2024 EPCOT Festival of the Holidays: Best Picks for Kids

Visiting any EPCOT Festival with kids brings its own spin compared to the adults-only experience. It can be a lot of fun, but for sampling the Festival food you might want a bit of strategy. You can probably figure out that anything from the Cookie Stroll is a winner, but here are our picks for Festival of the Holidays dishes that will pass the sniff test with kids. (Or picky eaters who aren’t kids. We know you’re out there.)

Before we get to a list of specific dishes, we already mentioned the Cookie Stroll, but just in case … did you know that most of the cookies are only $3.25, and you get to COLLECT STAMPS?! And you get a prize at the end. Great for little kids and adult kids. Trust us. You can see our review of all the cookies here: Review: 2024 Cookie Stroll at Festival of the Holidays

Less Adventurous Picks

Some of the choices below are just a tiny bit adventurous, but remember that you can always ask for sauce or toppings to be left off or placed on the side. This list is (kind of) sorted from most to least “safe”.

Montanara | Tuscany Holiday Kitchen – $9.00

A large serving of fried pizza dough with pomodoro sauce, parmesan, and basil. We didn’t even taste the basil – that’s how light it is! A top pick for the picky because we think everyone loves fried dough. If you somehow have a pizza hater, maybe reconsider our recommendation here.

Potato Latkes | L’Chaim Holiday Kitchen – $4.75

It’s fried potatoes and drizzle! The drizzle is a lightly dilly, creamy sauce (think sour cream), that you can order on the side for the super-picky. For adventurers, order the smoked salmon version ($6.25) and ask for the smoked salmon on the side.

Cheese Fondue in a Bread Bowl | Bavaria Holiday Kitchen – $8.50

It’s bread! It’s cheese! And you can eat it with your fingers! (We all know eating with your fingers makes everything taste better.) You don’t have to make them eat the veggies, but they’re quite tasty.

Beef Bourguignon | Yukon Holiday Kitchen – $7.00

It’s delicious every year, and it’s made our Best $50 budget sampler in the past. Beef + gravy + potatoes keeps it simple and makes for happy everyone. Unless they are not into “touching foods” in which case this is not your dish.

Slow-roasted Turkey | American Holiday Table – $6.25

The most American Thanksgiving dinner ever. There’s nothing shocking on this plate; it’s familiar standards that are prepared well and taste very good.

Anything from Holiday Hearth Desserts. It’s all good!

This might seem like cheating because it’s all dessert, but you’ve got real tables, you can see Santa, Baby Care is right there, & restrooms. If you’re looking for a recommendation other than “everything”, try the Salted Caramel Spaceship Earth Cookie for $5.50. Very sweet, very cute.

More Adventurous Picks

Remember what we said about modifications? The dishes below might need those to make the bar with your kids. And for the truly picky they might still be right out. But if your littles are willing to do a little exploration, these are some good palate expanders.

Brown Sugar and Mustard-glazed Ham Sliders | Favorites of Festivals Past – $6.00

Ask to leave off the apple coleslaw, and you’ve got a sweet & savory ham sandwich that’s so good! Adventurers can put the coleslaw on or ask for it on the side, it was delish.

Pork Schnitzel | Bavaria Holiday Kitchen – $6.75

For a bit more adventure, this is almost like a chicken tender (pork is the other chicken, right?) & the mushroom sauce is hearty. Ask for the tangy cabbage left off to step it down.

Reuben Croquettes | Favorites of Festivals Past – $6.00

Tastes just like a Reuben, but fried and you can eat it with your fingers! The sauerkraut could be a deal-breaker, but we think that the fried ball presentation could have even the finicky enjoying these little bites that pop with flavor.

Bonus pick: Coquito milkshake and liege waffle from Connections (on the header). Yes, we know, desserts are a shoo-in … but we think you should try them anyway.

What will your kids love at the Festival? Let us know in the comments!