We are officially 2 weeks out from the start of the Kansas State Fair! There are a few food trailers parked out there already. Of course, they are empty of food products, but they might be full of paper products and other etc. I was out there a few days ago, and there were a few people getting their booths cleaned and prepped. It won't be long now!
Today's post will focus on the foods of the fair. Of course you know that a state fair is a mecca of all things fried and unhealthy. However, I was asked if there is anything healthy at the fair. If you're going to be at the fair and want to eat healthy...pack a lunch. Just kidding. I did some research and here's what I have come up with: Bordering on the healthy side (depending on what you consider healthy) there are numerous places that sell burgers and hot dogs. Also, there is a building called "Russ & Annie's" across from the Old Mill that is a sit-down restaurant that sells some pretty good home cooking. In the Pride of Kansas building café, they sell really good bierocks and hot beef sandwiches. It's always a spot I visit every year when I'm not ready for any greasy food. There are a couple of red food trailers (I can't recall the name) that sell BBQ parfaits, that is a cup of goodness. It's layers of mashed potatoes, pulled pork, BBQ sauce, with pork & beans at the bottom of the cup. It's actually one of my favorites! Also on the healthy side, a few booths sell big turkey drumsticks. There's some good meaty protein right there! In the food court (Cottonwood Court), they sell chicken & noodles, fish, and Chinese. They also sell pulled pork sandwiches. Hope this gives you a few good options. Anymore, I don't eat as much at the fair. Partly because of my diabetes, partly because of cost, and partly because I can make at home almost anything that the fair sells. In fact, a couple of years ago, I hosted a "Fair Food Day" at my house as a fundraiser for my mission trips. I carry a few protein bars with me when I go to the fair so that if I get hungry or my levels get low, I can eat one of those. In the past several years, I've eaten almost everything there at the fair, so if someone asks me for my ideas on a certain food item, I simply relay what I recall about it. If it's an item I have never had, I'll indulge so that I can give you my thoughts. I always give the food items a grade based on quality of food, service, and value. There are a few things that are always my go-to every year, though: As I mentioned before, the bierock and the BBQ parfait. I always get a Pronto Pup, too. It's just not a trip to the fair without a Pronto Pup! My dad and I always get BBQ sandwiches in the food court from Porky's. Good stuff! My mom and I like to get Chinese, and she likes to get a roasted ear of corn. Here are a few tips to keep in mind if you're planning on a fried food item this year. If you get a chance, try to get a look at their grease vat. If the oil is pretty dark, chances are that the grease hasn't been changed recently, and it will affect the taste of your food. If it's a tan color or light-to-medium brown, you'll probably be OK. Some vendors don't change their grease as often as they should. I won't mention them here, as I won't blast them in this forum. I have actually walked away from a booth that I have been craving because of too-dark oil.
Is there a food item that you are curious about? Any favorites or suggestions? I'd like this to be an interactive blog post, so please feel free to share your ideas with me. I am going to cut this post a little shorter than usual. My folks are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary today with a big party, and I am helping with that. Feel free to share this post, like it up, and comment! Let me know you're seeing and reading this! Thanks for reading, and God bless!
Saturday, August 24, 2019
Saturday, August 17, 2019
8/17/19; Rob's State Fair Ramblings
I hope that you're enjoying the state fair info that I've been posting the past week or so. I've had quite a few people tell me that it's given them an idea of what to see and where to see it. Today, I'm going to give you an idea of things to look out for.
