The B12 (XII) Forum, home of the 'Front Porch, y'all' at College Football Fan Site, CFB51!!!

State fairs are great. I hear the one in Minnesota is a really big deal, too.  Higher average daily attendance than the Texas State Fair and second in total attendance. Maybe @GopherRock has been and could chime in with some info about the Fair foods that are popular up there.

Yup, the Minnesota State Fair is a really big deal. As a lifelong attendee, I know how to navigate the Fair on stupid busy days, and I have the things I like to see and places I like to get chow from. I also only live fairly close to the fairgrounds. 

Last year's top 10 grossing food stands:

• Sweet Martha's Cookie Jar, 3 locations - $3,281,049
• Mouth Trap Cheese Curds, Food Building - $ 926,476
• Fresh French Fries, 2 sites - $844,096
• Corn Roast, Dan Patch Avenue - $717,356
• Midwest Dairy Association, 2 locations - $646, 251
• Preferred Pickle, Dan Patch and Liggett - $643,079
• The Blue Barn, West End Market - $513,210
• Carousel BBQ, West Dan Patch Ave. - $502,264
• Giggle's Campfire Grill, Lee and Cooper - $467,866
• Miller's Flavored Cheese Curds, Nelson St. - $419,242

It helps to have a reason to be there. Our family has shown horses there since the mid 60s. I showed for a few years in the late 90s/early 2000s, and I still help run the western show over Labor Day weekend. My wife never went to anything like the Fair in any of her stops prior to moving 1/2 mile from the fairgrounds. It took several years of explanation and observation for her to figure out why I like the Fair so much.

I also work some shifts at the MnDOT booth. I rather enjoy it. This year we're bringing one of our snowplows, and the public can clamber around in the cab.

As for the other food in this thread, I love biscuits, but I prefer a big bold jam or preserves (I like raspberry) to using it as a base for a sandwich. Corn dogs > pronto pups. And there ain't a damn thing wrong with a pork chop on a stick.

Speaking of food, I just saw this:

5 Under The Radar Restaurants In The Budding East Atlanta Neighborhood - Secret Atlanta

I am pondering whether I'd prefer the SF and its food vs just going places like these.  We've yet to visit the Gunshow:

This restaurant’s unique dining experience will surely have guests coming back for more.  At the Gunshow, customers have their meals presented to them by the chefs and cooks who created the dish.  Part of the owners goal was to create a sense of transparency, so the space is designed to allow patrons to see straight back into the kitchen. Now for the good stuff…the food! This is another restaurant where the menu changes from day to day in an effort to provide a unique and individualized experience for its guests.  Gunshow does provide their customers with multiple culinary options, from pork, chicken, seafood or vegetarian – there is something here for everyone.  So, what are you waiting for?! Check out what dish they can dazzle your tastebuds with.

The place next to us claims to have invented Totchos.  Maybe so.

The Nook on Piedmont Park – Midtown’s true neighborhood tavern (thenookatlanta.com)

I recall during COVID I was ordering lunch from them on many days to try and keep them in business.  Now it's hard to find a table there at dinner.  This is their 45 minute challenge version.

Whatever they are, they are tasty, the have 5-6 variations and used to be $10 each which is more than I could eat.

Or should eat.

The “totcho” portmanteau likely also originates from the Pacific Northwest, as determined by reporter Ben Waterhouse for the Oregonian in 2015 after “several hours of searching periodicals, cookbooks, and the Internet.” As legend goes, it probably starts with the late Jim Parker, a craft beer brewer and former ...Apr 23, 2019



In Celebration of Totchos, a Mexican Tater Tot Fiesta - Eater

Yup I like a good tater tot nacho amalgamation.

But for nachos themselves, I prefer the single-chip with toppings directly on it method, rather than what I call the "pile o' crap" nachos.  The ratio of toppings to chips is never correct with a pile o' crap nacho, and the top chips get soggy while the bottom chips are drier than the Arizona desert.

This is my preferred style of nacho:

I presume the State Fairs will have some really good Q.

Actually they don't, at least in my experience.  The time it takes to cook proper BBQ, and the appropriate equipment, just don't translate well to the relatively short-cooking processes that work best for a Fair presentation.

Now some of the dishes that incorporate BBQ, cooked offsite, as a minor ingredient in a larger dish, turn out pretty well.

But straight-up BBQ isn't something we commonly see, at least at our own state fair.