Dig in with Graver: Don’t Worry, Be Smiley

PHOTO COURTESY OF EAT’N PARK

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and I’m finding inspiration in a Smiley Cookie.

Eat’n Park’s cheerful treat celebrates the Big 4-0 this year, but that hasn’t dulled his enthusiasm for life. Smiley Cookies were recently named the “Coolest Thing Made in PA” in a bracket-style competition sponsored by the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry.

The Pittsburgh-based restaurant chain bakes nearly seven million Smiley Cookies every year, donating more than 200,000 of them to community events and charitable organizations. Plus, every kid who dines at “The Place for Smiles” gets one at the end of their meal.

Smiley made his debut when I was 7 and has helped this lifelong pessimist turn her frown upside down on a number of occasions. (Admittedly, when it comes to emotive pastries, I prefer the King’s Family Restaurant Frownie.)

While growing up in Titusville, former Eat’n Park Chairman Jim Broadhurst made after-school visits to Warner’s Bakery for big, beaming sugar cookies that the business makes to this day. In 1986, with owner Ellsworth Warner’s blessing, Broadhurst put his own spin on Smiley Cookies and added them to Eat’n Park’s brand.

A Pittsburgh icon was born.

PHOTO COURTESY OF EAT’N PARK

I learned these bits — or, in this case, bites — of trivia from Lynn McMahon, a local author who wrote the book on Eat’n Park for the company’s 75th anniversary in 2022. It’s a fun, informative read that’ll make you smile through fat, nostalgic tears. As I flipped through the pages, I was thrilled to find a photo of my great-aunt Kathy Carter, who worked at the McKees Rocks location for 30 years.

PHOTO COURTESY OF EAT’N PARK

There have been dozens of limited-edition Smileys released over the decades, ranging from seasonal shapes and special flavors to famous faces such as artist Andy Warhol, documentarian Rick Sebak, “Pittsburgh Dad” Curt Wootton, Pirates’ phenom pitcher Paul Skenes and Steelers Brett Keisel and Cam Heyward.

Interest in Smiley Cookies spiked during the Super Bowl in 2006 after Pittsburgh Mayor Bob O’Connor and Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels wagered some of their respective city’s sweets. Distribution went nationwide later that year (displaced yinzers desperately missed their hometown dessert).

In addition to a multitude of merchandise, the mascot’s got a sweet ride, the Cookie Cruiser, that transports him to and from hundreds of appearances throughout the region.

PHOTO COURTESY OF EAT’N PARK

Hungry fans can go online to add personal photos to Smiley Cookies or buy a decorating kit to make a dozen in their own likeness — a self-esteem and sugar boost in one!

For his 40th, Smiley is getting a Merry Berry Month of May makeover with strawberry icing and a pink face. Eat’n Park’s Merry Berry and Christmas Star commercials get a lot of attention, but where’s the love for Smiley’s 1992 claymation spot?

Despite his popularity, Smiley does have detractors, including a reader who recently emailed my boss to tell her to tell me how much she hates them. I’m assuming the sourpuss won’t be celebrating National Sugar Cookie Day on July 9 with an offering from Eat’n Park.

Don’t sweat it, Smiley. As my therapist says, not everyone’s going to like you. That’s just the way the cookie crumbles.