Man Travels From Calif. To Work At The Cheese Curd Booth
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- For most visitors at the State Fair, cheese curds are one of the absolute must-eat foods. Turning out 2.6 million curds takes a great staff to keep up with demand.
For 40 years the original deep fried cheese curd booth has served up a State Fair favorite. A good majority have been dished up at the hand of Joe Peterson. For 33 years, he's manned the mixing station making sure the cheese to batter ratio is perfect.
If his tenure impresses you, his dedication will amaze you.
"Fifteen years ago I moved to Duluth. Most thought I wouldn't come back to the fair, but I still come back every year. Two years ago I moved to California, and they for sure thought I was done," he said.
But distance is no obstacle, and neither is the time of day. Peterson doesn't work just one shift but two over the 12 days of the fair.
Where some see a hard day's work, for Peterson this is a reunion with his State Fair family. It's an unusual take on a summer vacation but one he's already planning for next year.
"I know a lot of people think it's crazy, but no, it doesn't feel like work when I'm laughing the entire time to the point of tears," he said.
Peterson plans to stick around as long as the Mueller family owns that booth. When they decide to retire, so will he.