Maine news, sports, weather | Kennebec Journal, Augusta, Maine

WINDSOR FAIR

Once a year, forget the health food

Hard to turn down a bloomin' onion

By Mechele Cooper mcooper@centralmaine.com
Staff Writer

WINDSOR -- A couple of concession stands at the Windsor Fair offer healthful food options -- gyros, sweet potato fries, frozen bananas.

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Linda Jensen serves fried dough Tuesday at the Windsor Fair as siblings Colt and Calyn Benner wait to place an order.

Staff photo by Andy Molloy

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That's not what Christopher Kinney was after.

He wanted a bloomin' onion in his belly.

A blooming onion is a whole onion, usually a vidalia, that is cored, sliced with a cutter to resemble a flower blossom, then breaded, seasoned and deep fried. They are usually served with a sauce.

Kinney, a 38-year-old Cives Steel iron worker from Belgrade, said he loves the deep-fried food he can get at fairs. And bloomin' onions, which contain 2,200 calories and 134 grams of fat each, were one of his favorites.

"I didn't get one last year and have been craving it all year," Kinney said. "It's just the start of the day. I'm going to try a corn dog later. I get the chicken dinner every year. And doughboys. I've got to have one of those."

Judy Maynard, who runs the concession stand, said a lot of her customers say they treat themselves to a bloomin' onion only once a year at the fair.

Ron Tolini, 62, a Sabattus pharmacist, enjoyed a pile of fried onions smothered in ketchup while his wife chatted away with friends.

Such was the fare at the Windsor Fair on Tuesday, with irresistible aromas and sizzling sounds drifting across the midway tempting even the biggest health nut.

"I throw caution to the wind and spoil myself with food that I'm not supposed to eat when I come to the fair," Tolini said. "I just can't help it. It's good for the soul."

Kinney's girlfriend, Rhonda Spencer, 42, said her favorite fair fare is kettle corn -- a sweet-and-salty variety of popcorn that originated back in the 1700s.

"They make it the best here," Spencer said.

Peter and Linda Jensen said they've been selling fried dough at fairs for nearly 40 years.

The Jensens' fried dough costs $4. For an extra $1, customers get it with fruit or tomato sauce.

Peter Jensen said Maine folks like their dough with cinnamon or powder sugar. In Connecticut, he said, they prefer it with sauce.

"People try to make fair food at home, but they can't duplicate it," Linda Jensen said. "It's the whole experience of coming to the fair and walking around and seeing the exhibits that makes it special. It's a complete package."

Russ Hudon, 59, a disabled veteran from Richmond, shaded himself under a maple tree and devoured a sausage-onions-and-sauerkraut sandwich.

"I like eating sausage better at the fair," he said. "It's great. And I'm going to have to have some fried dough."

Over at Emily's, the fairground restaurant, waitresses were serving up home-cooked meals in an air-conditioned building.

Stephanie Joslyn, one of the waitresses, said the place will be packed Thursday for Senior Citizen Day. Admission is only $2.

She said seniors who come to the restaurant for food also seek to get out of the heat.

"Our turkey dinner with all the fixings is our biggest seller," said Joslyn, who lives in Windsor. "In here, it's home cooked, no fried food."

Over at the sugar shack on the other side of the fairgrounds, people were cooling themselves down with maple ice cream.

Shelley Bacon of Bacon Farm Maple Products in Sidney manned the soft ice cream machine.

"People just want something cold," Bacon said. "We sold 4,500 cones last year and hope to do more this year because of the heat."

It was the same over at Melanie Gilmore's lemonade stand.

Gilmore, 31, a waitress at the Hi-Hat Restaurant in Farmingdale, said she has been "very, very busy."

She said her lemonade is the best.

"We do get a lot of people who come back every year because ours is their favorite," said Gilmore, who lives in Gardiner. "It's gramp's old fashioned lemonade. Loyd Carey of Pittston was my great-grandfather. He passed away. But it's his recipe. He worked fairs for over 65 years."

Gilmore's daughter, Raeghan Moody, 11, helped out in the concession trailer next door selling cotton candy, another fair staple.

She said cotton candy is everyone's favorite.

Raeghan only had one word for it.

"Yum!"

Mechele Cooper -- 623-3811, ext. 408

mcooper@centralmaine.com

Today is Horsemen's and Vendor Appreciation Day.

Events include steer pulling, a sheep show, steer and oxen log twitching contest, harness racing, a steer and oxen powder puff pull, an apple pie contest, and a modified truck pull in the evening at the race track.

Admission is $6 for adult, under 16 free.