SeaWorld’s Food Festival Is Seventh Heaven!

If it’s February, it must be time for some food adventures in our theme parks.

Universal opens up its big Mardi Gras Celebration (Feb 4 to Apr 16), Epcot continues the International Festival of the Arts (Jan 13 to Feb 20), and SeaWorld unveils its grand Seven Seas Food Festival.

Of the three, it’s easy to overlook SeaWorld’s offering. The Seven Seas Food Festival is only in its seventh year compared to the Mardi Gras event at Universal Studios, which made its debut in 1995, while Epcot always grabs more attention thanks to Disney’s higher profile.

But the home of Shamu and Co has definitely made itself an appealing option for food festival fans in recent years, and this year’s version, which runs from February 3 to May 7, is potentially the most eye-catching of them all.

What is the Seven Seas Food Festival?

Just to start with, SeaWorld’s event is unashamedly devoted to an exciting array of new food and beverage options from around the world (hence the whole ‘Seven Seas’ theme).

They take the form of a series of kiosks, or Culinary Marketplaces, with regional and national dishes from the likes of Asia, Europe, South America and the Caribbean.

Very much like Epcot’s annual Food & Wine Festival in the autumn, the focus is on innovative regional cuisine accompanied by an enticing array of wines, speciality cocktails and both local and international craft beers.

There is also a strong live entertainment component to the Festival, featuring live concerts each weekend from international artists that cover the spectrum from classic rock to hip hop and country music.

SeaWorld simply calls it “a voyage to stir the soul – and warm the belly!” and it’s hard to disagree, especially as there is no additional charge for all the entertainment.

How does this year’s Seven Seas Festival event shape up?

The 2023 version of the Seven Seas Food Festival runs every Thursday to Sunday, with the food kiosks opening at 11.30am each day and the big-name concerts at 7pm every Saturday and Sunday.

This year’s concert line-up is as follows (with more performers still to be added):

• February 4: En Vogue (R&B)
• February 5: REO Speedwagon (Rock)
• February 11: The Commodores (Funk & Soul)
• February 12: Bee Gees & Beatles tribute bands
• February 18: Collective Soul (Rock)
• February 19: Jerry Rivera (Latin)
• February 25: Don McLean (Folk)
• February 26: Ludacris (Hip Hop)
• March 4: Joey Fatone & Friends (Pop)
• March 26: Eli Young Band (Country)

For the full concert line-up, see this link.

There will be fully 24 different food and drink marketplace locations spread throughout the park, from the Flamecraft Bar next to the Welcome Center to the Mexican Market next to the Wild Arctic attraction.

In all, SeaWorld says there will be more than 200 distinct flavours to sample, with over 50 food items, 75 wine and cocktail selections, and another 75-plus craft brews.

That’s a LOT of things to try, but you don’t need to do them all in one day! Remember that your SeaWorld tickets are good for 14 consecutive days, so that will give you two weekends, or eight days, in which to enjoy all that’s on offer.

Guests can also maximise their tastings with a Festival Tasting Lanyard, which provides a 10-sample lanyard for $70 or a 15-sample lanyard for $85. With individual samples typically ranging from $8-$12, the lanyards represent a significant saving.

What’s new in Seven Seas for 2023?

While quite a few elements are the same from previous years – notably the hugely popular Caribbean Market and the Beer Garden, which was introduced last year – there is also an extensive list of new flavours, plus an all-new sampling experience at the Caribbean Moonshine Tasting booth.

This marketplace will feature:

• Marmalade Mayhem: Orange 80 Proof Moonshine
• Cat 5: Coconut 80 Proof Moonshine
• Passionfruit Prohibition: Passionfruit 80 Proof Moonshine
• Banana Breeze: Banana 80 Proof Moonshine
• PB & C Cannonball: Peanut Butter and Chocolate 80 Proof Moonshine

If that whets your appetite for some serious sampling, SeaWorld has also listed a mouth-watering array of newly-introduced dishes that definitely grab our attention. They are:

• NEW - Parmesan Truffle fries (Mediterranean Market): Grana Padano cheese, fresh parsley and winter white truffle oil
• NEW - Pork Belly Feijoada (Brazilian Market): pork belly and black bean Brazilian stew, garnished with green onions
• NEW - Ropa Vieja (Caribbean Market): 12-hour slow-cooked shredded beef served on top of smashed plantains, garnished with micro cilantro
• NEW - Classic Reuben (All-American Market): thin-sliced pastrami served on marbled rye bread with sauerkraut and Swiss cheese, garnished with a gherkin
• NEW - Italian Beef Arancini (Italian Market): arancini served on top of San Marzano tomato sauce, garnished with fresh basil
• NEW - Strawberry shortcake a la mode (All-American Market): vanilla ice cream served with yellow cake and topped with strawberry glaze
• NEW - Jameson Bread Pudding (Irish Market): Jameson-infused bread pudding topped with Jameson whiskey anglaise sauce

We already have our eyes firmly on the Sweet Sips marketplace with its decadent array of cupcakes, as well as the speciality cocktails of the Salted Rims booth (can’t wait to try the Jalapeno Margarita!) and the new Impossible Jambalaya from the Gulf Coast Market, which sounds ideal for vegetarians.

For all 24 marketplaces and the full menu array, see this link.

In addition, the Festival takes on extra seasonal flair for each of Mardi Gras (Feb 16-26), the St Patrick’s Day Celebration (Mar 9-12 and 16-19) and Cinco de Mayo (Apr 27-May 7), with even more live music, extra tastes and a general party atmosphere.

How to enjoy the Seven Seas Food Festival

For once, there’s no need to rush when it comes to your theme park day out. With the marketplaces not opening until 11.30, you can afford to have a lie-in and then make your way over to SeaWorld ready for a leisurely lunch.

Sip and stroll is very much the order of the day, especially if you buy one of the lanyards and stretch your day out into the evening. Things do get busy at the weekend, but visit on a Thursday or Friday and you can really revel in the park’s expansive style and culinary prowess.

For the weekend concerts, there is also a handy option to book reserved seating, at three different levels from $10-$30, and you should definitely do this online as soon as possible, as these seats often sell out.

Finally, do make sure you have a designated driver if you are planning to enjoy an alcoholic drink or two. Some of the cocktails in particular are pretty potent, and you don’t want to risk a traffic ticket – or worse – on your way back to the villa.

Otherwise, just get out there and enjoy the seventh heaven of the Seven Seas!

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