Fair Food: Beyond The Fryer

Everyone knows fair food, right? Fried Twinkies, fried Oreos, fried candy bars, funnel cakes and pretty much anything else that can be thrown into hot oil and consumed are menu mainstays. Don't forget the cotton candy, caramel apples and all of the other sweet treats that make every dentist in town start dreaming of a new Jaguar or a lake house.

While that is true, and I love just about all of those bits of deliciousness, there's also some really good short order-style line cooking going on at the fair, with men and women born to the grill laying the delicious smack upon the masses.

Take, for example, my favorite place to stop for lunch or dinner: the ever-present Italian sausage stand. At the Cleveland County Fair, where this year's fair food expedition took place, the cook has a pan of beer going on a side burner to properly pre-cook bratwurst. That's a touch you won't find even in some restaurants I've visited. That little extra step shows someone who, even though he's essentially slapping meat on a hot slab of metal and then sliding it into a bun, is determined to do everything he can to make it perfect.

The Italian sausage is locally made, and the bite of herbs and spices in it is outstanding. The peppers and onions on the grill are fresh-cut and grilled with a combination of butter and meat juices that make them a meal option in and of themselves.

Heck, even the iced tea is top-notch.

Just down the way, a family of three, with the 12-year-old son in charge of the money bag (and making change in his head, no less) sells a variety of grill fare. Their grill has a "grill" top, rather than the traditional flat-top, and on it I see resting a new and different food on a stick: Ribs On A Stick. Remember the Fair Food Law: EVERY food tastes better eaten off a stick.

In this case, my purchase proved to be wise, as I got tender chunks of rib meat, beautifully seasoned and sauced and cooked to perfection. For a measly $6, I got something much similar to food for which I've paid twice as much in a restaurant setting.

Of course, I had to explore the desserts and other fried offerings. There was a stand selling nothing but french fries. However, these were little pearls of potato perfection, double-fried and served hot with salt, pepper and malt vinegar. My other appetizer was my old favorite, the whole potato shaved into one long potato chip, then dropped into hot oil.

And, of course, we had to have dessert. I pulled the trifecta this year, with the fried Twinkies, the fried Oreos and the fried Snickers bar. Photos of all are available in the slideshow at right. I have to say that I was impressed. The quality of all three has improved since my last indulgence two or three years back. Unlike my first fried Oreos, which were soggy and grease-laden throughout, these marvels, made by a married couple working out of a portable building inside which you might have your lawn mower parked, were crispy on the outside and melty on the inside, with the cookies holding a little crunch.

Does that sound like way too much descriptive prose for fair grub? Maybe. But when the husband handed me those Oreos nestled in their paper pouch, he was as proud as any chef sliding a perfect terrine onto a customer's plate. I believe pride like that, wherever it shows up, deserves notice.

The Cleveland fair had something else I'd not seen before: Local restaurants had booths set up in a line. These were permanent structures, as opposed to the usual trailers or temporary shelters. The proceeds from the booths went to local charities. This gave locals who perhaps weren't as gastronomically intrepid as your humble scribe a safe "base" from which to launch.

While I appreciated the charity angle, I wasn't there to eat restaurant food. That would be like ordering a corn dog at a steakhouse. I was there for the fair grub, kids, and I got every bite I could handle.

So, if there's a fair going on in your town, as there are in many places this time of year, get out and eat!

Got a question? Comment? Topic you'd like to see covered? Drop me a line, anytime!