Friday night we participated in the Pre- Race Taste Party at Hollywood Studios.
I was a little worried when we arrived that it might rain. The sky got dark and it was really windy. Fortunately it did not rain.
I had been to the Pasta in the Parks party before previous races and figured this might be something similar. Since this was the first year for the Pre-Race Taste Party, nobody really knew what to expect. Even the Disney cast members whom I talked to on the phone before I decided to purchase the tickets didn't know anything more than what was on the website. One person told me that it was going to be at the Lights Motor Action stage but we wouldn't be watching a car show ( which I was hoping not to because I don't really get into those car shows) and I had another cast member tell me that we would be watching the car show.
Alas, we gained access to the park at 6:00pm. When we entered Hollywood Studios, guests were all waiting for the annual lighting of the Osborne Spectacle of lights to begin. I had never seen these before, so we decided to stay and watch as well. I couldn't believe all the lights!
This reminded me of being in NYC at Christmas time!
The crowds were pretty thick with people watching the lights, but we finally made it to where the party was.
Since the party was held at Lights, Motor, Action cars set ( which originally came form Disneyland Paris), I believe the party was suppose to have taken on a French theme.
We were greeted by this lovely couple!
The other entertainment included, mimes, jugglers, and characters from Disney's Ratatouille movie.
We got to taste several dishes from the Food and Wine Festival in Epcot.
Florida grass fed Beef Slider : American Pavilion
Seared Mahi Mahi: Singapore
Not picture: Lemongrass Chicken Curry: Singapore
Crispy pork belly: Brazil
Aulani Sunrise featuring Ocean vodka: Hawaii
There were also kettles of black beans and dishes of guacamole. I'm not sure what those two items were suppose to go with, but I was content eating the guacamole right off my plate!
My overall opinion of the Pre-Race Taste Event:
Like I mentioned earlier, I wasn't really sure what to expect since this was the first year this event was put on. I probably wouldn't do this event again if everything stayed the same as it was. Disney is constantly trying to improve upon things, so maybe it will be different next year. The event was lacking any real entertainment factor. Yes, there were "entertainers" walking around, but it would have been nice if there was something to get the audience involved in as a whole. Maybe a DJ, maybe a speaker, maybe have something interactive for us to do. On the plus side, some of the food that we tasted I would not have chosen to try if I had to buy it over in World Showcase, so it was nice that I did get to try some new things. We also enjoyed being at Hollywood Studios for the evening and it was great that we got to watch the lighting of the Christmas lights on this night ( something we've never seen before).
Have you ever seen the Osborne Spectacle of light? Where you one of the runners who got to run through them during the half marathon?
