2 Des Moines chefs taste, rate 6 Iowa State Fair 2024 foods. Here's what they think:
What do local Des Moines chefs really think of Iowa State Fair food?
To answer the question, the Des Moines Register was joined Thursday afternoon by Chris Hoffmann, the chef and owner of Clyde's Fine Diner in the East Village of Des Moines who was a James Beard Foundation semifinalist for Best Chef Midwest in 2024, and Sammy Mila, owner of Crème, the bakery off Ingersoll Avenue in Des Moines, to give fairgoers their honest opinions about some of the fair's finest and newest grub.
Hoffmann and Mila tasted and rated a finalist and two semifinalist dishes competing for the People's Choice Best New Food, which fairgoers can vote on through Aug. 14 at 11:59 p.m., as well as three other food items: two fair classics and a new drink. With 84 new foods to try on top of the existing staples, this year, the Register asked Hoffmann and Mila to help select what they wanted to taste.
The Register paid for the chefs' food, and they rated each item by our official rating system: 1 to 4 corn dogs. One corn dog signifies a dish that’s just OK; two means it's a good, solid example of a dish; three denotes a superior and memorable dish and something you'd buy again; while four corn dogs marks a transcendent dish that sets the local example.
(Editor's note: The chefs' comments have been edited for clarity and length. The "chef's picks" are denoted by a *. Concession items are listed in the order they were consumed.)
Classic corn dog
Crispy on the outside, fluffy and savory on the inside. This quintessential fair dish is the most popular food item at the Iowa State Fair, with at least a dozen concession stands selling their version of the corn dog. Campbell's Corn Dogs has 10 stands at the Fairgrounds — we chose the one at Walnut Square close to the Anne & Bill Riley Stage. Mila topped hers with ketchup; Hoffman, with mustard. This classic dog goes for $7.
Mila: "This is the best first fair bite I could ever ask for. Crispy on the outside, like, tender on the inside. An easy four."
Score: 4 corn dogs
Hoffmann: "This is what I look forward to every year. And this one's good. Like, it's kind of fluffy, airy, a little bit. I mean, it's a perfect corn dog."
Score: 4 corn dogs
Iowa Sm'Oak'ed Roll
We're talking sushi, but make it pork tenderloin. Luther, Iowa-based Whatcha Smokin'? BBQ's new Iowa Sm'Oak'ed Roll is one of the three finalists competing for the People's Choice Best New Food against Winn & Sara's Kitchen's Bacon Cheeseburger Egg Roll and Destination Grill's Lobster Corn Dog. This Iowa-esque take on a sushi roll features smoked pork tenderloin stuffed with jasmine rice, jalapeno creamed corn, smoked poblano queso and Giddy Up Texas taco sauce. It's topped with poblano ranch, Giddy Up, green onion and smoked sesame seeds. It goes for $14.
Mila: "It's honestly, really good. There's so much going on. But it'd be super fun to have something that's like kind of sharable in this way. So I think if you come with a friend or a group, I think it's kind of nice that everyone can have like a piece or two and just try it out. I think the sauces definitely change the dynamic and kind of take it over the top a little bit. The corn is great, the addition of the green onions are great. A lot of smoke flavor."
Score: 3 corn dogs
Hoffmann: "For me, it needed a little more sauce. There's a lot of flavor. I've got a lot of smoke. That's what hits me first, and then, then it's sort of the filling ... I think it's good, it's tasty. I really, really enjoyed the smoke flavor. For me, I need a little more seasoning. I need a little more salt to come through. Some of those flavors get a little meddled together for me. But I think it's great. And if I had a crew with me, it would definitely stop by ... It's very creative."
Score: 2 corn dogs
JR's AE Party Balls*
If you like chips and party dip, you may enjoy this People's Choice Best New Food's semifinalist dish. The AE Party Balls feature hand-made shredded potato, cheese and bacon balls stuffed with the Anderson Erickson Party Sour Cream Dip infused with bell pepper, parsley and onion. The ingredients are rolled in potato chips and then fried to a golden crisp. One order comes with three balls for $10. We ordered extra AE Party Dip on the side for $1 because why not?
Mila: "Oh my god, it's like a reward. They have the chips on the outside that give it that nice texture to kind of combat how soft the inside is. I'm actually not mad. It has good flavor. The party dip is like, singing, here, which is great. And then, I feel like it's very thought through where it's like, it has the potato chips on the outside ... and then like the hash browns on the inside that kind of give it more of like that homey feel. And I'm just like, 'I'm here for it.' My only complaint ... the chips aren't super crispy."
Score: 3 corn dogs
Hoffmann: "So, outside: Nice and crispy. Inside is like a, you know, diner-style hash browns. There's cheese involved. This is a fun surprise. It's good, I'm down for this. I mean, it's almost a four. It's like a 3.2. It is fried but it doesn't feel, like, super-heavy either, which is surprising. But I like all the flavors and I really like the difference in the textures. And, you know, the additional party dip is nice for nostalgia."
