There are plenty of reasons to love the Kentucky State Fair, let us count the ways. As you may already know, we are obsessed with the Vegetable Critters Competition, still stand in awe of the inexplicably chatty Freddy Farm Bureau, are forever delighted by the little yellow chicks on the metal water slide and marvel at the the sideshows and rotating rides of the midway. There is one major highlight of the Kentucky State Fair, however, on which we can all agree and that is the special ok-just-this-once food at the Fair, which we joyously gobble down in the shadows of Freedom Hall.

After you’ve given the obligatory “Howdy” to Freddy Farm Bureau, the famous greeter at the gates of the Fair, follow your nose to the rows of food vendors grilling and frying up all the foods that are definitely not part of your “fitness journey,” unless of course you’re on the “fitness entire funnel cake in your mouth” journey. There’s occasionally a healthier food option or two like grilled corn on the cob or a reasonably balanced meal at the Kentucky Pork Producers tent, but come on, this is the Fair, which is full of all kinds of unique Kentucky fried fare. There are, of course, the classics like corn dogs, funnel cakes, ice cream, sausages with grilled peppers and onions, freshly peeled grease-covered potato chips, the giggle-worthy Pork-Butt-On-A-Stick and many more. These are all perfectly reasonable and delicious State Fair food choices but there is an entire other level of choices for the more adventurous eaters. It’s hard to say when it happened exactly but somewhere around 20 years ago the State Fair food vendors began to lose their doggone minds and in the process took us with them.

When we first heard tell of the Deep-Fried Oreo, we thought it had to be a joke. But sure enough, it was real. Very real. Every following annual, the Fair food vendors would up the ante with more absurd yet intriguing options like Deep-Fried Derby Pie, Deep-Fried Twinkies and eventually even Deep-Fried Kool-Aid, which may be one of the signs marking the End of Days. Speaking of, Deep-Fried Butter is apparently an option as well so if you’ve given up completely or if you would just like to feel incredibly sick for an extended period of time, they’ve got you covered. Our prediction for this year is Deep-Fried Cream Cheese or possibly Deep-Fried Alfredo. Count us in for the latter.

Deep-Fried Oreos and its ilk seemed like more of a novelty or a trend that might evaporate over time. Kind of like a traveling sideshow of snacks that would captivate and delight curious crowds one day and then skip town after the excitement died down. It was probably about a decade after the first Oreo was battered, bathed in sizzling oil and sold to the first sucker with a sweet tooth that the food vendors of the Fair decided they needed to really up the extreme food concept and take it (and us along with it) to the next level. Enter the Krispy Kreme Donut Bacon Cheeseburger. It was an immediate media sensation and both local and national media outlets were telling the tantalizing tale of this tasty treat that would be available exclusively at the Kentucky State Fair. Whether you consider the Krispy Kreme Donut Bacon Cheeseburger to be a publicity stunt to get more attention for the upcoming fair, a stroke of culinary genius or a genius way to give yourself a stroke and/or coronary, it totally worked. The big deal and appeal of the Kentucky State Fair that year was the Krispy Kreme Donut Bacon Cheeseburger, which even overshadowed the draw of the Tim McGraw and Def Leppard concerts.

We arrived at the Fair hungry, ready to rise to the challenge of ingesting a bacon covered cheeseburger lovingly nestled between to delicious Krispy Kreme Original Glaze donuts. It was already packed on that humid Kentucky afternoon in August and as we approached the donut burger tent, we encountered an enormous line. Undeterred and fully prepared to wait all day if necessary, we hopped in the back of the long line of Kentuckiana’s sweatiest and most adventurous Fair food fanatics. The line was friendlier than most food lines as we were all awash in the ecstasy of expectation eagerly edging closer to that glorious moment when we would be handed our very own Krispy Kreme Donut Bacon Cheeseburger. After a solid 30 minutes, we were almost to the front of the line. We could clearly see that the donut burger crew was in the weeds, as it were, and they were all sweating profusely through their red uniform shirts and their paper Krispy Kreme promotional hats. When we finally arrived at the order spot, we were met by a young man who was clearly exhausted. He was covered in sweat, riddled with something unidentifiable and rattled by the rush of the overwhelming demand for this donut burger delicacy. After ordering and paying, we waited just a couple more minutes before our disheveled new friend held that special creation his hurried crew had whipped up in his hands. It was not like the pictures we saw on the news and it was quite a mess already with the grease glistening in the sunlight but we did not care as we were just seconds away from experiencing that State Fair sensation. Not seeing any utensils in the paper tray or anywhere nearby, one of us asked that poor guy, “How do we eat this thing?” His glance, which had been largely towards the ground either unable or unwilling to make eye contact, made its way up to meet our excited and expectant faces. As he slowly handed the Krispy Kreme Donut Bacon Cheeseburger over into our hungry hands, his head fell and he let out a long deep sigh while he flatly said, “I don’t know, just shove it in your face.” Never before or ever since has there been a man as defeated as he was in that moment on that day. It seems he had seen the worst of humanity that week serving up that greasy, sugary Frankenstein of a burger day after day and he was somehow broken by the whole experience. We went over to a nearby bench and began to do exactly as he instructed by shoving it lovingly in our faces. It’s hard to recall the particulars of the flavors but it is easy to remember the heart palpitations that happened while eating it.

The Krispy Kreme Donut Bacon Cheeseburger lives on to this day only now its more elaborate than ever before. Word on the street is that they’ve added country ham as well as taking the donut burger for a dip in a pool of bourbon honey glaze. We have yet to revisit the donut burger due to the palpitations and what-not, but maybe that was just a coincidence. In any case, we’re excited to hit the Kentucky State Fair again this year and whatever we end up “shoving in our faces” this time is yet to be determined. More info and early discount tickets for the Kentucky State Fair here!