Tulip Festival Food

Now I know many of you think this annual festival is about flowers and parades, but I believe there is a small (but active) contingent that would contest it's as much about the food as anything else.  Here's a little guide of what we experienced this year with a rating from 1-5:

1=Not a good idea. Not now, not ever.
2=I'd rather eat at Hardee's.
3=Curbs the hunger but nothing to blog about (as if any of it is blog-worthy)
4=Better than your average bear
5=Amazingness on a stick

• Corn Dog from stand by Dove Book Store= 3 (Courtney) The breading was a little bland.
• Hawaiian Shaved Ice from stand by Bomgaars = 4 (Courtney) I got red raspberry and grape, and it had the perfect amount of flavoring poured on. Hit the spot on a hot day.
• Buffalo Chicken Wrap from stand by Bomgaars = 4 (Adam) Good, but there is no amazing secret sauce at work here--he saw the bottle both in this booth and in our local Fareway. 
• Foot-long Hot Dog from stand by Dove Book Store = 5 (Ryan) He.ate.the.whole.thing.
• Brat, Chips, Pop from Woudstra = 5 (Adam) Brats are good and to get this meal for $5 is a great price considering the alternatives
• Brat, Chips, Water from Woudstra = 2 (Ryan) He refused to eat the brat, even though he usually likes them, ate half the bag of chips, and backwashed most of the chips into the water bottle that I had been sharing with him.
• Chicken Strips from stand by Bomgaars= 2 (Courtney) Nothing special here-a little overdone, salty, and I regretted eating them.
• Funnel Cake from silver Streamline trailer= 5 (Courtney, Adam, Ryan) Perfect, as usual!
• Strawberry Smoothie = 2 (Adam) They need to take some lessons from the concession stands at the old Vet's Memorial Stadium.
• Fruit Snacks from Mom's purse = 5 (Ryan) This was a vital strategy in the "waiting for the parade to start" battle and paid off every time.
• Water/Ice in sippy cup from home= 5 (Ryan, Mom) Also an essential that was worth the weight of carrying it in my purse. Ryan polished it off every outing and it saved us buying bottles of water downtown. Also, after sitting through a parade and half the night show, I may or may not have been desperate enough to open it up and take a sip at around 10pm on Friday night.
• Sprite and Coca-Cola purchased during intermission of Night Show = 5 (Adam, Courtney)  We were dieing of thirst (see previous rated item) and these were super-cold, albeit illegal to have in the gym, but we were sneaky. To be honest, if these weren't available, we might have skipped finding out what happened to Eliza Doolittle.

So, there you have it! My one regret was not having a traditional pig-in-the-blanket but I have a feeling we'll have ample opportunity over the years.