Hello and Happy Summer!
We are once again back at America's Rockin' Roller Coast to check out this year's Frontier Festival and the new Grand Pavilion. This year's theme of the Frontier Festival was the heart of the Midwest: corn. While last year's cherry themed Frontier Festival was a little bit of a bust, the games, art vendors, and music are always enjoyable. We were looking forward to checking it out again this year and curious about any changes they've made. I also love a good boardwalk so I was super intrigued to check out the food and drink offerings at the Grand Pavilion while overlooking Lake Erie.
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| I am obsessed with this rollercoaster liquor display in the Grand Pavilion |
The Frontier Festival runs from May 25th-June 18th. One of the first things we noticed when purchasing our tasting cards was NO MORE TICKETS! Last year they had tear-off tickets on the tasting cards which were a bit of a pain. We had commented that the scan cards from the Tricks & Treats Fall Fest was much easier, so I was already excited about this change. If you are 21 and over, you can get a wristband after showing ID when you purchase your tasting cards to get alcoholic drinks at the "Belly-Buster" booths. If you don't take your wristband off, you can use it the next day or just head back to the tasting card station for a new one.
Another change I was happy to see was instead of the corn being added to the food almost as an afterthought, it was incorporated into each recipe. Before you even read any descriptions of the food, I can already tell you this year's festival was a whole other level than last year's. The booths were numbered, another change that made it so much easier to navigate Frontierland so it didn't feel like a hunt. There were 8 food booths total, but we did not try everything. We had a few that we weren't overly excited about and skipped, but here's what we tried:
The Savory Corn Fritters were the first up and honestly, the best thing at the festival. The outside was crispy and had a nice crunch. The corn flavor was subtle so you could also taste the batter. They were light and not greasy at all. We wanted more, and actually did use an additional tasting credit to get another the next day.
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| Savory Corn Fritters |
The Jalapeno Creamed Corn Empanadas were another delicious option. They had lots of filling and a crispy, crunchy outside while also not being greasy. The jalapeno gave it just the right amount of heat without being overwhelming. The corn in the filling wasn't really "creamed," it was more of a salsa-type filling. It was in my top 3, while others in the group said they liked some of the other foods better.
Jalapeno Creamed Corn Empanadas
The Elote Sweet Corn Quesadilla was a hit with us as well. The corn inside was grilled and had that lovely slight smokey grill flavor to it. The filling was a little salty because of the cheese they used. We couldn't figure it out if it was a pimento or a cheddar cheese. This was not in my top 3, but it was one of my mom's favorites.
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| Elote Sweet Corn Quesadilla |
The food item that was in our #2 spot was the Red Bliss Potato Pierogies. We Clevelanders know our pierogies, and this was a good pierogi. The red potatoes were mashed and creamy. There was a salsa on top that had smoked ham or bacon that gave it a good BBQ smokey flavor. This was another one that we used an additional tasting credit to get again.
Red Bliss Potato Pierogies
Corn Ice Cream with Butterscotch and Caramel Corn Topping. Who knew I'd like this so much? It wasn't overly sweet, even with the caramel corn and butterscotch drizzle. The frozen corn kernels gave it an additional "pop" of texture in contrast to the creaminess of the ice cream itself. Maybe it was because I had been wanting ice cream for 2 weeks at this point, but I would've 100% ordered that again.
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| Corn Ice Cream with Butterscotch Drizzle and Caramel Popcorn |
Next up was the Charred Corn & Chorizo Flatbread. I wish it had been fresh; you could tell it had been sitting under a heat lamp for a little while. The portion was good and the crust was crispy. I'm a huge hot honey fan, but there was so much hot honey drizzled on it that I couldn't taste corn or chorizo. That wasn't one we were overly wild about and wouldn't get again.
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| Charred Corn & Chorizo Flatbread |
Funnel Cake Fries with Caramel Corn Drizzle. You can't really go wrong with these. They had good flavor, but ours weren't crispy or fresh, they had also been sitting under a lamp. We wouldn't get these again just because there were so many better foods at the festival.
Funnel Cake Fries with Caramel Corn Drizzle
I was excited for Sweet Corn Cheesecake Squares. I love cheesecake and very rarely get any. I enjoyed the crunch of the graham crust and it had flavor. Some cheesecake crusts get lost and this one didn't. These also had the frozen corn kernels which reminded me of almost a frozen corn pudding texture. While we really enjoyed these, the Sweet Corn Ice Cream was the better of the two desserts.
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| Sweet Corn Cheesecake Squares |
We were there the first 2 days of the festival and noticed there weren't a lot of bands/music on the stage in Frontierland. I was disappointed because the bands they had last year were so good and it was nice to get your food and grab a bench to listen. It's possible that the bands started coming the following week. We also love the games they have out for families and kids. It's so fun to see people stop and play a round or two of cornhole or participate in a corn eating contest. I also love seeing the art vendor booths and I did end up buying a sea glass ring that caught my eye.
After some rides, food, and hanging out at the petting zoo, it was time to check out the Grand Pavilion. One of my disappointments over the years is the lack of sit down restaurants at Cedar Point. With Johnny Rockets leaving, I had hoped the Grand Pavilion would have a sit down restaurant with the views of the lake. I understand the efficiency of cafeteria-style, but after a long day of rides and heat, sometimes you just want to sit for a while. The Grand Pavilion is two levels; the first one having island themed food, and the second floor being a bar with some snack food. I was underwhelmed with the downstairs food options so we opted to try the drinks upstairs instead. I LOVE the lake views and had a little too much fun taking the drink photos on the decks.
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| I love the old boardwalk photos on the menu |
The Crystal Rock Punch reminded us of a Long Island Iced Tea. Very sweet and you couldn't taste any alcohol. We wouldn't get this one again because of how sweet it was. (Take this with a grain of salt; I am a hard liquor girl. If you prefer not to taste alcohol, this is a good option.)
Crystal Rock Punch
The Watermelon Summer Sensation had a sugar rim that made the glass super sticky. It was refreshing and summery. You could actually taste watermelon, and I'm not talking about the watermelon slice garnish. Another drink that you couldn't taste any alcohol so we wouldn't get this one again, either.
Watermelon Summer Sensation
The Boardwalk Blueberry Vodka Lemonade was the 3rd one of the group that had no flavor of alcohol. If you want these first three drinks because you want a buzz, it's not happening. If you want them because they taste like summer and are refreshing, go for it. We just didn't think these were worth the money.
Boardwalk Blueberry Vodka Lemonade
The Breakers Blueberry Bellini was my personal favorite and a popular choice according to our bartender. (Shout out to Anthony and Hunter for being fun bartenders!) The drink itself feels fancy with prosecco and blueberry compote. It has a slight sweetness from the blueberry compote, but you can't taste the blueberry flavor. I would get it again, but my biggest hang up was it was a smaller portion than all the other drinks and cost the same amount. Take it down $3-4 and I'll be there all night (well, just park closing).
Breakers Blueberry Bellini
The Boeckling's Blackberry Mule was another solid drink. You can't go wrong with a mule if you want an alcohol punch to the face. As much as I love blackberry, you couldn't taste it. However, we'd get it again because it was one of the better options of the group.
Boeckling's Blackberry Mule
We did get one food item upstairs in-between all these drinks. We tried the Margherita Flatbread. I will admit that I didn't have high hopes and they proved me wrong. It was a really good quality flatbread that was made-to-order. It had wonderful flavor-salty, garlicky, tomatoey, add any more Italian -y words, and lots of cheese. I would definitely go back to try each flatbread flavor.
This trip was a lot of fun, as always. We loved the changes the Frontier Festival made to the foods by incorporating the food theme into the recipes and getting rid of tear-off tickets. The games and art vendors are always a good time. We were sad to not really get any music, but that doesn't mean there aren't more bands in the later dates of the festival. The views of Lake Erie from the Grand Pavilion are stunning. The boardwalk is a wonderful addition to the park. I wish the menu downstairs had more variety and the drinks upstairs are a bit pricey for the quality, but the atmosphere itself makes you want to stay.
Have you made it over the Grand Pavilion or Frontier Festival this year? Let me know your thoughts below!
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