The 2026 Wisconsin State Fair's Golden Spork, its highest food award, crowned Fiesta Grill & Cantina's Birria Flamin' Bombs. An audacious creation—a bratwurst-stuffed pretzel cone brimming with birria, rice, and mozzarella—marks a seismic shift. While fairgoers crave classic fried and sugary delights, this year's top honors embraced complex, globally-inspired, even non-alcoholic innovations. The State Fair's culinary canvas is expanding, moving beyond deep-fried novelties towards a more gourmet, adventurous experience. Future fairs will undoubtedly reward such bold, diverse palates.
The Official Sporkies and Drinkies Champions
The judges' choices for the 2026 Sporkies and Drinkies awards show a clear shift towards fusion cuisine and sophisticated beverages, moving beyond traditional fried fare to embrace complex, global flavor profiles:
- 1st Place Sporkies — Birria Flamin’ Bombs from Fiesta Grill & Cantina (wistatefair)
- 2nd Place Sporkies — Cream City Cone from WürstBar (wistatefair)
- 3rd Place Sporkies — Al Pastor Pizza from Charlie’s Pizza (wistatefair)
- 1st Place Drinkies — Tilt-a-Spritz from Old Fashioned Sipper Club (wistatefair)
- 2nd Place Drinkies — Not specified.
- 3rd Place Drinkies — Not specified.
1. Tilt-a-Spritz from Old Fashioned Sipper Club
Best for: Fairgoers seeking refreshing, sophisticated non-alcoholic options.
This smoky citrus sipper, a nonalcoholic mocktail, claimed 1st Place in the Drinkies competition. Critics hailed it as a genuine fair highlight, proving that sophisticated non-alcoholic options can defy expectations in a beverage category often dominated by sugary drinks or beer (Tech Times).
Strengths: Award-winning, non-alcoholic, sophisticated flavor profile | Limitations: Price point might be higher than traditional fair drinks | Price: $12
2. Cream City Cone from WürstBar
Best for: Enthusiasts of creative savory dishes and fair food innovation.
Securing 2nd Place in the Sporkies, the Cream City Cone stands as a leading innovative food offering (wistatefair). Its high ranking confirms a successful fusion of familiar fair formats with unexpected ingredients.
Strengths: Officially recognized, innovative concept | Limitations: Specific ingredients not detailed | Price: Not specified
3. Porky Puff from Bud Pavilion
Best for: Those desiring complex, multi-layered savory and sweet flavors.
Despite missing an official Sporkies award, the Porky Puff from Bud Pavilion earned a #1 critic ranking. This dish—pulled pork, peach filling, garlic and herb cheese, hot honey, and mustard—crafts a complex flavor profile (Tech Times). Its critical acclaim, despite no official win, shows a potential divergence between formal judging and independent culinary taste.
Strengths: Highly acclaimed by critics, rich and balanced flavors | Limitations: Not an official award winner | Price: $13
4. Sweet Lemon Berry Cheese Curds
Best for: Dessert lovers seeking a fruity twist on a classic fair snack.
Ellsworth Creamery white cheddar cheese curds form the premium base for this sweet and tangy creation (wistatefair). It transforms a traditional fair staple into an unexpected dessert-oriented delight.
Strengths: Uses premium cheese curds, unique flavor combination | Limitations: Might not appeal to those preferring savory curds | Price: Not specified
5. Beer Ice Cream Cone from Bud Pavilion
Best for: Adventurous palates exploring unique dessert and beverage fusions.
Crafted with New Glarus Raspberry Tart, this beer ice cream cone offers unusual depth and maltiness. A critic found it tasted distinctly like the beer—not overly sweet, with a boozy hint and a pleasant tang (Milwaukee Magazine). It stands as a surprisingly sophisticated dessert option.
Strengths: Distinctive flavor, unique alcoholic dessert | Limitations: Specific ingredients not fully detailed | Price: Not specified
6. Caramel Apple Cheese Curd Tacos
Best for: Innovators seeking playful and surprising flavor combinations.
Sliced Granny Smith apples meet fried white cheddar cheese curds, all crowned with caramel sauce and crushed graham crackers (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). This new item ingeniously blends sweet and savory in a novel presentation.
Strengths: Creative dessert, appealing texture contrast | Limitations: Might be overly sweet for some | Price: Not specified
7. Potato Chip Sundae
Best for: Those who enjoy a mix of sweet and salty textures in a dessert.
This new dessert layers salted caramel ice cream, deep-fried cookie dough, salted caramel sauce, and ruffled potato chips (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). It’s a bold blend of classic and unexpected ingredients.
Strengths: Novel combination of sweet and salty, new menu item | Limitations: Richness might be intense for some | Price: Not specified
8. The Original Cream Puff
Best for: Traditionalists and those seeking a signature fair experience.
The Original Cream Puff endures as a fair signature, a beloved classic. Its unwavering popularity cements it as an essential experience for fairgoers (WISN).
Strengths: Long-standing tradition, widely recognized | Limitations: Not an innovative new item | Price: Not specified
Even outside the top two spots, the fair showcased a rich tapestry of inventive dishes and drinks, proving that culinary creativity is widespread and extends beyond official award winners.
A Closer Look at the Top Food and Drink Innovations
| Item | Award | Key Ingredients/Description | Flavor Profile | Notable Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birria Flamin' Bombs | 1st Sporkies Place | Bratwurst-stuffed pretzel cone, birria, rice, mozzarella; 'filled primarily with rice, onion, a bit of birria, and melted mozzarella cheese' | Savory, spicy, fusion | Combines traditional bratwurst with global birria flavors; discrepancy noted in birria proportion by Onmilwaukee compared to initial description. |
| Cream City Cone | 2nd Sporkies Place | Not fully detailed in available facts | Savory | Official second-place winner, showing strong overall appeal. |
| Al Pastor Pizza | 3rd Sporkies Place | Not fully detailed in available facts | Sweet and savory balance | Impressed critics with its balanced taste, according to Tech Times. |
| Tilt-a-Spritz | 1st Drinkies Place | Nonalcoholic mocktail, smoky citrus sipper | Refreshing, sophisticated, non-alcoholic | Highlighted as a 'genuine high point' by critics; top non-alcoholic beverage award winner. |
How the Champions Were Chosen
The Golden Spork for Birria Flamin' Bombs stemmed from a rigorous judging process for new food items, recognizing peak innovation and flavor (Tech Times). Drinkies awards followed a similar competitive structure.
Yet, critical reception also shaped the narrative. Al Pastor Pizza, a third-place Sporkies finisher, captivated critics with its sweet and savory balance (Tech Times). The interplay between formal judging and independent reviews clearly defines the fair's culinary champions, suggesting a multi-faceted evaluation blending popular appeal with innovation.
The Evolving Palate of the State Fair
The triumph of globally-inspired dishes like Birria Flamin' Bombs and Al Pastor Pizza sends a clear message: vendors clinging to purely traditional fried fare risk obsolescence. The shift demands more diverse, sophisticated flavors embracing international influences. Similarly, the Tilt-a-Spritz's 1st Place Drinkies win shows sophisticated mocktails are now mainstream, compelling beverage vendors to innovate beyond sugary drinks or beer (wistatefair). The fair's palate has broadened, showing consumer trends towards varied, inclusive choices.
The 2026 awards indicate the fair's future likely lies in complex, fusion concepts, where vendors like Fiesta Grill & Cantina will continue to push culinary boundaries, challenging traditional fair food definitions by 2027.