Score: 3 corn dogs
Hot Cheeto Float
Did anyone ever ask for a Hot Cheeto-infused beverage? Not sure. But Taylor Concessions from Monticello, Iowa, brings it fresh to the Iowa State Fair for the first time this year. This firey-red concoction mixes lemon-lime soda with Flaming Hot Cheetos. It's flamboyantly topped with whipped cream and several crunchy Flaming Hot Cheetos. The chefs stopped to sample this elaborate drink at Taylor's Curious Orange trailer near the Varied Industries Building for $6. Mila asked for a "less spicy" version of the drink than Hoffmann.
Hoffmann, initially: "I don't hate it. I thought I was going to hate it. I'm also not 100% sure I don't hate it. I mean, here's what I like: I like that it's salty and sweet. Spicy (is) also working for me. It's getting cooled off by this whipped cream. This whipped cream is like marshmallowy sweetness, to me. I'm a little disappointed in myself for liking it."
Initial score: 2 corn dogs
After approximately 3 minutes: "So, after this has sat for a moment, I'm tasting it again and things are kind of all mixing together. For me, I gotta give this a 1 corn dog. I mean, I really like the way it looks. I think it's really interesting. I think it's fun, but taste-wise, for me, sucking Cheeto dust through a straw just isn't my idea of the best time at the fair."
Final score: 1 corn dog
Mila, initially: "There's kind of a push-pull coming from this, flavor-wise. It's pulling in so many dramatic directions. So it's like sweet because it's super-sweet: You have your soda, you have your whipped cream and then you have your salty-spicy from the Hot Cheetos, obviously. And then it's just, like, everybody is like pulling in different directions and fighting at the same time. And I'm here for it. I'm surprised at how much I do like it. I think it's definitely worth a try."
Initial score: 3 corn dogs
After approximately 3 minutes: "I'm going to second what Chris said. I think, initially, when I had it, like, right straight from the stand, I think, it was a solid, like, three. But I think as it sits, I think as the Cheetos get softer, it kind of is like bringing out a little bit more of that, like, corn chip flavor and I think that's what's making it kind of weird. So I would have to take this down to a two."
Final score: 2 corn dogs
Baby Cake*
Who can resist a funnel cake ― especially when it's fun-sized? McConnell's offers a fluffy baby funnel cake topped with sugar at its elephant ear and funnel cake stand near the Varied Industries Building on the Grand Concourse. Not initially on the list, this bonus stop, suggested by Mila, was a big hit. These babies go for $5 each.
Mila: "When I come to the fair, I'm like running a marathon. Like, I just want to go the distance. So, it's like, I want to get a little bite of this, a little bite of that, just so I can try more just cause there's so many exciting things here. So, the mini funnel cake really checks that box (for) me. It's a classic funnel cake, like you can't go wrong. And then it's small, so it leaves more room for you to try other things. And, the key thing here is that like there's less of a middle, functionally, so then it's like you get more of that crispy, like crunchy funnel cake, kind of goodness throughout the whole thing as opposed to getting to the middle where it's like super-soggy."
Score: 4 corn dogs
Hoffmann: "It's great. I get nostalgia, like the corn dogs. (It's a) classic fair food for a reason. I do like how it's like ... skinnier in the middle the way they pipe it, so you just have ... more crispy than you have doughy, and that's my favorite part of a funnel cake. This is a great funnel cake. If I am ever craving a funnel cake, this is exactly what I'm craving."
Score: 4 corn dogs
Lemonade Donut Drops*
Refreshing and sweet, with a tart punch. The Lemonade Donut Drops, which made the semifinals for People's Choice Best New Food, are like summer in a pastry. Vendors at The Snack Box from Prairie City, Iowa's Box Concessions, located inside Pioneer Hall, say their new treat combines flavors from their lemonade shake-ups and doughnut recipe, which are shaken in sugar and served warm in a plastic cup. These warm desserts ― marking the last stop on the chefs' food journey ― cost $6 for a cup containing about eight to 10 doughnut bites.
Mila: "They're still warm. I love that. I'm surprised at how lemony these are. These are good. It's super tender. Usually with like, I guess, lemon doughnuts or lemon baked goods it's like a very subtle hint of lemon, but this is like, 'I'm going to punch you in the forehead with lemon.' And, it's like, in the greatest way. It's so good and they're fresh."
Score: 4 corn dogs
Hoffmann: "These are good. So, it kind of tastes like if a doughnut and a lemon bar got together. Because the inside of that is almost, almost custardy to me. It looks like a ton of sugar, but the sugar really counterbalances like the lemoniness of the doughnut. I think it's fantastic. These are a win. I would climb that hill for these again."
Score: 4 corn dogs
Virginia Barreda is the Des Moines city government reporter for the Register. She can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @vbarreda2.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: 2 Des Moines chefs rate 6 Iowa State Fair foods. Their thoughts:
