This one is less about Epcot’s Food & Wine festival but more of a “flashback” to last Spring’s Flower & Garden (er, “Food” & Garden) event.  Do you remember Germany’s potato pancakes?  The dish that I sampled and said, “A bit too much minced onion for my taste and a little too salty. I don’t need another helping, thanks.”

“Food” & Garden’s Potato Pancake

How about this? Upon meeting Epcot Executive Chef Jens Dahlmann at “Food” & Garden, Mrs. All in WDW and I were asked what we liked and what we did not. Bravely, we told him that Germany’s potato pancake was just a little bit salty.  Geez!  How did we ever have the nerve?

Prior to the attending the festival, I had commented, “Potato pancakes and I have a bit of history.  My dad makes ‘killer’ potato pancakes.  Germany?  My expectations are extremely high.  You better be ready to “bring it!”  Well, as I described above, they didn’t.  And, in fact, as a result, Germany’s effort finished with a ranking of #16 in my Final “Food” & Garden Top 20 and with a description of “Just OK”.

I mentioned the other day that Mrs. All in WDW and I are spending the Labor Day weekend visiting family, with a first stop to stay with my mom and dad.  All four of our parents take great care of us.  This time, mine welcomed us with healthy doses of our favorite beer and pizza, a home-cooked breakfast of bacon and eggs, and … Dad’s “killer” potato pancakes.

I just had to share.  You know how much we like to try to recreate WDW dishes.  From shrimp tacos to shrimp and asparagus, if it’s “Disney good”, we want to try to make it at home.  Well, Dad’s got us covered on this one.  Simple in their design, these potato pancakes are all kinds of delicious.

Like I said … a simple recipe!

Leads to a pile of ‘cakes!

Look at ‘dem ‘cakes!  And, this wasn’t even the entire batch!  Of course, we had to try to replicate Chef’s dish, so here they are with an apple sauce topping.

With an apple sauce garnish!

Try ‘em out!  Or, just enjoy the pictures, if you like.  Either way, I’ll bet that you’ll come away wanting more and more!  It’s just a cold, hard fact … as an entree or as a side, these “cakes” just rock!  Way to go, Dad!  Sorry, Chef Jens.  My dad’s got you beat!

Woody says, “Howdy! Welcome to The Smokehouse!”

Smoke that pig!

What’s on the menu?

Now, to be clear, the pig slider and beef brisket were both out-of-this-world outstanding in March. I’m not shy to admit that, over the course of that long weekend, I had …

… three helpings of each. They were just that good. This time around, however, they each paled in comparison to March.

We had the brisket first.  Mrs. All in WDW liked hers (although, it was about half the size of what we received in March), but mine was a fatty disappointment.  They were small servings, and the quality wasn’t worth the purchase price. Oh, the collard greens were still tasty, and the jalapeno cornbread still “rocked”, but the main course was a big ‘dud’.

Just NOT as good as in March!

It prompted my lovely wife to remind me that it depends on the cut of meat and it depends on the chef. In principle, it was still a great dish, but, this time, it was poorly executed. Proving her right, however, the next day, Rick Howard just loved the helping he had when we met up with him at The American Adventure. He claimed that it was much better than when he had eaten it earlier in the festival. Go figure!

Sadly, the pig slider – the 2013 “Food” & Garden Festival “Champion” – fell just as flat. We agreed that the pork tasted a bit over-cooked. In fact, I would almost say it tasted a bit burnt. Did it have something to do with it being smoked in a different way … or for a longer time? I don’t know, but there was a noticeable difference in its taste when compared to the several portions I had back in March.

Notice how dark the pork is?

In comparison, here’s March’s serving.

I know that color doesn’t necessarily ‘tell the tale’, but you’ll have to trust me. April’s portion just wasn’t as good. And, to be fair to the ‘champ’, we tried it twice. It tasted a little scorched each time. So, if the slider (#1) and brisket (#2) fared so poorly in our second trip to The World, should they really retain their lofty perches?

