The python and sausage sub from Yankee Boy. As you can see, my mustard applying skills are immaculate. While the sub was relatively small, it really is just par-for-the-course as far as Big E food size and cost is concerned. (Photo by Peter Currier)
WEST SPRINGFIELD- When it comes to the Eastern States Exposition, there are a lot of constants one will undoubtedly notice each year: the traffic will be bad, the crowds will be frustrating to get through, and the food makes it worth it.
I made the choice to attend the Big E Saturday on its record setting attendance day of just over 176,000 people. Towards the end of our night, well after it had gotten dark, we were standing in line to get a drink for my significant other when something caught my eye: The python and rabbit sausage grinder at Yankee Boy.
Instantly I knew I had to try it, and in doing so I started to think of other food oddities one could find at the Big E. Having come up with a good list, I have decided that I will have a short series of reviews of the weirdest foods I can find at the Big E as the fair closes out for its final week. To start, here is a review of the python and rabbit sausage grinder.
When I walked up to the cashier at Yankee Boy near the McDonalds slide and ordered this bizarre combination of food, I asked the cashier how often people actually order it. To my surprise, and apparently hers, it sells rather well considering neither python nor rabbit is a common dish in New England.
I paid my $9.75 and quickly received my sub* and sat down, ready to tackle this strange combination of predator and prey. I got the sub with peppers and onions and put some deli mustard on it as I would with any sandwich or burger. The meat itself looked like a normal sausage roll, and I would have thought nothing of it if I didn’t know what it was already.
When I took my first bite, a weird thought entered my mind. I didn’t really know what I had expected python to taste like, but the taste I got kind of made perfect sense for it.
It actually wasn’t that bad, but not great either. To be perfectly honest, the only downfall of the sub is that it had that sharp sausage taste, which I personally do not like, but I know others do.
Ultimately, if one actually likes sausage and wants to mix things up a little with their Big E food, this is not a bad choice.
I do plan on continuing this series throughout the week, or until I run out of weird food ideas which I do not believe to be possible at the Big E. If you have any ideas for foods you want me to try so you don’t have to, send an email to the address listed below. There are precious few foods I will not try at least once.
*Yes, I call it a sub because I grew up in eastern Massachusetts and we call it by the correct name there. It is submarine shaped, and nothing about it looks “grinder-like.” I will die on this hill.*
Peter Currier can be reached at [email protected].
