The NC Pickle Festival is an annual event that celebrates all things pickly. Taking place in Mount Olive, NC, where, you guessed it, Mount Olive Pickle Company resides. I have never been to this festival before but, as a pickle lover, I felt it was where I needed to be. Though Kenny is not a pickle lover, he still agreed to accompany me and smell and admire pickles all day. I tried to get him to try one but, alas, he would not. Oh well, more for me.
Things To See And Do At The 2024 NC Pickle Festival
The highlight of the NC Pickle Festival for me was the Pickle-ade. As you may have already guessed – it’s lemonade mixed with pickle juice. I honestly thought it might be nasty but I was ready to try it anyway! However it was surprisingly delicious. I mean really, REALLY tasty. To me, the pickle flavor actually toned down the lemonade and made it an overall more mild, less tart drink – exactly the opposite of what I was expecting. I would drink it at home if I knew exactly how they made it. I got to watch the lemons being freshly squeezed as the drinks were ordered while I went through the line, so there was a nice assurance that there was none of that powdery stuff. The day was really hot and the lines were long, so this was a nice refreshing treat that I was not expecting.
It was also fun the see the Mount Olive pickle dude walking around. As I said, it was hot outside, so I can’t imagine how he felt in that costume. Perhaps he drank a lot of Pickle-ade to stay hydrated? Or is that like pickle cannibalism? Hmmm… There was also a band playing but, honestly, they weren’t all that great, so I won’t mention their names. There were other music groups to be featured throughout the day who might have been better – we only saw the one – so don’t let that dissuade you. Go for the real highlight of the show – THE PICKLES – which they give out FREE! The NC Pickle Festival also features a 5k, a pageant and a recipe contest if you are into any of those type things!
The only thing I found a bit disappointing about the NC Pickle Festival was the shirts. I waited in line for probably about an hour to purchase a shirt at the Mount Olive booth just to find out that there were no plain Mount Olive shirts. I wanted one that just said Mount Olive on the front. Instead, the only shirts available with the Mount Olive logo across the front ALSO had a team hashtag on the back – the teams being UNC, North Carolina State and Duke, if I remember correctly. I am not really interested in team sports, but if I wanted a team shirt it would be for my alma mater, Appalachian State. I ended up buying the UNC one because I had already waited in line that long and at least they are in the same network of schools. Plus the shirts were only $12, so I can’t whine too much. Have you bought a concert t-shirt lately? Yikes. But still… Please oh pickly pickle decision makers, how about an APP STATE shirt next year. Or just a plain pickle shirt? We came for the pickles! Pretty pickly please?
Get Social With NC Pickle Festival
Website / Check out our photos from the 2024 NC Pickle Festival on Flickr.
