NC State Fair

Once a year I go the NC state fair to indulge in grease and fried food. I’m not into the rides too much, so I’ll just be reviewing the food. You’ll find most of the same sausages, corn dogs, steak sandwiches, and turkey legs at many vendors. A must have for me every year is the fried Wisconsin cheese. The batter tastes amazing and isn’t too greasy and is light, yet crunchy. The cheese comes out hot and melty with the perfect semisolid melty consistency. I would highly recommend the fried cheese.
This year I tried a few of the newer items. The pimento cheese bacon hush puppies were a new item with a great concept. They were good hush puppies with bacon bacons, but didn’t taste any different than normal hush puppies. All of the jalapeño pimento cheese flavoring was in the creamy sauce, but the hush puppies were still good. I also tried the fired pork loin sandwich topped with chopped BBQ, bacon, coleslaw, pickles. The «high on the hog» sandwich was $ 12, but was humongous and was basically two in one. The pork was tender and juicy, with a great crunch from the fried coating. The NC style BBQ gave it some great vinegar sauce flavor. The monster sandwich was incredible and a must try!
I finished off the night with the biggest root beer float I’ve ever had. For $ 5, you get a massive super size soda cup filled to the top with fresh root beer and ice cream. Overall, the food at the fair is greasy and not healthy, but there are vendors that sell some delicious and different items you normally wouldn’t see. I always try to find the new food items every year and pass on the normal stuff.

Now that I’ve been to the MN state fair, I have to update my review. This place is very fried, and not cheap. Ride tickets are now a dollar each. I dropped about $ 80 to take two kids there for a day. Once a year, sure. I don’t see how you could come here every day. Now that I’ve tried all the fried foods, the novelty of that wore off a bit. It’s still great to see the kids having fun at all of their usual attractions, and it’s a nice large fair with plenty of variety. The redundancy about the corners of the fair is nice in that it keeps lines and crowds down, but it can also be a little disorienting. (We were trying to find the Firehouse mirror maze and had a hard time figuring out which corner of the fair to approach — we passed it twice before we discovered the entrance!)
I’m still going to go every year, but I’ve seen just how good a state fair can truly be. This has some catching up to do. And guys? That map? It’s not even close to detailed enough. I pretty much tossed it away and navigated by sense. Can’t figure out what’s where.

It’s the state fair, junk food galore and a ton of junky games. The rides I wouldn’t put my children on as they just don’t appear safe, even though I know they are inspected. The flower displays and the exhibition halls are fantastic though. The yesteryear area has fantastic artisans and stuff for sale. Well worth going to if you go early on a weekend or during the week. By 2pm on a week day it’s absolutely packed and crazy busy. Buy tix online in advance as well to make for easy entry.

I’m from the Northeast where we had the «Big e». I was expecting a huge spectacle, it was. Much more fun, more agricultural based, less pushy vendors. My family & I had a lot of fun. The actual fairgrounds are giant. There is no way we got to see everything it had to offer. My son & I will being going back in years to come.

I’m not a huge fan of the rides or the games at the fair, but you can definitely find me here looking for new foods to try. FRIED FOODS GALORE! Don’t miss out on the crazy foods you can find here! It is unlikely you will be able to find a lot of these foods anywhere else, so make sure to bring a big appetite, adventurous taste buds and plenty of cash!
Every year I have to get the fried Wisconsin cheese! It is the fluffiest fried cheese you will ever have. We always order the Jalapeño Cheddar, with pizza sauce to dip. For $ 8 you get 5 big cheese sticks and every single bite is heavenly for cheese lovers. You also don’t have to worry about having food that has been sitting under a heat lamp, because the line is always long and there is constant turnover for this fried goodness.
We also tried 2 of the new items this year. We tried the High on the Hog sandwich which was a fried pork chop sandwich, topped with barbeque, coleslaw, and pickles. It sounds and looks like an intimidating sandwich, but it was delicious! It cost $ 12, but at least it was a huge portion. The other new item we tried was the hushpuppies with pimento cheese/​sriracha sauce from Ragin’ Cajun. While it was delicious, I was a little disappointed, because I thought the pimento cheese was going to actually be inside the hushpuppies.
After eating all of this, we were ready for something a little more refreshing, so we got a large rootbeer float. This was best deal we had! It was $ 5 for a huge cup with what seemed like huge 3 scoops of vanilla ice cream! So good!
Various Tips:
Parking — Don’t pay at the lots! Park across the street at the PNC Arena for free and walk! It isn’t that long of a walk at all and you can spend that extra money on more food, rides or games!
Drinks — Water was $ 3/​bottle this year! Pricey! There was 1 vendor near Dorton arena that had them for $ 1 and so did the booth that sold Chick-​fil-​a. You are bound to get thirsty with all the walking and fried-​food-​eating, so it is not a bad idea to bring your own water!
Flower and Gardens — Go here during the night for a break from the crowds! There are lots of quiet spots to sit and it is really relaxing with the various Christmas lights and artwork.

