Minnesota State Fair

Dawes leads Minnesota State Fair free shows lineup

Related:Kiss, Motley Crue lead Minnesota State Fair 2012 offeringsDawes at First Avenue, 11/4/11Although the Minnesota State Fair has done a fairly good job of packing in some variety for its Grandstand shows, the free entertainment this year should pull a hefty crowd this late August/early Septembe ... More >>

Minnesota State Fair glitter-bombed over anti-gay marriage booth [VIDEO]

Minnesota State Fair: Glitter-bombed from above.​Not even the Minnesota State Fair is safe from glitter-bombers. The Great Minnesota Get-Together attracted the attention of gay activists this weekend by allowing anti-gay marriage group Minnesota for Marriage to set up a booth at the fair. Local ... More >>

Gay marriage ban voted down at the State Fair

Minnesota State Fair fans are not afraid of gay marriage.​There aren't many places more heterosexual than the Minnesota State Fair: Jean shorts and sandals with socks are worn without irony; everything is fried, put on-a-stick, and fried again; and young married couples walk around with whole broo ... More >>

Marc Anthony woos fans at the Minnesota State Fair

Photo by Erik Hess​As part of our ongoing coverage of music at the Minnesota State Fair, we sent photographer Erik Hess to catch salsa kingpin Marc Anthony in the Grandstand last night -- and he returned with some incredible images. Click here for Erik's full slideshow, and see below for links to ... More >>

Get your favorite fair foods...without going to the fair

Avoid the chaos and the crowds, but still get your curds and corn dogs. ​Only a few days left to enjoy the Minnesota State Fair ... or not. If you're having a hankering for fried foods on a stick but can't bear traipsing through the stinky barns and stepping over the horse-plop-and-Sweet Mar ... More >>

The Hot Dish's top 10 summer posts

​Happy Labor Day weekend! Some may call this the unofficial end of summer, but let's not be hasty. We still have a few weeks of warm weather left, and you can even relive the best of summer by catching up on our most popular Hot Dish posts, including guides to the State Fair, a look at Minneso ... More >>

Critics' Picks: Weezer, Blondie, Patches & Gretchen, and more

​Happy Labor Day weekend! Some may call this the unofficial end of summer, but let's not be hasty. We still have a few weeks of warm weather left, and you can even relive the best of summer by catching up on our most popular Hot Dish posts, including guides to the State Fair, a look at Minneso ... More >>

A Prairie Home Companion

​Happy Labor Day weekend! Some may call this the unofficial end of summer, but let's not be hasty. We still have a few weeks of warm weather left, and you can even relive the best of summer by catching up on our most popular Hot Dish posts, including guides to the State Fair, a look at Minneso ... More >>

Minnesota State Fair

​Happy Labor Day weekend! Some may call this the unofficial end of summer, but let's not be hasty. We still have a few weeks of warm weather left, and you can even relive the best of summer by catching up on our most popular Hot Dish posts, including guides to the State Fair, a look at Minneso ... More >>

Deep-fried butter on a stick is all too real! [VIDEO]

KCCI's Eric Hanson tries deep-fried butter at the Iowa State Fair.​It's made its way to the Indiana, Wisconsin, Texas, and Iowa State Fairs. Even something called the Canadian National Exhibition has served it. Paula freaking Dean has a recipe for the stuff. But, alas, there's no deep fried bu ... More >>

Local craft on draft at the 2011 MN State Fair

Surly Furious is among the local beers headed to this year's MN State Fair​In past years the craft brew selection at the Minnesota State Fair has been fairly limited. There was Summit and ... well there was Summit. Not that Summit is a bad choice, but a little more variety would be welcome. Ma ... More >>

First looks and fresh info in the Best of Hot Dish: June 13-17, 2011

We love a peacock remodel!​The Hot Dish loves giving you tidbits of food news, whether it's original food ventures or changing digs for old favorites. This week was all about shiny, brand-new locations, plans, taprooms (yea!), treats, and ways to mix sodas. Here's our round-up of first looks and f ... More >>

