Get a taste of Iowa State Fair food favorites through this new cocktail menu
Josh McAlexander loves to try different foods at the Iowa State Fair ― fried pickles with a cold beer, a grinder, lemonade shakeups, a bucket of cookies, walking tacos. This year, he’s trying his hand at reinventing some fair favorites as cocktails for a limited run at Good News, Darling, the cocktail lounge behind Hello, Marjorie in downtown Des Moines.
Throughout the month, the speakeasy showcases 11 flavors from the State Fair, reimagined and served in cocktail form.
“The original idea was kind of based on a full day at the Iowa State Fair,” said McAlexander, the general manager at Good News, Darling. That means taking in a full roster of food and drink from first corn dog to final ice cold beer.
McAlexander also spends his time culling through cookbooks to come up with the recipes for his cocktail concoctions. As a nod to that, the cocktail list for State Fair drinks is built out like a church cookbook, with recipes complete with ingredients, measurements and directions included with each cocktail.
“They’re all culinary focused,” McAlexander said of the cocktails. “We’re trying to make things taste like food.”
He thinks about which flavors he wants a customer to taste and then figures out how to present them, whether as a candy, infusion or accoutrement in the drink.
What are some of the Iowa State Fair cocktails?
The Lemonade on a Stick combines an Earl Grey tea-infused vodka with turbinado lemonade that uses raw cane sugar and freshly squeezed lemonade. The drink is then garnished with a strawberry popsicle. Let the ice melt to get a different taste with the cocktail as the flavors blend together.
The Street Corn uses a cotija cheese washed gin mixed with lacto fermented blueberry. A baby corn stalk adorns the surprisingly tart drink.
A Fried Negroni uses a Negroni-flavored ice cream bedazzled with Fruity Peppers that is then squiggled with a Campari reduction for flair. It comes on a plate with a spoon. Save this for a dessert for your night out.
Other options on the menu include a Blue Ribbon Pie with a strawberry and rhubarb-infused sparkling wine with a strawberry compote and pie crust; a Jalapeno Popper that uses a jalapeno-infused mezcal with a smear of cheesecake, some Key lime oleo saccharum and a pinch of tajin; and a Cookie Bucket with a cookie and milk wash mixed with a combination of toffee, crème de cacao, Cookie Crisp cereal, red wine vinegar, condensed milk, black tea, Licor 43, cherry juice and milk caramel meringue.
The butter cow, fried pickles, Korean barbecue, and corn dogs also have representation on the menu.
Surprisingly, owner Nick Tillinghast said that business during the fair improved after the organizers canceled the event in 2020 due to the pandemic. “I think people are using it as a way to see other things in Des Moines as well,” he said.
Tillinghast said that he created Good News, Darling just for McAlexander in 2021 when it opened. “He was starting to get into the weird, very technical stuff and it’s just not as approachable out there,” he said, referring to Hello, Marjorie, where the cocktails are still well-composed but customer lean more into vodka drinks or Old Fashioneds.
Diners can get these Iowa State Fair-inspired cocktails all August. Reservations are suggested.
Where to find Good News, Darling
Location: 717 Locust St., Des Moines
Contact: 515-369-2296 or facebook.com/profile.php?id=100066983130288
Reservations: exploretock.com/good-news-darling
Hours: Open Wednesday through Saturday from 6 p.m. to midnight.
Susan Stapleton is the entertainment editor and dining reporter at The Des Moines Register. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, or drop her a line at sstapleton@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Good News, Darling has Iowa State Fair food-inspired cocktails
