{"id":163140,"date":"2026-02-20T22:30:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-20T22:30:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/163140\/"},"modified":"2026-02-20T22:30:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T22:30:10","slug":"rating-springs-theme-park-food-fest-eats-with-attractions-blogger-jon-self","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/163140\/","title":{"rendered":"Rating spring\u2019s theme park food-fest eats with attractions blogger Jon Self"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"UniversalUniversal Orlando Mardi Gras Credit: Seth Kubersky<\/p>\n

From their earliest days, eating inside theme parks revolved around corn dogs, churros and other deep-fired fair food designed to please simple palates. But in his recent wide-ranging interview with journalist Graham Bensinger, former Disney CEO Michael Eisner credited improved food (along with avant-garde architecture) with attracting upscale East Coast audiences who had previously dismissed Orlando\u2019s offerings as only for children.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The effects of the dining and drinking revolution Eisner launched decades ago will be especially obvious this weekend, when adult theme park fans will have three different food-focused festivals to choose from across the town\u2019s major resorts.<\/p>\n

Whether you\u2019re headed over to EPCOT for the finale of the annual International Festival of Arts<\/a> \u2014 which is making way for the International Flower & Garden Festival<\/a>\u2019s debut in only two weeks \u2014 or enjoying the ongoing Universal Mardi Gras International Flavors of Carnival <\/a>or SeaWorld Seven Seas Food Festival<\/a> (continuing through April 4 and May 17, respectively), there are far more notable noshes on offer across the parks than even my seasoned stomach can sort through.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why this week I\u2019ve turned to theme park food blogger Jon Self for some alimentary assistance. Once an Adidas-sponsored athlete who traveled the world playing tennis, Self was a theologically moderate Protestant minister preaching in Illinois when COVID hit, and he began converting his frequent visits to Orlando from vacations to a vocation.<\/p>\n

\"\"SeaWorld Seven Seas Food Festival Credit: Seth Kubersky<\/p>\n

Freelancing for online outlets like Touring Plans and Attractions Magazine (which I also contribute to), as well as Main Street Magic and Pixie Vacations, Self has carved a niche for himself by writing comprehensive opening day taste-tests of Central Florida theme park food festivals.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A frequent guest on theme park podcasts, Self jokes that hosts tell him that he talks just as passionately about food and the value of food and what people should get as he does about your faith. And while we both attend media previews, Self goes the extra mile by buying and biting every single new or significantly updated menu item, in order to fairly evaluate what actual customers will be consuming.<\/p>\n

To complete such epic challenges of culinary criticism, Self employs a personalized rubric that includes elements such as flavor, portion size and creativity, or \u201ccan I make this at home just as good, [or] can I go to Publix and pick it up?\u201d On that last metric, Self says \u201cthe Festival of the Arts is all about creativity, which they usually are successful with,\u201d although he admits a few items are \u201cInstagram-worthy and horrible to eat.\u201d SeaWorld, on the contrary, \u201chas decided to play it safe this year,\u201d while Universal strikes a middle ground by retreating somewhat from the sprawl of several years ago, but still adding exciting new live-fire cooking demonstrations around the park.<\/p>\n

\"\"SeaWorld Seven Seas Food Festival Credit: Seth Kubersky<\/p>\n

When it comes to quality of execution, Self says it\u2019s a thin line, but Universal Orlando \u201cjuggles it the best,\u201d claiming that SeaWorld is too inconsistent because they don\u2019t have enough on-stage kitchen capacity and rely on bringing food from the back. EPCOT also uses some third-party vendors (such as Japan\u2019s Mitsukoshi), which Self says \u201cleads to inconsistency regarding pricing and food quality.\u201d <\/p>\n

Asked to pick his favorites at each of the events, Self suggests Universal\u2019s Chilean Verlasso salmon and Mexican flautas with abuela-approved tomatillo salsa; SeaWorld\u2019s Indian butter chicken and mushroom truffle burger (one of this year\u2019s rotating menu items); and the three-course combination of lobster Caesar salad, peppercorn-crusted steak and dark chocolate torte from The Artist\u2019s Table outside EPCOT\u2019s American Adventure. (\u201cThat\u2019s the slam dunk \u2026 it was off-the-charts good.\u201d)<\/p>\n

Of course, every event has landmines to avoid, and Self\u2019s least-liked item this year was SeaWorld\u2019s \u201cabsolutely terrible\u201d Guinness beer-cheese nachos, which join last year\u2019s much-loathed Reuben egg rolls at the Ireland booth. Vegans only have three plant-based dishes to choose from this year at Universal, and Self says the hyped Jamaican Rasta Pasta \u201chas no flavor, no coconut cream sauce, no nothing, and it\u2019s definitely not Jamaican.\u201d And at EPCOT, Self says the China and Japan locations lagged behind even Italy (IYKYK), with the overpriced purple wagyu bun especially earning his ire.<\/p>\n

\"\"EPCOT International Festival of the Arts<\/p>\n

Last but not least, the elephant in the room is always the cost of these festivals, and Self says the conventional wisdom on value has surprisingly switched, with Disney now offering the lowest average cost on non-discounted dishes. \u201cWe used to joke you could go to EPCOT, spend $50 and still be hungry, [but] they\u2019ve done a better job on prices at EPCOT, with a few exceptions.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

At Universal, annual passholders can buy a $150 gift card for $120, and also get their usual dining discount on top of that, but $17 for a small serving of Finnegan\u2019s fish & chips is still unreasonably steep.\u00a0<\/p>\n

SeaWorld\u2019s booth menus are liable to give you sticker shock, with small dishes running around $12, but a tasting sampler brings the per-item cost down to as little as $5 for annual passholders, making it by far the best bargain if you fully redeem your lanyard. Just keep in mind that SeaWorld has gone cash-free, and operating hours for food booths are frequently subject to change.<\/p>\n

Orlando\u2019s daily dose of what matters. Subscribe to The Daily Weekly.<\/p>\n

Related Stories<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Adoptable\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tWith every treat and every touch, Gaten has opened up a little bit of his heart so far\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"SeaWorld\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tFree to attend with regular park admission\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Rating\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tAdult theme park fans have three food-focused festivals to choose from across the town\u2019s major resorts.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

This article appears in Feb. 18-24, 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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