First of all, keep your eyes peeled for Bandaloni, the one-man-band. He is very talented and entertaining. His favorite place to perform has usually been by the Channel 12 booth. The first time I saw him a few years ago, I only planned on stopping for a few of his songs, but I ended up watching his entire set! He will do a few shows a day, and his schedule varies. Another fan favorite is Oscar the Robot, the little robot that roves the fairgrounds. Kids love to interact with him, and he is very engaging. Oscar is run by a gentleman that controls his movements and voice from a distance. He blends very well into the crowd, and I always try to see if I can spot him. I also plan to stop by the Bretz Arena on Tuesday evening to see Mason Ramsey, a talented young man that was discovered by yodeling and singing at his hometown Wal-Mart. Someone filmed him, posted it on YouTube, it went viral, he had multiple postings on Facebook, and an agent saw him and saw gold. Long story short, he has hit it big, and has performed with some big names in country music. I enjoy seeing talented kids, and I remember chuckling and smiling at his videos, so I'm looking forward to seeing him sing. Another place to check out is the Lair White House. The Lair White House is the state fair's museum, and the exhibits change every year. This year's exhibits will highlight the history of some of the buildings that exist on the grounds, as well as some buildings that are no longer there. If you are like me, you enjoy finding the free stuff that some of the booths give away. Here's some of the best of the best: The Union stand, which gives away some of the best stuff. I've gotten Frisbees, koozies, and a variety of other great stuff. Many other booths give away cups, pencils, pens, etc, but the Union booth is the best. The Union booth is typically in one of the smaller Sunflower buildings. Also in one of the smaller Sunflower buildings is a booth that offers samples of instant flavored coffees and different varieties of beer bread. (The beer cooks out in the oven, don't freak out! LOL) It's so good! In the big Meadowlark building they have a booth that sells about 15 types of dips. You can grab a few pretzel sticks and make your way around the table, sampling the different types of dip. They are pretty good! When my feet and body get tired, there are several massage chair booths scattered around the fairgrounds. Sometimes I have to listen to their sales pitch, but that 15 or 20 minute session they give you is priceless. If you get thirsty, they have several Root Beer stands scattered throughout the grounds. They sell the cheapest Root Beer around, and they also have it in sugar free. If you're not in the mood for Root Beer, there is a stand that is located on the North side of the Oz building that sells the cheapest bottled soda. Allen's P-Nut stand sells this soda, and they are very friendly as well. If you want the cheapest food, look across the street and to the east of Allen's, and you'll find a stand called Dollar Days, which sells $1.25 burgers and hot dogs. The burgers are very, very thin, but if I'm hungry and short on cash, 2 of those burgers will do the trick for me.
I know that I haven't covered everything, but I only have so much space and time. Is there something you'd like to plug? Is there an exhibit that you are working at, and you'd like me to promote? Let me know! In my next post, I'll highlight some of the food that the fair sells, I'll share some of my favorites, and I'll give you some tips on what to look for when you're deciding what to eat.
Thanks so much for taking part of your Saturday to read this post. We're about 3 weeks away! Thanks for reading, and God bless you!
First of all, keep your eyes peeled for Bandaloni, the one-man-band. He is very talented and entertaining. His favorite place to perform has usually been by the Channel 12 booth. The first time I saw him a few years ago, I only planned on stopping for a few of his songs, but I ended up watching his entire set! He will do a few shows a day, and his schedule varies. Another fan favorite is Oscar the Robot, the little robot that roves the fairgrounds. Kids love to interact with him, and he is very engaging. Oscar is run by a gentleman that controls his movements and voice from a distance. He blends very well into the crowd, and I always try to see if I can spot him. I also plan to stop by the Bretz Arena on Tuesday evening to see Mason Ramsey, a talented young man that was discovered by yodeling and singing at his hometown Wal-Mart. Someone filmed him, posted it on YouTube, it went viral, he had multiple postings on Facebook, and an agent saw him and saw gold. Long story short, he has hit it big, and has performed with some big names in country music. I enjoy seeing talented kids, and I remember chuckling and smiling at his videos, so I'm looking forward to seeing him sing. Another place to check out is the Lair White House. The Lair White House is the state fair's museum, and the exhibits change every year. This year's exhibits will highlight the history of some of the buildings that exist on the grounds, as well as some buildings that are no longer there. If you are like me, you enjoy finding the free stuff that some of the booths give away. Here's some of the best of the best: The Union stand, which gives away some of the best stuff. I've gotten Frisbees, koozies, and a variety of other great stuff. Many other booths give away cups, pencils, pens, etc, but the Union booth is the best. The Union booth is typically in one of the smaller Sunflower buildings. Also in one of the smaller Sunflower buildings is a booth that offers samples of instant flavored coffees and different varieties of beer bread. (The beer cooks out in the oven, don't freak out! LOL) It's so good! In the big Meadowlark building they have a booth that sells about 15 types of dips. You can grab a few pretzel sticks and make your way around the table, sampling the different types of dip. They are pretty good! When my feet and body get tired, there are several massage chair booths scattered around the fairgrounds. Sometimes I have to listen to their sales pitch, but that 15 or 20 minute session they give you is priceless. If you get thirsty, they have several Root Beer stands scattered throughout the grounds. They sell the cheapest Root Beer around, and they also have it in sugar free. If you're not in the mood for Root Beer, there is a stand that is located on the North side of the Oz building that sells the cheapest bottled soda. Allen's P-Nut stand sells this soda, and they are very friendly as well. If you want the cheapest food, look across the street and to the east of Allen's, and you'll find a stand called Dollar Days, which sells $1.25 burgers and hot dogs. The burgers are very, very thin, but if I'm hungry and short on cash, 2 of those burgers will do the trick for me.
