I grew up on seven acres out in the country in Franklin County, Kansas between Ottawa and Pomona. My sister and I spent a lot of time playing outside in the grass and trees surrounded by our dogs, barn cats, rabbits and chickens. My dad always had a project he was working on from clearing trees to monitoring a burn pile to tending to his elaborate vegetable garden. Summer meals were often made on the grill and paired with family favorites such as cowboy beans (baked beans cooked on the stove with ground hamburger, peppers, sauces, seasonings and whatever else!), corn on the cob and homemade ice cream. Our “neighborhood block parties” usually consisted of the four of us around the dining room table trading sarcasm and laughter while enjoying a home-cooked meal.

Now, I live in Manhattan and work at Meadowlark Hills where block parties include a temporary road closure and hundreds of my closest friends! Summerfest has been a fixture in my life for four years and it has grown greatly in that time. This year we had an additional tent and even more seating in the street than last year! Although we didn’t take an official head count during Summerfest, I knew there were more people at the event this year than last just by the number of seats that were occupied (wow!). Which begs the question, how much food did we actually go through during Summerfest 2015?

The break down is included below and is quite impressive!

• 420 hamburgers
• 250 hot dogs
• 20 veggie burgers
• 392 bags of chips
• 60 pounds of baked beans
• 88 pounds of macaroni salad
• 600 cookies
• 250 pounds of watermelon
• 672 small cans of soda
• 208 bottles of water

Holy guacamole (as my mother-in-law would say) – that’s a heck of a lot of food! If you joined us, I’m glad you did and if you didn’t, I hope to see you at next year’s Summerfest Block Party.

Now is there a question burning in your mind? Submit it to the Ask Sarah box at the Hospitality Desk and I’ll take a stab at it – better yet, try and stump me!