Alameda County Fair Snackdown This Friday

Do you love fair food? You’ll love this announcement from the Alameda County Fair:

For anyone who loves Fair food, it’s like a deep-fried, chocolate-dipped, dream come true: the SNACKDOWN is back!

Armed with deep fryers and big imaginations, Alameda County Fair’s top concessionaires will go toe-to-toe, each in hopes that their newest taste sensation will be crowned top dog. Eight vendors with 14 total entries will compete in the 2015 SNACKDOWN at the Fair’s Grandstand stage on Friday, June 19 at 4 p.m.

Liam Mayclem, KCBS’s “Foodie Chap”, will host the live event, along with a judging panel of Bay Area food writers and personalities. The Fair’s Facebook page will run a contest later this week giving food fans a chance to win a spot at the judging table.

Food vendors were invited to participate in the competition earlier this year and first-round judges selected the finalists from entries received. Contestants are allowed to enter as many different items as they wish, but all entries must be original creations and new to the Fair. Prize categories include “Best Taste”, “Most Creative” and “Best Theme” (“Rock the Red, White & Blue.”). The overall “Grand Champion” will be awarded the prized Championship Belt.

For the first time, the Fair will provide food vendor maps at the information booths, in addition to the “SNACKDOWN Finalist” signs to be posted at food stands. Last year’s winners included Spaghetti Ice Cream by Cardinali’s Ice Cream (Best Taste & Grand Champion), Pickle Dog by Get Pickled (Most Creative) and Red, White & Blue Pizza by Pizza by the Slice (Best Theme). For more information, visit www.alamedacountyfair.com.

2015 SNACKDOWN Finalists
Deep Fried PB&J Cheesecake w/ Bubblegum Frosting
Sweet Cheeks
Jacqueline Bradbury

Bacon Wrapped Pork Belly on a Stick
Big Bubbas Bad BBQ
John Campbell

Deep Fried Wood Fired Pastrami Pizza
Deep Fried Carmelized Bananas Foster
Cardinali Pizza / Grill
Worlds Most Sour Ice Cream
Cardinali Ice Cream
Tony Cardinali

Cap’n Crunch Shrimp on a Stick w/ Sweet Sriracha Sauce
Sharky’s Fish Fry
Peanut Butter and Jelly Fries
Stuffy’s Char Broiler
Don Delahoyde

Funnel Cake Cheeseburger
Brett Enright –Juicy’s Grill

The Red, White & Blue (Tri-flavor Kettle Corn)
The Klassy Kernel
James Gossett

Frosted Flakes Chicken w/ Maple Syrup
“Koolickle” (Kool-Aid Pickle)
Get Pickled
Red, White & Blue Baked Potato
Spud Ranch
Pineapple Sriracha Chicken Wings
Wings & Chips
Nate Janousek

Chipotle Shrimp Avocado Bites
Pepe’s Mariscos
Erica Quintero
Concessionaires Extraordinaire
Look for these and dozens of other great food vendors at the 2015 Alameda County Fair:

Big Bubba’s Bad BBQ
BBQ Pork, Chicken & Beef, Tri Tip, Beans, Cole Slaw, Corn on the Cob

Cardinali’s Pizza / Grill
Wood Fire Pizza, Deli Sandwiches, Roasted Corn, Salads, Deep-fried Watermelon

Country Fair Cinnamon Rolls
Homemade Cinnamon Rolls & Cinnamon Bread

Funnel Cakes West
Homemade Funnel Cake with Cream & Fruit, Breakfast Funnel Cake

Gastro Pub
17 different Sierra Nevada beers on tap & Farm-to-Table Menu

Get Pickled
Pickle Dog, Drunken Pickle Poppers, Fried Pickle-on-a-Stick

Juicy’s Grill
Burgers, Grilled Cheese, Chicken Sandwich, Sausage-on-a-Stick

Monster Dog
18” Corn Dog (12” & 16” dogs, too), Hot Dogs & Burgers

Mrs. J’s Chocolate Pot
Chocolate-dipped Bananas, Ice Cream Bars & Cheesecake

Pepe’s Mariscos
Mexican Food, Fresh Seafood, Fish Tacos, Fresh Fruit

Planet Popcorn / Planet Crepes
Fresh Popped Flavored Popcorn, Homemade Crepes

Spud Ranch
Baked Potatoes with every imaginable topping

Sharky’s Fish Fry
Fish & Chips, Lobster-on-a-Stick, Fried Veggies, Lobster Fries

The Sleek Greek
Greek Cuisine – Gyros, Salad, Baklava, Spanokopita

Stuffy’s Char Broiler
Burgers, Hot Dogs, Salads, Macaroni & Cheese Stuffed Bacon Burger

Sweet Cheeks
Deep-fried Sweet Treats: Oreos, Twinkies, Cheesecake, Snickers & More
HEALTHY PICKS
Alameda County Fair concessionaires offer plenty of healthy options, too! The following vendors are a sampling of those who offer selections that meet the Kaiser Permanente “Healthy Picks” criteria. For more information, visit www.alamedacountyfair.com.

