State Fair Fried Foods

Speculative guide to the State Fair of Texas 2015 Big Tex Choice Awards

UPDATE: The eight finalists have been announced, and they sure are ritzy, with lobster, buffalo, and margaritas. Read about them here.

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Fried food fanatics, set your alarm for the crack of dawn on August 18, when the State Fair of Texas will announce the finalists for the Big Tex Choice Awards, its annual food contest wherein vendors compete against each other by creating unique, over-the-top snacks.

This year's contest drew 51 entries, according to State Fair spokeswoman Karissa Condoianis.

"Those were narrowed down to 30 based off of their name and description," Condoianis says. "Those 30 went to the State Fair of Texas panel for a blind taste test. The panel ranked them and battled it out over their favorites to get to the top eight."

The eight will be announced on August 18. The competition takes place Sunday, August 30, at 2:30 pm in the Tower Building at Fair Park.

If the 2015 awards follow recent State Fair winners, then fairgoers can whet their appetites for bite-sized packages that embrace the latest foodie favorites. In 2014, craft beer hit the fair, while trends included tacos and the hot condiment Sriracha sauce.

Those are relatively tame compared to the awards' earlier years, noted for wacky concoctions such as 2009's fried butter; 2010's fried beer, a ravioli filled with liquid beer; and 2011's fried bubblegum, a gooey bubblegum-flavored marshmallow coated in a pink-tinted crust.

Vendors submit recipes for two categories: Best Taste and Most Creative. The finalists present their creations to a panel of celebrity judges, who previously announced the winners at a ceremony on Labor Day. The fair transformed that ceremony — previously for media only — into a public event, where people could buy $100 tickets to watch the judging in person.

The State Fair of Texas launched the Big Tex Awards in 2005 to revive an increasingly moribund event where the most notable food item was the signature Fletcher's corny dog.

The timing was keen, coinciding with the rise of the foodie, embodied by bloggers such as Brad "The Adventures of Brad" Murano, whose photographs of his State Fair food tours in the mid-2000s paved the road for countless fried-food photo galleries since.

Concessionaire Abel Gonzales helped bring national attention in 2006 with his inspired creation, fried Coke, consisting of Coke-flavored batter fried into a crunchy ball.

Since 2012, contestants have dialed down the crazy in favor of conceptual offerings that focus on flavor and food trends. In 2013, the winner for Best Taste was Deep Fried Cuban Roll, a pastry filled with pork, ham, Swiss cheese, and pickles. In 2014, with craft beer at an all-time peak, the entries included a funnel cake-flavored ale.

If foodie trends do again rule the field, then we can tell you exactly where this is going. We got this. Look forward to entries incorporating fried chicken, charcuterie, pizza, and something vegan. Put your money on it!

The 2015 State Fair of Texas opens September 25.

Big Tex Choice Awards loves fried food.

Fried King Ranch casserole at State Fair of Texas

Photo by Marc Lee

Big Tex Choice Awards loves fried food.

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Where to Eat

Where to eat in Dallas right now: 10 eclectic restaurants for September

Photo courtesy of Elephante

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The September edition of Where to Eat, CultureMap's monthly column recommending new or intriguing restaurants to try, boasts a motley assortment of places — ranging from a modest healthy-ish spot in McKinney to a flashy newcomer from out of town. Somewhere in between, there's authentic Indian; ramen and sushi in the suburbs; and street food from both Cuba and South Asia.

Here's 10 very varied restaurants to try in September 2026.

Bluebonnet & Thyme
Southern bistro and bar now open in Dallas' Victory Park is from chef Kendall Williams, who won a Most Creative prize at the 2025 State Fair of Texas for her Wagyu Bacon Cheeseburger Deviled Egg Sliders. Those aren't on the menu, but you can find deviled eggs, a Wagyu burger, and salmon croquette sliders — alongside dishes like Cornish hen, catfish and lasagna, steak and fries, birria empanadas, and country-fried steak, priced from $26-$52. There's a full bar with margaritas, martinis, and a tequila drink with pineapple and chili syrup. They're celebrating their grand opening this weekend with an event on September 10.

Cafe Zupas
Healthy-ish restaurant chain founded in Utah made its Texas debut in the spring in the McKinney Ranch Center Plaza, where it's winning over McKinney residents with its practical menu of quick eats. They do protein bowls, soups, salads, and sandwiches, such as chicken pesto sandwich, chicken club, potato and green chile soup, tomato basil soup, mangoberry salad, and strawberry harvest salad. Their signature is a free chocolate-dipped strawberry.

Elephanté
Italian restaurant from California is now open at the 23Springs development on Maple Avenue, where it's serving Southern Italian-inspired food and aperitivo-style drinks in an ultrachic two-story space. The menu includes pasta, wood-fired pizza, and dishes to share. Pastas are especially fetching, such as fusilli in arugula pesto with pistachio and Parmigiano; or cavatelli with Italian sausage, pecorino, and broccolini. They're open for lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch, when they serve unique-to-Dallas items like "green eggs" — scrambled eggs with zucchini and avocado. Wines by the glass are noteworthy, including three sparkling options. Dallas is the third location, following Santa Monica and Scottsdale, Arizona.

