Some new twists on old favorites are among the food offerings at this year’s Carolina Classic Fair. The fair, which opened Oct. 4 and runs through Oct.
13, continues to court local food trucks to fill the gap left by declining participation by civic club and church groups — and to offer more variety to supplement the funnel cakes, turkey legs and other usual concession items. Tim Clodfelter and The Journal's Michael Hastings sample an order of strawberry KOOL-AID pickles from Koolickles at the Carolina Classic Fair. This year, Tim Clodfelter, a radio show host on WTOB, and I found a few new choices in the classic categories of pizza, barbecue and doughnuts.
In addition to longtime fair vendor and area food truck Hickory Tree Barbecue, two new barbecue vendors are participating in the fair this year. Martin Lawrence of Lawrence & Perry BBQ chops smoked pork shoulder at the Carolina Classic Fair. Martin Lawrence and RJ Perry have operated Lawrence & Perry Barbecue in Warren County, N.
C., since 2016, specializing in Eastern-style pork barbecue. Though they do whole hogs, they are cooking pork shoulders at the fair for practical reasons.
They offer pork and chicken sandwiches ($10) and trays ($12), as well as smoked and deep-fried ribs ($18 for one-third of a rack). But the best-seller is the $20 slop bucket — a loaded and layered affair with chopped pork, French fries, beans, slaw and mac ’n’ cheese. The literal bucket comes with a lid and handle for easy portability �.