State Fair News

State Fair of Texas selects 24 over-the-top semifinalists for Big Tex Awards

Can anything surpass fried jello, the Big Tex winner in 2016?

Photo by Jason Hays

The fried food fest is back: The 2024 State Fair of Texas has unveiled 24 semifinalists for the Big Tex Choice Awards, their annual contest where concessionaires compete for prizes.

The semifinalists were culled from a field of 65 entries submitted by 40 concessionaires.

Semifinalists used to be chosen based on name and description alone, but a release from the State Fair indicates that judges also tasted these dishes and ranked them according to fairgoer appeal, creativity, and taste. So that's new.

Of the 24 chosen, 10 are savory entries and 14 are sweet. Dominant themes include: pickles, sriracha, cotton candy, layers, and over-the-top constructions, which is saying something since State Fair food is inherently over-the-top.

In mid-August, 10 finalists will be announced, followed by a hoo-ha awards ceremony that narrows it down to three winners: Best Taste – Savory, Best Taste – Sweet, and Most Creative.

SAVORY

Deep Fried Crispy Vietnamese Crepes
Battered and fried crepe filled with savory meat, shrimp, and veggies, served with dipping sauce. Also known as Deep Fried Banh Xeo (bahnSAY-oh).

Dominican Dog
Dominican queso frito and salami frito coated in seasoned corn dog batter and fried, drizzled with red Dominican secret sauce, topped with crushed garlic plantain chips.

The Drowning Taquitos
Stuffed with shredded chicken, served in a cup, and topped with tangy cream sauce, jalapeño, guacamole salsa, shredded lettuce, avocado, tomatillo, pico, and Cotija cheese.

Fat Bacon Pickle Fries
Slivered dill pickles battered and fried, dusted in a spicy ranch pepper seasoning, and topped with queso, maple caramelized bacon chunks, sour cream, jalapeños, and chives.

Hammy Pimento Meltdown
Grilled pimento cheese sandwich with black forest ham.

Hippie Chips
Wavy potato chips covered in choice of ranch or blue cheese dressing, topped with green onions, bacon bits, and sriracha sauce.

Hot Chick-in-Pancake Poppers
Nashville hot chicken and pimento cheese mixture rolled into a ball, dunked into pancake batter, and fried, drizzled with Sriracha honey and Nashville hot powdered sugar.

Oktoberfest Pizza
Pizza with mustard-infused white cream sauce, mozzarella, cheddar, German sausage, German potatoes, onions, green peppers, and sauerkraut.

Texas Fried Burnt End Bombs
Beef burnt ends wrapped with shredded potato, bacon, and green onion mixture and fried, with raspberry chipotle barbeque sauce.

Triple Meat Big Back Snack
Five-layer snack has elote street corn, brisket, smoked gouda mac & cheese, biscuit, pork belly burnt ends, nacho beef brisket sausage link, and crinkle-cut maple waffle-flavored potato slices. That sounds like seven layers, though.

SWEET

Beso De Angel
Fritter taco base with sweet crema, strawberry preserves, whipped cream, cajeta caramel, condensed milk, and sliced strawberry.

Caramel Macchiato Fritters
Creamy coffee cake balls dipped in beignet batter and fried, with whipped cream, caramel, white chocolate drizzle, served with a shot of espresso.

Cookie Butter Nachos
Fried flour tortilla chips dusted with cinnamon sugar, with cookie butter cheesecake filling, cream cheese icing, caramel sauce, and crushed Biscoff cookies.

Cotton Candy Bacon on a Stick
Bacon on a stick dipped in a caramelized cotton candy syrup glaze.

Crookies
Croissant is filled — and topped — with cookie dough, baked, and drizzled with syrup.

Frozen Limoncello
Sweet and tart limoncello in a lemon peel is filled with limoncello sorbet.

It's Bananas…B-A-N-A-N-A-S
Banana shake with banana pudding on top, plus whipped cream, Nilla wafers, chocolate-covered bananas, and caramel drizzle.

Lay's Potato Chip Drink
Potato chips blended with mango and citrus juices, hot honey, jalapeño infused syrup, strawberry drizzle, foam, and Spicy Honey Potato Chips.

