Friday, July 10, 2009

Sunny's Summer Eats!

Hey there! Months and months ago I set out across the country to find some cool places to hang out and eat during the summer. There's nothing I love more than eating outdoors. At first we had a tentative title of "Boardwalks, Fairs and Festivals" or something of that nature, but now it's simply called "Sunny's Summer Eats".

As usual I kept everyone in blog-land up to date on my whereabouts, so check the links below to get the lowdown on this Saturday's debut of Sunny's Summer Eats.


and


I taped some of this show during winter temps, so pardon the sweaters here and there lol. Hope you have time to catch the show, I had so much fun taping it and eating my way around the country. Every place I went, I found a reason to return and it was most certainly always about the food. Chocolate covered bacon, amazing hot dogs, cheesecake on a stick, wings galore and popcorn everything ... just to name a few.

Sunny's Summer Eats debuts tomorrow, Saturday July 11th at 9PM eastern and pacific. Hope you like it!

25 comments:

Mike said...

Hi Sunny - Just wanted to give you a heads up on your Summer Eats feature if they can fix any airings in the future airings....It's Valparaiso Indiana, not Brazil....and Monticello (pronounced montisello).

Thanks for featuring my home state.

Mary | Deep South Dish said...

I'm so excited about this new series! You know I have it Tivo'd!! Hey nice feature in Food Network mag too.

Sunny Anderson said...

mike, awww shucks. did i say montichello? they won't fix it although i would ... and it is brazil, trust me ... cities are selfish about specific origins of festivals. the prod company does all the research and i just host and show up, so we hopefully got it right. thanks so much for watching! i had toooo much fun in your state, but ahem ... it may have been my state first ... i used to live there too! lol. indianapolis to be exact. loved the city classic once a year, is that what it was called?

mary, hope you liked it!

Lys said...

Dagonne it! I missed it. Esp. the Wildwood one - would be good to see some pics of my fave Jerz. shore. I'll have to catch the repeats.

Krissy @ The Food Addicts said...

Hi Sunny! Happy summertime! It is absolutely gorgeous in California right now, so I totally love eating outdoors too. This is the season for grilling and being with friends - not to mention getting great produce for cheap!

mantipp said...

Hey Sunny. Just watched your Summer Eats show and it was great. I liked that you were around my neck of the woods filming in New Jersey. Keep up the great work.

Sunny Anderson said...

lys, hope you like the time we gave to wildwood! i still want to go back and over indulge at the maui hot dog place! it was soooooooooooooo good. they also have choc covered bacon at laura's fudge there too even though we featured the bacon in california.

krissy, hey! happy summer back atcha! i'm jealous of the constant good weather, but then again, not. i lived there and i remember one day waking up to the sun and saying, can we just get some clouds?? teeheehee, lucky you though with the avocados on all plates and the abundance of fresh strawberries and stuff. i think i'm gonna try some berries next year in my garden, this year it's veggies.

mike, glad you liked it!!! wildwood was the best!!! it was really cold when we taped and they opened plenty of the boardwalk businesses for us, i'd surely return. cool family stuff.

Emma Tam said...

Hey Sunny,
Just wanted to say Hi, and I wish I could have watch the show, but I don't have cable anymore. Makes me kind of sad. I'm the girl that work at the skycoaster. Everyone at work said it was a good show.

CoCo said...

Hi Sunny!

First, let me say that I LOVE your shows on the Food Network. I just finished watching "Sunny's Summer Eats," and it was great, but I have one question: were there any people of color in any of the places you visited? I might have caught one or two kids, but I don't think that I saw any in the places that were profiled during the last half of the show, especially the Renaisance (sp?) segment. I was just curious about that. Thanks.

Sunny Anderson said...

emma tam, hey emma! thanks for strapping me in and telling me to put my hands together like i was about to pray! lol ... boy was that fun and i can't believe i did it after 2 tacos and a sausage sandwich! tell everyone at work i said hi and walk across the breezeway for me and tell the owner and his daughter at the taco shop that i still remember the sauce and the crunch of the freshly fried tacos!

coco, thanks for watching my shows!!! ok, let's talk color lol ... ummm the wing fest in buffalo had the most diverse crowd. after that i'd say the renn fair in nyc, there weren't too many people like me, but there were many latinos. umm wildwood had a nice mix and i think the popcorn fest was pretty much a light mix of people of color. i will say that never once did i feel out of place or in a place where i wasn't welcome. also a couple of the places were shot off season, so it's hard to get a feel of the crowd. i think the amusement park in indiana has the potential to be a diverse crowd as well, but it was so cold wen we taped, that the crowds were low. good for taping, bad if you are trying to do a census count lol. hope this helps.

Kim from Valpo said...

Brazil Indiana?

