What makes ‘The Great Minnesota Get-Together’ the nation’s best state fair

We have a turnout, a love affair with this gathering that makes it the single greatest

cultural event for sure in America, and I have argued the world

Over 12 days, nearly 2 million people descend on a 322-acre plot of land between Minneapolis and St. Paul for the Minnesota State Fair

But what is it about the great Minnesota get-together that has it ranked as America's favorite state fair

Ask any Minnesotan and they will tell you the Minnesota State Fair is the best

But in 2025, it's not just Northerners ranking the festivities. According to USA Today 10 Best, Minnesota's annual gathering edged out other Midwestern stalwarts in Iowa and Wisconsin, while the home of Big Tex came in at number four and the South Carolina State Fair rounded out the top five

Before you at me, they used a panel of experts and readers to set the rankings, but why Minnesota

This fair belongs to the people of Minnesota and they take such ownership and pride in their fair

And I think our goal is to have something for everyone. Whether it's food or music or arts or livestock

My name is Renee Alexander. I'm CEO of the Minnesota State Fair. And my favorite thing about the fair is all the people here having a great time

It really is a place that brings people together from throughout the state, where you have rural and urban and suburban can all converge in this one place

and have a great time and find something about themselves that is here at the fair So just how big of a fair is it Well in 2024 more than 1 million went to the fairgrounds at some point over the 12 days

By comparison, the State Fair of Texas had nearly 2.4 million visitors for their 24 days of fun

but Minnesota boasts the highest daily attendance. And all those people mean big business

It's been a while since we've done a full economic impact, but we believe we're about $300 million annually

So that's about the size of a Super Bowl that goes into a market. That $300 million is from all events throughout the year

Here's how the fair made its cash in 2018. 40% of the fair's haul over the 12 days was from tickets

Another 15% came from rides and games at the Midway. Vendor sales are worth roughly 20%

That includes the commission the fair takes from food sold, and then 8% comes from the grandstand where concerts are held, and the rest is just labeled other

The food is a big boon for the fair's top food vendors and the fair itself

Last year, Sweet Martha's Cookie Jars, three locations, sold 4.9 million of those little buckets of chocolate chip cookies

Pronto Pups raked in $2.3 million. And fun fact, Pronto Pups are made with pancake batter rather than a cornmeal-based batter that makes corn dogs so famous

Then, Mouth Trap Cheese Curds with $1.6 million. The Perfect Pickle with $1.5 million

And Fresh French Fries with $1.4 million. But they're all going to have to shell out 15% of the proceeds back to the fair as payment for the location

But a state fair is more than a money grab. It means a ton of Minnesotans

It doesn define us but it the best cultural tent pole to explain us And the entire state turns out for it And it actually not too hard to elbow turn from this idea of a community that loved me up when I

finally landed here to this explanation of why this community in so many ways is as close-knit

as it is. Andrew Zimmern, author, teacher, chef, all around awesome TV guy, Minnesota resident for

34 years. Before we were a state, people were gathering on the fairgrounds, what is now the

fairgrounds. It's the oldest permanent fairgrounds in America. And they were gathering there as people

did 175 years ago, um, to trade information and news and political information

and agricultural information. And that's really how this fair started. Celebrity chef Andrew

Zimmern believes it's the depth and breadth of the Minnesota State Fair that sets it apart

Obviously there's blue ribbons from needle pointing to, you know, 800 types of maple syrup that are graded in jars and on display

in our creative activities building. There's an arts gallery that is massive, thousands of square

feet with thousands of submissions every year of which the august body chooses 300, 400 to be put

on display. Um, and it's t in the state comes at lea

is an excellent place for its wares and get its name out there We have entrepreneurs that are on these fairgrounds that are building small businesses that are sustaining businesses

kids that have their first job, retirees that are coming in to work during the fair

So it really is an economic driver for these 12 days. A lot of the attention is put on the

outrageous fried foods like jalapeno popper donuts, deep fried olives, and Uncrustaburger

which is a hamburger sandwich between two deep fried uncrustables, not to mention all the craft beer options, including a soft serve option

But taking a detour from traditional fair fair can pay off. One of my top 10 place called Baba's, they're a small Middle Eastern restaurant, family run

You know, they came in four years ago with a little portable, like mobile van

that they serve hummus out of. And then things kind of built from there

This year they have what's called a falafel, which is a falafel mix cooked in a mini waffle machine

Minnesotans will claim they host the nation's best fair, but Minnesota Nice always shines through

I don't know of a state fair that isn't a good time, especially if you like everything from sensible foods like mini donuts and footlong hot dogs and french fries made right in front of you to the outrageous and crazy foods that seem to be dominating states fair all around the country

The Minnesota State Fair runs through Labor Day, but the season isn't over yet

Big Tex doesn't kick off until September 26th. With Stray Arrow News, I'm Kennedy Felton

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