Will you be doing anything special to celebrate National Pickle Day today? How about visiting the Mount Olive Pickle Gift Shop in North Carolina?
Although I won’t be in Mount Olive on National Pickle Day, I was really excited to be able to make a stop there earlier this year with family while we were on vacation.
We successfully made it the the corner of Cucumber and Vine and found the gift shop. I was kind of surprised we had to stop at a guard station before entering the parking lot area.
Another surprise for me was the size of the gift shop. I don’t know why, but I had envisioned a large store full of pickle themed items. It was probably a good thing the gift shop itself was smaller than I had anticipated because it still took me (and my daughters) quite a while to decide what pickle themed items we wanted to purchase – there were so many goodies to choose from!
We ended up buying t-shirts, an apron, postcards, cards and envelopes, a keychain, and a stuffed pickle toy (isn’t it cute?).
We also picked up a bookmark and scratch ‘n sniff pickle stickers. So, yes, the gift shop was definitely big enough to hold plenty of pickle themed souvenirs!
It was also neat for me to see my book Pickles, I Like Pickles on a shelf for sale there.
Did you see these 20 gifts under $25 for pickle lovers?
According to an informational sheet we picked up while at the gift shop, “Mt. Olive is the best-selling brand of pickles, peppers and relishes in the U.S.”
Mount Olive Pickle Company does not offer tours; however, if you stop in the gift shop, you can ask to watch a video about Mount Olive Pickle Company. Asking to watch the video is like a secret code to a backroom filled with jars of pickles and an area to watch the video.
My daughters and I had actually seen the video ahead of time while we were working on the course I created for Schoolhouse Teachers entitled Foods and Food Production.
You can also watch the Mount Olive Pickles Tour video from the comfort of your own home here if you are unable to make the trip to Mount Olive.
Those who have the opportunity to watch the video at the gift shop will also get a chance to choose a jar of pickles to take home. My family decided to choose jars of pickles we hadn’t tried before. Thankfully, they all made the trip back home safely.
I am so glad we had the opportunity to visit!
How will you celebrate National Pickle Day?
Brigitte Brulz 