The Minnesota State Fair has been taking place nearly every year since 1859. This year it will take place from August 24 through September 4 in Falcon Heights, Minnesota. It’s one of the biggest events in the region, with over 1.8 million attendees last summer. The fairgrounds are spread out over 300 acres and includes rides, entertainment, fine arts and so much more! But of course we here at Guilty Eats have the answer to one of the most important questions…..what is there to eat?!
Can you call a fair a fair without sausage and peppers, cotton candy and funnel cake? Rest assured, you can find these classics at the Minnesota State Fair. But we have details on some of the newest and most interesting things to eat at the fair. The Minnesota State Fair recently released a list of the new foods and food vendors that will be available this year. Let’s just say that when you’re finished reading this, your mouth will be watering!
Based on the number of new food items featuring cheese curds, I’m going to go out on a limb and surmise that Minnesotans love this ingredient! Cheese curd fans should stop at Richie’s Cheese Curd Tacos located on Judson Avenue between Liggett and Clough streets. Yes, there is a stand at the fair that just sells cheese curds and cheese curd tacos! New this year, Richie’s is making a Dill Pickle Cheese Curd Taco that has fried white cheddar cheese curds, dill pickle stackers, cream cheese, lettuce and raspberry chipotle sauce in a fried flour tortilla.
The Green Mill is serving a Cheese Curd Stuffed Pizza Pretzel. A jumbo pizza dough pretzel is stuffed with cheese curds and pepperoni and then brushed with garlic butter and topped with diced pepperoni, herbs and parmesan cheese. Stop by the east side of Cooper Street between Randall and Wright avenues to get your hands on one of these pretzels!
There are lots of new and interesting foods to try at the Minnesota State Fair!
For dessert would you like to try Cheesecake Curds? At Lulu’s Public House, located at the West End Market they sell Eli’s Cheesecake pieces covered in funnel cake batter, fried and dusted with powdered sugar and salt. The curds are served with a strawberry dipping sauce.
Some other interesting eats include the Holey Hamloaf Breakfast Sandwich from Hamline Church Dining Hall. This sandwich has Hamline Church Dining Hall hamloaf, caramelized onions, cheese and a glaze on fried egg-in-a-hole toast. This vendor is located on the North side of Dan Patch Avenue between Underwood and Cooper streets.
The Blue Barn is serving Hot Honey Cheese Sticks. Fried Halloumi cheese is topped with hot honey and honeycomb crunch. Find The Blue Barn at the West End Market.
Of course you need to quench your thirst while at the fair. Try a Cloud Cooler from Spinning Wilde. This lemonade (in a choice of three flavors: Summer Strawberry, Happy Huckleberry, or Flower Power) is topped with a cloud of cotton candy. You can find Spinning Wylde at Family Fair at Baldwin Park.
Or you can get a “Kind of a Big Dill” Pickle Lemonade at Nordic Waffles to quench your thirst. Located in the West End, this vendor has combined lemonade with dill pickle spices. Speaking of pickles, if you’ve never had them, now’s your chance to try Pickle Fries. Mike’s Hamburgers, located at the northeast corner of Carnes Avenue and Nelson Street, has coated dill pickle pieces in cornmeal and a seasoned mustard batter. The “fries” are served with a chipotle dipping sauce.
There are seven vendors making their first appearance at the Minnesota State Fair this year. Afro Deli will be serving Sambusas, an African appetizer/snack consisting of filling folded into a pastry dough and fried. Afro Deli will be serving three varieties: beef, chicken or veggie that come with a Somali dipping sauce. They will also be selling sweet plantains, Somali Tea and fresh mango juice. Find Afro Deli in the Food Building.
Another new vendor is Bandstand Concessions. They are serving burgers, bratwurst, a Chicken Press sandwich, a Lil Smoky Hot Dog, Deep-Fried Baked Potatoes and more. They are located inside the Grandstand Concert Venue.
Churros & Augas Fresca is located at the northeast corner of Lee Avenue and Underwood Street. As their name suggests, they are serving churros topped with sauce, filled churros and churro sundaes as well as a variety of flavors of aguas frescas.
If you are craving Indian food, make sure to check out new vendor MomoDosa. Located in the Midtown Global Market, you can find Masala Dosa, Veggie Pakora and Mango Lassis here. However, they are only at the fair from August 24-August 29th, so stop by during the first week if you want to give them a try!
New vendor Peachey’s Baking Company is serving Amish doughnuts topped with vanilla glaze, Peanut Butter Cream doughnuts and over-sized doughnuts topped with vanilla custard, peanut butter crumbles and whipped cream. Find Peachey’s on the North side of Randall Ave. at Cosgrove Street.
Another new dessert vendor is Tasti Whip. Located on the northwest corner of Dan Patch Avenue and Underwood Street, at Tasti Whip you can get a variety of different Dole Soft Serve and Dole Floats.
Finally, make a stop at the Creative Activities Annex to visit Wow Fudge. This new vendor will be selling over 70 varieties of handcrafted, old-fashioned fudge. They have even created custom flavors for the Minnesota Fair including Strawberry Rhubarb, Blueberry Cheesecake and St. Paul Pickle!
Are you drooling yet?! Which of these Minnesota State Fair Foods do you want to try?