I would have to say ‘yes’. First, we sampled each dish several times in March, and, back then, they were both consistently fantastic. Second, to fall out of the Top 2 spots, China’s spring pancake and Florida’s shrimp ‘n grits would have to be good enough to “ascend the throne”. I really loved those two dishes, but I just can’t see them leap-frogging over March’s pig and beef.

In the end, folks, even with their weaker April offerings, The Smokehouse still rules!

If you saw it, you’ll remember that, on the last day of our first trip to the festival, we were treated to a visit from Epcot Executive Chef Jens Dahlmann.  As I reported, “He asked us …

… what we liked and – ever the perfectionist, I’m sure – what we did not.  Bravely, we told him that the U.K. cheddar biscuit and Germany’s potato pancake were just a little bit salty.”

Yikes!

Well, weeks later, I knew we had to give Chef Jens a second chance, so as we circumnavigated World Showcase Lagoon, we had to stop at Germany for a potato pancake.  Rated a “Just OK” #16 in the Final Top 20, in my “Flash Report”, I said, “A bit too much minced onion for my taste and a little too salty. I don’t need another helping, thanks.”

This potato pancake was just too salty …

Chef Jens must have heard us (at least, I like to think it was us!) and tightened up the dish.  Although we still thought the apple sauce was a little bit on the “watered-down” side, the potato pancake, itself, was much, much tastier.  I still wasn’t a big fan of all that minced onion, but, in the end, it was a better offering.  Having said that, I don’t think it improved its final rank.

In March, and again with people we talked to this past weekend, the U.K.’s Potato, Chive, and Cheddar Cheese Biscuit with Smoked Salmon got rave reviews.  For us, our March serving was just way too salty.  On our last day in The World, this trip, we ventured another helping.

As I walked up to the kiosk, I was disappointed to hear the chef call out, ‘Ten minutes on the biscuits!”  But, then, I realized that my biscuit would be the first taken from a nice, fresh batch.  By the time we got the warm, delectable, little bite, however, Mrs. All in WDW thought that the biscuit was slightly overdone.  In spite of that, though, I have to say that the “pillowy-soft on the inside” but “crisp on the outside” morsel hit the mark when it came to taste.  The salt had been dialed way back.

Rated #13, in the “Just OK” category, the U.K. did much better on this item this time around.  If it had been this good when I wrote the Final Top 20, I think the biscuit would have finished as “Recommended” and hit the chart at somewhere between #7 to #9.

Let’s try this one more time!

Inside the biscuit!

Now, contrary to what you might think (given our love for both Food & Wine and, now, “Food” & Garden, that is), we did not eat everything on the menu.  What we did do, however, was re-sample some of our favorites … and re-visit some of the dishes that we just didn’t like back in March.  After all, we are charitable folk, and we wanted to give some of Chef Jens Dahlmann’s ‘best’ a second chance.

We hit town around Noon last Thursday, so, of course, right after we dumped our bags off in our room, we headed straight over to World Showcase to eat lunch.  And, no lunch can start right without a proper drink.

Don’t you agree?

Mmmm. Beverly.

We started off at Florida Fresh and had some Shrimp and Stone-Ground Grits.  I had ranked them at #4 in the All in WDW 2013 Epcot International “Food” & Garden Festival Top 20, and they delivered once again.

Mrs. All in WDW hadn’t had this dish back in March (she tried a bite of mine), so it was her first full serving.  Her only critique was that she would have preferred the tails to have been removed from the shrimp.  It made the serving a bit harder to eat.  Otherwise, the taste was still a delicious combination of spicy and creamy.  Overall, it was still a hit.

Outstanding blend of spicy and creamy.  Picture is from our trip in March.

Next, we headed to Mexico to give that booth’s pork taco another shot.  If you remember, I rated this one at #14 in the Top 20 and “Just OK”.  When I published my “Flash Report” for this dish, I said that it was “a disappointment”.  Mainly, that was because its pork rind component “overpowered” the plate.

In March, with a “ton” of pork rind!

I went on to say that, “the thing that could have saved it was the fact that the taco contained a generous helping of pork. I said, ‘could have’. The problem is that the pork needed more seasoning – or a sauce. As bland as the pork was, the pork rind was just too strong.”

