Where are the church ham biscuits? How safety concerns stopped a fair staple this year
Hungry patrons will find a lot of great things to eat at this year’s NC State Fair, but one thing they won’t find is the iconic Cary Methodist Church ham biscuit.
The church booth, a partnership of First United Methodist Church of Cary and White Plains United Methodist Church, is not open to serve food this year.
Instead, the space is being used to administer free COVID-19 vaccines by the North Carolina Department of Health & Human Services, the Wake County Health Department and FEMA.
But the booth isn’t closed because of the vaccines. The decision not to open — a joint decision made by both churches — came down to keeping the church volunteers who staff the booth safe.
Rob Phillips, the pastor of invitation and engagement at White Plains United Methodist Church, told The News & Observer that after they learned that the fair would not require proof of vaccination or masks, “a lot of our volunteers at both churches were very nervous about it.”
‘’We will miss it’
Phillips said they talked about moving to a take-out only model to keep the biscuits going, but in the end, the safety concerns outweighed any benefit.
“We will miss it,” Phillips said, “but in the end we thought it was the best decision to make to do no harm for our volunteers.”
The booth is one in a line of several connected buildings on the fairgrounds that offer indoor service and seating.
With the biscuit-making operation on hold, church representatives presented the idea of a vaccination clinic to fair officials instead, and it was eventually agreed that the space could be used for that purpose.
The church cleaned out the booth and gave it a fresh coat of paint, and it’s now all set for its new role.
The church booth does plan to come back next year, Phillips said.
“The fair agreed to refund our deposit and hold our space for next year,” he said. “So we can continue offering the ham biscuits that you love so much next year.”
A long tradition at the fair
The First United Methodist Church of Cary started serving food at the NC State Fair in 1916, making it the oldest vendor at the fair.
A report published in The News & Observer in 2015, when the church was about to start its 100th year at the fair, notes that church historian Bob Warner believes ham biscuits first appeared on the menu in the 1950s, when the minister’s wife said she knew of someone who could provide some good country hams.
God bless that woman.
It takes about 100 volunteers each day to cook and serve food, man cash registers and clean up at the end of the night.
The booth usually serves a full sit-down breakfast menu each morning of the fair (except on Sundays) and then a lunch and dinner menu until closing. But the ham biscuits — available all day long — are the stars of the show.
Last fall, when the fair closed because of the pandemic, the church offered virtual biscuit-making lessons online for those who couldn’t bear to go another year without the fluffy goodness.
Proceeds from the booth each year go to support the local and global ministries of each church.
“We were very sad to miss it last year,” Phillips said. “It supports our ministries, but it was also a huge fellowship opportunity — a chance to shake hands and meet people, and we have very much missed that.”
Other vendors skipping the fair this year
State Fair officials say that more than 50 vendors withdrew from the fair this year, but that they have added new vendors to fill the spots, including 40 new food vendors.
Among other well-known vendors not at the fair this year: Anderson & Daughters, Raleigh Jaycees Turkey Shoot and La Farm Bakery.
Oak City Fish and Chips, Ezzelle’s and Emma’s Cookie Kitchen are among the new vendors this year.
“For the fairgoer, there are not holes on the grounds, it is a full fair,” said Andrea Ashby, public affairs director for the NC Department of Agriculture.
