Italy booths at theme park food festivals often disappoint, but does the Busch Gardens Food & Wine Festival change that? We review the Rotini Puttanesca.
Italy booths do not have an excellent reputation at theme park food festivals in the Orlando area. The one in the World Showcase area of Epcot draws criticism from most professional food reporters. Over at Universal Studios Florida, the use of Louie’s Italian Restaurant during food festivals does not receive high marks. However, our recent visit to the Seven Seas Food Festival at SeaWorld Orlando showed promise for an Italian booth.
So, what about at the Food & Wine Festival at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay? This event runs on select days (Fridays through Sundays) until May 18. The Italy Cabin sells Chicken Marsala and Deconstructed Tiramisu. We have tried both of those previously. Both were just okay items. The third item at the Italy Cabin at the Food & Wine Festival is the Rotini Puttanesca. Our previous experience with his dish was unremarkable. Still, we went to try it again.
Rotini Puttanesca at Food & Wine Festival at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay – $9.99
The menu description for the Rotini Puttanesca indicates guests will receive a “Traditional Napoli dish with Kalamata olives, capers, and tomatoes simmered with herbs, served over pasta.” This dish qualifies as vegetarian.
However, this Food & Wine Festival item looks like it sounds from the menu description. Still, the sauce does resemble Puttanesca sauce, which passes the test for an appropriate sauce for a theme park festival event.
Nevertheless, we chatted with guests who expressed that their entrée tasted like mush. We continued that conversation by talking about how the food at the SeaWorld Seven Seas Food Festival was superior to the Food & Wine Festival food. So far, the food on our tour around Busch Gardens has not been as good as in previous weeks.
Food & Wine Visit
On a positive note, the olives have a distinct kick with this dish. However, we are unsure whether it works or most guests will enjoy it. During our most recent trip, this was our weakest item at the Food & Wine Festival. When you add in the fact that many guests can make something similar at home, this item should not be on a priority list for trying at this food festival. The pasta we had clearly had been sitting too long, so it had become a bit mushy. In addition, the pasta tasted a bit greasy as well.
Sadly, this pasta dish left a bad taste in our mouths. After this, we needed the apple cobbler at the United States of America Cabin. Overall, we enjoyed the food at the Food & Wine Festival this year. However, we will not try the Rotini Puttanesca again. We will have one more food review from the Food & Wine Festival at Busch Gardens tomorrow.
For more information about theme park-related subjects, visit MSM News. As always, eat like you mean it!
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