The 49th annual Monmouth County Fair is under way in Freehold Township, and there is plenty of fun to be had before its end on Sunday, July 28.
There are rides, games, 4-H shows, exhibits, live entertainment and food — lots of food.
Festivalgoers can enter a pie-eating contest featuring Wemrock Orchards’ pies, or choose from more than two dozen food trucks and vendors serving everything from lobster rolls to empanadas.
Here are five trucks to visit.
Highway 2 Ohana
Earlier this summer, Asbury Park Press readers named Highway 2 Ohana, the food truck from Ohana Grill in Lavallette, as one of the Shore’s top trucks.
The truck is known for serving warm lobster rolls topped with butter, lobster nachos, short rib tacos, blackened shrimp tacos, crab cake sliders and coconut shrimp.
More: Corn-flavored ice cream with pork roll, blueberries back at LBI ice cream shop
Latin Bites
Empanadas might be the perfect fair food — you can eat while you walk! — and the Latin Bites truck makes a great one. They fill them with chicken, beef, ropa vieja, cheese, lobster, vegetables, and guava and cheese.
They also serve Cuban and Puerto Rican dishes including papa rellena, arroz con grandules, tostones, chicharron and more.
More: House of Fries has the Shore’s favorite French fries, readers say
Sweet Pepper
Venezuelan flavors are what you’ll find at Sweet Pepper, which serves arepas stuffed with cheese, chicken, pork and beef; empanadas filled with cheese, beans and plantains, beef, chicken, shrimp and lobster; quesadillas; and patacones, which are green plantain chips topped with meats, cheese and garlic cilantro mayo.
More: Readers say these are the best fries at the Shore
Vampire Penguin
For a sweet treat, track down Vampire Penguin, a shaved snow truck with a brick and mortar location in Freehold Borough.
Their refreshing, layered desserts come in flavors like Mexican candy, made from mango shaved ice topped with caramel, chamoy, Tajin and mango boba; cotton candy, with cotton candy shaved ice with sprinkles, cotton candy cereal and whipped cream; and cookies and cream shaved ice topped with condensed milk, Oreos, chocolate sauce and whipped cream.
Silver City Mugs
Stop by this firefighter-themed truck for cane sugar-sweetened soda on tap in flavors like root beer and black cherry.
The soda is served in stainless steel cups, which you can refill during the fair and at future events for a discounted price. A portion of the proceeds are donated to fire, police and EMS departments across the country.
Go: The fair runs from 4 to 11 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday; East Freehold Showgrounds, Kozloski Road, Freehold; 732-842-4000, MonmouthCountyFair.com.
Sarah Griesemer joined the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey in 2003 and has been writing all things food since 2014. Send restaurant tips to [email protected], follow on Instagram at Jersey Shore Eats and subscribe to our Jersey Shore Eats newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Monmouth County Fair: 5 foods to try, Freehold Township
