Welp, here we are- 1.5 years later, and just now getting these thoughts posted. I KNOW I had a draft of this post ready and waiting to add hyperlinks, but stuff came up (*cough* Rona *cough*) and damn if I can't find that draft now. I'm sure we TOTALLY remember all the stuff that was important, so this will be great. Thank Fairchild we have all of our day-of thoughts saved on IG.
Upon reflection (oh the nostalgia of better times after more than a year of not eating out), 2019 was a really great year! First- we were so dang SKINNY (sighs forever). Second- the weather was fantastic. Third- only one horrible disappointment (goodbye beloved Deep Fried Ribs from Ballpark Cafe). Fourth, overall the food was great and we discovered a couple new gems that we can't wait to get again.
Here are our day-of thoughts for the new and new to us foods. And as always, check us out on IG (FairFestFeasts) to see thoughts + pics.
NAILED IT- GRADE A FOODS
Pebbles and Bam Bam- $8 from Nordic Waffles
DING! DING! DING! If you want a dessert then this is it! Warm and melty, gooey and crunchy, chocolatey and fruity. LOVE IT
Wingwalker Donuts- $9 from The Hangar
These donuts were fantastic! Crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy inside. Dipping sauces were all good too, but the prize pigs were the donut holes, hands down. A must get.
Carnitas Taco Cone- $10 from San Felipe Tacos
Barring Sarah who doesn't like tacos, everyone loved this. The shell was amazingly crispy. Disappointed it didn't come with the taco holder in the original pic. Reallllllly long line.
Peaches n' Cream Nachos- $8 from Bridgeman's Icecream
This was wonderful! Great peaches flavor with sweet honey and cinnamon pita chips, and crunchy pecans. Almost like a peachy fried ice cream flavor combo. Bam!
Warm Cheesecake Tart- $6 from Lulu's Public House
What a fucking fantastic end to the day- start with an A, end with an A. We had strawberry, but plan on going back for chocolate and salted caramel. Oh god, it was so jiggly and custardy. We thought the warmth would be a turn off, but it was the opposite. Fucking homerun. EVERYONE GET THIS
Cheese Curds- $6 from Miller's Cheese Curds
As cheese curd enthusiasts, we felt obligated to try this other brand (not new, but new to us). While they have flavors like ranch and garlic, the purists in us went with original. If you don't want to deal with the crowd in the food building, this is a great sub.
Beer Battered Onion Rings- $5.75 (with BRBB) from Ballpark Cafe
Not new, but new to us. Great batter, nice and crispy and tasty. Wonderful onion rings. Drowned our sorrows in onion rings (no more deep fried ribs).
Elephant Ear- $6 from Funnel Cakes
Not new, but new to us. This was really great, real big and fried fresh. I always go traditional (butter with cinnamon and sugar)
Eggroll on a Stick- $7 from Que Viet
This is a fucking great eggroll. SO CRISPY! Thanks for the rec Bekah!
Dragonfruit with Sno Cream- $7.50 from Minnesnowii Shaved Ice
This flavor was fantastic and the sno cream drizzle was a nice, sweet added touch. Love this place.
Dreamsickle Hard Malt- $6.50 from Coasters
A!!! We frickin looooooooved this. Kind of like a creamier, adult orange julius. Will definitely get again.
London Broil Steak Sandwich- $10 from Butcher Boys
This was great!! Juicy medium rare sliced steak meat in a soft bun. Just so good and so satisfying. Thanks for the rec Dann Krueger (Dann Food Haiku)
PRETTY DURN GOOD- GRADE B FOODS
Breakfast Potato Skins- $8.95 from Blue Barn
Solid Start! A little too much potatoes because the bearnaise sauce was subtle, but the flavors was very nice!
Al Pastor Waffle- $8 from Nordic Waffles
Great flavor with the marinated pork and pineapple, savory goodness.
Duck Drummies- $8.75 from Giggles Campfire Grill
Super crisp and tender duck drummies with a really good tequila lime dipping sauce. Nice job Giggles.
Grilled Sota Sandwich- $9 from Brim
We were split between a B and A. Just a really good pb&j sammy. Gluten free with Irish soda bread. Delicious.
Stuffed Cabbage Roll- $8 from iPierogi
A meaty, savory cabbage roll and a fresh dinner roll. Really hit the spot, good flavors.
Bada Bing Sandwich- $9 from The Sandwich Stop
They always make great sammies. The Swiss cheese was baller.
Cheesy Sriracha Funnel Cake Bites- $8 from Funnel Cakes
Well what a fuckin delight! The more we ate it the more we liked it. We speculate that if we had eaten it earlier in the day it miiiight've even rated an A. We are now fans of savory funnel cake.
Halo Cone- $9 at Rainbow Ice Cream
This was a fun food. It was hard not to compare it to the excellence that was last year's Rainbow Cloud Roll, but the soft serve and the fruity pebbles were excellent.
RC's Jammin Brisket Grilled Cheese- $10 from RC BBQ
Great crispy toasted bread, melty cheese, and slammin onion jam with that brisket. One person didn't like it, but don't listen to her. Reeeeeeeal good.
Nashville Hot Chicken-on-a-Stick- $9.95 from Blue Barn
B (though some of us thought it might be an A). Super crunchy. Nice sweetness. Spicy but not too spicy. Worth it (though pricey)
Mac & Cheese- $8 (or $5 with BRBB coup) from Oodles of Noodles.
