Annual State Fair thread

Wife and I made it out to the fair yesterday. Could not have asked for better weather. It was more crowded than I would have liked, but with the great weather I knew it would be. Had a great time as always. Ate some great food. Some of the new ones I tried and my thought on them were:

Cheesecake Curds – Really good. Probably my favorite food of the day

Donut Delights – mini donuts wrapped in bacon, then deep fried, drizzled with peanut butter and raspberry sauce. – they were good, but I could have done without the peanut butter on them.

Fried butternut squash – I was really looking forward to these but was a little disappointed. I thought they were just ok, my wife did really like them though.

walleye fritter pops – this was another one I was really looking forward to, but was a bit disappointed with. It was Ok but not as good as I thought it would be.

A few things I wish I had got around to trying but didn’t were:
Miami mango pickles, Maui- sorta sticky ribs, cheese curd stuffed pizza pretzel, birthday cake mini donuts.

Don’t you think the whole food thing at the fair is overhyped?

Went yesterday early to see a friend perform at the Hubbard Broadcasting Stage. Fun to see, wasn’t impressed with the follow on Tom Barnard podcast show.

It’s hard to beat the 1919 root beer float, I do one annually at the Fair. By noon the crowd had gotten to the point of being intolerable. We were on the bus at 1:00 and out of there.

Dutchboy wrote:

Don’t you think the whole food thing at the fair is overhyped?

You can’t get a variety of food like that anywhere else. The food is the main selling point for a lot of people, myself included.

Dutchboy wrote:

Don’t you think the whole food thing at the fair is overhyped?

I mean, depends on the person asked…

Dutchboy wrote:

Don’t you think the whole food thing at the fair is overhyped?

I would say yes. I mentioned I haven’t gone in a while but, for me I want the old staples and most of this new stuff is just people trying to create something that is just wild enough to catch peoples eye and doesn’t even sound good. For me cheese curds, pronto pup and maybe bring home a bucket of cookies.

Dutchboy wrote:

Don’t you think the whole food thing at the fair is overhyped?

That’s about like saying ” Don’t you think the early ice walleye bite at Red lake is overhyped ” or ” Don’t you think the smallmouth bite at lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence river is Overhyped ”
There just isn’t many, if any place you can go and try so many different foods in one place. I get that the State fair is not everyone’s idea of a good time. Different strokes for different folks !!!!

They still running wands and metal detectors on everyone and harassing parents with strollers? Last year was the first time ever for metal detectors and it didn’t stop the gang bangers from bringing in a gun and shooting each other- so detectors made the fair 100% less safe according to that data point. Not sure how they can claim it makes things safer, but it sure does make entry take forever. I said no more after we went last year and had to deal with that BS. Now wife wants to go this year… can anyone tell me if they’re doing the same stuff?

KPE wrote:

They still running wands and metal detectors on everyone and harassing parents with strollers? Last year was the first time ever for metal detectors and it didn’t stop the gang bangers from bringing in a gun and shooting each other- so detectors made the fair 100% less safe according to that data point. Not sure how they can claim it makes things safer, but it sure does make entry take forever. I said no more after we went last year and had to deal with that BS. Now wife wants to go this year… can anyone tell me if they’re doing the same stuff?

We did walk thru a metal detector at the gate. It did not seem to slow down anything. I only hear it beep once or twice and they had that person move to the side and keep walking people thru.

I just checked the attendance for Sat. when we were out there. It was 212,850. Missed the all time record for the day by less than 10,000. The all time record for the day was 222,194. It was a rather busy day for sure. It looks like the all time highest daily attendance record was 270,426 set on the 2nd Sat. in 2018

I dont want to deal with that many people anymore for some fattening food.

How much for a bucket of over rated gooey cookies this year? 20 bucks?

gim wrote:

How much for a bucket of over rated gooey cookies this year? 20 bucks?

my wife said $19.00. they are far from gooey too. And pretty cheap with the chocolate chips. I could buy better cookies at the grocery store I stock shelves at

I went yesterday and normally im not a big State Fair fan but we had a really great time. I also tried the walleye fritter pops and they were OK, dont think I would get them again. The Duck Wontons at Giggles might be one of my favorite state fair items.

Went to Peacheys Baking Company and their donut was by fair the best donut I have ever had in my life! Bold statement I know but the lady and I will be heading to the fair again on Thursday and I’m going right back there!

“Sweet Martha’s cookies suck”

“I hate crowds”

“Overpriced/overhyped”

Blah blah blah. Same comments get repeated constantly on every state fair thread every year. You either like going, love going, hate going, or don’t care one way or another.

I personally don’t mind the fair but rarely ever go. Therefore I don’t usually even comment. Especially not just to hear myself whine. Lol. I’ll read through the threads though.

Btw, I do hate crowds, think sweet Martha’s cookies suck, and do think it’s overpriced, though not really overhyped…

glenn57 wrote:

my wife said $19.00. they are far from gooey too. And pretty cheap with the chocolate chips. I could buy better cookies at the grocery store I stock shelves at

I agree. I like a fresh made cookie just as much as the next guy, but I don’t need a whole bucket. They are not very good the day after.

Wish they would sell them one at a time. I’d pay 3 bucks for one cookie.

We were there today. It was hot. Had a couple different brews and a pork tenderloin sandwich, which was incredible. The line to the donuts mentioned was about three blocks long and the donuts looked like a crispy cream so we didn’t bother with the line for one. Enjoyed the time with the wife but as far as the fair went it was nothing exceptional. There were some outstanding wildlife carvings…. a ruffed grouse that looked like it could fly away was really a fine piece.