Well, ever the culinary “scientists”, we came up with, what we thought was (and ended up being) a great idea.  How would the taco fare without the pork rind?  As it turns out, it was much, much better.  And, the Tamarindo salsa and green onion gave it just the right taste.

Much, much better!

Now, you might be asking yourself, is it still #14 on the list of final rankings?  It is.  I have a rule … once the final list is published, it doesn’t change.  Besides, what we “created” wasn’t the official “Food” & Garden offering.  Having said that, our version of the taco would have made the “Recommended” section of the Top 20 list and could have been ranked as high as #7!

Our final visit for lunch on Day #1 was China.  Oh, those Spring Pancakes.  I will unashamedly admit that I had three of them over the course of the weekend.  They are so good.  They finished at #3 in March, and I have to tell you – if I did allow myself to change the rankings, they might have been able to knock off the Smokehouse’s pig sliders and beef brisket.  More about them later in a few days, though.  As it is, China’s offering was still outstanding!  And, by the way, Mrs. All in WDW hadn’t had this plate in March either.  She agreed with me … it is a winner!

My friends, thanks for joining us for “lunch”!  We’ll be back tomorrow with more from Epcot’s World Showcase and “Food” & Garden “Overtime”!

Spring pancake? Simply delicious!

Let’s re-cap.  A mere week ago, I published Parts I and II of my “Food” & Garden ’13 Pre-Festival Top 20.  If you haven’t seen those yet, click the link to get caught up.  If you have, and want to catch a reminder of what Mrs. All in WDW and I were thinking as we approached this past weekend’s feast, be our guest!

Now, if you followed my “Flash Reports” this past weekend, you’ve seen the pictures.  You’ve seen my comments.  Again, click the link to see the string of posts we published as we devoured each morsel of Chef Jens Dahlmann’s genius.

All of this leads to my presentation of the All in WDW 2013 Epcot International “Food” & Garden Festival Top 20.  So, here it comes!

They are, of course, presented in order, but I have also grouped and categorized them based on my recommendation.  I also finish with a summary of the Top “Winners” and “Losers” as defined by a comparison of their pre-festival and final ranks.  Pre-ranks are in parenthesis.

Bon appétit, my friends!

• Highly Recommended
• 1 (1) – Pulled Pig Slider (United States)
• 2 (2) – Smoked Beef Brisket (United States)
• 3 (11) – Spring Pancake (China)
• 4 (12) – Shrimp and Stone Ground Grits (Florida)
• 5 (19) – Baked Goat’s Brie (United Kingdom)

• Recommended
• 6 (15) – German Meatloaf Sandwich (Germany)
• 7 (7) – Spiced Lamb Kebab (Morocco)
• 8 (6) – Grilled Salmon, Cooked Shrimp, and Crab Stick (Japan)
• 9 (16) – Asparagus and Lobster (Italy)
• 10 (4) – Crab Tostada (Mexico)
• 11 (14) – Watermelon Salad (Florida)
• 12 (13) – Tomatoes with House-Made Mozzarella (United Kingdom)

• Just OK
• 13 (17) – Potato, Chive, and Cheddar Cheese Biscuit with Smoked Salmon (United Kingdom)
• 14 (3) – Pork Tacos (Mexico)
• 15 (5) – Spinach Lasagna (Italy)
• 16 (10) – Potato Pancakes (Germany)

• Nope!
• 17 (9) – Japanese Noodles (Japan)
• 18 (18) – Tomato Tart (France)
• 19 (8) – Pan-Fried Vegetable Bun (China)
• 20 (20) – Pâté (France)

• Top 5 “Winners”
• Baked Goat’s Brie (+14)
• German Meatloaf Sandwich (+9)
• Shrimp and Grits (+8)
• Spring Pancake (+8)
• Asparagus and Lobster (+7)

• Top 4 “Losers”
• Pork Tacos (-11)
• Vegetable Bun (-11)
• Spinach Lasagna (-10)
• Japanese Noodles (-8)

Fortunately, I had, because Saturday afternoon – as Mrs. All in WDW and I were sneaking in an extra serving of Pulled Pig Slider outside of The American Adventure – Epcot Executive Chef Jens Dahlmann strolled up to ask us if we were enjoying the food and the festival. Wow!

