The Fare at the Fair

Me and The Fam at the fair!

When you think of the fair, what comes to mind? For me it's the animals and, of course, the food. So while my family was in town this past weekend, we decided to see what was going on this year at the NC State Fair. And, of course, get our fill of the fabulous fair food...and by fabulous, I mean the kind of food you can only get at the fair and are very thankful that it only happens once a year because it's a heart attack in a day's worth of eating! 

 

But first, the non-edible attractions (although that's probably arguable for some of them, but you get what I mean). We entered the fairgrounds near the botany displays and competition results. I was pleasantly surprised at the use of QR codes, being the ad/tech junkie that I am. It was a great way to find out more information and integrate technology in an agricultural (and otherwise seemingly contradictory) setting.  

I also loved some of the local attempts at advertising. A fertilizer that is just bagged manure (in cow-printed packaging) and a knock-off of Chick-fil-A's ads...let's just hope there isn't a huge rights infringement case going on here (sorry, my account management just came through a little bit there)...but you have to give them credit for the humor-factor.

But as boring as it may be to some to see the jumbo veggies, twisted gourds and blooming flowers, I think it's really fun to look at all the beautiful colors and interesting shapes and sizes of everything! 

Then, there are all the farm animals. They're just precious. I just love seeing the cows, baby chicks, and adorable little piglets.

And then, of course, there's the food. The second you open your car door, you can't help but smell the smokers and fryers working away. Seriously, I start craving some key fair fare when it starts getting cooler but I really am thankful this food isn't available to me all year round! And there are so many different things, I couldn't even attempt to try them all!

My favorite is the smoked turkey legs. Yum! They are so good, although the medieval, feasting-king look is very unflattering.

Smoked Turkey Leg

My second favorite thing and a must-have is the roasted corn. But not just any roasted corn, the roasted sweet corn! Add a little seasoning salt or Old Bay and it's fantastic!

My brother is making fun of me for how much I'm enjoying this...

For dessert, some sort of fried something will do. I'm not one for any of the fried candy bars (because as much as I have a sweet tooth, I do have a sweetness threshold and those things would surpass it!), but mom had to get an elephant ear. One trend I noticed this year that I hadn't really seen before was adding a topping to your elephant ear. Everything from fruit toppings, fudge, and Bavarian Cream. My mom couldn't pass up the last one.

Mom eating an Elephant Ear with Bavarian Cream

The Krispy Kreme Burger!

But the big food attraction at the fair that I just couldn't bring myself to stomach (especially after getting all the usual foods that I crave) was the Krispy Kreme Burger...yes, you read that correctly. A hamburger sandwiched between two Krispy Kreme donuts. A nice man, and my newest friend, lovingly let me take a picture of his Krispy Kreme Burger. Taking a picture of it was as much of a taste as I wanted.


Another item that would make most people cringe was the Kool-Aid Pickles. Yes, sour pickles soaked in red Kool-Aid (the actual flavor of Kool-Aid - strawberry or cherry-  is still TBD). My brother just had to try it...yuck!


And to top it all off, there are the shows. My favorite being the racing pigs, but don't forget the Country concerts and of course, the dancing competitions. We ducked into one tent with the clogging and tapping competitions and oh boy, was that an experience! People age 9 to 90 dancing to Blue Grass music. It was hilarious and frightening all at the same time. 

 

Clogging

Here's a little taste of some other contestants in the Clogging competition:

If you haven't been to the fair yet, you have to go. It's always a fun experience...not to mention one of the most fulfilling people-watching experiences. For everyone in NC, make sure you get to the fair before it packs up on October 24th!