23.5 new foods I can’t wait to eat at The Big E in 2025

Brace yourselves (and your belts). The Big E 2025 is almost upon us.

Behind the steel gates of high-calorie Morder lie a vast army of deep-fried monstrosities and pickles incorporated in places they don’t belong.

A day may come when the courage of diet-breakers fail, when they forsake their fried Oreos and break all bonds of cream puffs.

But it is not this month. This is September, and the fairgrounds of West Springfield will become a battlefield where only the bravest (and foolish) among us will confront the mightiest and craziest foods The Big E can offer.

Why do we do this? Because it’s awesome and we get to tell stories about the wild things we ate.

With just one day until The Big E opens, here are the 23 foods I’m most excited to eat at the fair this year (plus one extra food that’s only there for three days, so I’m only counting it as one-half of a food).

1) Dubai Chocolate Imperial Stout | Valley Malt Beer Garden | Behind the Massachusetts Building

It feels a little bit like cheating to list a beverage first on this list. However, there’s a rim of kataifi (the shredded phyllo dough used in Dubai chocolate) on the cup, so I’m going to count it.

This year, Valley Malt partnered with Murder Hill Brewery in Whitinsville to create a beer based on the trendy (and pricey) Dubai chocolate trend. I have no idea how good it is, but I can’t wait to find out.

2) All-American Wagyu “Sloppy Joe” | From All American Beer Pub (On Springfield Road)

Now this is peak Big E. Wagyu has a reputation as some of the highest-quality, most-expensive beef in the world.

What’s the least efficient way to utilize it? Probably a Sloppy Joe.

I can’t wait to see what this looks like and see if the Wagyu actually makes a difference (depending on how much is in there).

3) Sloppy Dough | Anna’s Fried Dough | East Road

Apparently, we’re all-in on Sloppy Joe’s in 2025. This version is served on a slab of fried dough.

It’s similar in concept to the DoughCo, which is a wonderfully fluffy and chewy fried dough topped with taco ingredients.

4) Crunchy Dill Slider | Macken’s Specialty Sliders | Outside the Massachusetts Building

Sure, most burgers have pickles on them. However, few have more pickles than this one.

This is a burger with garlic mayo, crispy dill pickles, cheddar cheese and topped with dill-flavored potato chips.

Why yes, I will take all the crunch and pickle you have.

5) Cake Buckets | LuAnn’s Cupcakes | In The Front Porch

From what I can see on the LuAnn’s Facebook page, these are little buckets filled with cake and frosting. They’re available in “Birthday Funfetti” and “Dirt n Worms” versions.

6) Pickle Sundae | From Amy’s Sweet Treats | On Commonwealth Ave.

If you thought we were getting to the end of the road with weird pickle foods, you’re sorely mistaken. Amy’s has both a Pickle Sundae and a Pickle Milkshake.

My stomach is going to be sent to another dimension when I comsume this.

7) Whiskey Bread Pudding | From Steaming Tender | On the Craft Common

This one isn’t crazy. It’s just a simple, excellently crafted bread pudding from a longtime Western Mass. restaurant.

The portions you’ll get at the fair are bigger than what is in the photo above. Unfortunately, I don’t believe they serve it by the gallon, which would be my preferred format.

8) Shrek’s Swamp Water | From W.A.V.E Mocktail Cart | In The Front Porch

I was going to get this based on the name alone. But the drink sounds pretty nice. It features pineapple, sour mix, Blue Curaçao and lemon-lime soda and is topped with a gummy frog.

9) Lobster Volcano | From International Lobster House (On West Road)

Is this just lobster bisque in a bread bowl with more lobster thrown on top? Maybe, but I need to investigate to make sure — for science.

10) Dr. Pepper Pickle Juice | From Big Kahuna’s (On West Road)

I have no idea what this is going to taste like. I have no idea why someone thought this was a good idea. But I will not stop until I have tasted the pickled pepper pop.

11) Homemade Cake Shakes | Cindy’s Drive-In | In the Massachusetts Building

Cindy’s Drive-In is making its debut at The Big E this year in the Massachusetts building and has some fun additions to the fair’s ice cream line up.

The cake shakes all include a full slice of cake, half of which is mixed into the cake and the other half on top of the cup.

12) Candy Bar Pizza | From Top The Crust (In the Food Court)

I’m just going to list the ingredients for this: It’s a chocolate cookie crust with vanilla cream frosting topped with “crushed Snickers, Heath Bar, Butterfingers, Reese’s peanut butter cups and M&M’s finished with caramel and chocolate.”

It’s like someone dumped a bag of Halloween candy onto a Crumbl cookie. Amazing work here.

13) MooNugs | From Moolicious | On Springfield Road and West Road

MooNugs are little hunks of ice cream designed to look like chicken nuggets.

The format is ingenious. It’s a block of maple/bacon covered in white chocolate and then rolled in frosted corn flakes. It then gets served with your choice of dipping sauce: chocolate, caramel, maple or marshmallow.

14) Two-Foot Giant Chili Cheese Dog | From White Hut (In the Food Court)

A big hot dog from a Western Mass. institution? Sign me up.

15) Hotdog Flatliner | From West Springfield Lions Club (On West Road)

The West Springfield Lions Club already has the Flatliner Burger. This spin off features a quarter-pound hot dog topped with chili, bacon, cheddar cheese and fries.

16) Strawberry Dubai Cup | From Crave Café | In The Young Building

Want another Dubai chocolate treat? This is a bit like a parfait featuring pistachio cream, chocolate sauce and strawberries.

17) Pickle-Flavored Popcorn | From Red’s Red Apples | On Commonwealth Ave. & New England Ave.

Yup, it’s more pickle stuff. I feel legally obligated to try it.

18) Monster Mozzarella | From Hot Wisconsin Cheese | On Springfield Road

“Giant block of fried cheese on a stick” is one of the best breakout trends in recent years. I’m curious how this matches up to the giant mozzarella stick at Angela’s Pizza.

19) Lobster Nachos | From New England Craft Beer Pub | On the Avenue of States

I got a sneak preview of these and can confirm that they’re legitimately delicious. It’s a batch of fried kettle chips topped with cheese sauce and big hunks of lobster.

The cheese sauce is killer. But the lobster really turns it into something spectacular.

20) Deep Fried Chile Relleño | From Macho Taco | On East Road

This is a deep-fried stuffed pepper filled with a ground beef, cheese and jalapeño stuffing. It’s crunchy, spicy, savory, cheesy and delicious.

21) Elote Corn Dog | From Meatball Factory | On the Avenue of States

Finally, someone combined a corndog with Mexican street corn. It’s crazy that it took this long.

The corndog itself is served with crema, cotija cheese, cilantro and Hot Cheetos.

22) Espresso Cream Puff | From The Big E Bakery | Multiple locations

Every year, the Big E makes a special limited-edition flavor of its famous cream puff. This year, it’s espresso.

In short: It tastes like a really good espresso martini — without the booze.

23) The Blushing Dragon Cocktail | From The Smoking Dragon | In the Young Building

V-One Vodka has a new cocktail bar this year, the Smoking Dragon. They’re focusing fun “smoking” cocktails that used food-grade dry ice. They’re visually impressive and also delicious.

23.5) Frank Pepe’s Pizza in the Connecticut Building

Frank Pepe’s Pizzeria Napoletana is a Connecticut pizza icon and is the first thing many people think of when they hear “New Haven-style” pizza.

This is top-tier pizza. So if you haven’t ever tried New Haven-style, this is the perfect opportunity.