If you know Jason and I, then you know we LOVE going to Pigeon Forge and Wears Valley, Tennessee. We have also made Dollywood one of our must-stops on our trips, because who doesn't love Dolly, am I right?. For the first time this year, Jason took me in October to see the leaves changing and we got to visit Dollywood during their Harvest Festival. The park was beautiful with all the fall decorations and pumpkins, pumpkins, pumpkins! I love pumpkins, just a little fun fact about me. We met some awesome people and got to eat some amazing food. Not only did we try some of Dollywood's most famous treats, but we also got to sample some of the culinary creations the park had during their Harvest Festival. If you haven't been to Dolly's theme park in the Smokies, trust me, the food alone is worth the trip.
The first thing I want to mention though is the parking. I honestly was shocked at how much they charge for parking. Now, we have only been to Dollywood's theme park, not the water park so I don't know if parking prices are the same there. Parking is $25 for general vehicles, $30 for RVs, and they aren't offering Valet at this time. If you have a Gold or Diamond Season Pass, then parking is free. Now let's talk about preferred parking. "Preferred" parking is $45 for non-pass holders and $40 if you have a season pass. This option is the closest to the park entrance, unless you have a handicap parking pass, and they do have trolleys that run in the lots. We paid for Preferred Parking this time because we had Levi's wagon and diaper bag, and we wouldn't have been able to get it on the trolley. The downside to Preferred Parking is not only the price, but it is up a pretty steep hill. Going in the park isn't really a problem, but when it's time to leave and you have to haul a wagon and baby (and my fat tail) up this hill, it's not fun. So, this may be something to consider when thinking about this option. As long as we have the wagon, we will park in Preferred.
Now, on to the food!
The 25 Pound Apple Pie- The Spotlight Bakery
Our first stop was The Spotlight Bakery. Since my first trip to Dollywood, I've been dying to try this pie. This bakery is known for its apple pie. But this is not your average apple pie, it weighs 25 pounds! Don't worry though, they sell it by the slice, but take my advice and plan on sharing because it is massive! We got lots of looks and stares when we opened this box and pulled out this giant slice of pie. And man was it good. It's packed full of delicious apples and cinnamon and the crust was perfect. The only part about it I would've changed was I would have liked for it to have been served warm, but I didn't ask them to heat it up so I don't even know if that was an option. A slice of this pie will run you $20.00, but you can take home the whole 25 pound pie for $224.00.
Lucky for Jason and I, we met this really sweet group who were sitting right in front of us and had been chatting with us about what we were doing. It was two couples who had about 8 kids between them, and they were so very sweet. I asked if I could let the kids finish up the rest of our slice and give their opinion and they were glad to help me out. Ya'll that pie was gone in a matter of minutes. They loved it! I wish I wouldn't gotten their names, but, hopefully they read this and know how thankful we were to have met them.
Rating: 8/10 (only because it wasn't warm)
Cinnamon Bread: The Grist Mill
This Cinnamon Bread is probably the most popular food at Dollywood, and for good reason. It is absolutely delicious! You can walk right in to The Grist Mill and watch them make it. I'd like to know how many of these loaves they make in a week. I'll have to find out next time I'm there.
Ya'll this bread is so good. They literally dunk and smother it in butter and cinnamon. They smash it and roll it until every inch in covered. Then they serve it to you fresh out of the oven with your choice of Icing or Apple Butter. You know I had to get both.
I personally preferred the Icing, even though the Apple Butter is equally delicious. I just felt the Apple Butter also has a cinnamon type flavor, so the Icing is a sweeter compliment. But, again, both are equally wonderful. Jason preferred the Apple Butter.
If you want to see the making of this Cinnamon Bread, you'll need to visit the Grist Mill, but, if you don't want to wait in line, it's also available at the Spotlight Bakery.
Rating: 10/10
Turkey Leg: Hickory House BBQ
Jason was so excited to get one of these big Turkey Legs. It did not disappoint. Hickory House is one of the most popular BBQ spots in the park, and for good reason. This Turkey Leg was perfectly cooked and had a wonderful flavor. It was actually the only thing Levi took a bite of all day. The meat was so tender and juicy, and it had a deep smoky flavor. The skin was crispy and cooked perfectly.
Some of the other popular items at Hickory House are their BBQ Pulled Pork Fries and their Pulled Pork Sandwich. I will definitely be back to try these two things!
Rating:10/10
Pimento Cheese and Pork Rinds: Granny Ogle's Ham and Beans
Pimento Cheese is definitely a southern thing, you either love it, or you don't. At Granny Ogle's, they have paired it with Pork Rinds and made a very unique appetizer. Granny Ogle's is a sit down restaurant, and we popped in just to have some sweet tea and order this snack. The Pork Rinds have a really great Barbecue dusting on them and they are nice and crunchy. They weren't very greasy, which I liked. The Pimento Cheese was a great compliment and you could tell it was made fresh.
