Apart from the gigantic produce, adorable baby pigs, ferris wheel, crazy fair hair, curious goats, people watching, Bret Michaels/Phillip Phillips/Foreigner/Bill Cosby/whichever-act-has-sunk-low-enough-or-not-risen-fast-enough-and-is-on-the-fair-circuit, local artists, and hawkers who shout, “Hey you! Yeah, you with the face!” people seem to go the State Fair for the food.
People try the weirdest, the freshest, or the most insanely unhealthy options they can find. Maybe it’s something about the fresh air, all that walking, or just the fleeting opportunity to consume fair food, but for some reason, when fair time rolls around we head to the food vendors with gusto.
Everyone has their favorites. This year the hot item seemed to be a pork chop on a stick. Last year, it was all about the chocolate covered bacon. And of course, there are perennial stars like turkey legs, elephant ears, kettle corn, cotton candy, tacos, shrimp steamed clams, cream puffs, and a variety of fried options: fried cheese curds, fried peanut potatoes, fried Oreos, fried fried FRIED.
I started out with a gyro, which was okay, but in terms of fair food (or even just food food) it wasn’t anything special. I knew I had to make my other choices count:
Choice #1: Raspberry beet juice from Red Beet. The flavor was great – light and fruity but not overly sweet – but it was disconcerting to chew each sip. That said, I’m excited to try more from the Red Beet. Check out their food gallery to see why: pretty, healthy, and probably tasty!
Choice #2: Alaska birch cookie, which is a combination of birch chips, birch syrup, and pecans all in one delectable cookie. The perfect decadent end to my state fair chow down.
Bonus choice: Frozen tamales.
Overall, I might have been a bit tame in making my selections, but I’m happy with them.
Did you make it to the fair? What did you eat, or wish you ate?
