Two transplants from New York to North Texas — who happen to be editors at The Dallas Morning News — visited the State Fair of Texas to see if the Most Texan Place on Earth really is a big deal.

Bobby Caina Calvan, deputy government accountability editor, and business editor Javier E. David explored the State Fair. Here’s what they saw, felt and ate.

Business editor Javier E. David

A Brooklyn resident for nearly 30 years, Javier grew up on Long Island, went to high school in Miami and attended Long Island University. He moved to Dallas in 2024.

The word “nostalgia” means a lot of things to a lot of people, but it’s the perfect way to describe the State Fair. That’s what it triggered for me as I navigated the excited crowds, bright lights, gravity-defying rides, fried foods with enough calories to make a cardiologist swoon — and of course Big Tex.

Let’s face it: If you’ve been to one amusement park, you’ve been to them all, and with a few notable exceptions, the grub and mechanized distractions are mostly mirror images of multiple other locations — regardless of which one you’re in.

And yet, I found myself captivated by the State Fair’s vibe, even though I really don’t like crowds, and it wasn’t long before I realized why.

The color, the noise, the playfulness and promise of a good time for all. …It was very reminiscent of my childhood spent in local fairs and amusement parks. The preponderance of adults also reminded me of the environment one finds in the middle of a certain desert city in a certain Western State. Yes, the State Fair of Texas really is equal parts Disney and Las Vegas.

Gripes about the event have certainly gotten a lot of attention, and rightfully so. Even if you are comped the price of admission, a day at the fair will still cost a LOT of money. Tickets for all that food and entertainment really adds up, and it’s hard to justify the expense in an era when all of us are feeling the pinch of inflation on our wallets.

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Visits to the State Fair will probably involve raiding the virtual piggy bank, but it’s hard to deny that if you do decide to go, and if you decide it’s worth spending the money, you will undoubtedly have a good time. This old curmudgeon certainly did.

Bobby Caina Calvan, deputy government accountability editor

Bobby Caina Calvan, relocated to Dallas after working several years for the Associated Press, based in their New York office.

I last visited a state fair decades ago in California’s capital of Sacramento. Before that it was maybe a decade earlier in my home state of Hawaii.

Truth be told, I’m not a fan of crowds and icky-sticky cotton candy. Carnival food is not my “thang.”

… Unless it’s a corn dog — although just hours earlier, I was gently and ribbingly chided when I mistakenly referred to a CORNY dog a mere corn dog.

To my surprise, a corny dog is like no other. Throwing my caution against superlatives to the wind, I dare say it was the best corn breaded hot dog on a stick I’ve had.

Maybe I should have also searched for a crab and mozzarella arancini, which got the Big Tex award for savory bites.

I moseyed over to a cotton candy stand and talked the nice woman into giving me several extra swirls of wispy sugar. It was sweet delight at first; but soon my body shuddered mildly. There is such a thing as too much.

My colleague is absolutely right: The State Fair, when you’re a grownup, is all about nostalgia – from corny dogs, cotton candy, and the midway — where a sucker is born every minute.

A Ferris wheel ride for $16, and the pocket-emptying games that must be rigged, right? I thought so until I won a teddy bear by popping three consecutive balloons. My luck at sinking basketballs, even with my perfect shooting form, netted me zilch.

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On a Tuesday night, the crowds were relatively sparse. There were lines here and there, including at the Ferris wheel, where you could hear a grumble or two, as well as the faint sounds of fairgoers coughing up their bucks. At $16 a ride, even ole’ Big Tex might have second thoughts. The sky tram has fewer people in line and gives you a grand view of the fairgrounds.

This curmudgeon is also no fan of carnival rides, but I gave in to nostalgia when I trudged (OK, wheezed) up a metal stairwell to breeze down the Fast Trax Slide, an eight-lane chute.

There is a lot to take in at the fair — certainly too much for a single visit. There are farm exhibits, a petting zoo and agricultural displays.

But before the fair ends, I hope to take in my first Texas rodeo. More importantly, I need to get myself to the pig races.

Forget the rides, games and cotton candy (I’ll keep the corny dogs, thank you) — but what can be more amusing than watching piglets race around a track?

Rodeo and pig races — you won’t find either in New York City. A state fair can’t be any more Texas than that!

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