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Despite the 40-degree weather, residents stood in line for 20 minutes on Saturday to get Big Kahuna’s Fair Foods as its neighboring vendor Villa Pizze Fritte blasted classic rock music. This was the first glimpse of an in-person New York State Fair atmosphere that residents had seen since before the pandemic.

The Zazzara family, operators of the Villa Pizze Fritte stand, hosted an off-season State Fair Food Fest at the New York State Fairgrounds for the second time during the pandemic. This year’s event ran April 15-17 and will continue April 22-24. Vendors included Villa Pizze Fritte, Big Kahuna, Ashley Lynn Winery and Carnival Eats Syracuse.

“People are being cooped up inside their house all winter long and people just love their fair food, so we thought, ‘We’re gonna do it again,” said Grazi Zazzara, owner of Villa Pizze Fritte.
Vendors and customers at the event said it provided normalcy during the pandemic. It’s also helpful for local businesses, which lost revenue due to the cancellation of carnival events.

The success of last year’s drive-thru food fest inspired the Zazzara family to organize another off-season event, which was held in the Orange Lot between Interstate 690 and Onondaga Lake. Customers waited in line for hours to get their 2-foot-long pieces of fried dough, Zazzara said.

To enforce coronavirus safety guidelines, organizers placed signs and cones throughout the parking lot directing people on where to walk and stand. All vendors and customers were required to wear masks, and the vendors also wore gloves and frequently wiped down counter surfaces.

Customers didn’t voice concerns to Allen LaVenture, a social media promoter for all the event’s vendors, about safety and people made sure to maintain social distancing throughout the weekend.

Fan-favorite Villa Pizze Fritte blared classic rock music while customers waited for fried dough. Will Fudge | Staff Photographer

Jeffrey Brick, owner of Big Kahuna’s, said the turnout was higher than he expected and that the walk-up aspect allowed him to connect with members of the public, a change from the past year.

Customers snaked around the business’ food truck waiting for gyros, Italian sausages and french fries.

As a veteran of the concession business, he was excited to do the same type of work at the food fest that he did before the pandemic.

“We’re excited to be back in there because that’s the kind of work I do and it gives me an opportunity to go do that kind of work,” Brick said. “There’s definitely some sense of normalcy because we’re happy being at work.”

LaVenture said the event also appeals to central New York residents who have attended carnivals annually and have started to crave their “summer comfort food,” which is usually the food sold by fair vendors.

“People look forward to the summer and they’re like, “Oh, I can’t wait to barbecue.’ In Syracuse, we can’t wait to get to the fair and get all the fair food,” he said.

Janelle Goodfriend, who lives in Watertown, New York, said she came to the event to support the vendors. While she misses the state fair’s food and concerts, waiting in Saturday’s long lines and getting fair food like chicken tenders and lemonade at the food fest cured her nostalgia.

Goodfriend said safety wasn’t a concern for her during the event because customers were wearing their masks and practicing social distancing. Customer Nick Fabrizio said the coronavirus wasn’t a concern for him since he’s vaccinated.

Fabrizio’s favorite part about the state fair, which he attended every year, was the variety of food offered there and he wanted to come to support some of the fair’s businesses through the food fest.

“It’s nice to get the treats that I usually get at the state fair because I don’t know if it will happen this year,” he said.

The event also helped the vendors financially, who at this point in time before the pandemic, would be preparing for carnival season, LaVenture said. Events like these will allow vendors to keep their businesses alive before traditional carnivals resume.

This year’s State Fair Food Fest started on April 15-17 and will continue next weekend from April 22-24. Will Fudge | Staff Photographer

Kyler Felton, a resident of Mexico, New York, drove 45 minutes to get his favorite fair treat, the Pizze Fritte. He felt disappointed when the 2020 state fair was canceled since it’s a family tradition to attend once or twice a year. He’s glad he could get the food he was nostalgic for because he’s training for the Air National Guard and may be away by the time of the 2021 fair.

“The drive was worth it because I don’t know when the next time I’ll get this food,” he said. “You can’t get any fried dough like the Pizze Fritte anywhere else.”

As for summer plans, vendors still wait for news about events opening up, especially the 2021 fair. Dave Bullard, a spokesperson for the New York State Fair, said there are no plans for the fair yet.

Brick said he would describe his year as a lot of “waiting and what-ifs.” Until carnival events begin to resume, he is grateful the federal guidelines and the New York State Fairgrounds, the landlords for the event, allowed them to hold the off-season food fest to maintain their business.

“The people in the concession business are just grateful to have an outlet to be able to go work because for the most part, we’ve been shut down for 14 months because of the pandemic,” he said. “I have to thank the state and the fairgrounds for allowing us to work.”

Published on April 19, 2021 at 9:25 pm

Contact Abby: akweiss@syr.edu | @abbyweiss_21