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Feeding the family doesn’t have to break the bank! 

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Hi, Eat’n Park family! As the newest Team Smiley interns, we're excited to introduce ourselves for the summer! We will be traveling across the Greater Pittsburgh area for a number of community events, including festivals, sporting events, and more! Our events feature awesome activities like Smiley appearances, Smiley Cookie decorating, and games. 

To stay up to date with Team Smiley and our journey, feel free to follow us on our team Instagram, @enpteamsmiley or check the Find Smiley site. 

We can’t wait to meet all of Smiley’s fans in the next few months! We are looking forward to creating memories that will last forever. Hope to see you all soon!

Now let’s get to know the team:

Meet Grace: Hello, everyone! My name is Grace, and I am from Pittsburgh, PA. I just completed my senior year at Robert Morris University, where I will stay for a 5th year to finish the accelerated MBA program. I am dual majoring in Business Management and Marketing with a certificate in Operations Management. I am also working towards my MBA with a certificate in Business Analytics. 

Eat‘n Park is one of my favorite places in Pittsburgh! In addition to Team Smiley, I work as a server in the restaurants and am the Marketing Coordinator for RMU Dining Services. My favorite meal is the Italiano Grilled Cheese on a gluten-free bun, with an unsweetened iced tea and a side of cottage cheese and chili. Fun fact: Eat’n Park ranch is the only ranch I will eat. 

At RMU, I was a member of the sideline and competitive cheer teams, served as President of Delta Zeta Sorority, served on the executive board for the Women’s Leadership and Mentorship Program, and am a member of Pi Sigma Epsilon Business Fraternity. In my free time, I love spending time with friends and family, crafting, going to new coffee shops, and reading. I am so excited for this opportunity and can’t wait to see what this summer holds!

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Hello, everyone! Team Smiley 2024 is officially signing off! 

This summer was filled with countless smiles, laughs, and memories. Thank you for keeping up with us on Team Smiley’s Instagram @enpteamsmiley! These past few months have been such an amazing experience, and this internship is one that is truly unlike any other. 

With over 1,300 miles traveled (about half the width of the United States), 34,000 Smiley Cookies distributed, and an infinite amount of Smiles shared, we have certainly kept ourselves busy! Every single event we traveled to had an impact on our community in a special way, and we wouldn’t trade it for the world! The amount of people we met at new places we discovered in the Pittsburgh area is something we will carry with us in our careers! 

With countless memories and lessons learned, here are a few of our most invaluable takeaways from our Team Smiley 2024 experience! 

Seeing your smiling faces when receiving or decorating a Smiley Cookie is an image we will never leave behind! Knowing we brought so many people happiness touched our hearts. 

Being on Team Smiley this summer was also extra special because we were able to contribute to the 75th anniversary celebrations! We brought the Cookie Cruiser to special 75th anniversary partnerships, including the Eat’n Park takeover at the Pirates Game, the Heinz History Center Kids Free weekend, and the Carnegie Science Center’s new Pixar exhibit sponsored by Eat’n Park. The celebrations never stopped all summer, and we were so glad to play a part in creating Smiles!

We were so appreciative of Eat’n Park Hospitality Group for giving us the opportunity to work both in and out of the office. This internship meant so much more than being stuck behind a desk because of our ability to work independently at our Cookie Cruiser events. 

Continuing this gratefulness, our Cookie Cruiser events brought us even closer to our hometown, Pittsburgh, PA. As we traveled with cookies and smiles across the region, we discovered the city has a lot of wonderful qualities, more than we ever knew! Without our internship with Eat’n Park, we might have never reignited our passion for the City of Pittsburgh! 

Last, but certainly not least, we are taking our friendship far beyond our Team Smiley internship days. Spending the summer together created some of the best memories we've ever had! Without our camaraderie and strong connection, this internship might not have been as unbelievably successful and rewarding. Our greatest advice to future Team Smiley interns is to appreciate those around you and make genuine connections whenever the opportunity presents itself. Making memories is one thing but making them with your best friends is the greatest feeling in the world.

Thank you all for following along with us this summer! 

Team Smiley 2024 Signing Off! Eat’n Park forever! 