If you don’t want to deal with the crazy parking situation, get there at 8:00 AM. We were the first car in the parking lot right next to gate six. I would suggest getting there early and eating breakfast at one of the few opened restaurants at that time. We then sat down to some talented bluegrass musicians and tap dancers. Early in the morning, we were able to scan all the food trucks and prices much easier. I bought a bottle of water for a dollar when other places were charging $ 2.50. There really is something for everyone at the fair. Amusement rides where you need to buy tickets, acrobats, bands, a display of adorable animals and the opportunity to milk a cow for three dollars. I was actually able to eat there pretty healthy as they had a few Middle Eastern and vegetarian restaurants there as well. Tons of turkey legs for $ 10 and lots of places to eat roasted corn and all kinds of fried sweets. I enjoyed going through the booths as well to seeing some unique gifts, and especially loved the flower and garden show and baked goods area. The displayed cakes were amazing. Lots of areas to sit down and eat as well. We didn’t stay for the fireworks at 9:45 PM. In four hours, we were able to see pretty much everything.

Alright, so I went back again — this time at 9AM. Too early I realized upon arriving, so we waited and watched things for about an hour. It was actually really interesting seeing the fair without thousands of people crowded around, and not having to wait more than 5 minutes for that huge relatively new ride I finally rode this year (after much convincing from friends) that spins four people on each end as the tall bar connecting each end also spins. It was thrilling, but all the rides here rack my nerves underneath my seeming disregard. I trust a theme park connected to the ground much more.
Anyhow, the food is exactly what you’d expect. Fried everything all costing around $ 9 a pop. I opted to find better options such as the spinach pie from John the Greek food truck. It was quite good! Also spotted a La Farm area & Neomonde truck set up by the pottery and news stands. I will probably check those areas out next year.
One thing that really bothers me about the fair is that people are willing to pay money to look at an animal for one minute that is actually caged up in a small area for hours and hours. Don’t even get me started on pig races and pony rides. Yikes.
All in all, I think it can be a fun little day to visit the fair, especially for children; but I personally hate the crowds with enough passion to avoid them at all costs in the future.

The fair is a yearly tradition for me, I always look forward to attending and expect to gain 5 pounds.
What do I look forward to the most?
–Fresh corn dipped in butter, my favorite
–An ice cream on a cone, dipped in chocolate & sprinkles then topped with a cherry
–Trying at least one of the newest creations without getting too crazy, this years selection was the deep fried jalapeño pimento cheese and bacon hushpuppies with Sriracha Bang-​Bang dipping sauce and they were delicious
–Beasting the competition in water shooting games & Whac-​A-​Mole, this year I was not successful
–Checking out the exhibits
This year I had the opportunity to try the fresh hot apple cider which is located in the Village of Yesteryear, OMG AMAZING!
We used to pay to park but now we just park at PNC Arena and walk over since it is free dollars and you get a little exercise in before packing on the pounds (they also have a shuttle if you need that).
Summed up, if you could not tell, I love the NC State Fair!

