Bauernmarkt Review Epcot Flower and Garden Festival

We continue from Primavera Kitchen.

No matter how many years go by, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to spell Bauernmarkt correctly. I have to copy/paste it every time it shows up. You’ll find the Farmer’s Market to the left of Germany and the Snow White Meet and Greet.

All four food items return this year, while the Apfelschaumwein(sp) is new, along with the Bitburger Premium Pils and M.I.A. Brewing Hugo beers.

This is just about the full haul.

Potato Pancakes with House-made Apple Sauce — $4.50

This was a bit of a disappointment with just one potato pancake arriving, despite the plural used in the title.

Here’s the version from three years ago, which I gave an 8/10 on taste. I think you can see how much better the chutney looks compared to what they’re currently serving. This year, it might as well have been Mott’s Apple Sauce squeezed on top of a small bland circle of potato that didn’t benefit from any onion flavor whatsoever. I’m guessing that’s why it’s the one dish that isn’t pictured on the menu. Very sad.

Flavor: 2/10

Value: 2/10

Potato Pancake with Caramelized Ham, Onions, and Herb Sour Cream – $4.75

I enjoyed this one just about as much as last year’s, though it does arrive with less stuff on top. The ham is meaty, the onions are sweet and expertly grilled, and the herb-y sour cream is cool and refreshing. I think it’s worth getting, particularly considering that it’s priced lower than the majority of the items at other Outdoor Kitchens

Flavor: 6/10

Value: 6/10

Toasted Pretzel Bread topped with Black Forest Ham, and Melted Gruyère Cheese – $5.50

While far from our most attractive-looking dish, this baked-potato-looking hunk of pretzel dough was served hot and packed full of melted cheese and delicious ham.

The pretzel bread is soft and chewy with a golden brown, salted crust. What is probably not actually Gruyère melts perfectly with its usual nutty quality that complements the meaty saltiness of the ham well. It’s also a nice “safe” dish.

Taste: 8/10

Value: 8/10

Warm Cheese Strudel with Mixed Berries – $4.50

This is an even better buy now that the delicious Berry Buckle is a thing of the past.

The strudel is restaurant quality – stuffed with a sweet, creamy, rich cheese filling that was complemented nicely by the burst of berry compote on top and a dash of powdered sugar to bring everything together. The crust was light and flaky and did a good job of adding a crispy texture without getting in the way of the main event.

Taste: 9/10

Value: 9/10

Beer Flight with M.I.A. Brewing Hugo, Bitburger Premium Pils, and Stiegl Brewery Radler Zitrone

The M.I.A. Hugo may be a Festival exclusive, or simply one of their other beers re-branded for the Festival. To me, it tasted reminiscent of their 305 Golden Ale with some lemonade and elderflower added, making for a sweet, slightly herbal flavor. I didn’t love it, but it was fun to try as part of the flight, and it may be more to your tastes. I really do miss the days when you could order larger sizes of the beers that you liked. We would typically start with the flight and then each go back and order the souvenir size of whichever we liked best.

The Bitburger Premium Pils is the Eifel brewery’s flagship German pilsner with a lot of corn and bread backed up by grass and honey. It’s easy-drinking and refreshing, particularly as temperatures rise.

The Stiegl Brewery Radler Zitrone is similar to the various Schofferhofer beers that are available around the pavilion most of the year, but I’ll give Disney credit for trying something different for the Festival. At 2.5% ABV, this is basically half lemonade and half hefeweizen, making for a tart lemon soda flavor. It’s among the lightest and most refreshing beers you’ll try at the Festival, but with half as much alcohol as a Budweiser, it isn’t going to pack much of a punch in the six-ounce individual cup, or as part of the flight, which arrives with just four ounces.

Apfelschaumwein: Sparkling Wine and Apple Liqueur – $10

Things may change as the Festival matures, but at least on the first day, our drink was made with about half Berentzen Apple Liqueur and half sparkling wine, which was just fine with me considering a shot of the stuff inside the pavilion costs more. The liqueur makes the drink taste strongly of sugary artificial apples, with the sparkling wine helping to cut almost all of the unpleasant syrupiness (not a word), while adding some effervescence and a pleasant, crisp quality to the sip. Even if they go easier on the apple liqueur, the drink is still pure booze, and it’s less expensive than a lot of the lower quality options. I’d give it a whirl if you like apples, but be prepared for a very strong apple flavor coming through.

Overall, Bauernmarkt (if that’s how you spell it) is one of the stronger Outdoor Kitchens at the Festival and most people should consider a stop. If there’s something that you’ve enjoyed in the past, then it’s probably still here, too.

Refreshment Outpost and Lotus House are up next.