Apple Cup Café Prepares for Another Community Thanksgiving

“It’s Magical, it really is!”

by Dennis Rahm

“This is truly a community dinner. If you’ve never attended before, just come on down and be a part of it. It’s magical, it really is”.

Apple Cup Café owner Ryan Peterson is talking about this week’s 23^rd annual Community Thanksgiving dinner at the Apple Cup Café.

Ryan and his wife Erin bought the family business from his parents Larry and Diane Peterson in 2013. The free community dinner was a vision of Ryan’s Dad, Larry, and was created back in 1996. Since that time, the event has served upwards of 20,000 meals. A typical year will see about 800 to 1500 diners with two-thirds of the meals served inside the restaurant and the other third delivered to those who can’t get out, or who are working.

Peterson notes the community event wouldn’t be possible without the many volunteer workers and the contributions of food items from Sysco and Franz Bakery. Also, key he said is the ability to cook all the turkey’s at the Lake Chelan Eagles Club.

The Thursday meal is a traditional Thanksgiving dinner comprised of turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, dinner rolls, corn, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and coffee, tea and soda. The Apple Cup Café will serve Thanksgiving dinner from 11 am until 2 pm.

Peterson is hoping for another large turnout and notes “there are some families who have come every single year”. Another tradition of this annual event is the collection of food items and cash donations for the local food bank.

For more insight and history about the Apple Cup Community Thanksgiving, listen to our audio interview with Ryan Peterson.