Part 1: In Fair Square near the Blue Gate is Juicy's Funnel Cakes. They provide the toppings, you make the choice! It is 11 inches in diameter and dusted with powdered sugar. Topping choices are cherries, fresh strawberries, chocolate sauce, or ice cream. The funnel cake was light, crispy, and not greasy at all. While it could have had a little more powdered sugar they were very generous on the fresh strawberries. Pick up the Daily Events Calendar for a "free topping" coupon. Saved $1.50 on the fresh strawberries! Thumbs up!
Juicy's Outlaw Grill in Centennial Farm is, in a word, enormous. Just the sight of the grill is jaw-dropping. Your nose will lead you there with the scent of smoked "Texas Sized" Turkey Legs. The turkey leg is gigantic cuz, as we all know, everything is bigger in Texas. The meat was smoked to perfection, juicy and finger-licking good. Look in the Daily Events Calendar for the "Free medium drink" coupon with turkey leg purchase. Saved $3.50 on the drink! Thumbs up!
Juicy's in the Family Fair Way has a grill that will feed your senses. In case you hadn't noticed by now, Juicy's serves everything BIG. Their curly fries are no exception. It's served in the shape of a huge brick with the fries entwined and packed solid. You can also get toppings on it from cheese to chili. Look in the Daily Events Calendar for the "Free Topping" coupon with purchase of Curly Fries. Saved $2.00 on the topping! Thumbs up!
Terri's Berries in Park Plaza is a great place to get a snack. They have lots of healthy snacks like fresh fruit and smoothies, but they do have some decadent fruit concoctions as well. They have a wide variety of chocolate covered fruits like strawberries and apples with toppings like nuts, candies, and cookie crumbles. The chocolate covered caramel apple with almonds was so decadent. The chocolate was creamy and the caramel was gooey. The sliced almonds were a perfect flavor match. If you want to eat it at the fair, the folks behind the counter will gladly slice it up for you for easier eating. These also hold up great if you want to take them home and eat them the next day. Thumbs up!
Part 2: Let's Eat for $2 Fridays sounded really interesting, but was disappointing. Half of a corn dog? 2 oz. of chopped pork? You end up spending more money on smaller portions of food. If you want to try lots of items and don't want to eat the whole portion, it’s the way to go. But it’s better to just come with family and friends and share the full portion or just come back to the fair another day to try more food.
Chuckwagon Concessions’ Chopped Pork Sandwich is served on a soft Kaiser bun. Sauces are on the side to slather on as you wish. The pork was perfectly cooked, soft, tender, and juicy. The flavor is so good that you really don’t need any sauce. Thumbs up!
Chuckwagon Concessions’ Blooming Onions is a specially cut onion, battered, deep-fried, and served with ranch dip. The outside “petals” of blooming onion were crispy but some of the “petals” were a little raw in the middle (batter was still liquidy). It tasted great with a little shake of seasoned salt and the ranch for dipping. Thumbs up!
Chuckwagon Concessions’ Chili Frys were awesome! The fries were cooked to perfection and had a kettle chip flavor. The chili portion was a healthy one and coated the fries with a nice consistency. Thumbs up!
JP’s Old West Cinnamon Rolls have been at the OC Fair every year for as long as I can remember. They also have the best cinnamon rolls in the fair! The cinnamon roll dough is packed full of butter, sugar, and cinnamon, it just so sticky and gooey. Their cream cheese frosting is unbelievable. It’s so creamy and light, you’ll be floating on a cloud. Thumbs up!
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