Application for operation of the potato booth at the New York State Fair, Space #1, located in the Horticulture Building

The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, Division of the State Fair (“the Department”) is seeking applications for the operation of the Potato Booth for the 2026 Great New York State Fair (“the Fair”). The Potato Booth, famous for its one dollar ($1.00) baked potato, is located in the Horticulture Building, and has been a popular and long-standing tradition at the Fair since 1841. Over the 13 days of the 2025 Fair, over 70,000 people were served at the Potato Booth. The 2026 Fair will be held August 26, 2026 through September 7, 2026. OPTIONAL SITE VISITS Two non-mandatory tours of the Licensed Space will be made available to prospective applicants on April 28, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. (local time) and April 30, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. (local time). Prospective applicants are encouraged to attend at least one tour and are invited to attend more than one tour. To RSVP for a tour, please email [email protected] no later than 3:00 p.m. (local time) at least one day prior to the tour. No substantive questions may be asked during the tour. All questions must be submitted in writing. OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENTS 1. Hours of Operation, Management Fee, and Staffing The Potato Booth must be operational each day of the 2026 Fair during the hours of 10:00 A.M. – 9:00 P.M. The Potato Booth must be staffed at least one hour prior to opening and one hour after closing the booth each day. The selected applicant should anticipate serving approximately 3,000 to 7,000 people per day. The number of people will vary depending on Fair attendance, day of the week, and weather conditions. The busiest days are typically Friday through Sunday, as well as days with favorable weather conditions. For reference, during the 2025 Fair, the Potato Booth required 42 employees, three of which were supervisors responsible for managing shifts and overseeing operations during the hours the Potato Booth was open. The Department will pay the selected applicant a flat management fee of $40,000 for managing and operating the Potato Booth on behalf of the Department for the 2026 Fair. In addition, the Department will pay for an adequate number of staff and supervisors necessary for the operation of the Potato Booth hired on the Department’s payroll. The selected applicant will be responsible for providing the following management services: · Provide the Department a staffing and service plan outlining the proposed number of staff and supervisors and the shift hours. The Department’s set hourly rates are $16.48 for staff and $19.79 for supervisors. The number of supervisors shall not exceed four (4) employees and the number of staff shall not exceed 50 employees. The staffing plan must be approved by the Department. · Interview and recommend for hire a sufficient number of staff and supervisors to be placed on the Department’s payroll. The interview and hiring process should be completed no later than thirty (30) days prior to the first day of the 2026 Fair. Interviews may be conducted onsite at the Fairgrounds during normal business hours and on weekends and evenings to accommodate applicants’ schedules (location and times of interviews onsite must be coordinated and approved by the Department). The Department’s Human Resources Division will onboard and process staff and supervisors hired on the Department’s payroll. · Process staff and supervisor payroll using the Department’s time tracking system. The time clock for staff and supervisors is located in the Horticulture Building and will be used to punch in and out for tracking time worked. The selected applicant will be responsible for monitoring and updating staff time using the Department’s payroll system associated with the time clock. The selected applicant will be responsible for providing complete and accurate signed timecards to the Department on the Wednesday after the conclusion of the 2026 Fair. · Oversee the daily operation of the Potato Booth including management of all staff and supervisors, inventory, ordering, sales operations, and tracking of expenditures and revenue. · Ensure that at a minimum one manager s onsite at the Potato Booth during all hours of operation of the Potato Booth. · Ensure compliance with all Department of Health (DOH) food service and cleanliness standards. · Handle customer complaints and immediately report any operational, equipment or service issues to the Department. · Submit Sales Reports to the Department no later than thirty (30) days after the conclusion of the 2026 State Fair. The reports must be broken down by item quantity, price, daily sales per item, and total gross sales. · Submit a Profit and Loss Statement to the Department no later than thirty (30) days after the conclusion of the 2026 Fair. This report must include all supporting backup and receipts for all revenue and expenses associated with the Profit and Loss Statement. Pricing and Taste NY/NYS Grown & Certified (“NYS G&C”) Co-branding Requirements The Potato Booth will be co-branded as New York State Grown & Certified (“NYS G&C”) in conjunction with the selected applicant’s branding. All food and beverages sold must meet Taste NY’s Program standards. The booth will be branded as the “New York State Grown & Certified Potato Booth Operated by “SELECTED APPLICANT.” This branding will appear on all venue banners, signage, media ads, social media posts, and other publications. Additional products served must meet the Taste NY Program requirements, which state that any Consumer-Packaged Goods (“CPG”) and/or value-added products sold be grown, produced, or processed in New York State (e.g., snacks, bottled beverages, etc.).Menu items prepared in-house for sale must include a minimum of fifty percent (50%) ingredients grown, produced, or processed in New York State, all of which are subject to approval by the Department. A search tool to locate NYS G&C Program participants and products can be found at: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/e2ee347eab874ce8b7b51f895f002403/ . For the 2026 Fair, the Department will purchase and provide all NYS potatoes for the Potato Booth including baking potatoes and salt potatoes. The selected applicant will be required to purchase and provide all NYS G&C butter and sour cream. In keeping with the long-standing tradition, the selected applicant will be required to sell the baking potato or salt potatoes (minimum of three) including butter or sour cream, for the cost of one dollar ($1.00). The selected applicant may offer other toppings for an additional fee, as well as other food and beverage offerings, provided that all food and beverages meet the requirements of the Taste NY Program. Because the selected applicant must sell the baking potato or salt potatoes (minimum of three) including sour cream or butter for one dollar ($1.00), the rental fees for the Licensed Space will be waived. SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS AND SCORING/SELECTION CRITERIA In the event of a tie score during the evaluation process, the application that is submitted first will be awarded the contract. The submission time will be determined based on the timestamp recorded upon receipt of the applications. NOTE: Incomplete applications will not be considered and will be removed from the selection process. Please ensure that all relevant and correct documents requested in the application are attached. CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS The selected vendor will be required to execute a contract with the Department. Please see Exhibit 5 for the Department’s sample contract including Appendix A - Standard Clauses for New York State Contracts; Appendix D - General Conditions; and Appendix G - Beer/Wine/Cider/Distilled Spirits Addendum. Interested parties must complete the application available here: https://newyorkstatefair.wufoo.com/forms/2026-potato-booth-application Communication with respect to this procurement initiated by or on behalf of an interested vendor through other than the “Designated Contact Person(s)” identified below may constitute an “impermissible contact” under state law with respect to Procurement Lobbying, and could result in disqualification of that vendor. Any updates or changes will be posted to the Departments website at the link above. Business enterprises awarded an identical or substantially similar procurement contract within the past five years: None Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business (SDVOB) SDVOB Goal: 0.00% Minority / Women Business Enterprise contracting goals (MWBE) MBE Goal: 0.00% WBE Goal: 0.00% Disadvantaged Business Enterprise contracting goals (DBE) DBE Goal: 0.00%