If the humidity and crowds at the parks haven’t told you yet, it’s summer at Disney World.

We are looking forward to a lot of things this summer at Disney World like the start of EPCOT’s International Food and Wine Festival, which starts July 27th. But that’s not the only festival to enjoy this summer in Disney World. We now have NEW details on an event that is happening at Disney Springs soon and you’re going to want to make sure you know these info when planning your visit!

This year, Disney Springs is once again hosting the Flavors of Florida festival presented by CORKCICLE. During the event, you can enjoy cuisine inspired by the Sunshine State. The event runs from July 1st through August 13th, and over 30 restaurants and shops all around Disney Springs will showcase limited-time dishes and drinks during this time.

We’ve got a FULL LIST of the eats and drinks coming, and details about special culinary demonstrations that’ll be available too. But we were also invited by Disney to get a sneak peek of the event and now we’re sharing all those details with you!

First up, we had the opportunity to visit Wine Bar George to learn about what items they will be adding to the menu for the Flavors of Florida event. We were able to try the Frozen Old Fashioned which is made with DOLE Whip Orange and George Dickel 8-Year-Old Tennesse Whiskey. (We actually saw this offered in 2022 as well though it was made with a different whiskey and featured orange bitters back then.)

This had a VERY strong whiskey flavor but the DOLE Whip Orange did a decent job balancing it out. Just be warned — if you don’t like whiskey, this will not be something you’ll want to try!

If you’re looking to grab something special to go with that drink, Wine Bar George will be offering a twist on their classic Buratta. During Flavors of Florida, you’ll be able to grab the Dicuru Burrata which uses Florida-sourced ingredients. You can hear master sommelier, George Miliotes speak about the dish below and where each ingredient comes from.

We’re at the Flavors of Florida media event in Disney Springs! Here’s George from Wine Bar George explaining how Florida grown their Burrata is. Take a listen! #mediaevent #disneyeats pic.twitter.com/HzXu9v2wRW

— Disney Food Blog (@DisneyFoodBlog) June 20, 2023

The Dicuru Burrata is paired with Tomatoes from The Villages Grown, Belle Glade Corn, and Olde Hearth Sourdough Bread featuring ingredients sourced in Florida. We thought this dish was flavorful and fresh. The bread was toasted well and the tomatoes were absolutely delicious! If you love Burratta, we think you should DEFINITELY add this one to your list.

Here’s a look at that Burrata from Wine Bar George! #mediaevent #disneyeats pic.twitter.com/yyc6bBRWK6

— Disney Food Blog (@DisneyFoodBlog) June 20, 2023

As we mentioned briefly above, during the Flavors of Flordia event, there will be culinary demonstrations with chefs and owners of many Disney Springs restaurants. We were able to experience one with celebrated chef José Andrés and his Jaleo team.

We were able to hear from Chef Andres about some of the dishes Jaleo will be adding for the event including Gambas Gabardina, Jamon Serrano con Melon, and more. We were also able to watch chefs from Jaleo cook a beloved dish at their restaurant — Paella.

While this event did take place inside due to weather, the other demonstrations this summer will be located in Waterview Park at Disney Springs.

To conclude the event, Chef Andres invited Chef Georg Paulussen, Chef James Petrakis, Master Sommelier George Miliotes, Steve Lewis, and Chef Art Smith to join him as these are some of the individuals who will be leading the culinary demonstrations this summer.

Learn More About The Culinary Demonstrations Coming Soon Here

Next, we had the opportunity to ask Disney Springs Vice President, Matt Simon, more about the process of the Flavors of Florida event and how each dish was chosen for each restaurant.

Simon shared, “Really intentionally, we allowed the chefs to create. All we asked if that they represented the taste and flavors of Florida and beyond that to use their culinary expertise, which we are so proud of all of our chefs here. We are incredibly represented by great chefs like Art Smith, James from Polite Pig… those are local, true chefs who are operating these restaurants and are involved. So that dish created by that chef is so important. And it is a taste of the flavor of Florida.”

Finally, we headed over to The Polite Pig to try two items they will be adding to their menu for the Flavors of Florida event.

Starting on July 1st, you can order the Key West Pink Shrimp Ceviche and the St. Augustine Bacon Old Fashioned.

The Key West Pink Shrimp Ceviche features Smoked Melon, Shishito Peppers, Local Tomato Vinaigrette, and Local Hot Honey. The smoked melon was a HIT for us with this dish and it added such a unique flavor. The shrimp were large and flavorful and paired really well with the tomatoes and corn.

Up next was the St. Augustine Bacon Old Fashioned which includes St. Augustine Florida Straight Bourbon with Local Petal Co. Honey, Angostura, and Orange Bitters finished with a Candied Bacon, Orange, and Cherry Garnish.

It had an extremely strong bourbon taste with a sweet twist thanks to the honey and candied bacon. If you enjoy old fashions, you’ll want to swing by The Polite Pig to order this one!

This St. Augustine Bacon Old Fashioned is a Flavors of Florida menu item at Polite Pig! It’s St. Augustine Florida straight bourbon with Local Petal Co. honey, angostura and orange bitters. Finished with a candied bacon, orange, and cherry garnish! #mediaevent #disneyeats pic.twitter.com/SRHPjYxuSj

— Disney Food Blog (@DisneyFoodBlog) June 21, 2023

During Flavors of Florida, guests can stop by the Disney Springs Welcome Center (or any participating location listed below) for an event guide. That makes for a fun souvenir and guide to the event!

With over 60 new items coming, there could be something for everyone in your group to enjoy. Just remember these won’t be around forever — the event only lasts through August 13th so you don’t want to miss out!

Click Here for a Full List of Items Coming to the Flavors of Florida Event

We’ll keep an eye out for more updates about Flavors of Florida and share those with you. For more Disney Springs updates, click here for a recipe that’ll help you make an iconic dessert from a Disney Springs spot at home!

 

What are you most looking forward to about this event? Let us know in the comments below. 

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. We were invited by Disney World to attend their media preview of the Flavors of Florida event. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