Whether you’re just visiting nc or have been living in this lovely state for decades, the nc state fair is a must!
First off, ticket prices aren’t bad at all.
(You can also find online deals on their website)
Secondly, deep frying makes (almost) everything that much better!
Thirdly, it’s such a nice excuse to spend quality time with friends and family~
The cons of the state fair are the obvious: crowded and parking.
However, our state fair is pretty legit! Rides might not be the sturdiest (based on our recent history lol) but the food and experience is good!
The musts: Wisconsin cheese, deep fried Oreos, funnel cake, and their massive turkey legs!
I tried the peanut butter and jelly wings (new item this year) and I was not a fan… Tasted like I was just dipping my wings in peanut butter.
A solid way to appreciate nc’s beautiful autumn weather!

It’s tradition to come to the fair each year and in that regard, the state fair is great because it is always exactly what you can expect. For that same reason though, It’s sort of a mess trying to park here, as there’s a bunch of streets have private lots that make you pay an arm and a leg, or you can park at PNC arena and walk a thousand miles. Or wait in line for an eternity for the shuttle to come. And the trafffic, my goodness that traffic. It still haunts my dreams sometimes, that traffic.
I think I love the fair for the novelty factor. Chancing on a new crazy food, and especially when that crazy food turns out to be delicious. Last year, that was how I felt about the tropical smoothies. The year before, I was so happy to try the deep fried oreos. This year? Haven’t found anything mindblowing. (hint hint: bacon on a stick is just bacon on a stick. don’t get your hopes up like I did.) But beyond that, I still can’t help but love the fair. So yes, it’s the same vendors that rip you off the same way on the same fried foods. But I still love eating those fried foods, and seeing those same cows and pigs and sheep. Nothing new, but it’s still a fun time.

There is no place in North Carolina that I’d prefer to raise hell and eat cornbread.
Watching the tractor races yesterday and all of the smoke and pollution entering the crowd, I couldn’t help but think that our esteemed presidential candidate Bernie Sanders may be right in believing that global warming is the biggest threat to our country. We can talk about cap and trade all day or we can focus on the endless entertainment these races were for the country bumpkins and the city transplants like myself in attendance. There was a couple of times I had a flashback to the Final Destination movies where a car would have an accident and kill people in the crowd so I didn’t stay long enough to see the winning tractor and driver get a bouquet of roses planted across the hood.
What else is the fair about? How about ‘Merica. Fried food that I took a bite of this year included fried tootsie rolls with bacon, fried peanut butter and pickles and a fried twix bar, twinkie bar and bacon all wrapped into one. These eats are only around once a year and consider that a service to your body. Every fried concoction also tastes remarkably similar so I don’t think it’s necessary to go on the whirlwind food tour I went on.
The mac n cheese burger looked interesting too but we didn’t get around to it. I heard that Hardee’s had been testing out such a burger to put on their menu, but the sandwich construction deteriorated if the customer wanted to add other options to the burger so they axed it. Good concept, as long as the mac is the proper amount of fried and isn’t sliding all around every bite.
Carnival games, pig races, half woman/​half snakes, roller coasters and weird people balance out the rest of the experience. I’m convinced you can spend days here and not go through everything.
There are some negatives. The food vendors do get a bit same-​y in spots, parking can take awhile and cost more than you bargained for, the clientele may fit better at a weight watchers meeting and it is honestly devastating to see an adorable cow get sold for $ 35,000 to Harris Teeter that may show up in one form or another in your moms beef stew for Sunday dinner. All of these items could use some work and that is one of the reasons the fair isn’t for everybody, but for a few hours every year I’ll let it slide.
On our way out, we walked by a trailer that said to come in and listen to the best story ever told. I was ready to hear about how NSYNC have the #1 and #2 first week album sales in history for No Strings Attached and Pop but then they started talking all about Jesus. Oh well…

A great place for family fun. You can spend a little or spend a lot, it is totally up to you. Rides for kids and adults. Many choices of games and food to choose from or just walk around and look at the exhibits and arts and crafts for sale. It is a great place to start your Christmas shopping. I always have to stop by NC State’s ice cream booth for their homemade ice cream. The newest flavor of lemon wafer was very tasty, but a little more wafer than I expected. And don’t forget the candy apple before you leave. My favorites are the carmel apple and the blue apple.
This is the perfect weather for the State Fair. What a great way to spend time outside getting a lot of exercise walking around.

