Not Fair Update (with Updates!)

Fair Food Fridays continue! We've gotten back in line during the last two Fridays for our Fair Food Fix.

Last week they introduced cheese curds. We were excited to try them, but these were a bit "blonde" for us. We have high hopes they get better with practice.

Update: We later gave the cheese curds a second chance, and they were much improved. 

The State Fair Grinder was spot-on. Daphne was in the process of adding peppers when I took the picture.

Update: Two weeks later, and the Grinder was even better; there was more cheese! 

Update: It was time to try their Cajun Chicken on a Stick. The chicken was tender, the breading was spicy, and the onion and pickles were a surprise. Well played, Fair Food Fridays!

A deep fried Snickers bar is hiding in there. We haven't have one of these since Charlotte was born. Char was impressed with how good this was.

The Applishus food stand (a Daphne favorite) made an appearance this week, and we had a slush and their Apple Egg Rolls with caramel. Both tasted like we were standing next to the Varied Industries building. 

The mini donuts turned out to be donut holes, but no one was complaining. 

Last week Daphne ate her first Gyro with me, and we shared another Jumbo Tenderloin today. Both rocked.

The Iowa State Fair is going to host their own Taste of the Fair event next weekend. I'm glad Iowa is trying to keep the ISF spirit alive even though the fair is now 390 days away.

Update: I am officially a Fair Food Friday Fan, and I have a hat to prove it.

Not Fair

Like most fun events, the Iowa State Fair is postponed until 2021. 

I could make a depressing list of all the things we'll miss about the ISF, but I'm not going down that rabbit hole. I'll concentrate on the stuff that we can do, instead. 

No doubt about it, the food at the Fair is a highlight for our family. We were able to safely enjoy a taste of the fair yesterday thanks to Brenda Smith Concessions. They are hosting "Fair Food Fridays," and offering food from stands that you would normally find on the Iowa State Fairgrounds. 

You preorder online and pick a time slot to pick up your order. Each time slot is an hour long, and it seems like you'll need it because the line of cars is pretty long. This was our first Fair Food Friday, so I can only speak from our one experience, but our wait was about 25 minutes.

We had no idea what the process would look like, but it went very smoothly. When we got closer to the stands, an employee in a mask in gloves approached our car and asked what my order number was. She confirmed the number, and then wrote it on a sticky note that was placed on our wind shield.

Getting closer!

I can almost smell our food.

Yea! Char got popcorn chicken. Daphne and I shared a Pickle Dogg and a Jumbo Pork Tenderloin.

Those look like hand-cut pickles and onions on there!

We drove to an empty school parking lot and ate our lunch. I took one bite of the Pickle Dogg, and exclaimed, "Oh. My. That tastes just like the fair!" Daphne took a bite and quickly nodded in agreement. We traded smiles as we passed the tenderloin back and forth over the hand brake.

It was so good; I had to try to not spill on myself in my excitement. I ordered this ISF shirt back in May before the fair board decided to postpone. This may be the only time I will wear it this year.

No, Fair Food Friday is not the Fair. But it is as close as we'll get for awhile, and I'll take what I can get.