If you have ever been to Erie, Pa odds are good you’ve been past Sara’s Restaurant. Only, it’s not just a restaurant. It’s a nostalgic, roadside attraction and tradition for visitors to Presque Isle State Park since 1980.

It started out as an ice cream stand but now has a menu of hot dogs, cheeseburgers, onion rings and the like and it is always busy. Luckily, there’s a big parking lot, lots of outdoor seating, plenty of fun things to look at and staff that hustles to keep things moving. 

Their motto is “Food tastes better with a smile” and we saw lots of smiles as families pose for pictures with things like Simpsons characters and a giant Humpty Dumpty perched atop a lifeguard chair. We wandered around outside so I could drool over advertising pieces before giggling at signs inside. 

We did just get shakes because there’s not much food on the menu that’s vegetarian friendly other than fries and onion rings and maybe not them depending on how they’re fried. But I am not their target market and there was still ice cream. 

There are sundaes, floats and cones to choose from but I opted for a shake. That’s the one thing I  forgot to take a picture of but it was just the right consistency, a mild chocolate, and the perfect size. 

I can see why folks have made a trek to Sara’s an annual tradition! Want to learn more? Visit their website so you can plan your visit. Hop over the Make the Journey Fun Facebook page today to see more pictures from my visit over Labor Day weekend!