Fairs and Carnivals

Fair Play

Soul Bowl

The State Fair Classic kicks off

See You at the Fair

The State Fair Classic kicks off

Papa Was A Rodeo

The Fort Worth Stock Show Winds Down

Kickin' Cotton

The Fort Worth Stock Show Winds Down

State Fry of Texas

The Fort Worth Stock Show Winds Down

And The Winner Is...

​A hell of a lot to wade through this week, mostly thanks to the state fair.Two things before we get to the non-winners. First, I think I found a way to rid my desk of some of the accumulated junk...uh, I mean, of the highly sought after prizes, which this week would have included a handsome coffe ... More >>

Oprah Says Thanks, Y'all, For the "Food Coma'" and the State Fair Memories

Patrick MichelsOprah turned up in the crowd Monday morning in this slimming cardboard number, hoisted by the good people of Stolen Oprah.​ After holding court around the fairgrounds on Sunday, Oprah turned out for her show's taping this morning in her Stetson, boots and blue jeans, dropping "y'all ... More >>

Top 10 Foods To Fry For Next Year's State Fair

Patrick MichelsBecause even with garlic sauce on one side and grape topping on the other, this fried butter love affair can only last so long.​Every year, vendors on the state fair circuit push the limits of fried excess: chicken fried bacon, deep fried peanut butter cups and, of course, this year ... More >>

Texas-OU Belongs in the Cotton Bowl, But Jerry Jones is Preparing to Lure the Game to You Know Where.

Patrick MichelsBecause even with garlic sauce on one side and grape topping on the other, this fried butter love affair can only last so long.​Every year, vendors on the state fair circuit push the limits of fried excess: chicken fried bacon, deep fried peanut butter cups and, of course, this year ... More >>

More Things To Fry At Next Year's State Fair

Patrick Michels​Maybe you flipped through this week's Top 10, a countdown of foods to fry next time the state fair rolls around.We put together what we thought was a pretty unassailable list--Pop Rocks, Jello shots, vegan cupcakes and the like. Hard to beat, right?Ah, but then you lot chimed in.Th ... More >>

State Fair of Texas Files Application to Build Giant Greenhouse, Growing Area at Fair Park

Something like this Rough Brothers-designed greenhouse is what the State Fair of Texas has in mind.​Earlier this afternoon, I noticed on the Landmark Committee's Fair Park Task Force meeting agenda for Wednesday a most intriguing note: Someone has applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness to bu ... More >>

Errol McKoy, State Fair President, Talks About Why Fair Park Needs That Big Green House

This, per the State Fair's plans sent to Landmark last week, is more or less what the green house will look like. And where it'll go. Sorry for the quality; best we could do with what we got.​Finally spoke with Errol McKoy about that green house he's wanting to plant at Fair Park; our Q&A foll ... More >>

City Hall Files Suit to Get Railroad Museum to Chugga-Chugga On Out of Fair Park Pronto

​OK, back to Fair Park, but only to ask: Why didn't the Museum of the American Railroad ever leave Fair Park for Frisco? That's what the city wants to know almost two years after the museum "entered into a formal letter of agreement with the City of Frisco to relocate to that city," per its long-a ... More >>

Howdy, Folks, and Welcome to the "Super-Sized" State Fair of Texas?

​What you see up top is the artwork unveiled today for this year's State Fair of Texas, where the theme is "Super Sized Fun." Which is in reference to ...? Let's go to The Official Announcement: "Super is the word heard all around North Texas this year and Fair officials are working closely with t ... More >>

No App Yet for Your Fried-Food Appetite at Fair

The fried Cokes are that way, folks.​Visitors to the State Fair of Texas will have to wait at least a year before they can use their iPhones to instantly locate the closest fried cookie dough stand. State fairs in Ohio and Indiana this week announced plans to roll out iPhone apps that will al ... More >>

Big Tex Will Go All Texas With Wines
At State Fair

​Kroger has pulled out as a wine garden sponsor at the State Fair of Texas, taking its West Coast wines with it. With the Texas Department of Agriculture left as sole sponsor of the wine tasting and teaching space, all of this year's featured wines will come from Texas. Jeff Siegel, who will ... More >>

Mmm, Fried Soy Products; Who Needs Funnel Cake?

Chicken-fried bacon or fried imitation cheese...hmm, which to choose, which to choose?​Figuring omnivores shouldn't have all the greasy fun, DallasVegan.com is hosting its own fried food contest at The Phoenix Project, 406 S. Haskell Ave. "I would expect some of the same, off-the-wall type of ... More >>

Park and Rec Assistant Director Willis Winters Talks About His Fair Park History

Old Dallas Stuff​Willis Winters, assistant director of the city's Park and Recreation Department, says, with a laugh, that it took him all of 30 days to write his forthcoming Fair Park history. He signed the contract with Arcadia Publishing in March, under the assumption that it wanted the book in ... More >>

Pie in the Sky: Is Fried Frito Pie Ready
To Hit the Top of the Greasy Charts?

