Our Comprehensive Review of Busch Gardens Williamsburg's 2022 Food & Wine Festival

This herby meat lollipop won Best in Booth. The lamb was tender and the spice provided a slow burn that grew, as we ate. This dish is a great choice, if you have a free pass member voucher, given the quality and price.

We preferred the flavors to the texture of this dessert. The cake was dry and crumbly, but we enjoyed the dark chocolate and coconut shell. The raspberry filling provided a nice pop of sweet, as well.

This savory entrée was one of two very good sausages at this year’s the event. The banger boasted a hint of sweetness mixed with subtle spices, and paired well with the ginger beer. The caramelized onions completed the dish nicely.

The grilled pineapple was a surprise. While we could taste the smoke, unlike previous years it didn’t read as “dirty grill.” We also enjoyed the coconut, but not all of us detected the advertised caramel sauce.

The sauce was as herby and lovely as before. Unfortunately, however, the admittedly flavorful beef was chewy this year.

This Best in Booth winner was the tastiest version of this sausage that we have ever been served. It was warm and offered lots of spicy flavor. The textures were great, as well. Our only complaint was that the peppers seemed to have been sitting too long and had become a bit mushy.

The cheesecake was both Best in Booth and Best in Show (Sweet). We loved the creamy and tangy base, the fresh bananas, the crunchy praline, and the sweet rum caramel sauce. All of the flavors stood out and worked together. We only wished the cheesecake, itself, had been thicker.

The beignets were flaky and warm, and didn’t taste like funnel cake. The sauce was lightly sweet and did not overwhelm the fried dough. Overall, this was a fantastic dessert.

This New Orleans staple has improved since the last Food & Wine Festival, but still scored lower than most other savory dishes. There were hints of spice and flavor and it had more color than in the past. It didn’t seem saucy enough, however, and our serving had very little meat. Bizarrely, we loved the Jambalaya served to us at February’s Mardi Gras event, and we wished this version was more like that one.

We also enjoyed this classic sandwich more than in the past. The flavors were balanced, there was plenty of meat, and the bread was nicely toasted and warm. Our one criticism was that slaw didn’t taste particularly “Cajun.”

This colorful salad was refreshing and boasted crunchy vegetables, plenty of feta cheese, and a great vinaigrette. Our only minor complaint was that the dish was a little too watery.

These stuffed grape leaves were once again disappointing. The filling was bland and mushy, and the tzatziki sauce overwhelming.

My (Nicole) Pick surprised me more than anyone else. Despite looking like a boring and possibly bland side dish in the description, the gigantes plaki was actually light, warm, and herby. The beans were well cooked and the tomato provided the right amount of acid to the dish.

This pita sandwich once again won Best in Booth and Best in Show (Savory). The “burger” was thick, the pita was warm, the vegetables were cool, and the sauce was creamy. All of the flavors came through and worked together perfectly. The orzo was well cooked and offered bright, contrasting flavors.

These Greek doughnuts were nicely prepared and not too greasy. The sauce was sweet and cinnamony without being overwhelming.

The Spanakopita was buttery and flakey with a flavorful filling and a lovely, creamy sauce.

We were all disappointed by these croquettes: they were overcooked and the sauce tasted more like sour cream than tzatziki. One disagreement among the tasting team was over the intensity of the cheese flavors. While some members thought it was fine, others couldn’t taste it over the burned breading.

This dish didn’t work for us. While the sauce was creamy, it was also incredibly salty, probably because the ham overwhelmed the other ingredients. We could taste the pineapple chunks, but the macadamia nut crust was essentially flavorless. Overall, even the tasters who like Hawaiian pizza, which seems to be a similar concept, thought that the flavors didn’t work well together in this mac & cheese.

This watery dessert did not have the consistency of a mousse. While we could taste both the pineapple and coconut, the latter was not toasted. The group was particularly disappointed with this dessert, which was a favorite in the past, and the low scores reflect that fall from grace.

This controversial dish was Renee’s Pick. Some tasters thought it had a nice texture and clever presentation, offering a cohesive package. Others found it very salty with insufficient glaze and burned rice. Renee found it to be a very successful and delicious use of spam, and noticeably improved from previous years.

This entrée was awarded Best in Booth for its fresh tuna and seaweed salad. In fact, everyone agreed the latter was the tastiest we had ever been served at BGW. The wasabi was a bit overpowering and the crunchy wonton shell was considered the weakest part of the dish, however.

