Minnesota State Fair 2021

The Minnesota State Fair was back in 2021 after being canceled due to the Covid pandemic in 2020. Who ever would have thought that the fair would be cancelled in modern times?  2020 was only the sixth cancellation of the fair since its inception. 

I was happy to hear the 2021 fair was on and also a bit nervous. We waffled a bit and ended up going a couple times anyway. My rationale was that most food vendors and attractions are outdoors anyway and we would mask up for the bus ride and to go inside buildings. And we survived just fine. We even got Covid tested  afterwards and didn't catch anything. 

The first evening we visited the fair was pretty early in the run and on a rainy day, so attendance was very sparse. Which was my plan. And empty fair is a great time. And it was emptier than I've ever seen it. 

really, really sparse....

corn roast

turkey to go

World's greatest french fries

Nashville hot chicken on a stick

pirogies from the Blue Barn

fried pickles

fresh french fries

higher attendance on a nicer day

beer sampler from Minnesota Craft Beers Guild

We rode the Great Big Wheel again this year

fresh baked brownie 

Kerala fried chicken kati roll from Hot Indian Foods in the Food Building 

I'm pretty sure I forgot to take photos of some food items. I know I had a pronto pup, but I guess I was so excited about it I spaced on the photo. There's probably more where that came from. 

Well, 2021 was a unusual year for the Minnesota State Fair, but I am glad it was not cancelled again. And looking back, Covid levels were actually quite low then, so it worked out fine.  

Minnesota State Fair 2016

I managed to work in three fair visits this year, the first on Friday, August 26th, with my friend Stephanie. We arrived around 11 am and basically wandered around all day. I had no agenda and we had fun checking things out.

 I started with a pronto pup.

 Tom Thumb mini donut machine. 

 The final product. Very light and fluffy and fresh. 

I enjoyed the Premium Blu beer from Schell's again this year. Love the frozen foam! We had cheese curds as well, but I forgot to get a photo.

We stopped by the Minnesota Wine building, to do the wine flights. I tried the whites and Steph went with the sweet and fruity flight, each flight cost $10.

Key lime pie on a stick. Very tart and good. Form Kermit's in Key West, so not made locally, which is maybe OK.

Steph got some Sweet Martha's cookies to take home. We ate quite  few to try and close the lid, but did not do too well. It is a lot of cookies! 

I stopped by the fair Saturday night for awhile to meet Kelly and Michele before the Dixie Chicks show. I started with a burrito from Taco King across from the Miracle of Birth Center. It was very bland and basic, but it was large and quite filling.

I also had the garlic cheese bread with sauce from Vescio's near the Grandstand. I've had it many times before and it was very good as always, but I forgot to get a photo.

Sunday John and I headed to the fair for our day of fair fun. The day started off cool and rainy, but it was not raining by the time we arrived at the fairgrounds.

Bacon from the Big Fat Bacon stand. Just go get this because it is always great!

Fudge Puppy is a chocolate covered waffle on a stick. The waffle was very fluffy and fresh.

John always has to get french fries, these are from World's Greatest French Fries, across from the Food Building. They were hot, fresh and crisp. Very good.

We only tried one new fair food this year, the bang bang chicken from Lulu's in the West End. The chicken was crisp and fresh and the breading was slightly spicy and the dipping sauce was also a bit spicy, but not overly so. I'd highly recommend these.

Another great fair is in the books for us, as we won't be able to make it for the second weekend of the fair. I think three days in a row was maybe a new record for me and maybe too many days in a row. It is probably better to spread it out a bit more next time around.

Minnesota State fair - second visit 9.6.15

We made it back to the Minnesota State Fair for a second visit this past Sunday. It was a bit overcast when wee arrived, but the morning rain has passed. I was hoping the rain would keep the crowds and the slow walkers and moseyers away. 

transportation hub entrance

 

We started with some Big Fat Bacon. Yum! 

 We tried to win some Vikings swag, not much luck this time. 

John got a fresh peach from the Produce Exchange stand. Very juicy and fresh. 

Original Fudge Puppy; it is basically a chocolate covered waffle on a stick, quite good actually. 

The weather cleared up around noon, but it clouded up again and rained more later in the afternoon. 

This is an apple rollover from the MN Apples stand in the Agriculture Horticulture building, a new item for 2015. Very light and flaky with lots of apples inside and a lot of icing on top. 

I tried a Gizmo sandwich at the recommendation of Andrew Zimmern. It is hamburger and sausage with marinara and cheese on a toasted bun. I thought it was a large and filling sandwich, but I am  not sure I'd order it again. It was just too much food and it was a bit bland.

S'mores beer from Giggles Campfire Grill

Buffalo'd Bones from Famous Dave's, new item for 2015 as well. These were quite good; very tender ribs and the buffalo sauce was spicy and flavorful. 

This is Not Your Father's Root beer, an adult root beer with 10% alcohol. It apparently has some kick, but certainly doesn't taste like it. Tastes just like regular root beer. Very good stuff! 

French Fries from the Fresh French Fries stand. These were quite good, but I think we liked the fries from our first visit from the World's Greatest French Fries stand a little better.

We bought some ride tickets so John could do the baseball pitch. We also rode the Ferris wheel and played the water squirt guns and I won a Minion at that!

I tried the Pineapple Wheat beer at Ballpark Cafe made by LTD brewing. It was OK, not sure I'd get it again though.

 I managed to have some more Grain belt Blu beer, wish they bottled this stuff! 

I got some macaroons from the Salty Tart. Very good. I swear there were 4 cookies in there last year. I also got some Sweet Martha's cookies, just a cone. Very good also, especially when fresh. 

We had a great day and got a lot of walking in an also collected some nice freebies. The fair was pretty busy even though the weather wasn't great. We even made it home before the next round of rain arrived later that night. I hope everyone had a chance to visit the fair this year and I can't wait until next year as always! 

Minnesota State Fair - First visit 8.28.15

We visited the Minnesota State Fair on Friday for our first visit. We plant on getting another visit in over Labor day weekend. I wanted to share a few photos while the fair is still going on.

I was not very excited about new fair foods, so we stuck mainly to old favorites. A lot of the new foods simply didn't sound appealing or worth the money.

I started with a Schell's blueberry beer with frozen blueberry foam. This was new in 2014 and I had hoped it would be back again this year. Still good!

 pronto pup, far superior to the corn dog in my opinion!

 Beer flights from the MN Craft brewers sampling booth. 

 John with the mascot of the MN United Soccer team. I think we need to try and attend a game. 

 Fries from World's Greatest French Fries were very good this year, very crisp and fresh. 

 We seriously only drink RC Cola at the State Fair.

 Sweet corn from the MN Corn Roast stand. Excellent as always. 

 John's favorite Turkey to Go turkey sandwich. 

I tried one new item, a blueberry and apple pie from the new stand Sarah's Tipsy Pies. The pie would've been better if served warm, and the drizzle of liquid didn't add much to it, though the drizzle was not generous either. The crust was crisp and it tasted fresh though. But, I'm not sure I'd go back.

We had a lot of fun walking around and looking at people, places and things as usual. We have a lot more items left to sample, so look for another installment next week! In the meantime, have a great time at the Minnesota State Fair if you get a chance to go!