Thinking of eating at the SeaWorld BBQ festival? Our food review covers the pretzel bratwurst and BBQ chicken tostada from the Coca-Cola Fusion booth. Additionaly, it includes a must-know tip about the sampler lanyard!
The annual Bands, Brew, and BBQ festival at SeaWorld Orlando is a feast for the senses. You’ve got the sound of live music, the vibrant festival atmosphere, and also the smell of a million different grilled things. Our latest culinary quest led us to the Coca-Cola Fusion booth to see what was on offer for the SeaWorld BBQ festival. This festival booth is located near the Pretzel Kitchen towards the Sesame Street area of the theme park.
The Pretzel-Wrapped Bratwurst at the SeaWorld BBQ Festival
Our first brave sacrifice to the festival gods was the pretzel-wrapped bratwurst. For an eye-watering $11.99, we expected something truly legendary. The brat itself was a fantastic surprise—flavorful, juicy, and a solid step up from what you’d typically find at a theme park. It was a hero, made even better when plunged into the spicy embrace of Dijon mustard.
However, every hero has a weakness, and for this brat, it was the pretzel-pastry shell. It was less of a warm, comforting pretzel hug and more of a neutral, bread-like casing that seemed to be there simply out of a sense of obligation. It held everything together, but added little to the flavor profile. While the brat was a definite win, we’re still pondering what might have been with a proper pretzel wrap.
The BBQ Chicken Tostada at Coca-Cola Fusion
Hoping for another culinary win, we next tried the BBQ Chicken Tostada, also for $11.99. We’d had a Smoked Chicken Taco at a previous visit to the SeaWorld BBQ festival that had set a high bar, but this tostada was a quiet disappointment. While all the toppings—the chicken, fresh lettuce, and other ingredients—were visibly fresh and crisp, the overall flavor was more of a polite suggestion of BBQ than a bold declaration.
However, eating the tostada was a comical challenge in itself. The festival offers limited seating, and we found ourselves awkwardly trying to hold and eat the rigid tostada shell while balancing our other items. The shell was a bit hard, which is a common characteristic of tostadas, but it became a weapon in our standing-room-only dining adventure. Overall, this item felt a bit bland and didn’t live up to its high price tag or the “BBQ” name.
A Sampler Lanyard for the SeaWorld BBQ Festival
A word of advice to any would-be foodie adventurers at the festival: save your money with a Sampler Lanyard. These lanyards, which you can purchase at several locations, give you a set number of “punches” to redeem for food and drink items. For example, a 10-punch lanyard costs $65, bringing the cost per item down to a more reasonable level. It’s an absolute game-changer and the best way to enjoy a wide variety of what the SeaWorld BBQ festival has to offer without breaking the bank.
The Verdict on the SeaWorld BBQ Festival
Still, our culinary journey at the Coca-Cola Fusion booth was a mixed bag. The pretzel bratwurst was a promising hero with a lackluster sidekick, while the chicken tostada was a fresh but forgettable friend. We learned that the secret to enjoying the SeaWorld BBQ festival is to invest in a sampler lanyard and, perhaps, bring your own folding chairs.
Thanks for reading this bonus weekday theme park dining review. We publish theme park dining reviews every weekday at noon Eastern Time at MSM News. As always, eat like you mean it!
Additional Dining Reviews from the Bands, Brew, and BBQ Festival at SeaWorld Orlando:
- Lone Star Hatch Chili Mac N Cheese
- Smoked Chicken Taco
- Burnt Ends Slider
- Three Cheese BBQ Brisket Mac & Cheese
- Corn Rib
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