- Olivia, Sarah, Katie, Emma, and Bre 

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In the nearly 75 years since Eat’n Park opened, some things haven’t changed. We still serve our Superburger, guests still sometimes jokingly refer to us as “Park’n Eat,” and kids know us as the “Smiley face cookie restaurant." Yes, Eat’n Park’s the Place for Smiles. . .literally—with our instantly recognizable Smiley Cookies! 

But have you wondered about the history of our iconic Eat’n Park cookies? Just as Eat’n Park has a rich history, so does our Smiley Cookie, and the Smiley Cookie history starts in Titusville, Pa.

Growing up in this oil town, Jim Broadhurst (our former CEO and now the Chairman here at Eat’n Park) would pass a small local bakery every day on his way to and from school. And every day, Jim would stop at this bakery to purchase a smiling cookie – one hand-iced with a happy face – for five cents from that local shop, Warner’s Bakery. 

As it turns out, those happy memories stuck with Jim, as happy memories often do. So, when Jim joined Eat’n Park and oversaw the opening of our first bakery in 1986, he wanted to share the tender experience he remembered from his own childhood. How could he create the same sweet sensation for kids dining at Eat’n Park? With the blessing of Ellsworth Warner at Warner’s Bakery, Eat’n Park began baking Smiley Cookies to give to every child for free after their meal. Nearly four decades later, we’re still treating kids to Smiley Cookies every day at our restaurant.  

However, the story doesn’t end there. In addition to becoming Eat’n Park’s mascot, our shining smiling cookie would also become synonymous with Pittsburgh, evolving into an unofficial city ambassador across the region and even the nation. Eat’n Park Smiley Cookies are so loved by children of ALL ages that we eventually began offering them for sale by the dozen and then online at smileycookie.com – though of course, they’re still free for every child who dines at Eat’n Park, or “the Smiley face cookie restaurant”! 

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This July, go wild for Smiles at the Pittsburgh Zoo! All month long, we’re celebrating Eat’n Park Family Month! All kids who visit the zoo in July will receive a coupon for a free Eat’n Park kids’ meal! It’s something the whole family can enjoy! 

Plus, on Smiley Saturdays in July, Smiley himself will be at the zoo from 10AM-3PM, where he’ll be taking photos and handing out Smiley Cookies! 

We hope to see you this July at the Pittsburgh Zoo for Eat’n Park Family Month! 

Click here for tickets! 

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Hey, y’all! Caroline here with an update on what Smiley has been up to! 

This past weekend started out with Smiley making a visit to his friend “the Wild Thing” at a Washington Wild Things baseball game. The Wild Thing challenged Smiley to a dance battle that Smiley won hands down!  

Team Smiley welcomed excited fans to the game with Smiley Cookies, prizes, and of course bright smiling faces!  

After a fun evening out, the Cookie Cruiser crew stopped by the Melanoma 5k early Saturday morning. Smiley had a blast hanging out with Jalapeno Hannah, Chedder Chester, and the Pirate Parrot all while cheering on the runners at the race. Smiley got to see lots of little fans and has since decided to start running in hopes of beating the pierogies in their race! 

Team Smiley brought the hype as they took over the dance floor and rewarded runners with Smiley Cookies as they finished!

The weekend went out with a bang at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s Summer Reading Extravaganza! Team Smiley greeted around 6,000 people at the event and saw some incredible cookie designs come to life. Smiley got to see lots of fans and get a picture with his favorite dinosaur, Dippy. The Reading Extravaganza lived up to its name, as there was amazing live entertainment, puppet shows, a performer on stilts, and a bounce castle! There were tons of fans of all ages who were excited to enjoy a cookie and get a picture with their pal Smiley. 

While the weekend was jam-packed, I had a great time following my friend Smiley to all his exciting events!

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Attention Smiley enthusiasts! Your newest generation of Team Smiley is here to say hello! With summer approaching at full speed, we’re here to introduce ourselves and where we’ll be heading with Smiley this season. If you’re hoping to catch a Smiley spotting – or you’re just really craving the nostalgic taste of a classic Smiley Cookie – then you’ll want to stay updated on fundraisers, festivals, extravaganzas, races, and other events on our tour this summer. 

To stay up to date on Smiley’s whereabouts, you’ll want to keep an eye on our Find Smiley site to see where he’ll be each weekend this summer. At our events, there’s cookie decorating fun for everyone, exciting prize-winning opportunities, and, of course, the chance to meet Smiley in person and give him a hug! 

