Festival Showplace

The Festival Showplace for the Food and Wine Festival is located in Stage 12.  Stage 12 is not usually open and I hadn't been inside before so I was excited to check it out! For the festival, it is the place to go for the Wine Seminars, the Marketplace, the Star Lounge, and the Wine Seller/Festival Gift Shop!

Wine Seminars
The wine seminars take place on the Showplace Stage.  We attempted to get into the Buena Vista Carneros Wine Seminar but just barely missed the line cut off.  The way it works for these seminars is you line up outside Stage 12 past where they have a ticket counter set up.  You need to get in line an hour before the seminar begins which is when they start selling tickets.  I suggest you show up early for this (at least 15-30 minutes) because they only have so many seats.  Make sure you have your ID so you can prove you are 21 or older.  The tickets for the seminar are only one dollar!  

Taste of California Marketplace

At the Marketplace, you can order some tapas sized dishes, wine, beer, or soda.  Here are some of the dishes you can try:

I tried the Santa Rosa Pear Salad which was good but didn't have enough pears or other toppings and my fiance tried the Marketplace Slider which he enjoyed. We also tried the Beer Battered Halibut which I thought was delicious!  We also got a glass of the Chalone Chardonnay which I liked but came in a thimble sized glass that wasn't enough for the price.

My favorite was the Ghiradelli Chocolate Profiterole.  It was a good sized dessert and satisfied my sweet tooth!

It was fun to try the different Marketplace items and I look forward to going back for some more halibut and dessert!

Star Lounge

This Lounge is located in the corner of the Festival Showplace.  They have a good drink menu complete with beer, wine, and even margaritas!

We tried the Festival-Inspired Margarita made with Alma de Agave Tequila and drank it at one of the lounge tables.  Since the lounge is next to the Marketplace, you can grab a snack to go with your drink. 

Also in Stage 12 is the Wine Seller & Festival Gift Shop.  There was a lot of cool merchandise in there that I took pictures of so I'll save these for my next post!

I thought that since these posts are about the Food and Wine festival it'd be fun to end each post with a picture of a Disney character who loves to cook! 

Today's character is Kronk from Emporor's New Groove!  He loves to cook and he really appreciates good food!

Who is your favorite Disney character chef?  Feel free to comment and let me know which character you want to see in the next Food and Wine Festival post!