A "new to us" food. Not as good as the mac and cheese curds selection but good! Especially since we're picky about m&c with cheddar cheese
OK, NOT GREAT- GRADE C FOODS
Cookie Dough on a Stick- Oreo Fudge Flavor for $5, Chocolate Dipped is $1, Peanuts is another $1, from Cookie Dough on a Stick
Very rich. If you like cookie dough you'd probably enjoy.
Irish Whiskey Boneless Wings- $8 from O'Gara's
Yeah this was fine. We ate it all but probably wouldn't get it again. Unbalanced- needed to be either sweeter or tangier. Pretty good heat level.
Tailspin- $11 from The Hangar
This was perfectly fine. This is the replacement new food (since the original wingwalker donuts had injector 'needles' and an excessive amount of plastic that received a bunch of backlash- and The Hangar did the decent thing and actually listened to feedback), and in case you missed it it's "BBQ sauce, french-fried onions and coleslaw, layered over pulled pork, elote, Oaxaca cheese on a hash brown waffle".
We think this might be just too much stuff.
Joey Mary- $8 from Brim
NOTE: requires mixing!! Otherwise too bitter.
Cold coffee. Not much of a slush. GF almond cookie not great. Those of us who liked cold coffee drinks liked it more than others.
Snow Cap Mini Waffle Sundae- $6 from Hamline Church Dining Hall
Good waffle and Cream Cheese Ice Cream, but utterly tiny for six bucks.
Blueberry Key Lime Pie- $8 from Farmer's Union Coffee Shop
We were very split on it, with some going to B and some to D. Good Key Lime flavor and nice graham cracker crust. The spork that comes with it is dumbly shaped, making it hard to eat.
Tipsy Pecan Tart- $7 at Sara's Tipsy Pies
$7 for this tiny mouthful?! GTFO Sara. Crust is too thick- I don't know how you eat it without a metal fork. Flavor was good.
Shrimp & Grits Fritters- $5 for 3 from Funky Grits
Dipping sauce was almost too spicy for some of us. Fritters were a little soft but not bad. Literally no line.
Feta Bites- $5.50 at Dino's Gyros
This was really just ok. Little dry, as expected with feta. Dip was good, and good value.
No Bologna Coney- $6.75 from Mancini's Al Fresco
The sausage and bread were real good, but the muffaletta was cold and overpowering and kind of took over the whole coney. Damn shame.
Lamb and T-Bone Chops- $6 from Holy Land
Very small chops. Not particularly exciting, unless you're a big fan of lamb.
Carolina Pit Smoked Brisket Taco- $9 at Shanghai'd Henri's
Split between a B and a C. The beef was tasty but the taco seemed to lack flavor
Mini Donut Latte- $7 from Anchor Coffee House
Fine if you like cold coffee drinks. But Brim's Joey Mary was better
Deep Fried Dilly Dog- $8 from Swine and Spuds
The batter is excellent which is what's saving it from a D. Falls apart as soon as you start eating it. Not a fan of warm pickles, and ours was way overdone compared to the others coming out.
Cuban Fusion Fajita- $7 from Juanita's Fajitas
This had mixed reviews. Some thought the cheese wasn't melted enough, or enough sauce, others thought it was a pretty good item. Agree to disagree.
The Hot Hen- $8 from RC BBQ
Damn this was divisive. Sarah says it's a fuckin F--, but she hates buffalo chicken. Anne and Pat thought C and B, and the parents were underwhelmed and confused by the conflicting spices of buffalo and jalapeno. But damn- those chips.
Loaded Garlic Cheese Bread- $5 from Green Mill
This was perfectly fine. We just wanted it to be more garlic bread and less pizza. Less sauce and crispier bread would have helped
Fried Taco on a Stick- $12 from Taco Cat
We were all across the board on this one. Sarah hates Mexican food, Anne thought it was too spicy, and I really liked it. Real crispy, with a spicy green sauce drizzled on the outside and meaty filling inside (it also came in vegetarian, but they don't let you mix and match)
NOPE, DON'T LIKE THIS- GRADE D FOODS
Strawberries and Cream- $7 for a small at Strawberries and Cream
Unsurprisingly this is exactly what we expected- something we could easily make at home, but more expensive. Cream was good but berries were too underripe. The best thing about this is the photobomb (see IG pic).
Lavender Lemonade- $6 at Farmer's Union Coffee Shop
The only reason we drank half of it was because we were thirsty. Too tart to be thirst quenching. At least it was pretty.
Turkish Pizza- $9 from Blue Moon Diner
We wanted to love this. We didn't. All heat and no real flavor. Also wished the bread was crispier. We sad.
Boozy Berry Trifle- $9 from the Hideaway Speakeasy
Surprising absolutely fuckin no one this tiny trifle was way overpriced. It was too tart and the poundcake and whipped cream weren't enough to balance it. Expected.
Honey Bee Lavender Mead- $9 from Lulu's (sociable cider werks)
Flavor was like a C but the price on this little bitch dropped it into D territory. We'll stick with Jaybird mead.
YOU HAD ONE JOB, AND YOU FAILED- GRADE F FOODS
NONE THIS YEAR!
So that's it! No State Fair in 2020 (for OBVIOUS REASONS), but we've gotten the official word that there WILL be a MNSF in 2021. Normally right about this time is when we should hear about new foods, but who knows how that will play out. So I guess we'll see.
But one thing's for sure. We'll see you at the Fair.
