2010 Disney’s California Food and Wine Festival

The 5th annual Disney’s California Food and Wine Festival returns from April 16 through May 31 this year. It’s a day longer than last year’s Festival, taking advantage of the Memorial Day holiday on May 31. There will be daily events and some new venues this year, though there have been a few changes and even cutbacks in the Signature events. We have more information on the Festival on our web page HERE, which we will be updating as additional information becomes available, and I plan to blog live from the Festival’s opening weekend. You can also visit the official site: http://www.disneyland.com/FoodandWine.

This year’s theme is The Art of Flavor, and one of the new venues is the Festival Artisans area in the Pacific Wharf. There’s not a lot of information on this yet, but the Food and Wine web site describes it as: “local artisans…an array of culinary and wine-inspired crafts, original art, and gourmet home and food products.”

One of the biggest changes will be the addition of the Festival Showplace, which sounds like it will be the new location for just about everything that was at the Golden Vine Winery during previous Festivals. The Showplace is located in Stage 12 of the Hollywood Backlot area, the building that was originally the Hollywood and Dine food court, and has more recently been the Annual Pass Processing Center. Sweet Sundays and culinary demonstrations will be held there, and the Festival Gift Shop and “Wine Sellers” shop will also be located there. The thing I’m most excited about coming to the Festival Showplace, though, is the return of the Taste of California Marketplace, with its menu of tapas-sized Festival food items. There was no Marketplace last year because the restaurant location they had been using for it was in the process of becoming Cocina Cucamonga, so it’s very nice to see that they found a new location for it this year.

There are a lot fewer Signature Events this year, some, like the World Celebration dinners, “Behind the Scenes With”, and Festival Wine Receptions are not returning at all, while others have fewer dates available. The Winemaker Dinners are back at Steakhouse 55 on Friday nights, though there are only four and not six. On one of the off Fridays Steakhouse 55 will be hosting a new offering, the Brewmaster Dinner, featuring a multi-course meal paired with Karl Strauss beers. Napa Rose Cooking School also returns on five different Saturdays, as do the Taste Wine Like an Expert classes (4 classes) and the very popular Sweet Sundays (every Sunday). As of this date, the guest pastry chefs have not yet been announced for Sweet Sundays. Taste Food-Wine-Life also returns, but for only one evening (May 29) instead of two, and surprisingly it also returns with a lower price – $135 instead of $150. Winemaker dinners have held steady at $135 while tickets are up $5 each for the Wine class and Sweet Sundays, at $55 and $70, respectively, and up $25, to $475, for the Napa Rose Cooking School. The Brewmaster dinner is $110. All of these prices include gratuity but not tax.

Another price increase…the wine, beer, and spirits seminars are no longer complimentary, though the price for a wristband is a nominal $1.00, cash only. Wristbands must be purchased in the queue line. It appears that the cooking and culinary demos are still free.

Other returning Festival offerings are the Festival Wine and Beer Walks, where guests can sample different wines and beers. The Jr. Chef program for younger guests will also return. In addition to the Taste of California Marketplace, special Festival food items will be available at many restaurants at Disney’s California Adventure, and selected Disneyland Resort restaurants will be offering a special prix-fixe menu.

Tickets for the Signature events go on sale on February 16, but, as reported on the Disney Parks Blog, tickets for some events went on sale to Annual Passholders on February 4. Through February 15, AP holders may purchase these tickets at discounted prices. Visit http://www.disneyland.com/ap for details.

Hope to see you at the Festival!

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Laura Gilbreath is a native of San Diego, CA. She has been making the trek up Interstate 5 to Disneyland since she was a small child and terrified of talking tikis and hitchhiking ghosts. She and her husband Lee enjoy trips to Disneyland and Walt Disney World, as well as sailings on the Disney Cruise Line.

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One Reply to “2010 Disney’s California Food and Wine Festival”

  1. Do you have any details on the Jr. Chef program? Primarily, when it is offered, what the target age group is, how it works, etc.? I’m having trouble finding details other than it exists. Our next trip happily corresponds with the Festival and I hope to involve our sons as best we can in some events.

    Laura replies: In the past it has been offered on weekends only. Target age group seems to be about ages 5-11 – the kids have to be old enough to take pretty basic cooking instructions. How it works…The kids are in a separate area with several tables, though they are away from their parents. There is a “fence” around it so that parents can be close. There are a couple of adult cast member helpers per table, and then one who is the “head chef” who oversees everything and gives direction. The kids are assigned different tasks to help mix up a batch of cookies, and at the end each is given a pre-baked cookie or treat. There’s a special celebrity character guest, too, but I won’t spoil that. 🙂 The kids all get a paper chef hat to wear, which they can take home if they wish. I haven’t seen the event full, but they have space for about 18-24 kids.