C'mon! Valparaiso Indiana is the home of the Popcorn Festival and has been for WAY more than 6 years!

What a disappointment in the research of your show.

Sunny Anderson said...

kim, lol ... i assure you there was really no 'research' involved, the organizers of the event said that brazil was the more accurate city. don't stress, if people want to attend, they will surely find it. it is world renowned ... hopefully you've gone to the festival and enjoyed the chicken soup, truly a treat! thanks for watching!

Anonymous said...

Hi Sunny! Watched your Sunny's Summer Eats episode hear in Ohio. I was especially intrigued with the Granny Franer's Homemade Chicken N' Noodles. I absolutely could not believe they were making fresh pasta.. outside... at a festival. I mean, that is something you do not see very often, okay, I have NEVER seen that before. WOW! I was so impressed I googled their name and found out that they have a website. I hope to catch them in action one day myself. Cheers to you Sunny for another great show!!!! Gotta Luv Ya!

Anonymous said...

Hey Sunny this is Greg from the Taco Shoppe at Indiana Beach....thank you for coming and we'd love to invite you back again sometime....maybe we could put you to work....I have a question tho....would it be possible for you to sign the picture we took so I can frame it and hang it up at the shop??....thanks again for coming....we;ve got lots of good feedback from the show

Sunny Anderson said...

anon, hey! glad you caught the show! i too was blown away by the chicken noodle soup being made from scratch at a festival for popcorn ... it was pretty cold and i also was sick with a cold that day and for plenty of the shoot, so when i saw the soup i thought it was a heaven send ... i had it on camera and then for lunch bypassed everything else for another cup. very good stuff and a cute family biz, i love those. thanks for watching! i am going to pitch the network on another series of shows featuring event-eating. hope they like it so i can show more great events and family businesses.

GRRRRRREGGGGGG! how the heck are you doing!? i want tacos airmailed to me pronto! lol, at least the sauce and maybe some shells, and then some of the beef and the toppings, oh heck just put it all in a box! just kidding, but if/when i return i need front of the line privileges! no prob on the pic, you wanna email me the hi/res and i'll print it out and sign and scan and email it back or you wanna do it the old school way and snail mail? lemme know in comments and i'll give you my email address! tell the fam i said hi and walk across the way and tell emma i said hi! she missed the show, but looked great and i appreciate a safe strap-in!

Sunny Anderson said...

Thomas @ Granny Franer's ... send me your email in the comments and i'll get you to the right people ....CONGRATS on everything!

Jennifer said...

Hey Sunny...This is the sausage queen here from Luigi's. Thank you so much for including me on your show. I have had a lot of great responses from it. I had a gentlemen sit at my stand on Sunday and sampled everyone of our sandwiches since he saw me on the show.

I will have a taco for you from the taco king. He is a great guy! I hope he goes big time someday with his tacos! Good things happen to good people. Come back anytime!

Emma I have the show DVR'ed so let me know if you want to see it sometime.

Have a GREAT day!
Appreciate all that you do,
Jennifer
BTW, I would have loved to see the rump shaking!

Sunny Anderson said...

jennifer! YAAAAAAAY!! it's like a reunion here! what a long shoot for just a few seconds, but i really do love what we shot by the water, so neat that a boat pulled up during the shoot and we were fast enough to catch it! you had such a friendly staff there with you that morning! i miss the whole place! it was neat being there without the crowds and i hope to come back and enjoy the park without cameras involved, so i can eat and eat and eat and eat lol! tell emma i couldn't have done it safely without her and i loved the praying humor as i was getting strapped in!

Anonymous said...

Hey Sunny Greg from the Taco Shoppe.....if I can get your email address I can email that pic to you.....Thank you!!!

Sunny Anderson said...

greg, give me your email addy in comments and i'll send you mine as well. can't wait to see the pic!

Shannon Booth said...

Sunny,

Hey! My name is Shannon Booth and I'm a military spouse living at Laughlin AFB in Del Rio TX, just 150 miles out from San Antonio. I always pick up the new issue of Military Spouse Magazine when it comes out from the Airman and Family Readiness Center, and was so excited to see you on the cover. I brought the magazine back to my desk at work trying to find your article and just so happened to see a published photo from my wedding! It was two great surprises in one day...and with my husband currently deployed I'll take those moments when I can get them!

I really loved the article on you, and I appreciate your kind words about military spouses. Some people don't know the true sacrifice, and it's nice to be appreciated!

I'm a huge fan of your too by the way, hence the excitement when I saw you were on the cover of the magazine. I tune in everyday to watch your show, which has really become one of my favorites!

Sunny Anderson said...

