INDIANAPOLIS — When it comes to food out at the Indiana State Fair… sometimes the weirder, the better! Remember the pickle pizza craze of 2022? Well this year, concessioners are doing their best to top their toppings.

So many options… so little time! The good news is with so much to take in – you really can’t go wrong. Fair officials tell us food is the number one reason people venture out to the fairgrounds in the first place, and this year they’re expecting 900,000 hungry Hoosiers to fill their bellies. 

Of course, you’ve got your classics… like elephant ears and lemon shake-ups but there are also plenty of new, downright crazy, items like Cinnamon Toast Crunch Corn and Nutellaphant ears. Indiana State Fair Chief Marketing and Sales Officer Anna Whelchel says the food brings everyone together.

“What we really do at the end of the day at the state fair is we bring the community together, we bring people together, we bring businesses together, we’re employing people,” Whelchel said. “So really, it is all about allowing people to bring their products here to the great Indiana State Fair, showcase their products at the Indiana State Fair.”

Some of those products you might be searching for could include buffalo pork-n-mac, smoked bologna burnt ends, vanilla dream coffee ice cream soda or even some of Tony Goodwin’s Indiana Hardwood Nachos.

Back for his tenth fair, Goodwin and his Twisted Drinks & Foods of Muncie has mustered up something special – something he said goes along with this year’s fair theme.

“It was just something I wanted to do different,” Goodwin said. “I pay attention to what’s at the fair. I know everyone gets tired of the same old things sometimes, so we want to mix it up and do something new that you haven’t had anywhere else.”

Don’t forget about Taste of the Fair! While you’re there – pick up a map at the information booth to see where some of the most eccentric food options are, give them a try and then vote for your favorites. 

Goodwin is a three-time Taste of the Fair winner and hopes his nachos prove to be a real slam dunk this season. 

“We get really excited around this time of year in my family,” Goodwin said. “My grandparents, my parents, my wife and I and all my teenage kids are all concessioners at the state fair. It’s just what we do!” 

It’s sure to be a difficult job narrowing down such a diverse field of food options. CBS4 will have the results of the Taste of the Fair voting on air and online the last week of the fair which runs through August 20th.