Filli Cafe
Tea house from Dubai just opened in Carrollton with all kinds of chai teas, espresso drinks, and South Asian street food. They take familiar dishes like breakfast and burgers and give it a creative South Asian fusion. For example, Shawarma Jalapeño Melt with chicken, jalapeños, and cheese. Or Aloo Tikki Sliders, featuring fried potato patties on Hawaiian buns. Or pizza topped with Indian butter chicken. The menu is entirely halal, meaning that all ingredients are processed according to Islamic guidelines. Filli has 70-plus cafes across 14 countries with nine in the U.S., including Chicago, New York, Virginia, Ohio — and now Dallas.

Flaming Bites
Fast-casual restaurant similar to the Halal Guys chain recently opened in Carrollton, with a menu of wraps, gyros, and platters featuring rice or french fries topped with choice of chicken, lamb, beef, falafel, and fish. Like the Halal Guys, this place is also all halal. For American-food holdouts, there are smashburgers, Philly cheesesteaks, chicken cheesesteaks, sliders, chicken tenders, nuggets, and wings.

Frita Baditos Frita, a Cuban-style burger. Photo by Noah Fecks

Frito Batidos
Chef-founded burger spot from Michigan is now open on McKinney Avenue with Cuban street food, including burgers (fritas) and milkshakes (batidos). The concept was launched in college town Ann Arbor by chef Eve Aronoff Fernandez in 2010 and has since expanded to Detroit and Brooklyn (where the burger earned a nod in the NY Times). A frita is a burger made from spicy chorizo, served with shoestring fries on a soft bun. Batidos are tropical milkshakes with fruit, crushed ice, and sweetened milk. The menu also has"loaded" fried plantains with black beans and cheese; coconut-ginger rice with black beans and Muenster cheese; churros; paletas; and cocktails such as margaritas, mojitos, and piña coladas.

Joey
Upscale Canadian chain just opened in Uptown Dallas on Maple Ave with a global menu: fire-torched sushi, steak, bowls, tacos, and burgers. Signatures include sirloin steak with "crispy" mashed potatoes, seared salmon sushi, and sea bass.There are also dumplings, Korean fried cauliflower, fajitas, lobster spaghetti, hibachi wings, tofu bowl, and steak frites. Fun cocktails include margaritas, spritzes, and slush drinks such as frozen spiked coffee with Jameson Irish whiskey. Here's something fresh: They have "low-alcohol cocktails" with half the usual dose. This is the second Joey in Dallas; the first opened at NorthPark Center in 2024.

Koishi House Ramen & Sushi Bar
Ramen comes to Fate, Texas via this suburban-focused chain from restaurateur Jason Chi, following Prosper, which opened as Koishi Ramen & Sushi Bar in May. Located on I-30, the Fate spinoff has an extensive menu with sashimi; 50 sushi rolls; and 10 ramen options including classic tonkotsu, spicy beef, katsu chicken, and veggie ramen. There are noodles, teriyaki-style entrees, dumplings, tempura, and bento boxes for lunch for $14-$15. A full bar features many whiskeys plus cocktails, affordably priced at $10-$11. The space is nicely appointed as well, with Asian lanterns and dark woods.

Lamberti's Ristorante and Wine Bar
This Italian restaurant in Las Colinas is the second location of a beloved local favorite. The first Lamberti's, at 7701 N. MacArthur Blvd. in Irving, has an interesting history: It started out as I Fratelli’s Ristorante and Wine Bar — the only restaurant venue in the I Fratelli's pizzeria chain. In 2017, the owners of I Fratelli sold the location to then-manager David Lamberti, who changed the name to Lamberti’s and built a loyal following with great food, atmosphere, and doting staff. This spinoff at Water Street has the same menu of pizza, pasta, and wine, but with delightful views of the Lake Carolyn waterfront. They also do crowd-pleasing lunch specials such as pot roast on Monday, spaghetti and meatballs on Tuesday, and chicken parm on Wednesdays.

Ulavacharu
Indian restaurant in Frisco from brothers Vinay Kumar Narahari and Vijay Narahari is an exciting destination for authentic Andhra cuisine, from the Indian state of Andra Pradesh, known for its bold South Indian flavors. Their menu features biryani — a popular and comforting dish combining fragrant rice with meat or vegetables and exotic spices — but they offer versions from a number of regions including Vijayawada, Guntur, Gongura, and Charminar. Other menu categories include Indo-Chinese spicy fried rice, tandoori oven cooked favorites like chicken tikka, curries, vegetarian specialties such as eggplant stuffed with coconut and peanuts, and fresh breads made on-site including naan and roti.

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