15 June 2017

It's a Harvest Show

If Epcot has a gem of a restaurant that is a not-quite-so-secret secret, it’s likely that title belongs to Sunshine Seasons in The Land pavilion. Guests rave about this entree or that dessert, and it seems as if there is always a crowd of hungry patrons waiting with full trays throughout the day. Breakfast was, at one point in the restaurant’s history, one of Sunshine Seasons’ brightest spots, and an excellent way to start the day. Over the years, that beacon of breakfast has seen a menu that has whittled down and has been mostly forgotten. There are, however, a few recent additions to this menu that deserve their day in the sun.

Let’s start with the Breakfast Panini, the most generic name for a break sandwich, but one that comes with uncommon ingredients. The listing for this item proclaims that it comes with pork, bacon, scrambled eggs, arugula, tomato, and chorizo-pepper jack mornay sauce on focaccia. It also comes with one side, which we wisely chose the breakfast potatoes. Before moving back to the main dish here, the breakfast potatoes have a great savory seasoning, red and green peppers, and onions, and they are delicious!

Back to the Breakfast Panini, this is also very tasty. The majority of this sandwich is comprised of scrambled eggs, tomato, and arugula, and they provide a great base to start from. The chorizo-pepper jack mornay sauce didn’t have a strong chorizo flavor, but the bacon and pork more than carry the meat component of this panini. The focaccia soaks up the grease and sauce well, making this messy sandwich a bit less so, and is perfectly soft on the inside with a delicious crispy crust. Make sure you have a fork so that none of the wonderful bites get too far away, but overall this is a well-crafted breakfast sandwich.

For those wanting something a bit sweeter for breakfast, may I suggest the Cinnamon French Toast Bread Pudding, which comes with a side (read: mountain) of breakfast bacon. A large section has been carved out from the tray of bread pudding for a serving. The amalgamation of French toast and other ingredients definitely makes this more of a bread pudding that a typical baked breakfast dish like pancakes, waffles, or the aforementioned French toast, but that doesn’t make it any less yummy. There is a hint of syrup baked into the dish and it is topped with powdered sugar, but this isn’t overly sweet. There is a heartiness to the bread that makes this a great theme park breakfast that will stick with you all the way to lunch time. It may not be the prettiest breakfast entree to look at, but what it lacks in visuals it makes up for in flavor.

Overall, Sunshine Seasons had fallen off of my go-to list for Epcot breakfast destinations, but it has definitely found its way back onto that list. While the offerings are still sparse compared to some of their previous menus, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t something for everyone to find and enjoy. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but it can also be the most neglected while we are on the go in Walt Disney World, Sunshine Seasons offers up the perfect on the go answer to fill you up and keep you going!

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