How early is too early to enjoy a banana split?
“Anytime is a good time,” said Eva Gilbert, 8, of Latrobe as she enjoyed lunch with sisters Lily, 6 and Anna, 4, at the Great American Banana Split Celebration, which runs through Sunday in downtown Latrobe.
Clearly, 11 a.m. is not too early, if the Valley Dairy booth was any indication Saturday morning.
“We usually buy about 25 cases of bananas to bring here every year,” Valley Dairy’s Alex Blystone said. At roughly 100 bananas per case, the dairy will go through more than 2,500 bananas this weekend.
“We’ll serve probably 3,000 splits,” Blystone said.
Over in the adults-only area, Holly McIntosh of J&D Cellars has just the right beverage on tap. That would be a banana split wine slushie.
“It has white wine, a strawberry-banana mix that I developed, with chocolate sauce and whipped cream for good measure,” McIntosh said.
From children’s games to live music and more, the festival marks the 1904 creation of the famous dessert by local pharmacist David Strickler at Tassell Pharmacy. Next year will mark its 120th anniversary.
Blystone said it is easily the most lucrative event Valley Dairy attends during the summertime.
“This is our hometown, and we look forward to it every year,” he said. “Especially on a day like today when the weather is so nice.”
The festival will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. For a full schedule of events and more information, see BananaSplitFest.com.