I know that I haven't covered everything, but I only have so much space and time. Is there something you'd like to plug? Is there an exhibit that you are working at, and you'd like me to promote? Let me know! In my next post, I'll highlight some of the food that the fair sells, I'll share some of my favorites, and I'll give you some tips on what to look for when you're deciding what to eat.
Thanks so much for taking part of your Saturday to read this post. We're about 3 weeks away! Thanks for reading, and God bless you!
Saturday, August 10, 2019
Rob's State Fair Ramblings
A lot of people have shared with me that this blog is helpful because it helps them make a plan of what they'd like to do, see, eat, etc. Others just find this blog entertaining. Whatever your reason for reading, I thank you. I went back and polished up my last post, as it looked pretty bad, appearance-wise. My computer wasn't cooperating, so it was my first official blog post from an i-phone. I'm back on the computer today, so hopefully it won't look like a post made by a 1st grader, lol.
These posts over the next few weeks are going to be packed with info that you might want to know. If you miss a post, just "stalk" my Facebook page to see the back-posts that have already been posted. I want you to be as informed as possible. and this blog is mainly for you. So, I'd like to know what info you'd like to see. What do you want to know about? I'll do my best to tailor these posts according to what you're interested in seeing. In addition to this blog post, you can also pick up a free visitor guide at the state fair office. Most of the info that you receive from me are going to come from this guide. Today's post will focus on what's new this year:
Food: The Carousel Café is stealing headlines this year with quite a few new things. The Carousel Café is the official home of the Krispy Kreme hamburger (which I have tried, and it's actually pretty good). They are rolling out the Krispy Kreme hot dog. The bun is a Krispy Kreme jelly-stuffed donut. It's filled with an Angus beef hot dog topped with more jelly and thick applewood smoked bacon. They're also promoting a honey-bun burger that is a traditional burger, except that instead of your typical hamburger buns, they use honey buns. You can also opt to add regular or chocolate-covered bacon to this entrée. How about Dole Whip, a creamy, fruity ice cream soft-serve? The Carousel will also offer their other fares, including their Mac attack (burger with deep-fried macaroni as the bun) or the roni dog, a bacon and cheddar hot dog topped with macaroni and cheese and bacon bits. The Carousel Café is located across the street and north of the Channel 12 building. My friends, The Brackett's from Brackett Concessions have a few pink buildings around the grounds. They are offering fried cheesecake bites, topped with powdered sugar and cherry drizzle. They also offer deep-fried cookie dough, and are right next to the Channel 12 building. Their other booth is just east of the Old Mill. And just when you think the Pronto Pup couldn't outdo themselves, they did! New this year is the Papa Pup, a 10-inch Pronto Pup! I'm in Heaven! D&J Pronto Pups are located in several areas around the fairgrounds in their signature yellow booths.
Competitons: How would you like to enter a Pronto Pup eating contest? For $15, you can get a T-shirt and try to eat as many Pronto Pups as you can in 10 minutes. I challenge Joey Chestnut to do this! This takes place on Sunday, Sept 15 at Lake Talbott at Noon. On September 8, you can enter a pancake-flipping contest. On September 7, you can enter a mini butter-sculpture contest. They'll give you a pound of butter, some plastic utensils, you bring some wire, tubing, or carving tools, and go to town on that butter! In addition to the Governor's Cookie Jar, new this year is the Governor's Tea Cup, where you can enter a hand-painted china teacup. On September 14, you can compete in a live scarecrow-building contest. Can you create the ultimate stacker sandwich? You can test your skill on September 8. How are your floral skills? You can claim "State Fair Florist of the Year" status in this competition. Can you make a sleeping mat out of recycled grocery bags? In this competition, you can make a sleeping mat, maybe win a prize, and then all of the mats are donated to people in need of assistance.
Entertainment: In addition to Ron Diamond, Bandaloni, and others. look for roving act John Beatty. He is a strong-man who can bend steel, flip over cars, and pull pick-up trucks. Also look for Jason D'Vaude, a roving one-man circus who can juggle fire and sharp objects, and ride tall unicycles. In Gottschalk Park, this year's act is the Flores Thrill Show. These guys do balancing acts on the top of 50-foot sway bars, and ride motorcycles inside a giant iron cage ball. They were featured on America's Got Talent.