I no longer have to go every year. If you’ve been to the State Fair once, you’re fine. It’s like a rite of passage for new Raleigh residents. This time, instead of death by turkey leg, I opted for the corn, okra, and cotton candy combo. Where else can you get maple syrup cotton candy?! Between that and the corn, I feel right at home.
If you want to show off, spend a couple bucks to milk a cow. Wanna have a contest? Have a scavenger hunt (first to find a couple in a matching outfit wins).
I’m not sure attendance went down after the accident. Rides, however, were mighty empty. There are so many other things to do! We head over to look at the biggest produce and the best cakes. The dog tricks, animal races, and pull up contest are always on the list.
As I write this, I long for fall. I can smell the smells. I can hear the fireworks and see the giant ferris wheel. The only thing that freaks me out is when people opt to get flu shots at the fair. *shudders*

3 words: Deep Fried EVERYTHING.
Seriously, that’s what this event is known for. Deep fried Oreos, deep fried onion rings, deep fried calamari, deep fried pickles/​veggies, deep fried chewing gum, deep fried whatever-​you-​can-​think-​of.
They are also known for their unique food options, such as the famous Twinx, which is essentially a Twix candy bar wrapped with bacon, inside a deep fried Twinkie, topped with powdered sugar. They also have the Krispy Kreme burger, which utilizes donuts as buns on either side of a patty, a slice of cheddar cheese, and bacon. Do these taste good? Well… let’s just say my mind was very confused with the sweet and salty combos. There are plenty of other weird options available as well. Like «elephant ear» — what on earth is that?! I thought it might be an actual elephant’s ear, considering how crazy everything else is! But it’s more like a gigantic funnel cake I suppose. There’s also something called pulled pork sundae, which consists of pulled pork, refried beans, and coleslaw, all in one sundae cup. It’s not an actual sundae, there’s no ice cream involved.
There are also miscellaneous handcrafted items for show/​sale, a petting zoo, typical overpriced carnival games and rides, tractor pulls, pig races, and TONS of people with very limited parking. Unfortunately, the pig racing area was far too crowded to be able to see those tiny creatures, but the idea is cute. The place is widely spread out, but the food and attractions are very repetitive. If there’s a long line for funnel cake at one vendor, just keep walking, and you’ll undoubtedly run into another vendor that sells the exact same thing.
It’s terrible for your health, but also great to experience at least once. As with most carnivals, it’s more fun for the kids. Plus, it runs for about 10 days and includes fireworks!

Pig races! That’s what my bf and I were excited to see. We got to Gate 11… wait, let me back up. The fair excitement started about 1.5 miles before the gate, where we spent $ 10 to park in a rather bumpy field. But worth it. Some people tried their luck with side-​of-​the-​road parking, but by mid-​afternoon, those are mostly full and you have to sit in crawling traffic to even take a look. On the walk towards the fair, a guy was hawking tickets — cheaper than regular prices, and we could skip the lines to buy. Sold. My bf was skeptical, but they were legit.
Back to Gate 11. We had 30 minutes until the pig races started. My bf wandered towards one of the halls of blue-​ribboned pies, but I steered him back. Eyes on that piggy prize. Traversing the midway was hot (yes, even in late Oct), smokey, jammed with people, and overwhelmed with rides, games, and fried food stands. It took 25 minutes to get across and find the bleachers around the pig race track… which appeared to have been filled at least 15 minutes prior to our arrival. We crowded around back, cursing little kids who were blocking our view, and shielded sun from our eyes to catch a glimpse of those scurrying piglets. I think I may have seen one’s back. Lesson learned for next time: buy your bacon wrapped fried twix bar early and then park your butt on a bench to claim your territory.
Enough with the animals we could barely see — we bailed and headed for the animal halls. These were 1,000,000 times better than crowd surfing the midway. We saw a calf feeding (rather violently, there was some udder punching), pigs snoozing, and a pen full of chicks and ducklings running around like bouncing fluff balls. And then there was the chicken tent. I didn’t think this would be interesting, but we must have spent 20 minutes in there. I had no idea how many types of chickens there are — some of them looked to have fur, rather than feathers. I wanted one. And they were for sale (most between $ 5 and $ 50). But I don’t live on a farm, so we moved on.
On the way out, we had to stop in the exhibition halls — I had to see the prize winning knits (?!) and be shown all of the best ways to use the newest mop on the market. Come on, that’s why we come to the fair, right?
To sum up:
Parking: $ 10
Two scalped admissions: $ 15
One shared funnel cake: $ 5
Witnessing the chaos that is the state fair: priceless. (Though it’s a «seen it once and check the box» type of deal. Glad I went, but don’t need to go back!)

