Hanami at the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival 2014
The Hanami Outdoor Kitchen debuted at the 2013 Epcot Flower and Garden Festival and return this year with a new menu. The only item that made a return was the Frushi, fresh fruit sushi.
Hanami Menu
- Frushi – Fresh Seasonal Fruit with Coconut Rice served with Raspberry Sauce and Sprinkled with Toasted Coconut and Whipped Cream on the side (Vegetarian)
- Temaki Hand Roll – Sliced Panko Fried Chicken, Curry Sauce, Rice and Pickled Julienne Carrots wrapped with Nori
- Hanami Sushi – Trio of Salmon, Scallop and Beef topped Rice Balls served atop a Shiso Violet Sauce (TryIt!)
- Japanese Popped Rice Cake – Japanese puffed Rice Cakes with Green Tea Whipped Cream, sweet Azuki Red Bean, White Chocolate and Raspberry Sauce (Vegetarian)
- Kirin Beer
- Pineapple Paradise with Yuzu Slushi – Frozen blend of Sweet sake, Pineapple Juice and Cream flavored with a hint of Yuzu Citrus Juice
- Orange Mango Slushi – Frozen blend of Nigori Sake, Mango and Orange Juice
- Dasani Bottled Water
We couldn’t resist trying nearly everything on the menu. We did pass on the Frushi since we had tried it last year.
Both of these drinks were delicious! We were torn as to which one was our favorite. For those who like Piña Coladas, you’ll love the Pineapple Paradise. It sweet but not too sweet. The Orange Mango Slushie had a nice balance of orange and mango. If you don’t like mangos, still give this a try. You might find you love it.
The Hanami Sushi was good, but not great. It just didn’t stand out. The sushi and sashimi in Tokyo Dining is much better.
The Temaki Hand Roll was sliced panko fried chicken, curry sauce, rice and pickled julienne carrots wrapped in Nori. This was our least favorite item. The chicken was dry and it didn’t have the flavor we had hoped for.
This dish was a nice ending to all of the savory foods. The best part was definitely the green tea whipped cream. It was slightly sweet. You can almost never go wrong with raspberry sauce. It always as a nice complexity to desserts. Most of the sweetness came from the white chocolate that was on the top of the rice cake which is much needed. For those who’ve never had a rice cake, it almost has a staleness to it and the white chocolate and green tea whipped cream really help to balance that out.
Have you tried the menu items at Hanami? Tell us about your experience!
Don’t forget to pick up the DiningatDisney.com’s Guide to the 2014 Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival! On sale now for just $4.99!
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