​Not satisfied with winning "best taste" honors at yesterday's Big Tex Choice Awards, fried Frito pie inventor Michael Thomas has implied he'd like his concoction to become a concession stand staple. "The deep-fried Frito pie is a game changer for fair food," Thomas told The Dallas Morning Ne ... More >>

Huzzah! Renaissance Festival Recommends Healthier Fare

This dude definitely needs to lay off the fried foods.​An event designed to celebrate tightly corseted wenches and bloodthirsty jousters isn't exactly synonymous with restraint, but organizers of this year's Texas Renaissance Festival are promoting the fair's healthy snacks. The festival, bil ... More >>

Cool Aid Pickles a Refreshing Alternative
To Fried Food at State Fair

​As Dallas Observer's Cheap Bastard, Alice Laussade, so eloquently put it in this week's cover story, fried food at the State Fair of Texas might have jumped the shark, thanks to Mark Zable's fried beer. Zable's creation won this year's Big Tex Choice Awards' Most Creative prize. The annual fried- ... More >>

Those Wisconsin Folk are Lightweights
When it Comes to Fair Eating

Sauerkraut balls: Wasn't that a nickname for Hitler?​A Milwaukee filmmaker who chronicled one man's annual quest to eat every deep-fried and "on a stick" food served at the Wisconsin State Fair has a few tips for fair-goers contemplating similar missions. Mark Irving, whose 13-minute "documen ... More >>

Dr Pepper Jumps Aboard the Fair's Deep-fried Bandwagon

​State Fair of Texas Fry King Abel Gonzales, who ventured into pastry territory this year with his deep-fried chocolate, will continue messing with confections at a Dr Pepper cake contest. According to a press release, Gonzales will serve as judge for the fair competition, which is open to an ... More >>

Sampling the Fair Foods, Part 3

Stephen MaskerAt the State Fair, you can win pigs...and eat them!​ The Observer this week set out to sample all the new fair foods that didn't make the Big Tex competition finals. Here, part three of our deep-fried review:

The State Fair Eighty-Sixes Its Corny Dog Contest, But the Pros Are Coming for a Sandwich Race on Sunday

Patrick MichelsThird-ranked Pat Bertoletti claimed the world waffle eating title at the State Fair of Texas back in 2007. He's back eating sandwiches this Sunday afternoon.​It's tough to know just how to feel about this year's competitive eating lineup at the State Fair of Texas. On one hand, on t ... More >>

The Most Beautiful Video of the State Fair of Texas You Will See All Day

State Fair - Twixtor Test from Robert on Vimeo.Just came across this on Vimeo: Robert Hunt's short film made during an outing to the State Fair of Texas. On the Vimeo page he explains how and why he made it, and apologizes for the stuttering start to the slow-mo short that I've found to be a common ... More >>

Corndog Millionaire: Fletcher's Manager Tells All

Copeland Selling Corn Dogs​The Fletcher's corn dog stand closest to Big Tex is the State Fair's busiest corn dog stand, and it's not just lowbrow eaters who line up to trade nine coupons for the venerated snack: Randall Copeland, chef-owner of Restaurant Ava, recently joined the throngs. But u ... More >>

Five State Fair Foods You Can't Find in Texas

Ok, maybe we don't want this.​It's the rare visitor who leaves the State Fair of Texas wishing there had been more deep-fried delicacies available, but there are a few fried and stick-impaled snacks missing from the fair's line-up. Here, a look at five popular sweet and savory items sold at state ... More >>

A State Fair Summation From a Food-Loving Arkansawyer

Editor's Note: Of the gazillion people who yearly visit the State Fair of Texas, a good number of them are outlanders. One of those visitors this year offered to share her fair reflections with City of Ate. Kat Robinson, who blogs about food back in Arkansas, reveals here which fried dish she liked ... More >>

The Tacos of the State Fair of Texas

Hello there, crispy taco​Novel and atrocious fried foods aren't the only foodstuffs available at the State Fair of Texas. Among the alternatives are tacos, one of which threw me for a loop. To begin my hunt, I searched the State Fair's Food Finder web page for tacos. With the search results in han ... More >>

For Sale: An 1894 Texas State Fair Keepsake

From eBay seller "celluloid"​On the eve of the 75th anniversary of the Texas Centennial Exposition at Fair Park, which opened on June 6, 1936, Friend of Unfair Park PeterK espied this one-of-a-kind keepsake up for grabs on eBay courtesy Minneapolis-based seller "celluloid": a bronze coin commemora ... More >>

Tower of Power: Fair Park Crawls Closer to Becoming Year-Round Destination

Photos by Leslie MinoraThe Observation Tower Ride will fill this 30-foot hole behind the Cotton Bowl. Don't worry, they're covering it up for the State Fair.​There is a big hole in Fair Park. Finally. Eventually the crater will be filled with a 500-foot pole surrounded by a doughnut-shaped slowly ... More >>

Fried Chicken Skin and Fried Cake Balls?!? Thanks, Eat Crispies.

