If you’re not familiar with the State Fair’s new foods game: Every year, there’s a slate of 30-some “official” new foods, the ones you’ll see announced by local media outlets (like us!) in mid-July. There’s also a roundup of “bonus” new foods, which aren’t on the formal roster but are indeed new, and are just as likely to be delicious. I ate my way through them as a supplement to our Get It / Skip It guide, which we knocked out the very first day of the fair. These are the ones I think are worth eating, ranked (roughly!) from top to bottom—but we left about half of them off entirely, so if it’s here, that means we think it’s worth a bite.
Pryes Brewing Pavilion: Soft-Serve Royal Peach Beer. 4.8% ABV. Made in Minneapolis, Minn., by Pryes Brewing Company. At West End Market, south of Schilling Amphitheater. $12
Make a pariah of me if you must, but I didn’t LOVE the Pryes raspberry soft-serve beer last year, when it was the breakout top new food of 2025. There was something about the uber-tart raspberry and Berliner Weisse combo that was too acidic. But this peach swirl, oh my goodness. It’s lush and juicy and smooth, and was very hard to not finish. If you loved last year’s raspberry flavor, get the peach and raspberry as a swirl. (Soft-serve beer twist cone! What kind of enchanted world are we living in?!)
Baba’s: Al Elotay. Corn hummus with Arabic elote, Arabic chorizo, pecorino romano, harissa oil, micro greens, cilantro. East side of Underwood St. between Murphy & Lee avenues. $14
This was my favorite of all the hummus bowls Baba’s has brought to the fair these past few years! (RIP fawaffle, gone far too soon.) This baby’s all rich, spicy chorizo; sweet nuggets of corn; just-fried pita puffs; and, of course, a big swoop of the creamiest hummus in town. What really brings it together, though, is the smoky red slick of harissa oil that adds a little chile heat to each bite.
Lumpia City: Shanghai Lumpia. Ground pork, garlic, seasonings, carrots, celery, onions, served with sweet chili dipping sauce. West side of Liggett St. between Carnes & Judson avenues $13
Much as I like the cheese curd lumpia, Lumpia City’s official new food this year (and the dish that most of the folks in that biiiiiig line are almost certainly waiting for), if I had to go back I’d get the Shanghai. This lumpia is thin as a cigar, which creates a lovely crispy-wrapping-to-meat ratio, and the meat is fragrant with spice and garlic and sweet carrots and onions.
Richie’s Cheese Curds: Brisket Cheese Curd Taco. Beef brisket, fried cheddar cheese curds, cabbage slaw, BBQ aioli. West side of Chambers St. between West Dan Patch & Carnes avenues. $18
Historically, I have been a cheese curd taco hater! Maybe Richie’s has really dialed it in, maybe I was desperate for something salty after three ice cream treats in a row, maybe I’m transcending my cheese curd traditionalism. Either way these brisket tacos were bangin’. I do wish that they were served with more slaw, though—it’s pretty key, as it cuts through the dairy/meat/grease of it all.
At LuLu’s Public House: Fiery Hot Deep-Fried Ranch: Traditional deep-fried ranch tossed in fiery hot powder. Located at West End Market, south of Schilling Amphitheater. $13
Yup, the deep-fried ranch was good when it debuted in 2024, and the new Flamin’ Hot Cheetos version (not officially, but that’s what they taste like!) is also good. Props to Lulu’s for actually pulling off its stunt foods, with a one pickle-y exception, hehe.
Kosharina: Royal Hawawshi. Seasoned ground beef with Egyptian spices stuffed inside fresh bread and baked until crispy, served with tahini dip. Located south of the Grandstand Building under the Grandstand Ramp $14
This hawawshi (pronounced ha-wow-shi) came out PIPING hot—so much so that I couldn’t even touch it for the first three or four minutes. I take that as a good sign, though, as it’s clearly made fresh. The bread is fragrant and warm and well-crisped on the outside, the beef filling is good, and the tahini sauce had an unexpected, almost sweet tang, so make sure you’re dipping.
Minnesota Honey Producers Association: Buttermilk Honey Ice Cream Sandwich. Made in collaboration with Minnesota Dairy Lab. Agriculture Building, north side. $12
This ice cream sandwich wasn’t 100-percent perfect—our cookie was a little tough around the outside, though doughy-perfect at its center. But oh my goodness, that salted honey ice cream, those even-more-salty toffee sunflower seeds around the edges; I was fully enamored after a few bites in.
