Welcome to North Carolina! Home of great weather and even better foods. While you enjoy some of your favorite foods and drinks, ever wondered where they originated? Enjoy some of your favorite treats in their birthplace and learn even more than you ever thought you could.

North Carolina is home to tons of unique foods, drinks, and places to enjoy them all. Visit NC shares six of North Carolina’s most famous foods born in the state. They may be born here, but they can be enjoyed by tons of people throughout the country. Here are six of North Carolina’s great food stories.

• Pepsi

  Pepsi-Cola began in a drugstore in New Bern in 1898 at the hands of pharmacist Caleb Bradham. He hoped to create a fountain drink that was both delicious and helpful in aiding digestion and boosting energy. Visit the Birthplace of Pepsi in New Bern, the actual site where Pepsi-Cola was invented.

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• Cheerwine

   Cheerwine soda was created in the basement of L.D. Peeler’s wholesale grocery store in Salisbury during a World War I sugar shortage. Cheerwine can now be found in several Southern states and California. 

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• Mt. Olive Pickles

  Founded in 1926,  Mt. Olive Pickle Company has grown over board. Located at the corner of Cucumber Blvd. and Vine St. in Mount Olive, it’s the largest privately held pickle company in the nation.

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• Krispy Kreme

  Vernon Rudolph founded Krispy Kreme in Winston-Salem in 1937 and sold his first donuts for 25 cents a dozen after borrowing the ingredients from a nearby grocer. The company has grown to serve customers across the United States and around the world. 

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• Texas Pete

  You got that right, Texas Pete was not born in Texas! It was actually developed by three brothers in the 1940s in Winston-Salem. Three brothers, Thad, Ralph and Harold Garner; father Samuel Garner; and Mother Jane began their business making the sauce in pots on the stove in their family home. 

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• Bojangles' Famous Chicken 'N Biscuits

  Jack Fulk and Richard Thomas founded the first Bojangles’ restaurant in Charlotte in 1977. They based their ideas on 3 attributes: distinctive flavor, high-quality products made from scratch and a festive restaurant design with friendly service. Today there are more than 700 Bojangles’ locations across the nation. 

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