DAVENPORT, Iowa — Deep-fried food is never in short supply at the fair.
A Mercer County business is adding something different to the menu, and people have noticed.
The Mississippi Valley Fair brings out all sorts of people. It also brings out all kinds of vendors.
"It's been a little hectic and chaotic," Walter Smoke Shack volunteer Ian Kennedy said. "The first couple days were slow, but they pick up every day."
Every day at the fair is a big opportunity for this small business from Seaton, Illinois, which is south of Aledo. It's selling everything from ribs and pulled port to pork belly cinnamon rolls.
"This is only our fourth food show event, first time ever at a fair," Kennedy said.
The first fair also meant a quick turnaround after getting this opportunity in mid-June.
"We built this shack in that amount of time and had a trailer built," Kennedy said.
"I actually took a month off of work to make that happen," owner Rob Walter said. "I've been smoking food for about 15 years. It was a hobby that turned into an opportunity, I guess."
Walter said sales on Thursday jumped about 50 percent from earlier in the week, right before a busy weekend ahead.
"I don't think we'll have enough," Walter said of his food supply and the expected rush.
That's a good problem to have, especially when his group had an initial visibility concern with the stand's location.
"The other day some firefighters were looking for us to try some of our cinnamon rolls and they drove by three or four times before they finally seen us," Kennedy said.
Even so, the challenge is worth it for these first-time fair sellers.
The group said the busiest times are immediately before and after the concerts each night. Typically, staff will be at the stand until about midnight each day of the fair.