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Variety of food brings crowds to the Lycoming County fair

For some, a night at the Lycoming County Fair is spent riding the Ferris wheel to see the highest view of the grounds. For others, it is spent listening to the live music of Big Tiny Young.

No matter the choice of entertainment, it’s the fair foods that call just about everybody to the many vendors lining the midway.

The menu includes tacos, shaved iced, hot sausage, jumbo waffles filled with ice cream, gyros, calzones, fresh squeezed lemonade, homemade doughnuts, funnel cakes, BBQ, kettle corn, and fried Oreos, just to name a few.

“Our vendors, there’s traditions there,” said James “Rocky” Reed, president of the fair. “Some people have been here for 40 years. We want to not only retain all of those vendors, but also get new vendors each year.”

Reed, a visitor of the fair since he was a child, would tell anyone that his go-to meal at the fair is a hot sausage with homemade ice cream for dessert.

Hewlett’s Hot Sausage has been serving their infamous sandwiches for the past 65 years, according to Diane Hewlett Snyder, owner. Marlene Hewlett, mother of Snyder and original owner, started the company with her husband that continues to live on in the fair’s 174th year.

At their stand, the Hewlett’s serve hot sausage, cheesesteaks, hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries and cold beverages, according to Snyder.

Dixie McCoy, 23, has been a frequent visitor of the fair since she was 10 years old. On a day when she is not helping to perfect the fair, McCoy is beating the heat with ice cream from Glenda and Scott’s Homemade Ice Cream.

“The ice cream is really good, but the cool part is that they make it with a hit-and-miss train engine right in front of the customers,” said McCoy. “It makes for a really fun experience.”

Aaron Raemore, 20, visited the fair for a night with friends. Happy Family BBQ, owned by Don Huffman, delivered just the right dinner for Raemore that night.

“I got a sandwich that was a cheeseburger with chicken, pork, coleslaw, and BBQ sauce on it,” said Raemore. “It was heavenly.”

For those looking for a food from the opposite side of the world, John Koutoufaris has been serving his gyros at the county fair for the past 40 years at John the Greek with his wife nearby making Greek calzones and “wedgies.”

“I make a living and I get to see the beautiful people wherever I go. Plus the customers,” joked Koutoufaris. “The beautiful people are the office people who put on this event.”

A gyro, according to Koutoufaris, is “beef and lamb mixed together that goes into a fresh pizza bread with lettuce, tomato, onions and our signature Greek sauce.”

“Every year, the customers come back,” said Koutoufaris. “If you come back later tonight, you’ll see the lines.”

Down the path a short way, husband and wife Bill and Sarah Lamey serve up their “Pennsylvania style tacos” in Taco Bill’s Taco Madness food truck, or as they call it “the big, green machine.”

“It’s our home fair,” said Sarah. “Bill is everybody’s friend and makes a lot of vendor friends while he is here, too. It’s our third year and we already get regulars.”

Those in need for a refreshing beverage, Ken Aten, of Best Iced Tea Anywhere Period, is ready for business. Specializing in sweet tea, Aten’s parents began the stand originally and has been running for the past 25 years, according to Aten.

“We have our own little corner here, it is a lot of fun,” said Aten. “We have always been here with 4-H and if we don’t come back they hunt us down. Everywhere we have regulars.. We are known all around.”

The county fair opens at 10 a.m. Food vendors are open and ready for business starting at noon.

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