Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market Menu & Food Review: EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival

Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market is the Outdoor Kitchen in the Germany pavilion of World Showcase during the EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival. In this Walt Disney World dining review, we’ll look at the menu prices, share food photos, and offer thoughts on what is worth your money and what to skip.

Located between the Germany pavilion and the African Outpost, the Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market is essentially an outgrowth of the former. During festivals, this area is often home to a couple of booths–usually Bavaria, Austria, or Germany plus a dedicated booze booth. Here’s Walt Disney World’s official description of the Outdoor Kitchen: “Venture to Germany for Bavarian bites sure to sate foodies of all ages–every dish is köstlich!”

The Germany pavilion’s Outdoor Kitchen tends to be a popular one, offering a healthy (not literally) mix of comfort foods and alcohol (albeit not always from Germany). For those who don’t want to do Biergarten right now, can’t score an Advance Dining Reservation, or don’t want an all-you-can-eat option, the Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market Outdoor Kitchen is a nice consolation prize.

We’ll start with a rundown of Germany’s Outdoor Kitchen food menu:

  • Potato Pancakes with House-made Apple Sauce (Gluten/Wheat-Friendly) (Plant-Based Item)
  • Potato Pancake with Caramelized Ham, Onions and Herb Sour Cream (Gluten/Wheat-Friendly)
  • Toasted Pretzel Bread topped with Black Forest Ham and Melted Gruyère Cheese
  • Warm Cheese Strudel with Mixed Berries

Now our photos and reviews of each item at Germany’s Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market Outdoor Kitchen…

Potato Pancake with Caramelized Ham, Onions and Herb Sour Cream ($4.75) – This one surprised us. Germany has done several versions of this dish at past festivals, and they’ve been underwhelming. Not so with this potato pancake. It was freshly-made, flavorful, and distilled a variety of iconic German flavors into a single menu item. Highly recommended.

Note that there’s also the Potato Pancakes topped with House-made Apple Sauce. It’s just the two of us buying and eating all of this, so we didn’t feel the need to spend more money and eat more food just to tell you, “same idea, but topped with apple sauce.” (This isn’t the first year for these pancakes–in our experience, it’s well worth the 25 cents to “splurge” on caramelized ham instead of apple sauce.)

Toasted Pretzel Bread topped with Black Forest Ham and Melted Gruyère Cheese ($5.75) – This dish, as the kids and Cosmo Kramer say, scratches me right where I itch. Pretzel bread, ham, and cheese? Those are three of my favorite food groups!

Unfortunately, our experience with this item was a poor one. We went to the Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market when there wasn’t much of a line, and there were about two dozen of these just sitting, waiting to be ordered. It had that dried out, crusted over quality from spending too much time under a heat lamp. We’ve heard good things from friends who have tried this, but ours was a major disappointment. If there’s a huge line or you spot a freshly-made tray of these when they come out, it might be worth ordering. Chances are, yours would taste very different–and much better–than ours did.


Warm Cheese Strudel with Mixed Berries ($4.75) – This dessert is a sleeper hit. Unlike other familiar favorites that end up being phoned in because they’re crowd pleasers and will thus sell regardless, this cheese strudel is high quality.

The pastry is flaky and nicely made, giving way to a cheesy center and topped with mixed berries that are also flavorful and delicious. We’d stop short of calling them “fresh and high quality” as there’s obviously an artificial component, but it’s not particularly noticeable. It’s not one of the top 5 desserts at the festival, but it’s in the top half. It’s also a low-risk item that most people (almost everyone?) will enjoy. We recommend it.

This being Germany, there are naturally plenty of options on the alcohol menu for the Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market Outdoor Kitchen:

  • M.I.A. Brewing Hugo, Doral, FL
  • Bitburger Premium Pils, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
  • Stiegl Brewery Radler Zitrone, Salzburg, Austria
  • Apfelschaumwein: Sparkling Wine and Apple Liqueur
  • Beer Flight

Overall, the Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market Outdoor Kitchen at the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival is a mixed bag. That’s usually the case with the Germany pavilion’s booth, which often has a couple of winners and a dud or two. With Sommerfest still operating on a reduced schedule and with an incomplete menu, it’s just nice to have some hearty options for German comfort food at EPCOT without splurging on Biergarten!

Check out our Outdoor Kitchen Booth Menus & Food Photos at the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival post if you want to see and read more about every menu this year. You’ll also want to read our full Guide to the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival before you go to get an idea of what to do, strategy for the festival, photos of the topiaries and floral displays, and much more!

Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!

YOUR THOUGHTS

What do you think of the Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market Outdoor Kitchen? Have you tried any of the food items at the Germany pavilion’s food booth? What did you like or dislike? Portion-size or quality-wise, did you have better or worse luck than us with what you ordered? Questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

5 Responses to “Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market Menu & Food Review: EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival”
  1. nicks March 15, 2021
  2. Mindy Ussery March 11, 2021
  3. DebC March 9, 2021
  4. Mickey1928 March 9, 2021
    • Kathleen Johnson March 9, 2021

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