Chowing down at the Sweet Corn Festival in Adel

Linda and I returned to Adel, one of the 100 Places, to enjoy one of the 100 Things You Must Eat, sweet corn. Another of the things that only happens once a year, the Adel Sweet Corn Festival is a classic late summer event. Scheduled on the first weekend of the Iowa State Fair, it's up against a major event not more than fifty miles away. That didn't seem to slow the crowd.

All the way around the square, there were tents with people selling various items to wear or decorate your home. The brick paved streets held a steady flow of people checking out the varied offerings. From time to time, someone would pause to chat with someone they'd not seen in a while. There was a nice mixing pot feel to the square.

For a couple of blocks west of the square was what I'll call Food Row. Both sides of the street were lined with food vendors offering barbecue, pie, ice cream made on the spot, and the ubiquitous kettle corn.

At the end of Food Row, there was an covered stage with a nice green lawn for folks to gather and listen; a group was setting up to perform so we moved on. A half-block to the north was the "Shady Stage," an area of concrete in front of the bank that did have nice shade for most of the performers and audience. With temperatures around ninety degrees, paused at the shady stage and watched a group of dancers doing something similar to clogging; it looked like too much activity for me on a such a day but they looked good.

South of the Food Row, we found area firefighters engaged in a water fight. Linda and I both remembered having seen these before but it had been a long time. For those who've not had the pleasure, two teams of four firefighters man their hoses about one hundred feet apart facing each other. Above them is a heavy cable with a metal "stopper" above each team. Suspended from the cable, midway between the teams is a beer keg. Someone says "Go!" and the two teams dry to drive the keg down the cable to the other teams stopper. To watch it analytically, it's a good test of the marksmanship of the firefighters as well as their ability to work as a team. To watch it as a kid, it's a great way to cool off on a hot day... maybe even stomp around in a muddy puddle.

Just around the corner from both the water fight and the square, we found the corn. Adel knows how to put out the corn. They had a huge boiler that was loaded with several milk crates of shucked sweet corn. When the corn was ready, the baskets were brought out of the water and sent down a roller track system to the serving area. We, the consumers, simply said how many ears we wanted, were served, and on our way. There was a table with a softserve butter, salt and pepper shakers, and, thoughtfully, toothpicks. Nicely done.

Seating was limited but we found a shady spot along a curb and enjoyed the featured food. Across the street was an apparent veteran of this event. As he'd finish an ear, he'd extend his arm, flick his wrist, and the toss the kernelless cob into the nearby dumpster. No wasted motion, no muss, no fuss; this guy had game.

As we were heading for the car, KIOA, Des Moines oldie radio station was on site and calling for corny jokes. One little boy asked the age old question "Why did the chicken cross the road? To get some corn!"