The Iowa State Fair isn’t just a fair, it’s the fair… the one Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote a whole musical about. Since 1854, families have been rolling up in covered wagons (and later minivans) to eat, gawk, ride, and eat some more. I didn’t have days to wander, but I did manage to squeeze in a few classics… and a few “what the heck did I just see” moments.
Let’s start with breakfast. The West Des Moines Methodist Church Diner has been serving fair food since 1949, now with help from a whole squadron of churches (because it takes 300 volunteers to keep the biscuits and gravy flowing). Those biscuits? Fluffy, buttery, and smothered in just enough gravy to clog an artery with a smile. Totally worth it.
Not everything was food, but most things were. Deep-fried pretzel? Spam truck? Pork chop on a stick (which is kind of just… a pork chop)? Crawfish fritters, biscuit bar, beef sundae? I also saw a sign for something called “Special Shit.” I didn’t ask. Some mysteries are best left unsolved.
The food contest was fun too. I never had time to stand in line for the fair’s winning food… a Bacon Chicken Ranch Eggroll… but I did try one of the finalists, Three Little Pigs. Imagine three ham balls, each with its own personality: one honey-mustard with cornbread crumbles (basically a corn dog in disguise), one tangy cherry soda glaze that tasted like cherry Coke in meatball form (my favorite), and one vanilla-glazed, powdered-sugar-dusted ham ball for dessert. Yep, dessert ham. Iowa went there.
Speaking of sugar bombs, I fell hard for Applishus, a soda-fountain-style apple stand owned by the mayor of Des Moines. Their newest hit is the award-winning Sweet Granny’s Apple Delight Sundae: green apple ice cream in a flaky pie-crust cup, topped with whipped cream, apple slices, and caramel syrup. It nearly put me in a sugar coma, but I regret nothing.
The Butter Cow celebrated its 114th year, sculpted from 600 pounds of butter (that’s enough for 19,200 slices of bread, or about three weeks of Paula Deen recipes). Fun fact: the current butter artist, Sarah Pratt, also sculpts the Kansas State Fair’s butter cow—so our bovine gets the same golden treatment as Iowa’s. Sadly, I didn’t get to see it. The line was usually a 20-minute wait, and when I tried to sneak in early, the woman at the door shut me down. I said, “I’m a vendor, can I just run in and take a quick pic?” She shot back, “I don’t know why you think that makes you so special.” WTW? Vendors pay good money to be there. Two minutes with the butter cow wasn’t going to ruin her day—but it sure ruined mine.
Duffy’s Cow and Calf Sculpture also caught my eye… a tribute to Norma “Duffy” Lyon, Iowa’s legendary butter sculptor. There are three identical statues in the country: one in her hometown of Toledo, Iowa; one at Iowa State University; and one at the fairgrounds, standing proudly in bronze.
For snacks of the non-dairy variety, Barksdale’s Cookies are the fair’s runaway hit. Started in 1993, Joe Barksdale sold his family’s cookies by the cup or bucket, and they became an instant classic. Today the fair itself runs the operation, churning out thousands of cookies from a kitchen that hums 22 hours a day. They were good… softish, sweet… but I’m still partial to the chewy kind my mom made.
Ye Old Mill, the oldest permanent ride at the fair, is a classic tunnel-of-love boat ride built in the 1920s by John Keenan. Only five of his rides are still around… three at state fairs in Iowa, Minnesota, and (yes!) Kansas. I didn’t ride it, but I loved the Kansas connection.
Nathan’s Famous hot dogs also made an appearance. I’ve been a fan forever, along with Hebrew National and Sabrett’s. You can buy Nathan’s in the store, but it only tastes right when cooked low and slow, so the skin has that perfect “snap.” Founded in 1916 at Coney Island, it’s one of those foods that brings me straight back to summertime nostalgia.
And then there was my brush with Iowa politics. Another quirky tradition is the egg on a stick. People line up for a hard-boiled egg on a popsicle stick, and this year the fair broke a record by handing out 22,000 eggs. The line was short when I walked by, and GovernorKim Reynolds was there handing them out. I said, “Hi Governor, I’m Kevin with Kansas Tourism.” She smiled and said, “Welcome to Iowa.” Then I grabbed a quick pic.
The fair has two museums too: the Deets Museum, packed with ribbons, trophies, and stories (including the famous elephant Baby Mine and the fact that Sonny & Cher once held the grandstand attendance record), and the Jacobson, where you can browse fair souvenirs from decades past.
And of course… no trip down Iowa State Fair memory lane would be complete without the legendary staged train wreck. In 1932, two locomotives… painted “Hoover” and “Roosevelt”… barreled toward each other at 50 mph in front of 45,000 people. Engineers jumped clear, kerosene lanterns and buckets of gasoline were added for extra flair, and the whole thing ended in a fiery explosion of twisted metal and cheers. Iowa didn’t just do train wrecks, they did political satire with kerosene.
The Iowa State Fair is massive. It’s chaotic, crowded, and a little overwhelming. But it’s also funny, weird, delicious, and worth every minute.
For other interesting treks around America check out Road Trips