These are just a few highlights. The fair offers much more than what I have time or space to include. Hopefully this gives you some insight on what you might consider seeing, doing, or eating. Thoughts? Questions? Comments? This is your blog, what do you want to know about? I'll come back in a few days with more info. In the meantime, like it up, comment, and feel free to share. Thanks for reading, and God bless!
These posts over the next few weeks are going to be packed with info that you might want to know. If you miss a post, just "stalk" my Facebook page to see the back-posts that have already been posted. I want you to be as informed as possible. and this blog is mainly for you. So, I'd like to know what info you'd like to see. What do you want to know about? I'll do my best to tailor these posts according to what you're interested in seeing. In addition to this blog post, you can also pick up a free visitor guide at the state fair office. Most of the info that you receive from me are going to come from this guide. Today's post will focus on what's new this year:
Food: The Carousel Café is stealing headlines this year with quite a few new things. The Carousel Café is the official home of the Krispy Kreme hamburger (which I have tried, and it's actually pretty good). They are rolling out the Krispy Kreme hot dog. The bun is a Krispy Kreme jelly-stuffed donut. It's filled with an Angus beef hot dog topped with more jelly and thick applewood smoked bacon. They're also promoting a honey-bun burger that is a traditional burger, except that instead of your typical hamburger buns, they use honey buns. You can also opt to add regular or chocolate-covered bacon to this entrée. How about Dole Whip, a creamy, fruity ice cream soft-serve? The Carousel will also offer their other fares, including their Mac attack (burger with deep-fried macaroni as the bun) or the roni dog, a bacon and cheddar hot dog topped with macaroni and cheese and bacon bits. The Carousel Café is located across the street and north of the Channel 12 building. My friends, The Brackett's from Brackett Concessions have a few pink buildings around the grounds. They are offering fried cheesecake bites, topped with powdered sugar and cherry drizzle. They also offer deep-fried cookie dough, and are right next to the Channel 12 building. Their other booth is just east of the Old Mill. And just when you think the Pronto Pup couldn't outdo themselves, they did! New this year is the Papa Pup, a 10-inch Pronto Pup! I'm in Heaven! D&J Pronto Pups are located in several areas around the fairgrounds in their signature yellow booths.
Competitons: How would you like to enter a Pronto Pup eating contest? For $15, you can get a T-shirt and try to eat as many Pronto Pups as you can in 10 minutes. I challenge Joey Chestnut to do this! This takes place on Sunday, Sept 15 at Lake Talbott at Noon. On September 8, you can enter a pancake-flipping contest. On September 7, you can enter a mini butter-sculpture contest. They'll give you a pound of butter, some plastic utensils, you bring some wire, tubing, or carving tools, and go to town on that butter! In addition to the Governor's Cookie Jar, new this year is the Governor's Tea Cup, where you can enter a hand-painted china teacup. On September 14, you can compete in a live scarecrow-building contest. Can you create the ultimate stacker sandwich? You can test your skill on September 8. How are your floral skills? You can claim "State Fair Florist of the Year" status in this competition. Can you make a sleeping mat out of recycled grocery bags? In this competition, you can make a sleeping mat, maybe win a prize, and then all of the mats are donated to people in need of assistance.
Entertainment: In addition to Ron Diamond, Bandaloni, and others. look for roving act John Beatty. He is a strong-man who can bend steel, flip over cars, and pull pick-up trucks. Also look for Jason D'Vaude, a roving one-man circus who can juggle fire and sharp objects, and ride tall unicycles. In Gottschalk Park, this year's act is the Flores Thrill Show. These guys do balancing acts on the top of 50-foot sway bars, and ride motorcycles inside a giant iron cage ball. They were featured on America's Got Talent.
These are just a few highlights. The fair offers much more than what I have time or space to include. Hopefully this gives you some insight on what you might consider seeing, doing, or eating. Thoughts? Questions? Comments? This is your blog, what do you want to know about? I'll come back in a few days with more info. In the meantime, like it up, comment, and feel free to share. Thanks for reading, and God bless!
