Big Tex Choice Awards 2022

Another fair season is upon us and I am back to tell you what you need to know about the Big Tex Choice Award finalists. This year was special as I was joined by my forever fair friend, Michelle, once again. But what made it extra special was both of us being joined by our significant others for the very first time on Opening Day!

Overall the offering of Choice Award finalists was a little underwhelming if I'm being honest, but we'll dive into all the details below. The prices ranged from $10 up to $24 with an average of $16.

First up for the day was Best Taste - Savory winner, the Fried Charcuterie Board. This offering from __ came with four portions (Paulo had already eaten one by the time we got to take this photo). Each of these was filled with prosciutto. They were topped with a spicy, hot honey and a dollop of goat cheese. This was tasty and very unique. This award winner clocked in at $16, steep, but on par with the other finalists and winners. This is found just to the right of Big Tex by the Grand Place and near the hot tubs.

The Tower Building offers HALF of the finalists this year, so you can park at a table and have a feast. You will find the Holy Biscuit at the stand with the same name. You can’t miss it if you enter from the main entrance behind Big Tex and look to your left. This stand has several biscuit sandwich options, but the finalist winner was what we tasted. This thing is packed with brisket, bacon, corn queso, and fried pickles. It’s tasty, but not something I would probably get again... I may peruse their other biscuit options on another visit instead. This clocked in at $15 which seems reasonable for the portion.

The Deep Fried Lasagna Roll is also found in the Tower Building. This was a flavor-packed lasagna and pretty much exactly what you’d expect and want this to be. It comes with a side marinara and a few zucchini fries and it didn’t disappoint. The $20 price tag as was a bit of sticker shock. It's very tasty, but was it worth $20? That may be up to you to decide. It's found at Gourmet Royale which is in the back left (pictured above).

The Deep Fried Rocky Road was also in the Tower Building and found just to the left of the main entrance. This came with four fried balls of fudge that was drizzled with sweetened condensed milk. Mini marshmallows, walnuts, and powdered sugar are sprinkled on top. It’s also served with an individual cup of vanilla Blue Bell ice cream. That ice cream is need with the richness of all that chocolate. This rung in at $16.

We also tried the Cha-Cha-Charta which won the Most Creative award this year. This was an ordeal to acquire as the booth has some Opening Day difficulties. The wait was long. The drink itself was more looks over substance honestly. The Garza family which won for their Arroz Con Lèche brought back their fried rice balls to top this horchata milkshake. I love a caramel drizzle and this delivers on the caramel! This is very sweet- proceed with caution. It can be a lot if you’re trying to taste several new foods! This is found at the back of the Tower Building at Deep Fried Love. It will run you $16.

After leaving the Tower Building, we ran through auto show (which is markedly better than last year’s!) we ended up near the main gate (at Milton’s Turkey Legs) where we snagged a La Bluebonnet. This drink which landed itself a place amongst all the friend foods was EXTREMELY sweet. It’s essentially a blueberry-lemonade, but it doesn’t short you on the sugar. This is the least expensive option of the finalists at $10, but I’d pass unless you’re a lemonade enthusiast.

The item I was most looking forward to this year was the Ultimate Brookie Monster. I love a brookie and this exceeded expectations. It felt like this one was tailored specifically for me as it includes Oreos, a brownie, cheesecake crumbles, vanilla ice cream, and strawberry drizzle. It was unbelievable. I can’t wait to have it again! This one was found at the booth directly across from the Wine Garden. I’ll definitely get this again. This was $15.

In full transparency, I never had any intention of eating this year’s Best Taste Sweet winner because I despise peanut butter. Sorry y’all. I can’t even be around it so I didn’t even seek it out. I will update this the next time I go with specific locations and price!

We also decided to skip the Deep Fried BLT and the Chicharron Explosion Nachos. We saw the Fried BLT in the Tower Building and it didn’t seem worth it. We might try it on a future visit. Similarly with the Nachos, we even stood in line and bailed out last minute as some of the people around eating said they didn’t think it was worth the steep $24 price tag. I can’t speak to that since we took their advice and save our money to go chow down on Fletcher’s corny dogs instead!

Brit’s Tip: stick to the Fried Charcuterie Board, Fried Lasagna, and the Brookie Monster. I’d say you would also be safe with the Holy Biscuit. Proceed with caution on anything else. This year was kind of meh, so maybe branch out to some other offerings that didn’t make the top 10.

I’ll be updating my tipsbybrit Instagram feed with any other offerings I find that are worth your while in my future visits. Until then, hit me up with any questions you might have about the 2022 State Fair and I’ll be sure to answer ASAP! Happy Fair Season y'all!