Minnesota State Fair's top 5 new desserts

Minnesota Prairie RootsThe State Fair gets a hot and sweet kick.​Last Friday, the Minnesota State Fair announced which new foods will be debuting on the Midway this year. And while newcomers Jamaican jerk fries and crab fritters sound delicious, we're making the most room in our fair schedule to ... More >>

Minnesota State Fair's list of new foods a major letdown

MN State Fair announces this year's new foods!​Each year's list of new Minnesota State Fair foods should inspire two responses: excitement about sampling some cool new items and jealousy that you weren't the one who came up with the genius idea in the first place. In the past, we've looked to ... More >>

Morris Day & the Time, Bob Wootton, Dr. John coming to the State Fair free stages this summer

​While it seems like tempting fate to already start looking forward to the tail end of summer, the Minnesota State Fair free stage lineups should help us ease our way into the beginning of September. On the lineup this year are early-'80s Prince cohorts Morris Day and the Time, Johnny Cash's longt ... More >>

Weird and wonderful for the Best of Hot Dish: March 21-25, 2011

Even tomatoes can be weird...​What a week! Hot Dish celebrates the oncoming weekend with our picks for the weird, the wonderful and even a post that is truly both.Burrito Loco's Charlie Sheen - a "winning" drink? WEIRD.Rachel Ray cooks her family and her dog? That's WEIRD.Snack Shack lobster laude ... More >>

NYC's Minnesota State Fair Affair Redux

Merch at NYC's "MN State Fair Affair."​Hundreds of New York City's Minnesota expatriates--clad in Twins caps, U of M and Carleton shirts, vintage North Stars jerseys--gathered in Gowanus, Brooklyn last weekend to recreate one of their home state's finest traditions with the Minnesota State Fai ... More >>

Music and movie memorabilia sale at State Fair grounds

​The Minnesota State Fair may be over, but there are still opportunities to visit the fairgrounds. So if Princess Kay of the Milky Way isn't your idea of a celebrity and seed art isn't desirable memorabilia to you, then perhaps the Classic Movie and Music Memorabilia show and sale may be more ... More >>

Top 5 healthy State Fair foods

Mo Perry​The State Fair is the only place where even something as nutritious sounding as mixed fruit can be deep fried, impaled with a stick, and transformed into a heart attack waiting to happen. No one expects to leave the fair feeling like they just finished the Master Cleanse, but surely the ... More >>

Minnesota Cooks brings something rare to the fair--gourmet cooking

Photo: Crystal GrobeLocal chefs cooking today at the fair.​At the Minnesota State Fair we all make mistakes. With temptations on every corner, before you know it you've run out of money and inhaled a week's worth of calories. But there is one place to find gourmet, healthy cooking: Minnesota Cooks ... More >>

Butter head trivia: 5 things you never knew about butter heads

Butter heads up!​The Wall Street Journal looked into butter head carving at the Minnesota State Fair, and taught us five fun facts about our favorite edible sculptures: 1. The dairy industry has used butter carvings since the 1890s, but most large butter sculptures today are molded over a woo ... More >>

Common Roots s'more whoopie pie: the best thing I ate this week

A s'more whoopie makes a far better marriage than corn dog pizza. ​The Minnesota State Fair has started, which means summer is sadly on its way out, and along with it prime camping season. So I was especially pleased to extend the season with this s'more whoopie pie I discovered in the Common ... More >>

State Fair cheese curds? There's an app for that, and more

Cheese curds and smart phones mix at the State Fair​Here's a fun way to get your geek on this year at the Minnesota State Fair: Navigate your way to the fair's smart phone web application. Let's say you want to find cheese curds -- not that this much of a problem at the fair, but stay with us ... More >>