Tuesday, August 6, 2019
I’m back! (State Fair info)
The other day, I posted on Facebook whether you all would be interested in a state fair blog this year. A number of you made it very clear that you would like to see that return this year. So, I guess I’ll give it a go. I apologize for my absence. Life has been going about 100 mph lately. I have had a most amazing summer. I spent my summer working with a fabulous group of fourth-graders at the Boys and Girls Club this summer. I am pretty comfortable working with different age groups, but I really enjoy the third and fourth grade levels. They are able to get my corny jokes LOL. I have also been working most nights at the local bowling alley. It is tiring work. But the money I earn from my bowling alley job is going toward my trip of a lifetime coming up in January. After many years of saving and scraping and working, I have the honor of traveling to Israel! This has been at the top of my bucket list since I was a child The trip itself is paid for, but I am still working toward the plane ticket I will need to get to New York City, and for spending money. Next week, school starts back up. I have really missed the kids. But, that also means my days are going to become a little bit longer. Getting up early in the morning to go to school and then coming home late from the bowling alley, well, does make for a pretty long day. Regardless of the long days and hard work, I have to say that I am tremendously blessed.
So, that brings us to the issue at hand, the Kansas State fair. Many of you know that I simply love the fair! I love the atmosphere, the food, the people, the entertainment, and so on and so on. I am going to do my best to bring you all the information you need to know about the Kansas State fair. I will let you know where to find the cheapest food, the cheapest drinks, what kind of entertainment to expect, and lots more. For instance, the one man band, Bandaloni, will be returning to the fair this year! Also, this past year and last, the YouTube world was rocked when a young man was filmed yodeling at Walmart. This young man hit it big, cut a record deal, and he will be making an appearance at the Bretz arena on the Tuesday night of the fair, and it’s a free concert! His name is Mason Ramsey, and he is quite talented. The Kansas state fair grandstand acts are always exciting, but I am always interested in what Christian acts will be appearing. This year, Christian rock band Skillet will be making an appearance on the grandstand, and another night will feature Francesca Battistelli with Zach Williams! I’m not so much into Christian rock, but I wouldn’t mind seeing Francesca Battistelli with Zach Williams. Unfortunately, that act appears on a Wednesday night, and I’m busy with church activities that night.
As the days grow closer to the Kansas State fair, be sure to “stalk” my Facebook page for pictures, information, and other info. Also in the days leading up to the Kansas State fair, I’ll be posting some state fair flashbacks. These are little bits of videos and pictures that I’ve taken from years past that people might enjoy looking back on and remembering. The blog posts will contain the information, and my Facebook page will feature the pictures. It’s quite a tedious process putting pictures on my blog site, so that’s why am doing it this way.
I hope you enjoythe blog posts about the state fair this year. If you’re not so much into the state fair, and don’t care to read about it, feel free to scroll right on past the blog post. I will continue to post as I find out more and more information about this year's Kansas State fair. By the way, they actually picked a good theme for this year. The theme for this year’s state fair is “Celebrate Kansas!” Hmmm... I think I like that. Thanks for reading, and God bless!
So, that brings us to the issue at hand, the Kansas State fair. Many of you know that I simply love the fair! I love the atmosphere, the food, the people, the entertainment, and so on and so on. I am going to do my best to bring you all the information you need to know about the Kansas State fair. I will let you know where to find the cheapest food, the cheapest drinks, what kind of entertainment to expect, and lots more. For instance, the one man band, Bandaloni, will be returning to the fair this year! Also, this past year and last, the YouTube world was rocked when a young man was filmed yodeling at Walmart. This young man hit it big, cut a record deal, and he will be making an appearance at the Bretz arena on the Tuesday night of the fair, and it’s a free concert! His name is Mason Ramsey, and he is quite talented. The Kansas state fair grandstand acts are always exciting, but I am always interested in what Christian acts will be appearing. This year, Christian rock band Skillet will be making an appearance on the grandstand, and another night will feature Francesca Battistelli with Zach Williams! I’m not so much into Christian rock, but I wouldn’t mind seeing Francesca Battistelli with Zach Williams. Unfortunately, that act appears on a Wednesday night, and I’m busy with church activities that night.
As the days grow closer to the Kansas State fair, be sure to “stalk” my Facebook page for pictures, information, and other info. Also in the days leading up to the Kansas State fair, I’ll be posting some state fair flashbacks. These are little bits of videos and pictures that I’ve taken from years past that people might enjoy looking back on and remembering. The blog posts will contain the information, and my Facebook page will feature the pictures. It’s quite a tedious process putting pictures on my blog site, so that’s why am doing it this way.
I hope you enjoythe blog posts about the state fair this year. If you’re not so much into the state fair, and don’t care to read about it, feel free to scroll right on past the blog post. I will continue to post as I find out more and more information about this year's Kansas State fair. By the way, they actually picked a good theme for this year. The theme for this year’s state fair is “Celebrate Kansas!” Hmmm... I think I like that. Thanks for reading, and God bless!
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