The Minnesota State Fair is the second-biggest state fair in the country, second only to the Texas State Fair – which makes sense because everything is bigger in Texas. The Minnesota State Fair has hundreds of delicious food items, many different animals, live entertainment, and of course, Sweet Martha’s Cookies.
This year the State Fair has 35 new foods and four new food vendors for us to try, and I could not be more excited. This year’s food list contains everything from somewhat normal foods like Spicy Thai Noodles (Oodles of Noodles in the Food Building) and Deep-Fried Avocado (O’Gara’s at the fair) to foods that seem a little bit more unconventional like Duck Bacon Wontons (Giggle’s Campfire Grill).
I always make it a goal of mine to try some of the fair’s new foods, because despite their weird ingredients or funky name, they may actually be really good. So for this year’s State Fair I have decided to rate the food that I eat (not all of it of course, otherwise this article would never end). Some of the food will be classics and the rest will be foods that are new to me.
*These foods are rated in no particular order*
Roasted Corn – 10/10
There is just something about fresh, homegrown Minnesota corn. This is a ‘must have’ for me because the lines are crazy short, you get your corn right away, and it’s roasted and drenched in butter; what could be better than that?
NEW: Brown Ale and Onion-Gouda Tipsy Pie – 8/10
This “tipsy” pie is made with pie crust, brown ale, caramelized onions, and gouda cheese, so obviously this is super delicious. The pie crust was flaky, and the onions were cooked perfectly so that they were sweet, rather than the typical overpowering onion flavor. The only thing that would have made this better is if there was more gouda cheese so that there was equal part onion and cheese, but other than that small factor this hand pie will be a regular food stop for me!
Teriyaki Ostrich – 6/10
You know, I give props to anyone that tried this “creation.” This was a new food last summer and it was not exactly what I was expecting. It was a “meatball” made out of ostrich meat. There was dipping sauce, which I feel like would have made these meatballs better, but because even with the sauce the meatballs were still very gamey. I most likely will not eat these again, but if you happen to stumble across these exotic meatballs, give them a try.
Sweet Martha’s Cookies – 12/10
I will say at least 95% of Minnesotans have had Sweet Martha’s, and if you’re part of the 5% that hasn’t ever had these amazing cookies, then you have not lived. These cookies are baked fresh every day, multiple times a day, and sold by the bucket. I’m not even going to dock points for the nearly hour wait for these ooey-gooey cookies because quite honestly, it’s worth it.
Blueberry Beer – 9/10
This purple beer was new to me because I can now drink legally, and it was surprisingly very good! Not being much of a beer person I had to dock one point because, well, it’s beer. However, this blueberry beer was sweet, but not overly sweet, and had a had a nice beer undertone. The line for this colorful beer is long, but it’s worth the wait for sure!
Apple Cider Freezy – 10/10
This is not a new fair food per say, but it was for me! Located in the agriculture building, this Cider Freezy is only $1.50! Saturday was a really hot day, so this childhood throwback was a perfect way to cool down. If you have not tried these freezy pops before I highly recommend that you do!
I had a few more of the New 2017 Fair Foods I wanted to try, but sadly I was not able to find them *crying emoji*. No worries, though, because there is always next year! There is one day left so make sure to hit up the fair before time runs out!