For even more smiles, we’ll be keeping the latest information about where Smiley’s heading and Team Smiley’s experiences on this blog. To see more of Smiley’s exciting adventures around the city, check out the Team Smiley Instagram @ENPTeamSmiley. 

We can’t wait to make some memories with Smiley this summer and spread some smiles around Pittsburgh! 

Get to know our team: 

Meet Maria 

Hi, yinz!! My name is Maria and I am born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA. I am currently studying Public Relations at the University of Pittsburgh and will be graduating this December. Hopefully after I graduate, I will be moving to someplace warm, ideally by a beach, but Pittsburgh will forever be No. 1 in my heart. I love the outdoors, watching the sunrises/sunsets, reading, cooking, and spending time with my friends and family. My favorite meal from Eat’n Park has to be, like my friends Allaina & Caroline, the Chicken Bruschetta...melts right in your mouth! One thing that I am excited about in this internship is to grow great friendships and make people smile! 😊  

Meet Eric 

Hello, Friends! My name is Eric. I was born and raised in Greensburg, PA about 45 minutes outside of Pittsburgh. I am currently pursuing a major in Marketing and a minor in Communications at Juniata College. When I am not hanging out with Smiley, I spend a lot of time on the diamond playing baseball, hitting the links golfing, and snowboarding with my friends. I am looking forward to traveling around the Greater Pittsburgh area and passing my smile to everyone that I am fortunate enough to meet. When visiting an Eat’n Park location I will eat anything that has the Homemade Ranch involved! 

Meet Abby 

Hi, all! My name is Abby and I am from right here in Pittsburgh! I have been going to Eat’n Park for as long as I can remember and have spent many birthdays and fun nights in the Waterfront location. I will be attending Point Park University in the fall for PR, Advertising, and Social Media. I'm very excited to get to see all of your smiling faces this summer with my friend Smiley.  When I am not driving Smiley around town, I like to sing and find the best coffee shops (but it's hard to beat Eat’n Park’s coffee 😉). If you see me out and about with the crew, ask me about how much I love the Bacon Grilled Cheese!  

Meet Caroline 

Hi, all!! My name is Caroline, and I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA. I go to school at Smith College in Northampton, MA and play field and ice hockey there. I am majoring in economics with a minor in exercise and sports science. When I am not out there playing sports or going on adventures with Smiley, I like to cook and hang out with my dog Mac. My favorite Eat’n Park meal is the Chicken Bruschetta with a side of the daily soup. One thing I am looking forward to this summer is getting to tour around the Steel City with my good friend Smiley and hand out thousands of cookies.   

Meet Allaina 

Hello! I’m Allaina and I’m a senior at Pitt studying Economics and Nonfiction English Writing. I can’t wait to spread smiles all over Pittsburgh – as someone from State College, PA, I still have a lot of exploring to do in and around the city. Aside from decorating cookies and running around with Smiley, I love biking, reading, drawing, sewing, and anything else that allows me to exercise my creativity! My all-time favorite Eat ‘n Park meal is the Chicken Bruschetta (especially when it’s paired with a Smiley Cookie for dessert), but I’m excited to spend my summer attempting to try everything I can on the restaurant’s menu. I can’t wait to create fun digital content with Smiley and explore each area of the Pittsburgh community along with Team Smiley—and spread as many smiles as possible along the way!

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Love to share smiles across the miles AND have an obsession with everyone’s favorite Smiley Cookie? Then we’ve got a sweet opportunity for you! We’re hiring a team of Eat’n Park brand fans to join our 2020 Team Smiley summer internship program!

Every year, Team Smiley spreads goodwill, good times, and great tasting Smiley Cookies all over the tri-state area. In addition to growing relationships in the community, the team works alongside Eat’n Park’s marketing department, gaining practical insight and contributing to company initiatives. It will be a smiley summer that you won’t soon forget!

Want to hear a first-hand account of what you can expect from this internship program? Watch this video made by our former Team Smiley interns!


Click here to learn more and apply for this paid position!


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Hey everyone! Zach here with another exciting Team Smiley update! For the fourth time this summer, we took our Cookie Cruiser to the Pirates Kid’s Zone before the game. Our team always loves going to PNC Park because everyone gets so excited when we hand them our Pirates Smiley Cookies, complete with a Buccos eye patch!

