Meet one of the most expensive dishes at the Iowa State Fair. Hint: it's 2 feet long.
Does anyone seem to be having a better time at the Iowa State Fair than the people behind JR’s SouthPork Ranch? The permanent restaurant on the Fairgrounds stuffs loads of fun into its stand on Rock Island Avenue.
Co-owner Brooks Reynolds along with Carey and Corey Hansen of Greek House Chefs, who handle catering for sororities and fraternities nationwide and also happen to own Hansen’s Manhattan Deli on Ingersoll Avenue in Des Moines, bought the former Diamond Jack’s in 2020. After an extensive renovation that included a new kitchen, the outpost opened in 2021.
They decorated it to the rafters with a wink and a nod to “Dallas,” the long-running television drama featuring an oil tycoon family with J.R. Ewing at the helm. At SouthPork, the J and R stand for Jody and Rennie, Reynolds’ parents. Reynolds has the Blue Ribbon Bacon Fest that celebrates all things pork as well. Fun indeed.
Cheeky pigs dressed in hats and rhinestones stand before a LED sign with a Dolly Parton quote: “It’s hard to be a diamond in a rhinestone world.” A chandelier hangs from the ceiling, along with a buck wearing a sombrero.
At SouthPork, a pun on the setting for “Dallas” — Southfork Ranch — diners can find everything from bloody Marys and monkey bread in the morning to bacon mac and cheese with pickles and sidewinder fries for lunch and dinner.
Chefs Heith Sheeley and Sarah Strong-Tuttle come up with the novelty dishes served at the stand and use group chats to explore new food ideas.
What to order at JR’s SouthPork Ranch at the Iowa State Fair
Two-foot lobster roll, $100: OK, you don’t have to order this super long lobster roll — with mayo and dill or served drenched in drawn butter. You can get it as a one-foot for $58 or 6-inch for $31. All come on a brioche roll.
Loose L’Roy, $11: This classic loose meat sandwich comes to the fair in the form of the Loose L’Roy. The SouthPork team uses a blend of ground pork and ground beef from Brewer Meat (“just a hop, skip and jump away from us.”) with special seasonings smoked outside on the giant smoker, Strong-Tuttle said. In fact, she made the mustard as well, using pepper bananas from her garden for a kick.
“We serve it with a mustard that I came up with one year when I had an obscene amount of banana peppers in my garden,” she said.
Chicken sandwiches, $13, add schmears, add $2: Sure, it’s a crispy chicken sandwich, but the twist comes with the schmears available as a topping for an additional $2. A lobster Rangoon brings a sticky sweetness to the sandwich with some sweet chili and soy thrown in. The house pimento takes it to the South with a meld of creamy, tangy, and sharp cheddar cheese with just a smidge of sweetness from pimento peppers. The Maytag blue cheese gives the sandwich that tangy and sharp flavor. Add Nashville hot sauce for an added kick. You’ll want to try all three.
AE Party Balls, three for $10: This partnership with the local dairy vendor brings the nostalgic favorite, AE Party Dip, together with hash browns and potato chips for a walkable dish. You can order additional party dip on the side for $1.
Two-foot Connecticut-style lobster roll, $100: This year, the SouthPork staff took the lobster roll and made a Connecticut-style version of the restaurant’s already famous lobster roll. The Connecticut version takes the chunks of lobster meat and dunks them in clarified butter, served on a brioche roll. It’s also available as a six inch for $31 or footlong for $58.
After some flack on social media about the cost, it should be noted that most of the time, a big two-foot lobster roll is ordered for catering. If the Iowa State Fair vendor does not have a dish listed and approved by the fair, they cannot sell it. So the two-foot version is on the menu if people want to get it and split it.
The JR’s SouthPork Ranch menu.
More: 2 Des Moines chefs taste, rate 6 Iowa State Fair 2024 foods. Here's what they think:
Did you know?
The restaurant sources its lobster from Maine. If there is lobster left over after the fair, watch the Manhattan Deli Facebook page. The restaurant will serve lobster rolls as a special after the fair. Get there fast though. Often there's a line before the restaurant opens and last year, the sold out on the first day.
Where to find JR’s SouthPork Ranch at the Iowa State Fair
Location: Iowa State Fairgrounds, west of the Livestock Pavilion on Rock Island Avenue, Des Moines
Contact: jrsouthporkranch.com/
Susan Stapleton is the entertainment editor and dining reporter at The Des Moines Register. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, or drop her a line at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: What to order at JR's Southpork Ranch at the Iowa State Fair
