Come get some bacon

“To say we’ve had a few requests for bacon balls and lemonade creamsicles is an understatement,” Magg said.“We knew we needed to make them available to the public. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out for the Bacon Box to be part of the Iowa State Fair’s Taste of the Fair weekends so we came up with a plan B to help people get their Bacon Box fix.”

Available for pre-order or walk-up, the stand will be churning out Bacon Balls until they are gone. Don’t be caught waiting too long because the treats are first come, first serve and are set to go fast.

“We’re strongly encouraging everyone to pre-order their items online (www.eatbaconbox.com) before the end of the week so that we can make sure we have enough supplies on hand,” Magg said. “We’ll make sure we get all of the pre-orders filled, but as far as for walk-up orders it will be first-come, first-serve and we might not have enough depending on demand.”

While the name, Bacon Ball, gives a brief idea of what is store when taking the first bite, there is so much more to the “food on a stick” than meets the eye. Bacon Balls are a bacon meatball stuffed with a homemade bacon cheese, wrapped with two pieces of bacon and rotisserie smoked. Each one is equal to nine pieces of bacon.

“We’re giving the option of the bacon balls being hot and ready to eat or smoked, but cold to heat and eat later,” Magg said. “They freeze extremely well, also.”

Not to be overshadowed, Walt’s Lemonade Creamsicles will also be available in a variety of sizes. From the popular 20 oz. cups to quarts or frozen half-gallon or gallon jugs, there are options to get the cool treat for now and later.

While everyone involved with the Bacon Box was disappointed the fair wasn’t a go for this year, it also relieved a lot of stress and worry that was building up due to COVID-19 concerns. Many variables can be factored in but the challenge of including a worldwide pandemic was a lot to plate.

“There were going to be so many unknowns, that while I’m sure we would have risen to the challenge, it would have been even more stressful and had a bigger risk than starting from scratch last year,” Magg said. “While logistics, inventory, etc are quick to come to mind, the health risk for those helping and keeping informed and educated on how best to protect them was the primary thing that had been weighing on me as we anxiously waited for the fair to make the announcement.

“One of the biggest reasons the Bacon Box was a success last year was because of all the family and friends that came together to help us pull off the giant commitment we had made. The thought of even asking them to be part of something with such tight working spaces and high volume made me uncomfortable even thinking about it. At least at Goldie’s we’ve been able to implement different procedures and practices to mitigate the risk as much as possible. With a portable concession trailer that is not as realistic.”

Given the success of its inaugural run, Magg is confident the Bacon Box will be back at the next fair, primed and ready to go. While he doesn’t own the stand and was recruited to re-brand, create, and manage the stand with Iannerelli, both the fair and the owners were very happy with last year’s results.

“They’ve also been generous enough to let us have fun with it on our own outside of the fair, hence one of the reasons we’re able to do the popup event this weekend,” Magg said. “We wanted to make sure we gave the loyal customers that supported the Bacon Box a chance to enjoy their favorite items. I know I’m missing a few of my favorites from other stands, and we didn’t want to leave those with Bacon Box cravings going without until next year.”

For more information about the Bacon Box visit eatbaconbox.com.

Contact Jamee A. Pierson at 641-792-3121 ext. 6534 or jpierson