It hearkens back to a more innocent age, this small, intimate place that's been updated through the years. In its earliest days it contained mostly farmland and skating rinks. Now it includes 30 rides, a water park, miniature golf course and even go-karts.

But it's the food -- specifically Spaghetti Wednesdays -- at DelGrosso's Amusement Park in Tipton, Blair County, that keeps people coming back week after week.

The DelGrosso family bought the former Bland's Park just off Interstate 99 in 1946, just as the family was getting its food business off the ground. The DelGrossos had a canning factory there for their array of sauces until 1976.

Then family members wanted a place to showcase their spaghetti sauce. What better way to do it, they thought, than to host weekly community dinners at the local amusement park.

Spaghetti Wednesdays were started in 2002, and they now draw more than 1,300 people to the park for lunch and dinner, said Peter Gardella, president of DelGrosso's Amusement Park Inc.

"It's a social event locally," Gardella said.

One of the things that attracts people is that all the pasta is cooked fresh, and all the dishes are homemade, he said. It takes about six people cooking and 25 serving to run Spaghetti Wednesdays smoothly.

"There are people that come every Wednesday," he said. "A lot of people enjoy trying the different features."

Besides its standard spaghetti and meatballs, DelGrosso's also serves one specialty dish each week such as stuffed shells, linguine with clam sauce and lasagna.

Ray Amato, a supervisor in Antis, the township that contains Tipton, is one of the locals who eat at the park weekly. He loves the eggplant parmesan.

Amato often holds luncheon meetings there for township business, and on weeks with no sessions, he takes his wife and grandchildren to the park for dinner.

Besides eating, the kids like to play miniature golf and go on the rides.

"It's just a great park," said Amato, 70. "It's for the people. The prices are right. They go out of their way to serve you in any way possible."

Over the years, the park has seen its share of ups and downs. There were times when DelGrosso family members had to work without pay to keep the place running. But, the past several years have not been so difficult.

Much of their success, Gardella said, depends on the weather. This year it's been fantastic. He added that it seems amusement parks are coming back in vogue, and DelGrosso's is no exception.

"We've been riding that tide the last 10 years," he said.

He attributes the park's popularity to its location. In Tipton, there aren't a lot of entertainment options -- no movie theaters; no fine restaurants. The rural atmosphere helps bring people in, he said. There are 16 park pavilions at DelGrosso's -- some of which hold as many as 1,000 people. Every weekend, they're packed with people holding family reunions and company picnics.

"If we had more, they'd be full," he said.

Lunch on Spaghetti Wednesdays is served from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., and dinner is served from 4:30 to 7 p.m. Meals, including beverages, are $5.45 for adults, and $3.95 for children. Spaghetti Wednesdays run through Aug. 24.