Shannon Booth, thank you sooooo much for your support. I'm glad you caught the interview ... it's my 1st cover! you don't know how proud I am as an Army brat to get that. I come from a family of service, my grand dad, my dad, my uncles and my brother have all served and i did as well ... it's the family business. so you are family. sorry your hubby is deployed far from home, but i appreciate not only his sacrifice, but yours as well. in peace and wartime, all military families know the wife is the general ;-). take care and thanks again for the kind words. now i can't wait to get my copy so i can see your wedding pics!

ChiTown Momma said...

Girlfriend, you are the BEST thing to hit Food Network since Rachael Ray! My son has a huge crush on you(he's a blond and hot little 9 1/2 year old who loves you and cooking). He was as excited as we were to watch your shows, especially the "Summer Eats" segment, which was fantastic! Due to you trying a chocolate covered cheesecake at that Ren Faire Ian(my son) and I shared one at the Ren Faire just north of us(Bristol Ren Faire in Southern Wisconsin as we're Chicagoans)...he kept asking if we'd see you when we went about a month ago. I also want to commend you on being incredibly brave to fly all around even after eating what you ate. Girl, I would in no way try that as despite I didn't have a meal, I would have tossed my cookies! LOL! You are fabulous, keep up the awesome work and thanks for giving us so much to look forward to on Food Network, especially for Ian(I make a huge deal because Ian has Aspergers, so along w/his Thomas the Tank Engine and Harry Potter obsession, Sunny Anderson is another.... ;-D )

PS: You MUST come to Chicago and do a segment on the "Taste of Chicago," which has such an amazing array of foods to choose from!

Thanks again!
ChiTown Momma, aka AnaMarie Gauthier and Ian

Sunny Anderson said...

chitown momma, wow, thank you soooo much for the comment! give ian a big hug and tell him it's from me!!! hope you guys liked the choc covered chz cake, amazing bad for you but soooo good! i am so happy to be right up there with the hogwarts and thomas the tank engine :-). funny you should suggest i take a trip to chicago ... i'll be there before the month is up! i have plans to get a chicago dog and more!!! tell me of any places you recommend! and again, thanks so much for the kind words and support. i am just a human working this gift of life for all it is and i'm totally enjoying it along the way. thanks so much for being a part of it! ian too!

ChiTown Momma said...

Hot dog joints! Wow! So many to choose from that are from average to fabulous! I'm giving you our favorites:

1st. Henry's on Ogden and Austin Avenues in Berwyn(about a 15 ride west from downtown Chgo). Henry's has been around since the fifties, it's a small joint and they serve a really fabulous dog; great bite to the beef, nice snap in the casing, all beef dog, no fillers, and you can get everything put on them(Chgo style= pickle, tomatoes, mustard, relish, onions, small hot peppers & celery salt). They give you an order of fries right next to the dog, wrapped and ready to go. They're fairly inexpensive as well, so you can get a decent lunch for four people for about ten bucks, drinks not included but they do serve seasonal slushies in various flavors, IE, fruit and fake fruit like blue raspberry which is Ian's favorite...and flurries, Henry's answer to the "Blizzard.". Jeesie creesie, I sound like I'm writing for Bon Appetit or something...I know, it's just HOT DOGS. Not here in Chicago!

OK, now, the 2nd spot is in Niles on Devon and Milwaukee(about a 20 drive north of downtown Chgo) and has been around for a long time as well; the symbols atop the stand are actual historical monuments and this place is my hubbies favie; SUPERDAWG....note the word "dawg," funny, no? I don't get out much, can't you tell? Anyway...it's a good sized dog...slightly bigger than the usual dog you'd get at any other joint, they make to order as it's like a drive-inn w/the car hops(you literally order from your parking spot and you'll feel like you're an extra in "American Graffiti" or something...) and they make it typical Chgo style(pickles, onions, etc..), they also include an unusual yet very tasty pickled green tomato(you've heard of fried green tomatoes? Well, sister; you are about to have an unusual treat with this!) along w/an order of fries. Now these dogs cost a bit more and I'm guessing it's due to the ambiance and upkeep of Superdawg and his lady friend atop the restaurant, but well worth the trip. They also serve shakes, malts and of course usual fountain drinks.

After all that maybe you'd feel brave enough to go on the new balloon ride at Navy Pier called "Aeroballoon." It's an enormous helium balloon that lifts riders up about 35 stories from the ground and gives an amazing view of the city. It's like a hot air balloon w/out the hot air, kinda like the White House now(w/out Bush...IE, hot air? Get it? Sorry...Just kidding!). Now you do KNOW you may have to have an escort to Henry's if you decide to go there....just let me know when and Ian will be there.....hey, he offered! LOL! Take care, thanks for your kind words, have a safe trip up here and thank you for sharing with us your wonderful gift of life which has really helped a little guy be happy this summer. You're such a great gift to us and Food Network!

ChiTown Momma
aka AnaMarie and Ian