The stuff is fresh, and much of it is absolutely delicious. Most of the food is cooked before your very eyes, and none is made ahead and held longer than the short time it takes to get it scooped, wrapped or off the griddle and into a container. Doughnuts are made from scratch. So are the apple dumplings and cinnamon twists, spirals of sweet dough and spices. Mountains of Red Delicious apples get crackling crisper and glowing redder after a dunk in caramelized sugar.
Belgian waffles start as batter clinging to an iron branding tool.
Then, magically, the batter turns crisp and light after a dip in bubbling fat, ready to shatter at each bite. It is so light that to keep it from floating away, the waffle should be ordered weighed down with ice cream, strawberries and whirls of whipped cream. Should anyone lapse into a health guilt trip, there are turkey croissant sandwiches, pasta or green salads and strawberry cups, crimson heaps of berries so high they could easily fill a pie plate. There are 18 food stands in the park. Lots of candy.