This classic Italian dessert tasted the same as it always has at Marco Polo’s Marketplace, and we would still prefer a tangier filling. We were surprised, however, at the inconsistency. We bought two and one barely had any chocolate drizzle and the other had very few chocolate chips.

This antipasto was fresh and light. The herbs and balsamic shone and the tomato really stood out. We would have liked a stronger cheese, however, as it seemed to get lost among the other flavors.

In a stunning reversal, this creamy side dish won accolades from the team, even snagging Best in Booth. It was well prepared and balanced. All of the flavors came through from the earthy mushroom to the salty prosciutto. It even looked more appealing this year with large pieces of meat and tons of fresh cheese.

Under no circumstances order this plate of mushy, beige goo, which had the dubious honor of the lowest score of the day. It tasted nothing like alfredo. In fact, it was unaccountably sweet. There were hints of olive and parmesan, but nothing else would indicate that it was meant to be a savory pasta dish with sundried tomatoes or spinach.

The amazing pickapeppa sauce remained slightly spicy and completely wonderful, making this perennial favorite Zachary’s Pick. The score was a little lower than usual, because the fritters we were served were a bit doughy and may have been undercooked.

This new addition to the booth (and spiritual successor the tragically departed Spanish Empanadas) was generally well-received by the tasters. Although the meat filling read more Mexican than Jamaican to us, the dish offered great contrasts between the warm and spicy pastry and the cool and sweet coconut sauce.

This spicy sandwich won Best in Booth with its jerk flavors, crunchy slaw, and sweet mango salsa. We would have scored it a bit higher, if the fruit had been juicier and stood up to the spice a little better.

We were a little disappointed in this dessert. It wasn’t as dense as in the past, tasted mostly like store-bought pound cake, and seemed to lack the rum and brown sugar flavors we enjoyed in previous years.

This plant-based dish was Belsaas’ Pick, because it offers a meat alternative that rivals any meat-based item at the festival. The patty was spicy and paired well with the crunchy slaw. Our only criticism was that the bao bun was a bit gooey and perhaps had been in the steamer for too long.

Perhaps the most controversial dessert at the event, the salty and sweet dish was Gavin’s Pick. The ice cream was thick and creamy and tasted strongly of matcha, but the soy overpowered the dish and the sesame cookie lacked the sweetness we had expected.

This inoffensive dumpling was paired with a tangy sauce, but skimped on the meat filling.

The spicy sauce in this oddly presented sushi dish overwhelmed the rice, but the tuna, itself, was well prepared.

This flavors in this taco were at best inoffensive and certainly bland. The tortilla seemed stale and the meat was cold and chewy. We could taste almost none of the spices or herbs. As a result, it was the second lowest scoring item at the event.

This thick mousse is an obvious replacement for the popular Guinness Mousse from the defunct Ireland booth. The mousse delivered the promised heat and there were hints of cinnamon in the horchata-flavored cream topping. We would have liked a bit more sweetness, however, to balance the spice.

This perennial favorite was once again awarded Best in Booth. It was not, unfortunately, a slam dunk, as it was not as good as in the past. It still boasted a great combination of creamy and crunchy textures, and the tortilla was soft and warm. But there was perhaps too much slaw and it needed more flavor.

The flavors on this entrée were very mild and the meat was chewy and dry. The rice was cold and incredibly bland (even for rice).

The chicken version of the bulgogi won Best in Booth, because of its tender texture and slightly stronger flavors. The rice was the same flavorless and cold starch that was served with the other bulgogi.

The well-cooked meat had some spice and we could taste the onion and cabbage in the slaw. That said, like everything else at this booth, it was still bland and completely failed to live up to the description promising “spicy chili BBQ.”

We have watched this dish slowly improve over the years, and in 2022 it finally emerged as Best in Booth. The hushpuppies were neither over- or under- cooked, and the flavors all came through to form a pleasing sweet and salty mix.

This raw bar classic was a new addition to the Food & Wine Festival. While we did enjoy the bright and vinegary sauce and thought the preparation was acceptable, we were surprised to be served prepackaged cocktail sauce at a food event. Moreover, we found the price to be very steep for just a single oyster.

We once again enjoyed the subtle sherry and crab flavors in this creamy soup. While there was a nice portion of meat, we thought there was too much oil on top.