Chef Jens has been the Chef de Cuisine at both California Grill and Flying Fish Cafe. He is now the Executive Chef of Epcot Food & Beverage. And, he wanted our opinion? That’s outstanding! Thanks for the honor, Chef!

Here’s a funny side-story. We had just …

… ordered the pig sliders – but not made as Chef Jens had intended. I hope he didn’t notice, but I’m sure he did. We had asked to have them made with The Smokehouse’s vinegar-based cole slaw on the side because we wanted to be able to douse the pork in hot BBQ sauce. See?

Back to this little story in a second. You’ll see how I learned my lesson.

Mrs. All in WDW – ever the publicist – proudly told Chef Jens how I run a web site, and how I pre-ranked twenty of the items, and how we’ve tasted all twenty on this weekend’s trip. He asked us what we liked and – ever the perfectionist, I’m sure – what we did not. Bravely, we told him that the U.K. cheddar biscuit and Germany’s potato pancake were just a little bit salty. I “chickened out” and didn’t disrespect France’s pâté.

We raved about the introduction of food kiosks at Flower & Garden, praised Food & Wine, complimented the chef on the fantastic food at both festivals, and even spent a little bit of time talking about the culinary scene in Atlanta. We were delighted when he brought up a dinner he recently had at a local (to us) restaurant where even we have dined.

Thank you, Chef Jens, for spending a little bit of your valuable time with us!

Now, back to that little side-story. Mere minutes after Chef Jens walked away, I determined that the pig slider just didn’t taste “right”. I piled some of the cole slaw on top of the BBQ sauce-laden pork and took another bite. Yes, Chef Jens, you are right. I should have left it alone and ate it as you intended.

The reviews I have seen on the ‘net have suggested that there is only a meager dose of rum included in this little bit of ‘heaven’. Frankly, I’m not sure what those people are expecting. It’s not drowned in rum, no. It has just the right amount to offset the sweetness of the pineapple soft-serve.

If you get down here to visit “Food” & Garden, give this one a try. If you’re a Dole Whip (or a rum) lover, you’re going to love this!

Oh, and I will be posting the FINAL All in WDW “Food” & Garden Top 20 in a day or so. First, I need to get back home and re-start my diet! Second, I need to crank up the All in WDW “super-computer”. I’m going to need its help in order to figure out how to rank this huge group of delicious-ness.

OMG, this one was all sort’s of goat’s cheese and puff pastry “goodness”.  Pre-ranked at #19, I couldn’t have been more wrong.  The melding of the pastry, the cheese, and the kumquat chutney was simply luxurious.  It was an epic struggle not to go buy four or five more of these delights.  Simply ‘YUM’!

The biscuit was just a little bit salty, but this morsel was good, nonetheless.  I do think you need to be a bit of a smoked salmon fan to truly appreciate it, however.  Not one that I need to have again but was worth the one-time shot.

Very refreshing, but not quite as noteworthy as Florida’s watermelon salad. Still, it’s a quick, simple, tasty bite.

Call this one a meatless pizza that’s not a pizza. Made of phyllo dough, the crust was fall-apart delicate. It surprised us, too, as Mrs. All in WDW and I didn’t even know that it was phyllo until we tried to cut it up to split it.

I had no particular problem with the ‘non-bread dough construction’ other than that the phyllo felt out of place. I was glad to have it, though. It took the taste of the pâté out of my mouth.

Never again. I told you I’m not a big fan of pâté. I didn’t even like the taste of the cherry compote. Nope. It started at #20 – it finishes at #20. Hey, I tried!

So, here’s a quote from Mrs. All in WDW … “I don’t get the point of the bun. It’s just a mini hot dog bun.” I didn’t get the point of the mayonnaise. Although, to their credit, the young lady at the kiosk asked me if I wanted it on the “sandwich”.

Funny side-note … she is from Japan, and when she asked me about the mayo, she proudly pointed out to me that her name is Mayo. Hah!

As far as noodles go, the dish was just OK. I think the “pasta” was a little over-cooked, myself. Also, it was just a little bit too bland when it came to teriyaki sauce.