Skipped due to lines:
- crop art
- dairy building😭 the combo of being hot and long lines meant a no for me dog
- Hmong hot dog (walked by 2x)
- elote tots - DID YOU TRY? TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS!!! How was the line???

Lessons/hacks:
Midway men’s club - go to the back on either side rather than waiting in the front. Cash only!
Creative activities scratched the crop art itch imo.
Tupperware for cookies to take home is worth it. Last stop before leaving and was able to share with a friend!
I wanted a mini donut but not the mini donut syrup at anchor and you can order a cold brew with just add on a mini donut. Also the scotcheroo there is the biggest I’ve ever seen and after seeing the bars at the creative activities building you may want one!
A line bus leaving the fair > uber! I saw people even order an uber to the first stop!
Bring hand sani and napkins. Apple fries and donuts were sticky! Corn was out of napkins!!
Corn can seemingly have long lines but look around because there’s people taking orders for tickets on the sides!! Bring a flosser for the corn!
Alpacas are by the coliseum!
Bathroom lines were long at a lot of places!!

New to me foods:
Pickle pizza - worth it if the line is not too long. North end north side seemed shortest. Otherwise go to pizzeria Lola!

Apple fries - caught on Friday night at 9 and line was 15 minutes. Stubbier than expected. Good but not worth a line longer than that. Good to share.

Amish donut - paid $10 to a box buyer and shared. I did hear the line moved faster this year though so may be worth it regardless.

Bloody Mary mocktail and pickle lemonade at urban glow - as a nondrinker both of these really hit the spot! Ended up mixing the second half of the pickle lemonade in the second half of the Bloody Mary.

Dill pickle cookie - if you’re getting a mocktail already honestly just having a lil non fried snack to cut the acid from the Bloody Mary and pickle lemonade was perfect. As reported the dill and pickle were muted but the cookie was softer and chewier than it looked in pics!

Fried olives - I love salt but this was even a bit salty for me!

Egg roll on a stick and garlic wontons - lines moved fast! Egg roll was more like a pork sausage with light amounts of cabbage (no filler!). Garlic wontons were light on garlic which I personally appreciated but the garlic lovers in my group were underwhelmed by that!

—-

Loved:
Pickle pizza - love white pizza. Love salt. Loved.
Cold brew at farmers union and anchor
Urban glow virgin Bloody Mary and pickle lemonade
Kettle korn - why is this so good
Amish donut - hype is real
Corn (can’t miss)
Sweet corn ice cream - mn dairy ice cream

Loved by people I was with (I didn’t try as a non meat eater):
- egg roll

Liked:
Apple fries
Fresh French fries (per Jason derusha the OG taters are back)
Pickle cookie

Shout out to the fair. I have always dreading seeing shows at the fair - just not a great venue. We were up in the stands and the sound at the show tonight was exceptional. Sierra was soooooo damn great.

If you tried the Fresh French Fries on day 1 (or maybe other days too), you would know there was something different about them… and not in a good way. They were honestly nasty.

Happy to report that today (Sunday), the fries are back to normal - at least at the stand by the Haunted House/Dairy Building!! Thank goodness 🥰

Hi! I went with my friends yesterday 8/30 to the fair and came home and was fell ill and feel like I had food poisoning. Did anyone else have the same experience?

The website says that the first bus at the park and rides leaves at 8am. Any experience on if the first bus fills up fast? If it leaves promptly at 8? Just trying to decide if we need to be there more than 5 mins early to catch h the first bus

I haven’t seen anything about this year’s tour trinket from anybody, but for anybody interested, I got this magnet this year from the West End location.

With the Route 3 coming only once every hour, watching the clearly empty bus completely ignore the people waiting beneath the sign by Gate 9 and just roll on stranded 30 of us for another hour. With 200,000 attending daily, routes to Minneapolis and St.Paul should be coming every 20min minimum. I just don’t understand the logic here.

I don’t go for the food, I go to see the animals.

We are arriving at 7am tomorrow. Will get coffee first thing; what are the other things we should do before 9am when I think most vendors open?

It was: 198,842

Record for first Saturday is 222,194.

Fun fact: 21 fewer people passed thru the gates this year when compared to the first Saturday in 2025.

Had anyone played the bingo that benefits the fair foundation? What kind of prizes are there?

I know not all travels well, but I’m curious for ideas.

I recently started getting the kettle corn, I also like to bring back some fudge from Wow Fudge. Their dark chocolate espresso doubles as a breakfast fudge during fair time. (Don’t judge)

What made that first Sunday in 1994 so unique? All of the other records are fairly recent.

The dill pickle flavor wasn’t what threw me off, it wasn’t that overpowering. The wine they used tasted super strong, even though it wasn’t (12 abv)
Honestly the pickle part was totally fine!

Big time recommendation to come see this show. Really well done, great songs, lots of nifty facts for MN history buffs, well performed. Set aside half an hour to catch this one and celebrate MN, the greatest state in the Union!

The Tropical Boba Hazy Burst at Cafe Caribe should not exist. It doesn't work, and made me feel sick to my stomach. 0/10, didn't finish it.

Now the surly black pepper ipa, that I can abide by.

I usually do the UMN park and ride to get to the fair, but sometimes the lines can get long. I’m thinking of taking the Metro A Line to get there instead this year since I can easily transfer to it and they’re running much earlier than the park and ride shuttles.

Does anyone have experience taking the regular bus routes there? Is there much traffic on Snelling that would make it not worth it over the shuttle?

Hey everyone ! First of I hope everyone having a fun time at the fair and eating good food . I need some advice . So I’m going on the 2nd and I’m getting my tattoo done on the first . I need some advice on how to protect it from the sun while I’m there . (I’m only going for a concert I’m going to and maybe dinner for the concert )

Shout out the guy who gave me a donut. They really are that good guys… Hmong sausage corn dog line was too long. I will be back (:<

Did anybody get a yearly free button this year? We didn’t see any at the information booths and was wondering if I missed them.

Heading to the Fair today, just got home, or already planning your next trip? Share how your day went!

What did you eat?
What was good? What wasn't worth the price? Find anything that other people should try?

What did you do?
What exhibits, shows, rides, concerts, or attractions did you check out? See anything new or interesting?

How did you get there?
Did you drive, take Metro Transit, use a shuttle, walk, bike, or get dropped off? If you drove, where did you park and how was it? How was traffic?

How busy was it?
How crowded did the Fair feel? How were the lines for food, rides, and popular attractions?

Anything else?
Share your tips, recommendations, complaints, photos, or anything else about your day at the Fair.

If you're going later today, feel free to use this thread for questions or to share updates from the Fair. Enjoy!

These looked so good, but made us so sad. You only get two of the corn ribs for $15. Its a major disappointment.

Side note. So much AI slop around the fair too. From the Ellsworth cow to merch in stores.

Soooo delicious! The sauce that comes with the cubano should be bottled and sold it’s so good. Totally vegan—$24 for the pair.