Eat CrispiesFried chicken skin from Eat Crispies. Mmm. Skin.​Meet fried chicken skin, brought to your State Fair of Texas by Eat Crispies. It's just chicken skin, battered and fried for your face. Eat Crispies owner Phuong Le says, "The fried chicken skin was what caught the attention of ... More >>

Falling for Big Tex's Line

State Fair of Texas' big dude seems vaguely presidential these days.

Vegans Rejoice: Texas State Veggie Fair Fried Food Competition

Sylvia ElzafonFried vegan Bob Armstrong queso won Texas State Veggie Fair's Most Creative title in 2010.​The State Fair of Texas offers a millionty delicious fried food options, but if you're vegan, food-wise you're pretty much limited to sniffing second-hand funnel cake fumes.Well, fuck all that. ... More >>

Un-Fried at the Fair: Brain Freeze, Frogurt and Sweet Tea Pickles

Frozen yogurt, why have you not fried yourself?​We've talked a lot about the fried food coma the State Fair of Texas will be offering up this year, and we figure it's time we mention a couple of new vendors who are stepping up the unfried fair fare. (If only to ask them why they have yet to fr ... More >>

How Were Fried Praline Sweet Potato Poppers, AKA Fried Thanksgiving, Not Big Tex Finalists?

Kyle WallHiding inside these donut-hole-lookin' things is a sweet-potato-praline mind-blow.​ Oh, these fried praline sweet potato poppers weren't finalists in this year's Big Tex Choice Awards? That makes total sense. TO NOBODY!!!!!! Kyle Wall, inventor of these fried lovelies, said that fair off ... More >>

Fried Brownies at the State (Fried) Fair of Texas -- I'm in Heaven

Denise GarzaFried brownies will make you fried happy.​This year, Denise Garza (with her sister Norma and her niece Roxanne) made it to the second round of the Big Tex Choice Awards with Heavenly Deep-Fried Brownies. While the concept of frying a brownie isn't completely new to this fair (las ... More >>

Jerk Your Sausage to Island Spot's Fried Bread Pudding

The Island SpotWhy isn't this jerk chicken fried yet? FRY IT.​Island Spot is a new vendor at the State Fair of Texas this year and along with this open-flame-grilled jerk chicken, jerk sausage (note: it's on the menu as "jerk sausage," not "the hand job" or "the hanje") and jerk tofu (for all ... More >>

PETA Asked the State Fair of Texas For a Booth. Wanna Guess How Big Tex Responded?

The fair's no place for you, sister. Have you tried the Lodge, though? They pay better, and the chicken wings are to die for.​Just got off the phone with a lovely young lass from PETA, America's favorite activist group turned performance troupe. They're always really nice to talk to, those PET ... More >>

No Plans For Women's Museum Building, But Summer Place Park's Still Set to Bow in 2013

A (small) look at the proposed Summer Place Park​Speaking of Fair Park ...In the wake of its inclusion on the American Planning Association's list of Great Public Places, several Friends of Unfair Park have asked: How's that long-proposed plan to open the fairgrounds year-round(ish) coming? And: W ... More >>

Big Tex Will Haunt Your Dreams

State Fair of Texas​Moments ago, a Friend of Unfair Park directed my attention to the State Fair of Texas's Facebook page, where 18 old photos from fairs past were just posted. All are worth a look-see; remember the fun we had browsing Nick DeWolf's stash of pics from the '77 State Fair? But this ... More >>

Oh, Bacon Snap: The 2011 State Fair of Texas Bacon and Eggs Contest

Alice Laussade2011 Bacon and Eggs contest at the State Fair of Texas. Idea: Let's put all that stuff in my face.​Yesterday I had the honor of judging at the 2011 State Fair of Texas Bacon and Eggs contest. Yeah, be so jealous. There were six categories for competition: bacon appetizer, bacon e ... More >>

The Day Sonny and Cher Visited Fair Park

Photo by Skip Shoffner, courtesy Philip ShoffnerSonny and Cher in front of the Fair Park Coliseum​It's quite likely that many Friends of Unfair Park recall O. V. "Skip" Shoffner, who, his son Philip reminds, was a longtime mail carrier in Lakewood -- for more than 30 years. Skip was also a regular ... More >>

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Photo by Skip Shoffner, courtesy Philip ShoffnerSonny and Cher in front of the Fair Park Coliseum​It's quite likely that many Friends of Unfair Park recall O. V. "Skip" Shoffner, who, his son Philip reminds, was a longtime mail carrier in Lakewood -- for more than 30 years. Skip was also a regular ... More >>

City, State Fair to Replace Fair Park Livestock Arena With Fancy "Mini-Convention Center"

Click here to see more of Good, Fulton & Farrell's renderings for the new Fair Park Livestock Center.​The reason I called Park and Rec's second-in-command Willis Winters the other day wasn't about downtown parks. Rather, I was curious about an $869,465 item on the Park Board's agenda for today ... More >>