Jimmy was that grouse for sale???? how much. several years ago i went to the Alexandria decoy show……yea spearing decoys. some guy from grand rapids had a hand carved grouse that was out of this world real looking……..but i didnt have your checkbook to pay the 3 grand he wanted!

I never really paid much attention for a price tag, or ribbon for that matter, but that carving was beautiful and ealistic.

Maybe 8 or 10 years ago I entered a collection of soft plastic baits I injected in the senior division of the same area of the state fair and earned a third place out of some ridiculous number of entrants. At our local county fair it earned a first place. That collection of baits and the ribbons are hanging on the wall of our family room.

Looking HOT for Labor Day weekend! Apparently its going to be the warmest its been in a decade this weekend, low to mid 90’s. Walking around amongst hundreds of bodies all emitting 100 degree heat? Not ideal.

fishthumper wrote:

We did walk thru a metal detector at the gate. It did not seem to slow down anything. I only hear it beep once or twice and they had that person move to the side and keep walking people thru.

Good to hear maybe they actually created an SOP instead of running around like headless chickens. Last year we went to the fair on a Wednesday at 11am… not exactly peak hours. Took 90 minutes waiting in line to get in, I couldn’t even imagine the horror of going on a Saturday morning or something. Every single person had to go through detector 2-3 times, then manual searches for just about every other. They wanted to rip apart my kid’s stroller, I said it’s got a metal frame wtf do you want from me. This was at the Snelling and Midway entrance

Went on Sunday at 2pm. Walked right through with no issues. Came in on the Northeast side from the bus dropoff we took from Eagan – man – that was easy peasy!
$6 per person, 22 min trip. 50 yards from the ticket line.
Entry was easy. THe chick behind the window was struggling to figure out the change from $80 for a $72 bill – OMG
Always fun for a couple hours. Food is unique so have fun with it.

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We have used various Free park and rides the last few years. By far the easiest and cheapest way to get to the fair. They do tend to fill up rather fast though. Although you can usually find some local street parking close by one of them. They run to and from the fair about every 20 Minutes. Drop you off and pick you up just outside the entry gates. I will never try and drive close and park and walk again.

My trick – I come from the south: I leave EARLY and head up 35-E and go straight through downtown and head north to Larpenter. Hang a left and there’s minimal traffic almost all the way to Snelling, but I cut south on one of the smaller streets a few blocks from Snelling and park for free on the residential streets. It’s a 3-4 block walk to the gates, but so is parking at the back of one of the paid lots. This only works if you go early, if you try this mid-day it will be like an 8 block walk. Love getting there early and hitting up what I want to see before it gets too hot and too crowded and then head-out sometime Mid-day

My FW went to the fair with her co-workers, so I get a pass this year. I enjoy the fair when I go, but if left up to me would skip it. My wife lived close to it for a decade plus, so she loves it, which means we usually go.

The food at the fair is not the greatest, BUT it is the most unique and that is the draw imo. The best way to enjoy the fair is going midweek and/or early, bringing WAY more cash than you think you’ll need, and being okay with spending it all.

I agree Sweet Martha’s aren’t anything special outside of the fair, but I still love them. Kinda like an ugly and dumb dog, it doesn’t have to make sense. And both my kids favorite toy for an extended period of time was a Sweet Martha’s bucket, which actually greatly increased the ROI!

BigWerm wrote:

And both my kids favorite toy for an extended period of time was a Sweet Martha’s bucket, which actually greatly increased the ROI!

That’s hilarious!

I heard on the radio that someone was hit by a stray bullet yesterday.

No matter how much changes in the world, some things will always stay the same.

We went last Thursday for the first time in 13 years. My kids are teenagers now so past the age of whining and wanting to buy everything in sight and go on all the rides etc.

We had great weather and stayed for maybe 3 hours. Kept it under 200 for a family of 4 which I felt was reasonable.

Buy your tickets online ahead of time and take a free bus to the fair, we walked right in with zero wait. Longest thing we waited for was the stupid sky ride but my daughter wanted to go.

The pork belly on a stick from Swine and Spuds inside Warner Colliseum was the best thing I’ve ever had at the fair.

I don’t love the crowds but there are way worse ways to spend your afternoon than drinking mini donut beer and eating cheese curds under the mist machine at ballpark cafe.

Looks like some warm weather over the Labor Day weekend holiday put a damper on attendance.

Intense heat over the Labor Day weekend melted what had been a strong start to attendance at this year’s Minnesota State Fair.

Numbers released Tuesday by fair officials show overall attendance at this year’s fair was 1,835,826 — compared to 1,842,222 at the 2022 fair.

This year’s State Fair had been trending ahead of last year’s pace for most of its run. It even set a daily record on the first Friday.

But temperatures climbing to near 100 degrees over the holiday weekend kept many people away from the fairgrounds.

Attendance this past Saturday (200,170), Sunday (141,326) and Monday (119,731) was down more than 25 percent compared to last year.

The Labor Day weekend traditionally sees the largest crowds on the fairgrounds each year, but the largest single-day attendance of the 2023 fair was 212,850 — set on the first Saturday of the 12-day run.

gim wrote:

but the largest single-day attendance of the 2023 fair was 212,850 — set on the first Saturday of the 12-day run.

So We ended up being out there on the Biggest attendance day of this year. I knew it was a busy day out there. It was probably the nicest weather day of the fair season out there this day as well.