In a world filled with fat-​free food options, clean and sterile bathrooms and rides permanently fixed to the ground, a man wanders in search of chaos. Continent after continent, country after country, state after state, city upon city he wanders. He samples. He searches far and wide for an example of such extremes and gluttonry that would challenge even the appetites of Jabba the Hutt.
Then, one day, he discovers the North Carolina State Fair. What happens next would be the pinna…
Oh never mind. It’s the State Fair.
All of the deep-​fried, sugary, sticky, juicy, meaty, heart-​attack-​on-​a-​stick fun you could ever hope to turn over to your cardiologist one day to deal with.
You have to see this spectacle at least once especially if you are not one to travel to other states to see theirs. I have seen fairs put on by cities and states in other countries as well so I’m pretty well-​versed in fair fare.
Unless you walk the entire thing for the entire time it is open per day I do not see how it is humanely possible to sample some of the offerings food-​wise. I spent $ 35 on six items of food and I couldn’t even think of food for being so full.
For those who have a problem getting enough exercise… come here. You can walk and bend and stoop and lunge all day with the ever-​ready excuse of fun-​seeking being your sole motivation.
Turkey leg.
Damn.
Charlie F, thanks for pointing me that way. And to the double foot-​long hotdogs that almost ended me! Oh, such a good yummy way to go out it would be.

Well not much has changed in the ten years since I’ve been to the fair. The fair is a great fall time activity for everyone. It will take you a few hours to get through the fairgrounds and explore everything that is there.
Plenty of fatty fried food to munch on, rides, farm animals, games and more. Every year there is a new hot fried food that starts buzzing around town. This year all I heard about was the Twinkie stuffed with a Twix bar wrapped in bacon and fried. Overall it sounds pretty good right? Well the truth is you can fry anything and it all tastes the same, yes I tried the Twinkie which was the biggest disappointment in fact it was just disgusting, I definitely enjoyed the fried Oreos much better. By far my favorite thing at the fair is Al’s French Fries with some vinegar yum. These fries are still some of the best I’ve ever had, fresh cut, and piping hot they are worth every penny.
You purchase fair tickets for the rides, most of them are not worth the money. I don’t really enjoy rides in general and am frightened by any rides that are moved around from fair to fair. The silly fun houses and haunted houses are a joke but I’m sure the kiddos like them. I did enjoy the ferris wheel and we were on that for quite sometime and got a great view of the entire fair from up top. Parking is expensive if you want to park close by it’s $ 15 or so. This year however they did a stop with the Amtrak train which was very convenient. The fireworks were great and the people watching well its just fantastic. They get different musical artists each year to perform at Dorton Arena and this year the big act was Joan Jett, not to shabby.
If you’ve never been the NC State Fair it’s just one of those things you have to do. I won’t be sad if I miss it but it’s something fun and different to do and hey it’s right down the street from me.

