DEL MAR: Fair food favorite a sweet tradition

New offerings include deep-fried mac 'n' cheese

By JOHN RAIFSNIDER - For the North County Times | Thursday, June 19, 2008 8:31 PM PDT ∞

DEL MAR ---– For three decades, visitors to the San Diego County Fair have been making a dash from the fairgrounds entrance to a food stand just inside the main gate.

In what has become a pilgrimage of sorts for many, some visitors rush to a modestly decorated, white, travel trailer-sized stand, from which one of the most recognizable scents in the world ---- fresh, hot cinnamon rolls ---- wafts over the midway of food vendors.

It is a scene repeated every morning, and one that Ryan Madaus said she never tires of seeing.

"For a lot of people, this is one of the biggest reasons they come to the fair, to have one of our rolls," said Madaus, who with her husband, Willie, runs one of the two family owned Country Fair Cinnamon Rolls operations on the fairgrounds.

Ryan Madaus' older sister, Dara Baldwin, owns the other stand, which the sisters bought from their parents, Eldon and Janis Dale. The Dales retired five years ago from the sweet and sticky food business they founded in 1978. That year, the San Diego County Fair was the first event at which the Dales offered their homemade cinnamon rolls.

"This has always been a truly family owned business, and my sister and I are going to keep it family owned," said Madaus.

"I think that our customers appreciate that fact, and I think that's partly why they continue to support us every year ---- because we are family owned and they see us here working every day." Madaus makes no apologies for offering the sweet, high-calorie confection to fairgoers.

Her most loyal customers, she says, are aware of the contents and still insist on having at least one cinnamon roll annually.

"Our customers come up to the order window and say ‘I know I shouldn't have one of these because it's not on my diet, but this is the fair and I only get to do this once a year when you guys are here,' and so they order their one roll and they seem to really enjoy themselves."

Madaus says she has noticed a slight downturn in business this year at the fair, but still had a record-setting day Tuesday.

"It was ‘Taste of the Fair' day, and we were offering a $2 item, just like all the other vendors," she said. "That helped us have a really big day."

Near the fairground's paddock area, the Del Mar Diner is offering three new food items for visitors to try. Turf Club executive chef Deborah M. Schneider said all three treats are selling better than expected.

"We thought that we really had something when we came up with the idea of selling a deep-fried macaroni and cheese ball, but we never thought they would sell as well as they have," said Schneider, as she churned a vat holding 60 pounds of freshly cooked macaroni destined for the Del Mar Diner.

"Between the deep-fried mac 'n' cheese balls, and the deep-fried s'mores and the Koolicles, we're staying pretty busy keeping up with demand." The mac and cheese balls are selling at a clip of nearly 900 per day. The deep-fried s'mores aren't far behind. Fair visitors are still warming up to the Koolicles, a dill pickle marinated in strawberry Kool-Aid.

Schneider said many that fairgoers look forward to enjoying a variety of deep-fried foods, and are willing to try just about anything new. In fact, she added, they expect her and her staff to have new treats every fair season.

"It's one of the reasons that people come to the fair ---- for the food," said Schneider. "It's been a requirement for us, that we offer at least three new food items every year for our fair patrons, and now they've come to expect it."

While many people may eat healthy during the rest of the year, Schneider says every June ---- just in time for the fair's opening ---- some people change their eating habits.

"If it's fair time, it's deep-fried food time, and that's what a lot of folks want at the fair," she said.

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