The Perfect Pickle: Celebrating Decades Of Success At The State Fair

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Most state fairgoers have a list of foods that are a must-have at the fair. And for some, deep-fried pickles from The Perfect Pickle stand are high on that list.

"It's just a classic. It's a Minnesota State Fair classic. You have to get them," says fairgoer Marlo Marsolek.

The Perfect Pickle is pretty easy to find with its big green building near the Sky Ride, but it wasn't always there.

WCCO's John Lauritsen met with the owner who says his deep-fried pickle booth got its start in the Food Building.

"We were in the food building for the first 12 years and we kept growing so much that we got large for the Food Building," says Greg Klindt, owner of The Perfect Pickle. "So they wanted us to move outside, so we moved here."

Now they've been at their new location near the Midway for nine years.

The beloved deep-fried pickles are years in the making. Klindt says it took three years to get the batter just right, but once he did, he knew he had something special.

"It's deep-fried in a beer batter so you aren't going to get around that side of it, but it is a little healthier. You aren't starting with chocolate or cheese or something," says Klindt.

During the Fair they go through more than two semi trucks full of pickles. The pickles are coated in flour, dipped in a batter machine, then coated in bread crumbs. It's a recipe for success that's powered by pickles.

"It's awesome. I get them every year. They are amazing," says one fairgoer.

And what started as a small stand, now is considered to be a state fair classic for some Minnesotans.

"It's all word of mouth. Everybody knows about it, tells other people, we keep getting more customers every year," says Klindt.