What to know
- More than two dozen new and returning CNE foods were sampled during the fair’s media preview ahead of its Aug. 21 opening.
- Sweetcorn wasabi lemonade, lobster on a stick and Brie cheese deep-fried Oreos were among the standouts.
- The KD smoothie was surprisingly subtle, while pickle coffee earned a firm “no.”
- The CNE runs Aug. 21 to Sept. 7, with the featured foods available across the Food Building, Midway, Food Truck Frenzy, Enercare Centre and Bandshell Park.
Hands down — or is that teeth down — the winning wacky food creations at this year’s Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) — opening this Friday (Aug. 21) and running until Sept. 7 — are the sweetcorn wasabi lemonade, the not-so-wacky lobster on a stick, and surprisingly orgasmic brie cheese deep-fried Oreos.
The coolest were the edible dirty soda spheres, a bubble of flavour that explodes in one bite and the nitro-foggy space rocks, however that one needs to be hurled into space and left there (cool, yes; tasty, no).
As I write this in a food coma, after trying over two dozen samples at the media preview — none on my high protein diet — apologies to the chefs whose dream kooky concoction’s I had no room for at the end, like the always-good Beach Hill Smokehouse — oh, how I wish I could have tried the “carnival cone,” a mac n cheese ball, candied yams, mac n cheese sauce, served in a waffle cone.
Also, no room for the “S’mOreo” fried chicken ice cream sandwich or strawberry toast crunch chicken funnel cake, but neither sounds outrageous. The latter is topped with cotton candy, so as someone who owned a tabletop cotton candy machine as an adult, it’s on my list to try when it opens.
Also didn’t get to try the sushi “pop” because I popped it up right onto the ground: that’s a warning not to push it too much.
For those trying to be health…salads are in short supply. But there is a relatively healthy avocado fresco charcoal-infused pizza from Pizza Nova. By contrast, good ol’ Pizza Pizza has some huge reasonably priced sweet and savory deep fried slices.
For a gluten-free indulgence, try the popcorn falafel poutine. And for protein conscious, maybe Steak Barrels’ chicharron bite.
Surprisingly normal and tasty offerings are the cotton candy wafflelcious from Jerk Dogs; the Korean fried chicken ramen taco from Los Vietnamita; the dill pickle pegrolls; and superb Marry Me Mochi’s donuts: mango habanero, pina colada inferno, and savory nacho affair.
The cheeseburger donuts were also delicious, as was Bacon Nation’s root beer bacon (went back for a second slice on the way out) and their burger.
Now for the oddball stuff that is fun to try — once or not at all.
The KD smoothie wasn’t bad, fortunately disguised with mango, pineapple juice, vanilla yogurt and skim milk.
The pickle coffee was a hard no for me — it tastes exactly like you added pickle juice to coffee. Same with the pickle cheesecake; it’s not bad, but they have better tasting options.
There’s a footlong butter chicken taquitos, bacon espresso, and soft serve ice cream topped with sichuan peppers.
Some of the dishes are made using the CNE’s first-ever hot sauce called Sweet Heat, including Bacon Nation’s spicy maple bacon cheese foam fries and a Korean fried chicken ramen taco. It can be purchased at the CNE merchandise and coffee shop, Drip, in the Music Building.
The new food creations can be found in the Food Building or along the Midway, as well as in Bandshell Park (see below for the locations).
As I walked back to my car at Enercare, I passed by some other unusual offerings, such as Liko’s Hawaiian Barbeque’s Spam truck and Enchanted Poutine, home of the unicorn poutine.
I was excited to see the delicious Frosted Flakes-coated chicken on a stick had returned to Chicken Tender Poutine (they have a truck on the Midway and counter in the Food Building) — my tried and true. They skipped a year in 2024, which made me as sad as I was when the carny guessed my age.
A guide to find some of these foods:
CNE Sweet Heat Hot Sauce
CNE Drip Shop, Music Building across from Kiddie Midway
The Szechuan Sizzle Spice Cream
Caf-eh TO, Food Building
Cotton Candy Waffleicious
Jerk Dogs, Food Truck Frenzy
Korean Fried Chicken Ramen Taco
Los Vietnamita Taqueria, Food Truck Frenzy
Cotton Candy Kickin’ Chicken
Mr. Potato, Food Building
Sweet Heat Cloud Fries
Bacon Nation, Food Building
Marry Me Mochi’s CNE Sweet Heat Collection
Marry Me Mochi, Food Building
KD Smoothie
Booster Juice, Food Building
Sushi Pops
HK Station, Outdoor Concession
Space Rocks
Yeti Puff Nitro Snacks, Heritage Court, Enercare Centre
Edible Dirty Soda Spheres
Dirty Sodas, Outdoor Concession
Blue Heat Taki Tenders
Lucky Chicken, Food Building
Pickle Cheesecake Pop
Mr. Pickle, Outdoor Concession
Popcorn Falafel Poutine – Gluten-Free
Donia’s Donair, Outdoor Concession
Jamaican Beef Patty Mini Pierogies
Supreme Pierogi, Food Building
Lobster on a Stick
Lobster on a Stick, Food Building
Footlong Butter Chicken Taquito
Rick’s Good Eats, Food Truck Frenzy
Fried S’MOREO
Legend Dairy, Food Building
S’more Deep Fried Slice
Pizza Pizza, Food Building
Brie Cheese Deep Fried Oreos
Sam’s Grill, Outdoor Concessions
Dill Pickle Pegrolls
Pegrolls, Outdoor Concession & Enercare Centre
Ramen Fried Frog Legs
Farm to Fryer, Food Building
Smash Burger Dumplings
Smash City, Food Building
The Carnival Cone
Beach Hill Smokehouse, Bandshell Park
Beef Butter Tart
Temptations Food Truck, Food Truck Frenzy
Nacho Ribs
Bacon Nation, Food Building
Root Beer Candy Bacon
Bacon Nation, Food Building
Steak Barrel Pork Belly
Steak Barrels, Bandshell Park
Sip, Sip, Hooray
Sweetcorn Wasabi Lemonade
Alijandro’s Kitchen, Food Truck Frenzy
Pickle or Bacon Flavoured Coffee
Greekery Bakeshop, Outdoor Concession
