State Fair News

State Fair of Texas 2017 will add flowers, magic, and a cookie factory

New stuff is happening at the 2017 State Fair of Texas.

Photo by Jason Hays

The 2017 State Fair of Texas doesn't start until September 29, but the State Fair team is already in full press release mode. This time, it's news about several new attractions lined up for this year's event.

World War I
The fair is marking the 100th anniversary of America's entry into World War I with two exhibits. "Texas in the First World War" provides an in-depth look into Lone Star State history, with wartime memorabilia and vehicles such as a Model T ambulance and a 1917 Indian motorcycle. "America and World War I" showcases original artifacts ranging from personal items to weaponry gathered from all participating nations during the Great War.

Cartoonist
"Drawing Power: The Editorial Art of John Knott" pays tribute to cartoonist John Knott, who worked for The Dallas Morning News for 52 years.

Agriculture
"Agriculture in Texas" is a new exhibit in the Science Place building that spotlights community gardens and urban farming. In collaboration with engineering students from the Hunt Institute at SMU, the Fair is hosting "Evie," a trailer-turned-mobile greenhouse.

The Briscoe Carpenter Livestock Center is a new facility that the release says will attract new shows, meetings, events, and conventions to Fair Park throughout the year. It also says that the Fair will expand the scope of livestock and agriculture activities, reminding us that not everyone in Texas lives in a city.

Magic
World of Magic is a new attraction with mind-blowing magic tricks and illusions featuring performances by award-winning illusionists and even a floating robot. The release says that fairgoers can also visit the theater to find Backyard Circus at its new location, which offers little ones the chance to dress up in costumes and take part in a show starring lion tamers, tight-rope walkers, ballerinas, and a host of circus favorites. They're still pushing that outdated circus stuff even though Ringling has retired?

Flowers
Texas Discovery Gardens will host floral arrangements from the Ikebana International Dallas Chapter; Ikebana is the Japanese art of arranging flowers.

Food
Gulf Coast Grill is an island-style grill with a tropical flair, and will feature live music from local artists on weekends.

Stiffler’s Mom’s Cookie Factory does chocolate chip cookies and milk. It showcases two observation windows and boasts the ability to bake 800 cookies every 11 minutes. With that many cookies, you know it will be good. Fairgoers can order cookies by the bucket or in a bag of six, and then watch the baking process from start to finish.

A new Cotton Candy Stand location will be housed in the very center of the Tower Building, showcasing how cotton candy is made. Is that a complicated thing?

Sports
On October 7 the Southwest Airlines State Fair Classic brings its annual matchup between Grambling State University and Prairie View A&M University. October 14 is the AT&T Red River Showdown between the University of Texas Longhorns and the University of Oklahoma Sooners.

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This week's hot headlines

New family-run taco cafe tops this week's 5 hottest Fort Worth headlines

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Editor's note: A lot happened this week, so here's your chance to get caught up. Read on for the week's most popular headlines. Looking for the best things to do this weekend? Find that listhere.

1. Fort Worth mom & daughter debut cafe with tacos and homemade tortillas. A new Fort Worth café is serving up breakfast tacos and burritos with homemade tortillas just like abuela used to make. Called Cafecito, it's a mother-daughter operation from Cinthya Duran, a South Fort Worth native, who's partnered with her mother, Yaneth Sanchez, on their first food and beverage endeavor.

2. Acclaimed Thai restaurant expands to Fort Worth's hottest neighborhood. An acclaimed Thai restaurant in the mid-cities is making a big step up to Fort Worth's hottest street: The new place is called Ko Thai, and it's opening at 721-725 W. Magnolia Ave., a couple doors down from Shinjuku Station (which sadly just closed after 13 years in the Near Southside).

3. Fort Worth to host forgiveness day for those with outstanding warrants. Scofflaws in Fort Worth are getting cut some slack: The Fort Worth Municipal Court is hosting a forgiveness event where anyone with an outstanding citation can clear it up without fear of arrest.

4. 4 DFW universities earn top rankings on new list of best colleges in U.S. Four Dallas-Fort Worth area universities have risen through the ranks in a highly anticipated new list of the country's best universities. Niche, an education review and ranking website, has deemed Texas Christian University the sixth best college in Texas, for the third consecutive year.

5. Where to eat in Fort Worth right now: 6 restaurants with the best sandwiches. For this month’s Where to Eat, we point you to the best sandwich shops in and around Fort Worth. These are traditional sandwiches, and include venerable classics as well as some worthy newcomers.