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The 2021 Texas State Fair opened on September 24 to larger crowds than expected on day one. SFOT President Mitchell Glieber had announced that they were not trying to break attendance records this year and were taking extra precautions to keep everyone safe, including staff, visitors and vendors. Opening day crowds were testament to how festival-goers missed the beloved annual exhibit after last year’s cancellation.
Opening day ceremonies on Friday included a parade featuring local groups like the Lancaster HS Tiger Pride group. There were lavishly decorated floats, Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders and more. Queues were forming at all dealership booths, including Fletcher’s Original nerdy dogs where a new fried franc stuffed with macaroni and cheese was offered.
Big Tex Choice Awards Winners, the Parrish family at Royal Concessionaires, were selling their award-winning Fried Seafood Okra Balls for a premium price of 15 coupons. Their family heirloom recipe, passed down through generations of their mother’s family, won the tastiest and most creative fried appetizer for 2021. The armadillo, a deep-fried cookie dough concoction, won the title of best sweet taste.
Photos with Big Tex
Big Tex, featuring a shiny new Shiner belt buckle for 2021, was the subject of several selfies on opening day. My husband and I attended the auto show media preview day on September 23, so we were able to take the obligatory Big Tex photo without any crowds. We thought the Chevrolet, Ford, Nissan, Toyota and Ram truck displays were especially creative this year. On opening day, the vehicle exhibits inside the Auto and Centennial buildings drew crowded crowds. I was happy to see that everyone inside the buildings wore their masks, as required by the Fair this year.
The Fair offered a sheet of coupons worth $ 20 to anyone who received a first or second vaccine against Covid-19 at their stand. We had already been doubly vaccinated, but we were delighted to learn that our stash of old coupons from previous years had doubled in value this year, from 50 cents to $ 1. We had already tried out most of the 10 Big Tex Choice Awards finalists at a media event. On opening day, I tried several new Bacon Nation entrees, located inside the dining room at Tower Bldg.
Bacon Nation
The BBLT Fried Crispy Tacos (Breast / Bacon / Lettuce & Tomato + Cheese) (6 coupons) were so good I had already devoured one before I thought about taking a picture! But the best was their new sweet deal, Batter Up Bacon (7 coupons). This delicious dish included four slices of bacon wrapped in funnel cake batter and fries, topped with powdered sugar with a side of maple syrup. So good!
My friends Paulette and Charlotte met me on patio of the Auberge du Vieux Moulin and shared some of their favorite finds. Both had tried the new frozen ranch water, made with wine-based tequila plus lime juice and Topo Chico for 25% of the calories in a frozen margarita. They also tried Fletcher’s original Corny Dogs, the fried cinnamon bun, and their favorite fried lemon pie balls. When we parted ways they headed over to the Fletcher stand selling the new franc with mac and cheese.
State Fair Favorites
While I tried new dishes, my husband stuck with his favorite Fair Park restaurant, the Old Mill Inn. It’s run by his friend Ed Campbell, who also operates concession stands around the fairgrounds. Inside the air-conditioned restaurant, Durhl enjoyed a salad, a burger with fries, a trendy blackberry cobbler and lots of Dr. Pepper. The Old Mill Inn is open year round and not just for the fair, or it was until this last calamitous year. The pandemic closures were followed by winter storm Uriah which caused extensive damage to their building. The restaurant therefore only reopened recently.
Stay tuned for more State Fair updates with information on this year’s special activities and exhibits. The fair runs until October 17 and there are still a number of special packages available on BigTex.com.
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