Greater Tater: Buffalo Chicken Tater Kegs. West side of Liggett St. between Carnes & Judson avenues, outside the Horse Barn. $10
It’s really hard to be a gluten-free eater at the fair (I am not one, to be clear, but know many) and really appreciate that Greater Tater keeps its tater kegs GF, even though it’d likely be easier to fry them in some sort of flour breading. The OG cheese bombs will always be my favorite, but the new buffalo chicken flavor is pretty dang good too! Also, the children working the booth informed us that ranch is the sauce move for these, NOT Top the Tater.
West End Creamery: Ube dragonfruit milkshake and pineapple lime sorbet. At West End Market, northwest section. $14; $9 for single scoop
Both of these are winners! It’s my personal philosophy that every dessert at the fair should be, like, 30 percent less sweet, and these two both have that sugar-bomb factor going. But the ube-dragonfruit combo tastes almost berry-like and, of course, is very pretty to look at (find the photo way up at the top of this story!), and the pineapple lime sorbet is all the things you’d want from a pineapple lime sorbet; it’s juicy and tart and bright as the sun itself. Dairy-free folks, I would direct you here.
The Produce Exchange: Habañero limeade. Northwest corner of Carnes Ave. & Underwood St. $10
I’ll repeat my 30-percent-less-sweet creed here, but I did really like this limeade. It’s the Produce Exchange, so you know they’re squeezing good fruit; the drink is wildly refreshing on a hot day, and the habañero does have real kick—a few slices are placed on top, so the limeade gets spicier the longer you let them steep.
Dairy Goodness Bar: Moo-sota Apple Pie Sundae and Malt. In the Dairy Building, south wall. $10
TBH, this was a little too Thanksgiving-apple-pie for me—it’s late summer, y’all, grasp at every last sunny sweaty moment while we still can! However, it was objectively delicious, regardless of season. Love the crunchy crumble bits, love the tender baked apples (from local Pine Tree Orchards, no less). It was one of Dara’s top picks at the fair this year, too.
Attavio’s: Hot Honey Heatwave Fries. West side of Cooper St. between Dan Patch and Judson avenues, outside the Food Building. $15
First thing I want to say is: This is $15 for a basket of fries. However, it’s quite a big basket, good for sharing and comparable to what you’d be paying at Fresh French Fries for about the same amount. (On that note, if you’re a shoestring fry person instead of a hand-cut fry person, head here.) The very first bite was surprising—sweet fries cause a certain level of cognitive dissonance—and the second and third bites were good, and after that, we just kept eating. Don’t get these if you don’t like hot honey, of course, but the honey is applied with an even hand; the fries aren’t swimming in it and they keep their crispiness.
The Herbivorous Butcher: Crunchy Rice, Hidden Tuna. Deep-fried crispy rice cakes and Gochujang “tuna” topped with citrus cilantro sauce and parsley. (Vegan) Located in the Food Building, west section, south wall. $14
A win for the vegans here! These crunchy fried rice squares are so satisfying to bite into, especially when you get into that tangy gochujang “tuna” in the middle, and the sauce is herby-bright and delicious. (Note that this isn’t the big crunch wrap-like food in the photo above; it’s the rice snack behind it.)
Hamline Church Dining Hall: Pies and Mini Donut Shake-Up. Lemon meringue, mixed berry, and apple pies for “Coffee Hour”; espresso shaken with cinnamon sugar and foam on top. North side of Dan Patch Ave. between Underwood & Cooper streets. $7 per slice; $8.25
Super sweet deal at Hamline Church Dining Hall this year. You know how the breakfast line stretches a whole block down Dan Patch, and how your courage and your pancake cravings wither at the sight of it? This year, the dining hall is hosting “Coffee Hour” from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., which means you can get a slice of homemade lemon meringue, mixed berry, or apple pie and a cup of coffee for $9, which is a screamin’ deal in these times. (You can also grab a slice of pie from the fridge any time.) This year’s iced coffee shake-up, spiced with cinnamon and all foamy on top, is a big yes.
Granny’s Cheesecake: Taco Cheesecake. Sweet taco shell, cheesecake, strawberries, chocolate. North side of Dan Patch Ave. between Nelson & Underwood streets. $10
Wild card here, TBH! I am usually opposed to Frankenstein foods like this for aesthetic reasons, but somehow this dessert taco works. The chocolate is real chocolate, dark and ever-so-bitter; the strawberries are fresh and not syrupy; there’s a little too much cheesecake filling but hey. Most importantly, the taco shell does not collapse.
Dining and Cooking