Nutty Bar-laska
Chocolate-dipped nutty bar rolled in peanuts, smothered in marshmallow and toasted, topped with two Oreos, strawberry sauce, and freeze-dried strawberry pieces.

Standing on Business
Salted caramel ice cream in a waffle cone bowl topped with a spicy dark chocolate cookie, fried sweet potato pie, chocolate and caramel sauce, whipped cream, French fries, and a chicken wing.

Strawberry Pop-Tarts Beignetffle
Waffle made from beignet and croissant dough, with strawberry filling, vanilla icing, and whipped cream, served on a stick.

Texas Sugar Rush Pickles
Three cotton candy-flavored pickle slices coated in Lucky Charms, Froot Loops, and Cap’n Crunch, layered in cotton candy, strawberry syrup, and vanilla ice cream.

Tropical Two-Step Punch
Punch with citrus, passionfruit, and mango, in alcoholic or AF versions.

Whole Bundt of Kisses
Deep fried 7UP Bundt cake filled with Belgian chocolate, with crumbled chocolate chip cookies and miniature kisses, a regular Hershey's, whipped cream, and edible silver glitter.

state-fair

Hummus News

Revered family-owned Mediterranean restaurant debuts in North Dallas

Samantha Marie Photography

Zon Zon food spread

An upscale Mediterranean restaurant is coming to North Dallas from a trusted name: Called Zon Zon, it'll open at 5455 Belt Line Rd. #130, in the Work/Shop center, and it's hospitality group Yela Concepts led by Yaser Khalaf (Darna, Baboush), together with his son Mak Khalef in their first collaboration.

According to a release, it'll open on December 22.

Named for Mak's sister Zaina (“Zon Zon”), the restaurant will be open for lunch and dinner with a refined take on Mediterranean dining, rooted in tradition but with modern influences.

"We tried to merge what embodies Mediterranean cuisine with dishes that people in Dallas love," Mak says. "A lot of the dishes we have on menu are Mediterranean but have American and Texan influences."

Mezze favorites include hummus topped with green shatta and extra-virgin olive oil; baba ghanoush with charred eggplant, tahini, dukka, and pomegranate; crispy cauliflower with saffron labneh; tuna neya with tahini, mixed pickles, and Aleppo pepper; and kibbeh with ground lamb, onions, pine nuts, and dill labneh.

Salads include seared tuna salad with freekeh and golden beets; Tahini Caesar with tahini–Caesar dressing and za’atar croutons; and roasted beets with burrata, oranges, and pistachios.

Entrées include roasted chicken with garlic-batata and pomegranate jus; chicken shish kebab over saffron rice with almonds and raisins; hanger steak shawarma frites — a clever twist on steak frites with hand-cut fries; ZZ’s Wagyu cheeseburger with smoked provolone and house pickles; Prime ribeye with za’atar chimichurri and heirloom carrots; and apricot lamb couscous.

The beverage program complements the menu with a Mediterranean-focused wine list and creative cocktails such as the coffee-kissed Midnight Istanbul and ZZ’s Margarita, with burnt pineapple and ras el hanout.

Designed in collaboration with Dallas-based Coeval Studios, the restaurant features a 2,130-square-foot interior with an expansive 735-square-foot patio that seats 76, for a total occupancy near 100.

The restaurant boasts an open kitchen, while decorative finishes include modern woodwork, rich textures, and Middle Eastern-inspired details — stylish yet inviting, with a setting that feels like home.

“The inspiration behind Zon Zon came from wanting to create the kind of place we’ve always wished existed — a neighborhood Mediterranean spot that feels both familiar and exciting - we wanted to create a comfortable space where guests can meet up with friends or neighbors on a regular basis,” says Yaser in a statement.

Mak went to college to sudy biomedical engineering, but says he couldn't resist the lure of the restaurant world in which he grew up.

"Zon Zon is a reflection of everything we love about food," Mak says. "What makes this especially meaningful is building it with my dad — bringing our family’s story and passion to the table."

openings