Fairly Unbalanced

Each year, the large Dairy Goodness Bar inside the Dairy Building, home to the iconic butter princess sculptures, holds a vote in the Fair’s off-season to determine the coming year’s new flavor of their exemplary malts and sundaes. Very rarely do fairgoers get to exert an influence on what is offered on the Fairgrounds, but this annual poll is comprised of suggestions made by the public and decided by online poll. This year’s winner is the Birthday Batter Blast, and for the first time since the online polling was implemented, the public have made a poor choice.

This concoction is far too sweet, with a lethal combination of candy sprinkles and frosted balls of cupcake. If the cupcake bits were mostly comprised of cake rather than frosting, this malt could have been salvageable. Instead, the otherwise creamy vanilla ice cream is plagued by globs of unchecked frosting. If one makes the mistake of drinking this malt through a straw, the bottom of your cup begins to amass only these cupcake bits, leading to some truly unpleasant spoonfuls at the very end, or leading to the remainder being tossed in the trash. The batter in the name here is such a misnomer, and at a hefty $6 price, this malt is a complete fail. Skip this year’s flavor, get one of their fantastic other varieties, and be sure to drop in a suggestion — a better suggestion — for next year’s poll.

Ratings (0-5):

• Taste: 1
• Appearance: 2
• Novelty: 2
• Value: 0

Overall Score: 5 out of 20 (Fried-Out Flop)

How is it possible that no other Fair vendor has tried a high-end hot dog like this one? The Fairgrounds can feel like the Land of 10,000 Sausages, whether they’re battered and deep-fried, made with exotic meats, about-a-foot-long, topped with ketchup or mustard or onions or peppers or just plain. To stand out with a sausage-based offering is a remarkable feat, yet that is precisely what Mancini’s has pulled off with this bougie approach to a staple food of the Fair.

The Italian mortadella sausage provided is bold with flavor and sure to please those who enjoy a great sausage, with a good snap to the casing and a nuanced taste. It’s served within a beautiful split-top bun, buttered and grilled to a silky perfection. The buttery bun does make this an oily, greasy mess to hold and makes it more difficult to eat while walking around, but Mancini’s large location offers many chairs and standing tables to settle in. Also adding to the messiness is the muffuletta blend of olives and peppers that sit atop the sausage, which invariably will spill out with each bite. This vibrant medley of veggies adds so much variety and makes your last bite as fascinating as your first, and adds a pleasing pop of color too.

At $6.75, it’s a little pricier than some of the myriad of other hot dogs available at the Fair, but feels well worth it for the experience of trying this upscale take thst you’re unlikely to find anywhere else — certainly not at the Fair.

Ratings (0-5):

• Taste: 5
• Appearance: 4
• Novelty: 3
• Value: 4

Overall Score: 16 out of 20 (Blue Ribbon Best)

Giggles’ truly has one of the most perfect aesthetics on the Fairgrounds: alongside the North Woods Stage, host to the Lumberjack skill show, their cabin-themed building and beer garden in the back evoke an Up North feel even in the heart of the city. Their menu furthers the illusion, as they have featured numerous dishes that feature commonly-hunted meats that are not often found elsewhere. Lately, this has meant a lot of duck options, including the sublime Duck Wontons introduced two years ago, and last year’s Turducken Sausage, a bold blend of turkey, duck and chicken. For the out-of-the-box eater, they are one of the can’t-miss dining options on the Fairgrounds.

While a little more straightforward than some of their previous entries, this year’s Duck Drummies are one of the best. The duck meat attached to these large wings is delicious, although somewhat indistinguishable from the more common chicken wing; compared to their previous duck offerings, these lack the tell-tale more game-like duck taste. All the same, these are a pleasure to eat. They are helped along by a crispy deep-fried skin which manages to stay lighter than most battered items on the Fairgrounds. The skin is well-seasoned, with just the right amount of salt added to push the flavors along. The tequila lime dipping sauce included is a great compliment to these wings, but also unnecessary to enjoy them; they were good on bites both with and without the sauce. The sauce cup itself should be deeper; for those who choose to utilize it, it was a struggle to properly dip the wing into the shallow cup and get a good amount of sauce on the wing.

The best feature of these drummies is the price-point, previously a major issue for anything served up by Giggles’: at $8.75 for five large wings, these are being offered at a very fair price, especially for being a “premium” meat like duck. They’re perfectly shareable for anyone in a group, but you may want to hoard them all to yourself and make your friends get their own. This is another bona fide hit for Giggles’ outpost on the north end of the Fair!

Ratings (0-5):

• Taste: 4
• Appearance: 3
• Novelty: 3
• Value: 4

Overall Score: 14 out of 20 (Fairly Fresh)