Deep fried pumpkin pie & a Krispy Kreme chicken sandwich? New foods at the Kansas State Fair
The Kansas State Fair is here this weekend, and there will be more than 125 food vendors ready to feed the masses starting Sept. 9.
Each year the State Fair sports some of the best petting zoos, performances, foods and rides. This year there will be rides offered by North American Midway Entertainment and over 400 commercial vendors selling all sorts of items for the entire family.
“Agriculture is like the backbone of Kansas,” Kansas State Fair General Manager Bryan Schulz said. “It is very important for people to understand where their food comes from. If it’s the crops we grow, the animals that we raise, that’s all important. It’s also an opportunity for people to build traditions.”
One thing that will be a constant every single day throughout the entire fair, is the food. Whether it’s greasy and deep fried or sweet and dipped in chocolate, the state fair will have a wide range of new and classic foods for guests to try.
Last year food from the state fair was featured on the Food Network’s Carnival Eats.
“[We’re] celebrating all things Kansas,” Schulz said. “People just don’t realize all the great things that we have here in Kansas and this is our opportunity to toot all of everybody’s horn and to showcase it.”
Here’s a quick look at all the new foods to check out this year:
The fair will now have a new beer garden. The beer garden will feature burnt end fries and a burnt end burger. There will also be a new waffle cheese curds with hot honey dish at the beer garden. The Original Beer Garden will be located on Grandstand Avenue.
Dusek Concession’s Waffle Cobbler Sundae
Dusek Concessions, which is located in the Cottonwood Core area of the fair, is promoting its waffle cobbler sundae. Schulz suggested that people try the Caramel Apple Sundae that will be on the menu starting this weekend.
“So they’re taking apples and they’re thinly slicing them and creating a sundae out of a waffle cone and it looks amazing,” Schulz said.
When you get to the fairgrounds, make sure to stop by the Freund Foods Mac and Cheese stand, which can be found on Bison Boulevard. The stand will be doing a multitude of different macaroni and cheese dishes for you to try, including mac and cheese with barbecue pork or even a grilled mac and cheese sandwich.
Chicken City’s OMG Chicken Sandwich with a Krispy Kreme bun
The OMG chicken sandwich will be available at the fair this year. The sandwich is a fried chicken breast breaded with frosty flakes and paired with bacon and maple syrup with a Krispy Kreme donut bun. You can find the Chicken City concession stand on Grandstand Avenue.
Brackett Concession’s Cookie Dough and deep fried pumpkin pie
Bracket’s will be offering its Deep Fried Pumpkin Pie dish right in time for fall. There will also be fried cheesecake bites with powdered sugar and a cherry drizzle. You can visit the Brackett food stand at 303 Fort Riley Boulevard once you get to the fair.
Sandy’s Candy
Sandy’s Candy is a new sweet stand that will be offering all your favorite delights to munch on while you stroll through the fair. There will be salt water taffy, caramels, licorice, homemade brittle and sugar free options for customers.
“All kinds of great candies that we all grew up on,” Schulz said.
To get a look at all the food that will be available at the fair this year, visit here. For tips on where to sit and what else you should try, visit here.
What else to know about the Kansas State Fair
The fair started in 1913 as a small exhibition in a wooden stable in Hutchinson, Kansas. Now, 109 years later, the fair is one of the largest agricultural exhibitions in the state. Each year, the fair is held at Meadowlark Building at 2000 N. Popular Street in Hutchinson, Kansas–about three and a half hours west of Kansas City.
The fair will be live from Sept. 9 until Sept. 18. Each day there will be live shows, exhibitions and entertainment. There will also be performances from singer-songwriter Parker McCollum, comedian Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias and rappers Tech N9ne and T.I.
In addition to the heavy hitting headliners, there will be a demolition derby and a championship race car track presentation. If animals and agriculture is more of the appeal, there will also be equine shows for the horse lovers and open livestock shows with everything from swine to llamas. To see the schedule for each day, visit here.
