in WDW and I with respect to the booth’s failed lamb dish.  Fortunately, her dessert renewed her faith in Australian cuisine.

There you go, folks.  Day #1 is complete.  Stop back later this morning!  Pictures will be pouring forth all day long!