Minnesota State Fair taste test: best new foods

These are the best new fair foods we sampled.​We put on our most obnoxious-sloganed T-shirt, slathered up with sunscreen, and braved the crowds to find out how this year's new Minnesota State Fair food options stacked up to our predictions. Here are our picks on what's worth stretching the ela ... More >>

Minnesota State Fair taste test: worst new foods

These new foods are unlikely to become classics.​When we heard about the new foods at this year's Minnesota State Fair, some sounded great, others gruesome. Would the latter taste as awful as we feared, or would we be eating our words? Here are several we sampled that aren't worth loosening th ... More >>

Minnesota State Fair

These new foods are unlikely to become classics.​When we heard about the new foods at this year's Minnesota State Fair, some sounded great, others gruesome. Would the latter taste as awful as we feared, or would we be eating our words? Here are several we sampled that aren't worth loosening th ... More >>

Third Thursday: Art Perchance

These new foods are unlikely to become classics.​When we heard about the new foods at this year's Minnesota State Fair, some sounded great, others gruesome. Would the latter taste as awful as we feared, or would we be eating our words? Here are several we sampled that aren't worth loosening th ... More >>

Worst new Minnesota State Fair foods

www.wikipedia.comWTF is Cincinnati Chili doing at the Minnesota State Fair?​Yes, the list of new foods to debut at the 2010 Minnesota State Fair has been released, and on it are a few items that sound like clunkers at best, train wrecks at worst. Here are five new foods that the Hot Dish is fe ... More >>

Social media mavens blush as Go Girls show a new way to pee

There's never a dull moment for the members of Social Media Breakfast Minneapolis-St. Paul.

Minn. State Fair pig officially had swine flu, but keep scarfing the bacon

Don't worry, folks. Your bacon is totally safe.

This tot probably won't become a farmer

We know the drill: Plop your kid on random Minnesota State Fair objects. Wait to see what happens.

Mischke show notes: Sept. 9, 2009

Join the conversation with TD Mischke on today's 'In The Stream' live from 2 p.m.- 4p.m.

Minnesotans embrace greasy grub, State Fair sets all-time attendance record

We're so proud: The Minnesota State Fair beat the all-time attendance record set in 2001.

DFL candidates for Minn. governor debate tonight at State Fair, watch online

Be prepared for all sorts of "aw-shucks" state fair jokes that will surely have your food baby rolling.

Porta-Potty State Fair memories

"One of the few things you can do at the Minnesota State Fair that leaves you feeling better AFTER you're finished."

Skyride your food baby into the sunset

Need a reason to go the Minnesota State Fair? We've got one.

State Fair free music lineups

The Great Minnesota Get-Together is upon us.

Behold the Bacon Chocolate Conan O'Brien head!

Conan's reaction: "I've long dreamed of this. But I never thought I'd see it happen."

Are You Ready for the Country: County fairs, cowboy boots and Sparks

Today I head back from my hometown's county fair; cheap Sparks and heckling Blake Shelton made for a rough three nights.

De La Soul, Kid Rock, and more

Today I head back from my hometown's county fair; cheap Sparks and heckling Blake Shelton made for a rough three nights.

State Fair enters the twitterverse

After a dip into the social media universe last summer with Facebook, the Minnesota State Fair has now entered the Twitterverse. Cue Twighlight Zone music.

Two MN foods on 10 most unusual state fair foods list

You won't believe what California fairgoers can find stuffed between a Krispy Kreme...

State Fair free music announced

The full lineup of free music includes some very promising local acts.

Joel Stein gives a shout out to our chocolate-covered bacon

Gnarls Barkley and more

Gnarls Barkley added to State Fair lineup

9/4 Morning Communiqué

Fair Gone Conclusion

Local TV news groupies, hormone-charged Midway mavens, and that old fall feeling

A Fair To Remember

Local TV news groupies, hormone-charged Midway mavens, and that old fall feeling

Fair Fare

Local TV news groupies, hormone-charged Midway mavens, and that old fall feeling