Fair Food

What is it about state fairs that bring out some of the most interesting and intriguing specimens of the human race and their odd attraction to unusual foods? It seems people are free to be who they really are at fairs. The guard is down: No pretentiousness here.

For example, would you ever consider parading among throngs of people, dodging them at times, in an effort to dig your teeth into a hand-held grilled turkey leg? What about of eating a slice of perfectly fine cheesecake, chocolate dipped, on a stick? How about pizza on a stick? Mashed potatoes?

If it can be held on a stick, you'll probably find it at the Tulsa State Fair.

This year's Tulsa State Fair rivals most fairs of this size with foods that leave some speechless in ecstasy and others with stomachaches. Consider the fat, sugar, calories and salt is needed for these foods. That's what our taste buds respond to in a comforting way at Fairs.

There was nothing scientific about my casual walk through the Fair a couple days ago. As I peered into the food vendors' windows, I at times wondered what magic food prep is going on inside. Odds are that fried foods can be found at most food vendors, in some shape or form.

At one vendor what resembled a corn dog was actually a Hostess Twinkie getting the deep-fry treatment. Twinkies go back to 1933 when Continental Baking Company baker, James A. Dewar, designed these popular treats, of which more than one half a billion are prepared each year. Wonder what he would think about this deep fried variation?

I ordered this fried $3 Twinkie, and it came with a light, cake-like sweet batter around it, then topped with a light showering of powdered sugar. Eating this fluffy texture of fried goodness right off a sturdy stick was fairly easy; the creamy middle of the Twinkie was warm and seemed to soak into the shortcake nicely. The result was warm, gooey bites of this Hostess Twinkie. The Fair also features other over-the-top battered and deep fried candy: Milky Way, 3 Musketeers, Oreos and Snickers as well. Hey, all's fare in Fair-fried foods, after all!

So, what's the fairest food of them all? While the usual favorites continue to win the blue ribbon for popularity year after year, there are many new items waiting to get their own rating among the crowd.

Amanda Blair, Event Marketing Manager for Expo Square, offered me some suggestions for the new foods this year.

"My favorite," she added, "are the Fried Pickles from Dr. Vegetable and the Caramel Apples." While she did not know the exact number of food vendors, overall she said more than 800 exhibitors are on the grounds, with approximately 400 in the Quik Trip Center (formerly the International Petroleum Exposition {IPE} Building.)

"This year we have an Australian vendor, Kanga Jacks Aussie Shack, who is south of the Pavilion building, serving meat pies, caramel on a stick, and sausage rolls."

This Aussie Shack purports being authentic Australian food concession traveling around the Midwest at State and large county fairs, introducing people to what Australians have been eating for more than 100 years.

The gourmet meat pie is novel at a fair: it is not deep fried and not greasy. It's really quite a British thing, much like a Cornish Pastie. It is a flaky pastry filled with premium USDA chuck roast beef, 90 percent lean with home-style savory gravy flavor. It's perfect for eating right out of the hand, without missing a moment walking around the Fair. The Aussie Shack also serves Sausage Rolls.

Prices, she says, are about the same as last year--you can count on paying around $2.50 for a bottle of water; $3.50 for corn dogs; drinks average $2, $3, and $4 depending on size--$3.75 for a can of beer and $6 and $10 for a Frozen Margarita; $6.50 for Turkey Legs; $7 for a Gyros Sandwich; $3.50 for Caramel and Candy Apples.

Another new food item this year is pizza on a stick. For a mere $37, a family of six had three pizzas on a stick and three small lemonades. At this particular vendor on the west side of the midway, pizza slices were $4 or $8 on a stick, for pepperoni and sausage. A whole pizza is $25.

One "think before you eat" food that I sampled was Spam on a Stick at $3.50. Yes, battered and fried Spam. Although it looked like a corndog, it was Spam. The line was short here, so I hustled right up to the window to place an order of fried Spam, a first in my life experience.

Spam is the trademarked, processed pork luncheon meat made by Hormel company, where the "ingredients are ground to a medium-course texture; spices are then added to enhance the product's natural flavor." Soon after, the product is mechanically filled into the cans, sealed and oven cooked in the cans.

Fried Spam turned out to be a little better than I thought it would--although I do recommend a heavy dose of prepared mustard all around the thing. The taste was almost nondescript--the fried Spam seemed to loosen its texture, becoming very soft. The richness of the fried batter and warm Spam was too much for me. A few bites were very rich and filling, in manner of speaking.

For a sweet treat, I tried the Deep Fried Cheesecake at $5 a stick. A slice of New York Style Cheesecake is wrapped in a tortilla-like covering, fried then rolled in a cinnamon-sugar mixture. I found the cheesecake softened, almost to the point of being lost in the crust. It was good for the first few bites, but in my estimation lost its excitement soon after.

A recommendation is the Buni's Bakery Cinnamon or Pecan Rolls at $4 each. They are freshly made right in front of your eyes; they are rich, sweet, good and gooey and satisfying, to which my several young dining companions can attest.

For the less adventurous, more quality-oriented diners, some familiar-named vendors include Freddie's Hamburgers, Mazzio's Pizza, Java Dave's Coffee, White River Fish Market, Copper Kettle Fudge, Ron's Chili, Quik Trip Mobile Store and Lutger's Cakes and Catering.

You'll have to stop into the Quik Trip building for Freddie's Fair Special Fried Apples: dipped, fried, then rolled in a cinnamon-sugar mixture. These can be caramel dipped or dipped in real whipped cream.

For the steak lovers, a steak dinner or sirloin steak sandwich can be found at the Sirloin Hut if one searches hard enough.

Asian cuisine is also a favorite. Wok & Roll offers Noodles and Rice, Egg Rolls, Green Onion Pancakes and Chicken Wings.

Some of the few vegetables to be found, albeit fried, are at Dr. Vegetable, Blair's recommendation. Besides Fried Pickle Spears, the doctor also fries onion rings, zucchini, mushrooms, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, and broccoli.

Exiting east from the QT Building lands fair goers in a high-food content area, where live music and picnic tables make fair dining a little more palatable and civil. Foods here include Popcorn Chicken, Deep Fried Peaches, Fresh Cut Gator Taters, Deep Fried Cheese Filled Black Olives, Egg Rolls, Chicken or Beef Fajitas, Quesadillas, Cajun Fried Shrimp, Fried Green Tomatoes, Fried Mozzarella Sticks, Baked Potato, World Famous Spiral Spud, Pot Roast Sandwich, Chocolate Dipped Ice Cream, Toasted or Fried Ravioli, Frosty Bites Mini Melts Ice Cream, Pineapple Whip, Hawaiian Shaved Ice, Strawberries Dipped in Chocolate, Cheese Curds, Hawaiian Shaved Ice and Roasted Corn on the Cob.

It doesn't get any better than that.

"I've got that nice, tired old feeling," says Pa Frake near the end of State Fair, as their family's fair adventure was coming to an end. The bustling nexus of activity--the strange, wonderful and flavorful--of the fair was now over. I had to leave this year's Tulsa State Fair with a bit of mystery surrounding my food adventure: the Fried Bacon Cheddar Mashed Potato on a Stick and the Chocolate Dipped Cheesecake are two that will have to wait until next year.

Tulsa State Fair

Tulsa Expo Square, 4145 E. 21st Street

744-1113

Hours:

10am-10pm, Oct. 4

10am-11pm, Oct. 5 & 6

10am-9pm, Oct. 7

Rating:

Atmosphere ****

Food ****

Service ****