Since this event is always filled with families, we brought over 200 dozen cookies with us – that’s about 2,400 Smiley Cookies total. Think of how many people we were able to make smile!

Something else that made us smile that day was the sunshine! The weather was so beautiful that we decided to take a walk on the Roberto Clemente Bridge and pass out cookies there, too.

All in all, it was the perfect day! Click here to see the full schedule of where we will be next and make sure to follow us (@enpteamsmiley) on our Instagram to see what the rest of the summer has in store!

Keep smiling,
Zach and your Team Smiley friends
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Hey all! It’s Sarah here from Team Smiley.

Summer is going by fast…isn’t it?! We love spending ours traveling around Pittsburgh meeting new friends and making people smile! Recently, we visited the St. Angela Parish Festival in White Oak, PA to spread some smiles with our fun cookie decorating table.

At the festival, Smiley had a fun time eating the delicious food (Pierogies were his favorite!) and doing the Cha Cha Slide! He also loved playing all the games, including basketball. To our surprise, Smiley was a pretty sweet basketball player and had a knack for swooshing them in the net!

We are definitely enjoying each and every event we attend and hope to see you sometime this summer! If you want to catch us, click here to find out where we’re going next!  Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram so you can see all of our adventures!
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Hey friends!

Emily here from Team Smiley. July is Eat’n Park Family Month at the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium and this past weekend, we were having a blast during our first Smiley Saturday! Every Saturday in July, you’ll find us and Smiley at the front entrance of the zoo, ready to decorate some cookies and have some fun!

During our first Smiley Saturday, we saw tons of smiles and made so many new friends! Smiley got the chance to hang out with some of the Zoo’s coolest animals including their mascots, Flurry, the polar bear, and Rhino. Smiley was so excited!

On top of that, there was an incredible chalk art display in front of our cruiser done by one of the zoo’s staff! Check out that talent!

Come see us at the Pittsburgh Zoo for the next three Saturdays in July! All kids who visit the zoo during family month will receive a free kids’ meal coupon for our favorite restaurant: Eat’n Park! We are so excited to meet more friends and plan to go a little wild! Click here to where will be next and make sure to follow us on Instagram (@enpteamsmiley) to stay up to date on all of our latest adventures!

Talk to you guys next week,
Emily and your friends from Team Smiley
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Go wild for smiles this July during Eat’n Park Family Month at the Pittsburgh Zoo! In addition to enjoying music, crafts, and all your favorite animals, all kids who visit the zoo during family month will receive a free kids’ meal coupon for Eat’n Park. It’s a summer activity that’s fun for the whole family!
Smiley himself will be at the zoo every Saturday in July for Smiley Saturdays! He and his friends, Team Smiley, will be arriving in style via their Cookie Cruiser to take photos and decorate Smiley Cookies!

We hope to see you there!

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Hey everyone! Zach here from Team Smiley. We are about halfway through our summer internship and bringing the fun wherever we go! We recently took our Cookie Cruiser to Monroeville to enjoy a sunny day at their 5th-annual Summer Family Fun Fest. The theme was “Under the Sea,” so of course Smiley insisted on bringing fish-shaped Smiley Cookies for all to decorate!

Smiley made so many new friends who couldn’t wait for the chance to give him a hug. Hugs always make him smile!

All of us on Team Smiley absolutely love to smile, so we wanted to find out what makes others smile! We asked our friends who came to our cookie-decorating tent and found out that they smile thanks to cookies, funny faces, and special people in their lives. We loved this activity so much that we can’t wait to try it at some other events, too!

We are looking forward to hanging out with all of you at the rest of our events this summer, including every Saturday in July at the Pittsburgh Zoo for Eat’n Park Family Month!

Click here to see the full schedule of where Team Smiley will be next and make sure to follow us (@enpteamsmiley) on our Instagram to see more of our adventures.

Hope to see you soon,
Zach and your Team Smiley friends
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Hey smiley friends, Claire here from Team Smiley! Boy, did we have a busy weekend full of fun. Not only did we attend Pirates Kid Zone outside of PNC Park, but we also took on the Plum SummerFest at Larry Mills Park! We were so happy to be a part of such a big and entertaining event that had some fun activities including a merry-go-round and a roller coaster. With a little encouragement from his friends, Smiley was brave enough to ride the Ferris wheel and loved it!

He also enjoyed playing all the games and even won some sweet prizes for his fellow teammates.

