It was like Willy Wonka’s fantastic chocolate factory come to life and transplanted to Anderson’s Towne Center Park.

With a giant slingshot, two huge inflatable slides, and yes, Willy Wonka himself, the Taste of Nestlé festival brought out crowd unseen since Anderson’s General Motors heyday.

“I bet there’s 5,000 to 10,000 people here now,” Deputy Fire Chief Dan Dykes said as he walked Meridian Street around 5 p.m. “They were planning for 30,000, and with everyone getting out of work, they may get that.”

By comparison, most downtown events in Anderson attract a few hundred people, he said.

Near the Willy Wonka/Nerds booth, 7-year-old Jake Drechsler stood inside a clear plastic booth, surrounding by swirling golden dollars.

“It was cool!” he said, eyes big, arms full of the Laffy Taffy and Nerds candy he won for catching the bits of paper.

“I haven’t seen anything like this in a long time,” his mom, Michelle Drechsler, 36, said. “I grew up in Anderson. It’s nice to see people out.”

From the plastic money booth to an inflatable side, at least 20 feet high.

“I went down the mountain!” 4-year-old Chasity Welker said.

“It felt bouncy!” her cousin Darren James House, 5, said, his brown eyes wide.

Their cousin, 9-year-old Dakota Moore, said going down the slide was the most fun thing at the festival.

“It’s fun,” Nigel Moore, 8, said, in summary.

The four cousins were supervised by their grandmother, 60-year-old retired pizza maker Laura Webb.

“I love it,” she said, cradling an armful of NesQuick bottles of chocolate milk. “It’s good to see something nice and peaceful going on.”

Nejiba Ayari, a therapist for Medicare, called her friend Vickie Watson, a stay-at-home mom, to go to the festival.