BRIDGEWATER - If you ask most kids why they like coming to the annual Somerset County 4-H Fair, they will probably say they like to see the animals and have the opportunity to pet a cow.
But if you ask most adults why they enjoycoming to the fair, which has celebrated Somerset County's rural roots for seven decades, they will have one reason — the food.
At lunch and dinnerat the fair at North Branch Park on Milltown Road, the food tent is packed with people who are looking for some of thebest homemade food in Somerset County. It's simple and delicious that satisfies both the stomach and the soul.
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But one of the favorite foods at the fair for decades is not in the food tent. As soon as you enter the fairgrounds and pass the main 4-H tent, you will find the cotton candy.
"You should see the look on the kids' faces," said Theresa Prenenski of Bridgewater, who added in a whisper, "you see the lookson the adults' faces, too."
Theresa and her sister, Ginger McGrath, also of Bridgewater, have been in chargeof the cottoncandy at the fair for decades. They started as 4-H club volunteers and since they were coming to fair, they decided to work at the cotton candy booth, which supports the county 4-H program.
"It's a fun place to be," Prenenski said. "Sometimes, at night, the line stretches all the way back to the 4-H tent."
More than 80,000 cotton candies have been sold, and though Prenenski likes the money raised for the 4-H, she likes the simple joy it gives to people.
"Everybody smiles," said Prenenski, who likewise has a smile for everyone who stops.
But simple joys are no longer so simple these days, so there is a sign that debunks the myth that cotton candy is not just sugar spun into a cotton cloud. In fact, one cotton candy, according to the sign, has less sugar than a can of regular soda.
The food tent is a comfort food mall, offering, a wider — and safer — range of food than a Jersey shore boardwalk. From hot dogs and hamburgers to kielbasa and corn, the food is uniformly delicious. To pick a favorite is like asking a parent to pick a favorite child.
The food choices have changed as Somerset County has changed. When the fair started,you couldn't find lo mein at the fair, but it's at the Chinese Culture Club stand that also sells bubble tea.
The Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Somerset Hills, which has been serving food at the fairfor more than a decade, offers healthy options such as hummus and a small bowl of gazpacho, the perfect summer food,with pita and slices of juicy cucumber.
Darcy Schult said the congregation started at the fair with "random salads" but narrowed its choices.
She should know what works. She's worked at the fair for six years, making her a seasoned veteran at age 15.
For many organizations and churches, the 4-H Fair is an important source of revenue. The modest Neshanic United Methodist Church, tucked in the Neshanic Station sectionof Branchburg, has been servingpulled pork sandwiches at the fair for more than a decade.
The Rev. Chris Stanley,who began as pastor six weeks ago along with the Rev. J.T. Young, said the sale is one of the church's biggest fundraisers, along with the annual turkey dinner on Election Day.
For 12-year-old Deanna Morgan-Killea, helping out at the church's food booth is an opportunity to come back from North Carolina to visit relatives.
"I like it," she said. "It's fun. It's really good."
For Middle Earth, the youth organization based in Somerville, the 4-H Fair is the organization's third-largest fundraiser of the year, according to Jolee Roberts, Middle Earth finance manager, who was minding the cash drawer Wednesday.
About 30 teens work at the booth throughout the fair's three days, with six or seven working a four-hour shift. It's a chance for the teens to work together as a team andto know everybody better, she said
Roberts said the most popular item at the booth may be New Jersey's unofficial state food — a pork roll, egg and cheese sandwich. It may not be as healthy as the gazpacho, but it soothes the Jersey soul.
The fair runs from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday and Friday at North Branch Park on Milltown Road. Unlike many county fairs in New Jersey, admission is free. Park is free at the fairgrounds or Raritan Valley Community College on Route 28 in Branchburg.
For more information, visitwww.somersetcounty4h.org.
Staff Writer Mike Deak: 908-243-6607; mdeak@mycentraljersey.com