Did we mention that Smiley was also a celebrity guest judge for the hula-hoop contest?! Though there was only one winner, Smiley passed out cookies to all the contestants for giving it their best shot!

What a great weekend! Click here to find out where we’ll be popping up next and follow us on Instagram to keep up with all our adventures.

See you soon,
Claire & your friends from Team Smiley

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Love to share smiles across the miles AND have an obsession with everyone’s favorite Smiley Cookie? Then we’ve got a sweet opportunity for you! We’re hiring a team of Eat’n Park brand fans to join our 2019 Team Smiley summer internship program!


Every year, Team Smiley spreads goodwill, good times, and great tasting Smiley Cookies all over the tri-state area. In addition to growing relationships in the community, the team works alongside Eat’n Park’s marketing department, gaining practical insight and contributing to company initiatives. It will be a smiley summer that you won’t soon forget!

Want to hear a first-hand account of what you can expect from this internship program? Watch this video made by our former Team Smiley interns!


Click here to learn more and apply for this paid position!
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Smiley has really enjoyed traveling to every single Eat’n Park restaurant this summer as a part of Smiley’s Summer Road Trip! As we enter August, Smiley will be focused on visiting his friends in West Virginia and Ohio. If you haven’t gotten the chance to see Smiley yet, you still have time mingle with the big cookie from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at one of the remaining road trip stops:

• August 2 Willoughby, OH 
• August 5 Chapel Hill, OH 
• August 5 Steubenville, OH 
• August 6 Medina, OH 
• August 6 St. Clairsville, OH 
• August 7 Mentor, OH 
• August 8 Wheeling, WV 
• August 9 Weirton, WV 

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There are just a few weeks left of Smiley’s Summer Road Trip, where Smiley is on a mission to visit all 68 Eat’n Park restaurants in one summer! Smiley has been busy stamping his biggest fans’ passports and making many new friends.

Throughout the summer, Smiley’s friends have been sharing their most prized possessions with him. This has turned into a show and tell of sorts! Check out these awesome kids showing off their favorite things (and best smiles).

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In addition to Smiley’s Road Trip, where Smiley is on a mission to visit all 68 Eat’n Park’s, the big cookie himself is also traveling to various events this summer in your local community! But you might be wondering how does he get there?! Well… Smiley has his very own Cookie Cruiser!

The cruiser is made up of 4 wheels and everything it takes to spread smiles for miles. It has been getting Smiley and the team from point A to point B since 2004. At many of the events where the Cookie Cruiser is spotted, you will find Smiley greeting his biggest fans and decorating cookies with Team Smiley. Not only is it a trusted vehicle, but it also makes for a perfect background for a photo op!


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Smiley’s Road Trip is in full swing and the big cookie himself is well on his way to completing his mission to visit all 68 Eat’n Park restaurants! His summer has been jam packed full of his favorite things including photo ops, cookie decorating, and meeting his biggest fans!


Whether you’re trekking across the nation this summer or driving to your local Eat’n Park, Smiley wanted us to share his list of his road trip essentials that he never leaves home without!

• Favorite pair of sunglasses: Smiley brings out his favorite pair of shades when he’s having fun in the sun!
• A stylish hat: Smiley’s favorite is his red baseball cap.
• A dozen Smiley Cookies: A sweet road trip snack! 
• Fresh bottle of water to stay hydrated in the summer heat
• Handy paper map in case your GPS takes you off the grid
• Pocketful of friends to keep you company on the road 
• A rockin’ playlist to sing some carpool karaoke 
• Picnic basket full of Eat’n Park Superburgers (Smiley’s Favorite)
• Most importantly: A big smile!

See you on the road!
Team Smiley
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We’ve made it to the halfway mark in Smiley’s Summer Road Trip! The big cookie himself has visited 40 Eat’n Park locations so far!

Here are some Highway Highlights from Smiley’s most recent visits:

• At one of our tour stops, Smiley met a fan who has been going to Eat’n Park every day since 1956! That’s over 22,000 visits!

• While Team Smiley was driving on I-79 to our Morgantown Eat’n Park, a car on the highway pulled up beside the Cookie Cruiser to show us their own Smiley Cookies! They definitely shared their smiles for miles with us!

• Smiley has been loving the creative art work he has been receiving at his road trip stops from his fans, including the drawing below from his friend, Henry!

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