Batches of fun at annual breakfast

By Keith O'Connor

05/15/2008- The Republican

They're called Pfannkuchen in Germany, Pannenkoeken in the Netherlands, Pooda in India, crepes in France, but right here in the good ol' USA they're also known as hotcakes, griddlecakes, and flapjacks - and plenty of them will be served up at Saturday's World's Largest Pancake Breakfast.

This year's annual breakfast buffet and community gathering, celebrating Springfield's 372nd birthday, is organized by the Spirit of Springfield and sponsored by springfielddowntown.com.

The menu includes hot and hearty pancakes courtesy of International House of Pancakes, coffee, juice and milk, along with plenty of local talent to entertain breakfast-goers, all presided over by this year's honorary chair Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno.

Volunteers begin preparing for the event at 6:30 a.m., but breakfast lovers will have to wait until 8 a.m. to munch on their IHOP pancakes and Carando Classic Italian Bacon while sitting at a long, long table set up along Main Street from Tower Square to Court Square.

"We've planned many more activities for families this year," said Judith A. Matt, president, Spirit of Springfield.

Among the special attractions awaiting kids and adults alike will be a display of emergency apparatus in Court Square by the Springfield Fire and Police Departments, bounce house, face painting, pony and carriage rides, climbing wall and more, as well as costumed characters including Screech, the Springfield Falcons mascot.

Two stages will offer entertainment beginning at 8 a.m. including performances on Harrison Avenue by Western Mass. Square and Roundance Association, Springfield Cultural Center, Huntington Dance Centre, and West Side Dance Center, while the Falcon Way stage will host performances by the YMCA, Mary Ann Studio of Dance, Dance Rhi Action, and the Springfield Cultural Center, as well as a special program at 9:30 a.m. with Mayor Sarno who will be serenaded by the Edward P. Boland School Chorus.

Saturday is also Armed Forces Day, and Matt noted area Girl Scouts will be decorating Court Square with yellow ribbons to honor our service men and women.

You can't throw a breakfast for thousands of people along Main Street without a little "dough," even though batter is the main ingredient of the day. And the "dough" for the breakfast comes in the form of donations, noted Matt, from area businesses such as IHOP who donates the pancakes and syrup. The batter is prepared at Mercy Medical Center and later at the breakfast the flapjacks are topped with butter from Agrimark/Cabot Creamery and accompanied by crunchy bacon from Carando. The coffee is provided by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters and brewed by the Hampden County Sheriff's Department Western Massachusetts Alcohol Control Center. The milk, orange juice and the two trucks it is stored in are compliments of H. P. Hood, with a third truck provided by Williams Distributing. The paper products and utensils come from Baystate Health, while Mansfield Paper donated the cups and Mercy Medical Center contributed the napkins, as well as printing tickets and fliers. Additional support for the breakfast nosh is provided by Elegant Affairs, Massachusetts State Lottery and the Springfield Parking Authority.

"It's a great thing to be involved in the community," said Charles W. Lindberg, franchise business consultant for International House of Pancakes. Now celebrating their 50th anniversary, IHOP has put the word "pancake" into the annual breakfast event since its early days as a competition between the cities of Springfield and Battle Creek, Mich., to see who could serve the most breakfasts.

"People love pancakes, they're so light and tasty and a nice way to start off the day," Lindberg added.

The pancake expert said he will be at Mercy Medical Center helping to prepare the batter before heading over to the breakfast on Saturday morning where his attention will turn to the temperature of the grills.

"Everyone seems to want their grills as high as they can be, but too much heat burns the pancakes. And, I'll be discussing the bubble theory with our volunteer chefs, which is when you see the batter bubble, you can turn the pancake over," Lindberg said.

Once the pancakes reach the plate, there will be some crunchy Carando bacon waiting to accompany it, not just any ordinary bacon, but natural hickory smoked bacon cured in apple cider.

"We're supporting a great cause and looking to get more involved in the community now that our sales and marketing office is open locally again," said Kevin J. Caputo, vice president of sales and marketing for Carando. After purchasing Carando in 1991, Farmland Foods of Mississippi later closed the local administrative offices in 1996.

"I can't be there myself this year, but I know we have a number of employees and their families who will be attending," said Caputo, who noted Carando is celebrating its 75th anniversary.

In addition to material contributions, Matt noted many groups, organizations and individuals donate their time, including members of the Massachusetts Army National Guard who will be hard at work preparing the World's Largest Pancake Breakfast well before breakfast is served. Among the several hundred volunteers are participants from 94.7 WMAS and AM 1450 WMAS, ABC40, Armoury Quadrangle Civic Association, CBS3 Springfield, City of Springfield Law Department, WHYN-AM, Girl Scouts of Central and Western Massachusetts, John Boyle O'Reilly Club, SATCO (PVTA), Springfield Code Enforcement/Building Division, Springfield Health and Human Services Department, Springfield Rotary, Springfield UNICO, United States Postal Workers, and Zonta Club of Springfield.