We spent the afternoon and evening at the Festival yesterday. It was super hot and that curtailed my appetite.
I tried the corned beef dish at Flavors from Fire, and it was ridiculously salty. I like salty food so if I think it's too salty, it's over the top. The meat itself has too much salt, but the cheese and chips are also very salty. I don't recommend this dish. I did very much like the smoky porter here though.
At Coastal Eats, I tried the crab cake and scallop dish. The scallops were superb! Best thing I had at the Festival yesterday. I didn't care for the crab cakes though. They were bland and just not tasty.
We went to Craft Beers where I loved the air-conditioning and a Western beer flight. The Passion Wheat was especially good.
I tried the spicy apple margarita and didn't care for it since it was too sweet. The heat in it was enjoyable, but the heavy sweetness in the apple flavoring was way too much. Last year's jalapeño margarita was my favorite thing. This apple one was a big disappointment.
I had the brisket from Hops & Barley. This was a dish I loved last year, and while this year's is as good tasting, the portion size seemed much smaller. Likewise, the pork belly from Brazil. It's delicious, but it was definitely smaller than the one I was served last year.
I bought a sampler and used tickets on the too-sweet margarita plus the Ritzy Lychee from China and the caipirinha from Brazil. The Ritzy Lychee was very good. The booze is poured into lychee juice in front of you and it was a healthy amount. The caipirinha was tart and delicious, almost like an alcoholic frozen lemonade, but the serving size was disappointing.
Last thing I tried was the creme brûlée in France. It was fantastic! The tart raspberry jam worked beautifully with the sweet custard.
Overall, this is the first time I've been disappointed with the Festival offerings, especially the wine. The pours are too small for the $6-$7 price tag on most of them. If they were priced lower, I wouldn't mind the small amount. Or vice versa. It's too little wine for what they are charging. And that's a shame IMO. It's a food AND wine Festival.