D&T's cowboy fries with jalapeno slaw named best fair food

Visitors flock to the Northwest Montana Fair for many reasons.

Teens race to the carnival rides, eagerly exchanging a ticket for a thrilling turn on some kind of spinning or swinging contraption.

Others come for the exhibits, meandering down the rows to take a gander at the Flathead’s top livestock, baked goods and crafts.

And then there are those who come to eat.

Along the food court, aromas waft out of the individual stalls, competing for the attention of the hungry patron. There are burgers and chicken and fried, well pretty much everything. There’s Asian cuisine, snow-cones and corn on the cob.

Of the fair’s 24 food vendors, three emerged as the cream of the crop during Wednesday afternoon’s Best Food at the Fair Awards.

“I just want to thank all of our food vendors here who have done an incredible job feeding literally thousands — almost 80,000 people this week — a really high quality product,” said Mark Campbell, fair manager.

Each year, food vendors are judged on a different category — last year it was “Sweet Treats” and this year, vendors put up their best “Fair Food.”

Glacier Shave Ice took home third place with its huckleberry cream shaved ice, which judge Deborah Misik, chef instructor at Flathead Valley Community College, said was both beautiful and portable. In second place were the Flathead Marines with their chicken dinner.

The blue ribbon and top prize was awarded to D&T BBQ for its mouth-watering Cowboy Fries with Jalapeño Slaw.

“What we really liked about this is it was flavorful, it was fresh, it was beautiful,” Misik said. “We ate every last bit of it, so that’s how we knew it was our winner.”

D&T BBQ is a family-owned mobile catering business based in Bigfork. Owner Dave Wickwire said he was delighted to receive first place, especially after coming in second in last year’s contest.

“I know my food’s good, so I strive to be the best at everything,” he said. “I think you should have a mentality of only serving the best — the best quality food that you can.”

Wickwire has been in business for eight years and founded D&T after transitioning out of the construction field, which kept him away from home for four to six months at a time.

“Barbecue’s always been my thing,” Wickwire said.

At his shop near the grandstand, Wickwire serves up pulled pork sandwiches, tri-tip, hot dogs and of course, the award-winning cowboy fries.

“I love spice. The base of them is french fries and we put shredded cheese over the top so it melts,” he explained. “Then we put pulled pork over the top with barbecue sauce and then for an added kick, I like the slaw.”

When they’re not serving up barbecue at the fair, Wickwire travels to events throughout the Flathead and has upcoming appearances at Thursday!Fest and the Flathead Celtic Fest in Kalispell, along with the Montana Dragon Boat Festival in Bigfork. For the most up-to-date information on the mobile eatery, Wickwire recommends following the company on Facebook or calling 406-837-3442 for more information.

Reporter Mackenzie Reiss can be reached at (406) 758-4433 or mreiss@dailyinterlake.com.