Back Yard Village BBQ
Veggie Burrito

Café Renee Crepes / Planet Popcorn
Fruit Spreads
Plain Popcorn

Cardinali Pizza / Grill
Veggie Pizza

Cardinali Ice Cream
Frozen Bananas

Garlicky’s
Veggie Pizza

The Sleek Greek
Vegetarian Gyros

Juicy’s Greek
Greek Salad

Juicy’s Grill
Grilled Chicken

Outlaw Burger
Grilled Chicken

Pepe’s Mariscos
Veggie Burrito
Grilled Chicken, Fish or Veggie Taco
Fresh Fruit

Sweet Cheeks
Bread Sticks

Healthy Picks Drinks – Available at multiple locations:

• Coffee (unsweetened)
• Tea (unsweetened)
• Dasani Water / Smartwater
• Fuze Slenderize / Vitaminwater Zero
• Unsweetened Lemonade

2015 Alameda County Fair Information
Dates: June 17 – July 5 (Open Tuesday – Sunday)
Hours: 11 a.m. – 11 p.m. daily
Carnival Hours: Tues -Thurs, 12 p.m. to closing, Fri - Sun, 11 a.m. to closing
Horse Racing: Thursday through Sunday, June 18 --21, June 25 --28, and July 2--5
Big O Tires FREE Concerts: 8 p.m. – 9:15 p.m., nightly. Special effects show with video tribute to local heroes, immediately following concerts.

July 4: Blues Festival, 1-9 p.m., Fireworks Spectacular featuring a live performance by Members of the Oakland East Bay Symphony, 9:30 p.m., Budweiser Grandstand

Gate Admission*:

• Adults (13-61) -- $12
• Seniors (62+) -- $8
• Kids (6-12) -- $8
• Children under 6 -- FREE

*Purchase in advance (before June 16) and save up to 33%
Special Pre-Fair Pricing (until 6/16/15):

• Season Pass (admission for all 17 days) - $49.95
• Fun Pack (4 general admission tickets and 1 parking pass) - $40

Special Days (ALL SPECIAL PRICING ENDS AT 5 P.M.):

• Military Appreciation, FREE Fair admission with valid Military ID – ALL DAY, EVERYDAY
• Opening Day: June 17 -- $1 Admission & $1 Rides, UNTIL 5 P.M.
• $2 Tuesdays: June 23 & 30 -- $2 admission, UNTIL 5 P.M.
• Seniors FREE Thursdays (62+) – June 18, June 25, & July 2, UNTIL 5 P.M.
• Kids FREE Fridays (12 and under) – June 19, June 26, & July 3, UNTIL 5 P.M
• Feed the Need Food Drive & $1 Rides, benefitting Alameda County Food Bank. (Bring 4 non-perishable food items and receive FREE admission & $1 Rides) – June 24, UNTIL 5 P.M.
• Treats for Troops: July 1 (Bring 4 items from donation list and receive FREE admission & $1 Rides) – UNTIL 5 P.M.
• Father’s Day: Sunday, June 21 -- Dads with kids get in FREE for the first hour – 11 a.m. UNTIL 12 noon.

Big O Tires Presents - Concert Series Preview:

6/17 – War
6/18 – Brian McKnight
6/19 – The Original Wailers
6/20 – Kutless
6/21 – Tierra
6/23 – The Boys of Summer (Eagles tribute)
6/24 – The Beach Boys
6/25 – Rodney Atkins
6/26 – Tower of Power
6/27 – Con Funk Shun
6/28 – Tanya Tucker
6/30 – Steelin’ Dan (Steely Dan tribute)
7/1 – Foghat
7/2 – Kansas
7/3 – Morris Day & The Time
7/4 – Red, White & Blues Festival (1 p.m. – 9 p.m.)
7/5 – Berlin featuring Terri Nunn

The Alameda County Fair is operated by the non-profit Fair Association without any tax funding from the government. It is ranked one of the Top 50 North American Fairs and the 7 largest Fair in California. The Fairgrounds is home to the Oldest One-Mile Race Track in America.
For more information, please visit www.AlamedaCountyFair.com, or call (925) 426-7600.