Fair Enough
I hate to bust anyone's bubble, but your county fair is not the only place where steak tips are served.
If you go to just one county fair a year, you might think that steak tips are a rare find. But anyone who goes to multiple county fairs can tell you that they are almost everywhere. This year, I saw that food stand at fairs in Goshen, South Bend, LaPorte, Berrien Springs and Allegan. Steak tips were also among the food offerings at Lake, Porter and Starke county fairs, as well as the Indiana State Fair.
Yes, steak tips can be found at a fair near you.
You can thank Joe Colglazier for that.
He and his family are responsible for the food's popularity among fairgoers. Joe and his three sons are part owners of one business, which is based in North Liberty. Fairgoers may recognize the name Pickle Barrel Sirloin Tips. That's Joe and his sons. They also travel to state fairs in New York and Minnesota.
Joe's sister and brother-in-law operate Nedderman's Steak Place, a drive-through restaurant in Mishawaka. They sell their brand of steak tips at fairs in Elkhart and St. Joe (Ind.) counties.
Joe's father, who is 84 and mostly retired, and his brother, Jason, also sell the meat-and-potatoes dish at Berrien, Van Buren and Cass (Mich.) county fairs.
Joe's grandparents started selling fair food, namely elephant ears, in the 1960s. They added sirloin tips in the early 2000s. Since then, the business has taken off. Over the years, the family has won numerous awards for best fair food. The most recent win was at this year's Porter County Fair, where Pickle Barrel Sirloin Tips was chosen as the "Best of Fair Food."
Extremely popular with fairgoers, steak tips come from the bottom, or ball, of the sirloin cut. The tips are charbroiled to medium rare, then finished off in a cast iron skillet. Spices and butter are added and served over a bed of buttery mashed potatoes. For a couple extra dollars, you can get onions and mushrooms on the side.
So, there you have it. Steak tips, which are an excellent alternative to conventional fried fair food, can be found at almost any county fair in Michiana. Contrary to myth, there is no shortage. You just have to wait until the 2024 fair season.