My wife and I went to the fair this past month and it was a lot of fun. We arrived about 30 minutes prior to open and were able to find parking right across the street for $10.00. By the time we arrived at the front gates there was a decent sized crowd of around 20 people with 20 minutes till open. When the gates opened we quickly went to an open counter and exchanged a Fry's receipt voucher for two tickets.
Being a Friday we were able to utilize the many $2.00 food deals being promoted. It mostly consisted of light bites but we were pleasantly surprised by some of the portions we recieved. I will note though that some of waits were incredibly long for simple things like French fries. At one point we had to point out at Pigly's that they had completely skipped our order. Some of the items we sampled were bacon wrapped pork belly, a cup of corn, deep fried cheese cake and pumpkin pie, and a few antijitos.
Beyond the food, the entertainment was great. Everything from the Native American dancing to the pig races were a ton of fun. We even caught the bull riding, which was extremely exciting to witness. We also made a point to see all the wildlife on display inside the large buildings. That was probably the cutest experience of my life.
In total, the fair was just as good as its always been, and with my wife's smart planning it didn't break the bank. I'd definitely suggest setting a day aside and getting their early, as parking prices double after 5pm and the place gets crazy crowded around then.