Northern Bloom – 2018 Epcot Flower and Garden Festival
As part of our 2018 Epcot Flower and Garden Festival coverage, we bring you the Outdoor Kitchen review for Northern Bloom. Located at the Canada Pavilion, this Outdoor Kitchen features fare from our neighbors to the north.
Seared Scallops – $6.50
Served with French Green Beans, Butter Potatoes, Brown Butter Vinaigrette, and Applewood-smoked Bacon
This was one of our top 8 favorite items for the entire festival. Disney is generally very good at preparing scallops and this dish is excellent. The unique twist on this dish vs other scallops we’ve had in the past was a wonderfully smokey taste. The scallops themselves were cooked perfectly. The butter vinaigrette poured over the dish gave everything a light, buttery taste that lead to a nicely produced dish.
Beef Tenderloin Tips – $6.75
Served with Mushroom Bordelaise Sauce and Whipped Potatoes with Garden Vegetables
Well, Canada giveth, and Canada taketh away. While the scallops above proved to be a top dish of the festival, the beef tenderloin tips were forgettable. The beef and whipped potatoes were dry and the whole dish was a bit unimaginative. The scallops look like an even better deal when sitting next to this dish.
Griddled Maple Pound Cake – $4.50
Served with Warm Peach Compote and Sweet Corn Gelato
Forget the ingredients listed above because every element of this dessert tastes like one thing: kettle corn. The cake tastes like kettle corn, the gelato tastes like kettle corn, every bite tastes like kettle corn. That’s not a bad thing either. The pound cake was served nice and warm and if you happen to be a big fan of kettle corn, this might be worth a purchase.
Maple Popcorn Shake – $11.75
Served with Crown Royal Maple Whiskey
Another item at Northern Bloom that made our favorites list, this shake is one of the best we’ve probably ever had. The shake is perfect for those who enjoy maple, as the Maple Whiskey is present in every sip. Topped off with popcorn, this delicious shake is worth a purchase.
Unibroue Beer Flight
Unibroue Maudite Amber Ale, Unibroue A Tout Le Monde Saison, Unibroue Ephemere White Ale
Working left to right, we have the Saison first. Overall, it’s a solid saison with some fruitiness to it that we enjoyed. A decent white ale was next. It didn’t wow us and would probably earn a pass on its own. Malt and caramel flavors are present with the Maudite. It was an enjoyable, dark beer that paired nicely with the other flavors found at Northern Bloom.