For the 2014 edition of the NC State Fair, I attended 3 times — once with my nephew from the Outer Banks, once taking my Mom around in a rented wheelchair for her first visit in many years, and one final time with me and my cameras!
Nothing particular has changed since my last review. I enjoy the beauty & calm of the flower show area, and feel it’s one of the better kept secrets of the fairgrounds. Found my normal place to eat on «restaurant row» for my usual footlong hot dog.
I enjoy the roaming performers and those that perform in various places during the fair.
I like the one of the things that is being emphasized more is the «Got to be NC» program of the Dept, of Agriculture. The tent near the Kerr Scott building promotes many NC business there throughout the fair, and I noticed signage at many food booths to let us know they were serving NC based products.
It is a tradition that I enjoy keeping each year.

So the NC State Fair is one of those things that you do once a year and then are perfectly content not experiencing again until next year… But I say that in the best possible way! I have a blast each year but by the time i’m driving home i’m saying to myself «Welp, i’m all fair-​ed out for another year…»
The fair is pretty much a massive jumble of rides, exhibits, attractions and (most importantly) food. I’ve yet to figure out any rhyme or reason to how they set everything up, so to find anything of major importance (NC State ice cream, contests, popular attractions) you’ll have to wander most of the grounds and stumble upon it. But that’s part of the fun, as you usually come across goodies that you never knew you wanted!
Food-​wise you pretty much have you choice of fried –and-​bad for you goodies, with VERY few healthy treats scattered in. I went twice this year and wanted to eat something better for me than a Turkey Leg (is that really turkey) or funnel cake the second time around so I grabbed a great sandwich from La Farm’s food truck behind Dorton Arena. Other than that and Neomonde (which I could never find) there’s not much waistline-​friendly.
Rides are pretty fun if you’re into them, but try not to think of how much they cost…$ 5 to be spun in circles several times? No thanks… Though the giant coaster they had this year for $ 6 was actually pretty exciting (and not as terrifyingly rickety as I imagined!). Pretty much all rides take 3 or more tickets ($ 3 and up if you buy tickets the day-​of), and there are obviously some that are worth it and some that totally aren’t.
Other fun features are the animal exhibits (including a room full of bunnies that I have to visit every year), cooking demonstrations and lots of vendors that make special trips to the area for the fair. Be sure to get an insanely large caramel/​chocolate/​etc apple from Miss. Debbies Specialty Apples, and to try some fresh local milk (with cookies)! There are usually a few fun concerts playing as well (I had a great time at Newsboys) which are insanely cheap and top out around $ 20 a ticket.
Finally it’s worth mentioning that parking and getting around are a bit tricky if you don’t know what you’re doing. First off… DON’T pay for parking. There is an arena full of free spots about a 10 minute walk away (they also offer a free shuttle back and forth). Be sure to give yourself time to drive the area, chances are you’ll be stopped several times and have to do some creative driving in order to avoid insane pedestrians holding giant stuffed toys. Also keep in mind there are plenty of surprisingly clean bathrooms scattered around the fair, and remember you can bring your own sealed drinks and food in case $ 10 turkey legs aren’t your thing!
I think everyone in NC should try to get to the fair at least once in their lives, it’s always a lot of fun… Just everyone don’t come all at once.

We go every year, but not for the midway rides or deep-​fried horrors found in the food section — we’re there for the agricultural and historical aspects, and they deliver! The displays of needlework, canning, baking, quilting, cake decorating, fiber arts and more in the education buildings are always impressive; the prize-​winning fruits and vegetables are an amazing selection of the wide variety of things that grow in North Carolina; the chickens make me wish I didn’t have foxes in my back yard; the bluegrass stage and the Village of Yesteryear are what I always imagined a state fair would be when I was a kid.
Weekdays make for a more manageable crowd and taking the bus saves a lot of time in traffic! It might be expensive if you go on a lot of rides or brave the foods (Krispy Kreme sloppy joe burger?! *shudder*), but we keep it economical by avoiding both, aside from the Howling Cow ice cream — which is a must, though prices are higher this year — and enjoying the gardens, animal competitions, pig racing, and other events. We got holiday shopping taken care of thanks to the great artists and craftspeople at the Village of Yesteryear — they offer everything from handmade soaps to woodworking to tinsmithing to tatting, and more! It’s fun to see North Carolina craft and agricultural traditions being carried on for future generations.