The Liquid Nitrogen Chocolate-Peppermint Mousse delivers festive flavor at the 2025 Epcot Festival of the Holidays. Read our full review of this chilly treat.

If you were with us during the 2025 Epcot International Food & Wine Festival, you may recall our collective meltdown (in a good way) over the Liquid Nitrogen Frozen Pumpkin Cheesecake Mousse from Swirled Showcase. It was smooth, it was cold, and it made several of us briefly consider proposing marriage to a dessert.

So naturally, as the 2025 Epcot International Festival of the Holidays kicked off, we sprinted — and we do mean sprinted — back to Swirled Showcase to see if holiday magic struck twice. After all, if Walt Disney World is going to freeze dessert with liquid nitrogen, we feel morally obligated to be there.

Opening-Day Madness… That Wasn’t

We visited within the first hour of opening day of the 2025 Epcot International Festival of the Holidays. We were ready for chaos. Additionally, we were ready for crowds. Also, we were ready for elbows and strollers and the whole festive gauntlet.

Instead… there was no line.
Like, zero people.
Just us, Swirled Showcase, and a cast member who looked delighted someone showed up.

Was this a bad omen?
Or were we simply destined — chosen, even — to be first in line for frozen holiday glory? We chose the second option. The Festival of the Holidays demands optimism.

Liquid Nitrogen Chocolate-Peppermint Mousse – $5.50

The menu description sounds like a dessert, but the name reads like a complete scientific experiment. If Einstein worked in the culinary field, this would be his thesis.

Like the Swirled Showcase nitro treats before it, the mousse gets a quick blast of liquid nitrogen before being handed to you. That sounds dramatic, but this time around, the show felt a little… quiet.

Look, we’re just going to say it: There wasn’t enough liquid nitrogen.

This mousse could’ve been colder, could’ve been firmer, and could’ve had a little more spectacle. We want the full “mad scientist holiday dessert” experience, and this one felt more like “mildly chilly peppermint.” Still festive, though!

Presentation: “Not the Prettiest, But Pretty Delicious”

We love Epcot and desserts. Additionally, we have been known to enjoy the proper amount of holiday cheer. Still, this? This wasn’t winning any beauty pageants. Fortunately, you should never judge a book by its cover — or a mousse by its oddly shaped chocolate chunk.

Once we dug in, this thing was smooth, creamy, and surprisingly delightful, with a solid, firmer center that felt like the dessert equivalent of finding a bonus level in a video game. The icing on top had an unexpected, slightly brittle texture thanks to the liquid nitrogen. It was not bad. Still, it failed to be a standard icing. Perhaps it was a little “holiday icing remix,” if you will.

The M&M’s: The Real MVPs

Let’s talk toppings. The M&M’S Holiday Mint Chocolate Candies were the crunch this dessert desperately needed. Without them? This mousse is basically peppermint pudding. With them? Suddenly, you’ve got contrast, texture, and a little festive chaos in every bite. They’re the unsung holiday heroes, like elves who exclusively specialize in making desserts less mushy.

Concerns

This Epcot festival treat offers pockets of peppermint. Some of our colleagues found the “minty” flavor off-putting. Also, this might taste better without the nitro factor. This makes a good treat, but it would not make a best list for the 2025 Festival of the Holidays.

Liquid Nitrogen Chocolate-Peppermint Mousse at Swirled Showcase

The Liquid Nitrogen Chocolate-Peppermint Mousse might not deliver the full frosty blast we hoped for, but it’s still a tasty, creamy, cold, peppermint-forward treat that goes down easy and leaves you feeling festive… even if you wish the nitrogen dial had been turned up a few notches.

Swirled Showcase continues to be one of the most interesting dessert booths at Epcot festivals. Even when the nitro spectacle chills out a bit, the flavors still bring holiday magic.

Would we order it again? Absolutely. Would we request 30% more liquid nitrogen next time? Also yes.

For more theme park dining reviews, visit MSM News every weekday at noon Eastern Time. As always, eat like you mean it!

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