Which dish won best new food at the Iowa State Fair in 2024? Find out the winner here:
Who won the 2024 People's Choice Best New Food Contest at the Iowa State Fair? Fairgoers have spoken, picking the favorite dish from among three finalists — a bacon cheeseburger egg roll, an Iowa Sm'Oak'ed Roll and a lobster corn dog.
The bacon cheeseburger egg roll from Winn & Sara's Kitchen, found southwest of the Jacobson Exhibition Center, takes the burger, drops it in an egg roll and slices it in half. The restaurant describes it as "seasoned ground beef, cooked smoky bacon, pickles and cheese filling, all wrapped in a crispy golden brown pastry egg roll, and then drizzled with Winn and Sara's house-made burger sauce." It has a little kick to it. Expect to pay $12 for the dish. Find the restaurant at 122 W. Ashland Ave. in Indianola.
The Iowa Sm'Oak'ed Roll from Whatcha Smokin' BBQ west of the Jacobson Exhibition Center features a pork tenderloin layered with jalapeno cream corn and house-made Texas taco sauce, smoked and then once it's finished, topped with poblano ranch. The dish goes for $14. Find the restaurant at 403 Iowa Ave., Luther.
The lobster corn dog from Destination Grille is a six-ounce north Atlantic lobster tail that is breaded, then fried and coated with chives, fresh Parmesan and paprika. Find it west of Jacobson Exhibition Center for $20. Destination Grille's restaurant is at 2491 E. First St. in Grimes.
And the winner is...
The bacon cheeseburger egg roll. There were 9,204 votes for the People's Choice Best New Food. The bacon cheeseburger egg roll received 48.6% of the votes.
Other contests determined the best new drinks with and without alcohol, best in show, and the Choose Iowa award for a dish that uses Iowa products.
An entourage of fair officials, Iowa State Fair Queen Elli Blackford, and Iowa State Fair mascots Fairfield and Rosetta formed a posse that moved through the Fairgrounds in search of the winners. Some carried signs announcing what the fuss was about, while some rode on golf carts up the hill and across the grounds. None of the winners knew ahead of time that the posse was arriving.
Bubbly Bistro & Bar wins two categories
Just before the Iowa State Fair started, the tent-like roof that covered the patio over Bubbly Bistro & Bar blew away in the wind. Co-owner Jennie Enloe rolled with the punches from the stand’s perch next to Grandfather’s Barn, overlooking the skyline of Des Moines to the west.
Instead of fretting, she found some plastic vines to drape through the skeleton that remained overhead. It worked well with the vineyard theme of the respite.
And it paid off. Bubbly Bistro & Bar won the Best of Show prize at the Iowa State Fair on Friday afternoon.
The newish food stand also earned a win in another category, Best New Drink (Alcohol Free) for the Abracadabra Color-Changing Butterfly Lemonade, a drink that starts a vibrant blue and then changes to a pretty magenta. The drink contains an essence of cucumber as well as butterfly pea flower. The drink goes for $12. You can add a wine-based vodka too.
JR’s SouthPork Ranch won for Best New Drink (with Alcohol) for the Cowgirl Cooler, a ginger, lemonade and vodka drink. JR’s offers it for $16.
Cattlemen’s Beef Quarters won the Best Choose Iowa Fair Food Contest, a first at the fair. The program through the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship promotes the food, beverages and ag products that are grown, raised and made in Iowa. The Hot Beef Sundae, which made it’s debut in 2006, won in the inaugural contest.
Fairgoers voted for contestants through Aug. 14 in each of the categories.
Previous Best New Foods at the Iowa State Fair
2013: Shrimp Corn Dog — Zag's Po Boys
2014: Funnel Cake on a Stick — multiple vendors
2015: The Rib Shack — Ultimate Bacon Brisket Bomb
2016: Iowa Turkey Federation — Not Your Mamma’s Taco
2017: Steer ‘N’ Stein — Pork Almighty
2018: Applishus — Apple Egg Roll
2019: G Mig’s Wrap Stand — Georgie’s Roast with the Most Wrap
2021: Cluckin’ Coop by the Iowa Egg Council/Iowa Poultry Association — Chicken Egg Salad with Fry Bread
2022: The Rib Shack — The Finisher
2023: What's Your Cheez — Deep-Fried Bacon Brisket Mac-n-Cheese Grilled Cheese
Susan Stapleton is the entertainment editor and dining reporter at The Des Moines Register. You can reach out to her on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, or drop her a line at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa State Fair food 2024: Bacon cheeseburger egg roll wins big