This was the first time Jason and I tried Pimento Cheese, I loved it, he did not. But the Pork Rinds were very good. Dollywood has a reputation for having some of the best pork rinds around, and they have a stand not far from Granny Ogle's where you can pick up a bag if you want to give them a try and don't care for Pimento Cheese.
Rating: 8/10
Harvest Festival Foods
While we were visiting the park, they were having their Harvest Festival. They have some very unique foods during the park's seasonal festivals including Beverages, Savory Bites, and Sweets. They do offer a Tasting Pass for $35 that allows you to try 5 different festival foods, but you don't have to have to have this pass to experience any of the foods on this unique menu. I had already looked over the menu and since there were only a few things we wanted to try, and there were only two of us, we decided just to grab the things we wanted. You can check the menu on the Dollywood website, or on the Dollywood App. You can also purchase a Tasting Pass online before you get to the park, or at many locations throughout the park after you arrive.
Here's a look at a few of the Harvest Festival Foods we tried.
Pumpkin Spice Whoopie Pie: The Spotlight Bakery
Jason and I loved this Whoopie Pie! It was so soft and the Vanilla Icing on the inside was the perfect compliment to the spicy cake. It was so fresh and an absolutely perfect Whoopie Pie!
Rating: 9/10
Smoked Bratwurst with Red Cabbage Jam: Seasonal Culinary Booth
This was my favorite food of the day! I had never tried a Bratwurst before and I'm telling you this one was stellar! It was served in a Pretzel Bun and came with a Deli Style Mustard, Red Cabbage "Jam," and a Red Roasted Potato Hash. The mustard took this dish to the next level. It was so good without it, but when I added it, it was a game changer. The Brat was so flavorful and juicy and I loved the pretzel bun. It was such a good compliment to all the flavors. The potatoes were roasted with onions and peppers and were perfectly cooked. Red potatoes are one of my favorite veggies, so I was excited to try them. I hope they bring this dish back every year!
Rating: 12/10
Pumpkin Bisque: Seasonal Culinary Booth
This dish was good, but, honestly not my favorite. It reminded me of smooshed up sweet potatoes, which is fine. I just felt like something was missing that made it stand out for me. It smelled amazing and had some interesting flavors, I just felt like it was lacking. It was still a very delicious dish though, just not my cup of tea.
Rating: 6/10
Some Special New Friends
One of my favorite things about traveling is always getting to meet new and unique people. I've always said that talking to the locals is a great way to discover new places, but, these new friends gave me a lot more.
Frank
Meet Frank! He works at Dollywood. He came up to us after we finished filming our Harvest Food Segment and was asking us questions about our Youtube Channel. Jason and I really enjoyed learning about him and he was very interested in learning about what we were doing. He told us that his favorite food at the park was the Turkey Legs and I told him that we were actually headed over to get one of those next.
He told me that "It was all about the food." I said, "I am all about the food!" He replied with "Amen!" We all got a little chuckle out of that one.
If you happen to run in to Frank on your next visit, may sure to stop and say "Hello" to him. He is an absolute pleasure to talk to!
A Little Ball of Sunshine
This is Atticus! Isn't that the coolest name? I met Atticus in the Spotlight Bakery while we were in line waiting for our treats. I was getting a huge piece of Apple Pie and Atticus chose a more practical Pumpkin Cookie.
He was there on a school trip and told me all about his project he was working on. He is a second grader and also has very neat handwriting. We talked all about my Blog and what we liked to do for fun. He told me about how well he was doing in school and I also got to chat with his mother, who was a pleasure as well. He looked at me and asked "Do you like to have fun?" I told him, "It's my most favorite thing to do!" He then grabbed me and gave me the biggest, sweetest hug and my heart just melted. Chatting with this amazing young man was the absolute highlight of my day, and I do hope that our paths will cross again someday soon. And if you are reading this Atticus, I do hope you enjoyed your Pumpkin Cookie, and I hope you and your Mom had the most fun in the park!
Final Thoughts
We had an absolutely fantastic day in Dollywood, and we got to try some amazing food. If you haven't tried any of these famous snacks, I highly recommend that you visit the park and try them. There are so many amazing things to experience here. If you are really lucky, you may even get a glimpse of Dolly herself. I'm still waiting on that one.
If you have a favorite food or restaurant in Dollywood we should try, please leave us a comment and let us know what it is. We would love to try it.
Make sure to check out our Dollywood review on our YouTube channel here.
Remember that it costs nothing to be KIND and Jesus loves you!