Fried cheese needs no introduction.
But that wasn’t the case for fried cheese curds a decade ago in Raleigh. This Midwestern delicacy was seldom seen in the Triangle when Lisa Germain helped her son move to Raleigh in 2015, a travesty in her eyes.
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“We went out bar-hopping and there were no cheese curds anywhere,” Germain said. “Nobody knew what a cheese curd was. That’s when a lightbulb went off. I knew we needed to bring these down here.”
By 2017, The Cheese Curd Shack was born, starting out at beer festivals and the North Carolina State Fair.
Now The Cheese Curd Shack has been named the top food vendor by readers of The News & Observer. For the part-time food fryer, the honor is immense, Germain said.
“I’m really excited, truly blessed,” Germain said. “We are such a small operation, it means so much to us.”
It’s hardly surprising that a fried food is the most beloved bite at the North Carolina State Fair, but a crispy curd is an unlikely winner. The Cheese Curd Shack is inspired by the rich cheese culture of Wisconsin, where cheddar reigns and curds are a ubiquitous snack.
The Cheese Curd Shack makes white cheddar curds, deep-fried and coming in three standard flavors: buttery original, garlic and jalapeno, with ranch and marinara for dipping.
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“Wisconsin is the cheese curd capital of the world,” Germain said. “It’s a Midwest thing. They’re very, very popular. Beer and cheese go well together.”
The Cheese Curd Shack started at the NC State Fair in 2017, debuting with its signatures flavors, plus specials like crabcake cheese curds, dunked in marinara. From there, the food truck hit some other festivals, like the New York State Fair, but mostly kept it local, always taking part in Brewgaloo and the North Carolina State Fair.
There was a learning curve, but eventually the shack’s style of fried cheese found its fans.
“It was tough at first, we were explaining to everyone what a cheese curd was,” Germain said. “It’s an ooey gooey snack, it’s a wonderful appetizer. It’s inexpensive, it goes great with beer.”
Each year the Curd Shack tries to invent something new in the cheese-verse, unveiling a batter last year imbued with Ranch seasoning. Germain has something cheesy planned for this year’s fair, but declined to unveil the surprise at this point, less than a month before the fair begins.
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“It’s the ultimate finger food.”
This story was originally published September 30, 2026 at 6:00 AM.