We have stopped by Bergman Orchards twice in two months as we returned home from our adventure days. We have always stopped at Bergman Orchards on our way home from Lakeside and we did last month. But I didn’t know there was more than one location. Turns out there are three locations and we stopped at a new one (to me) on our way home from South Bass Island.
Bergman Orchards has been a Catawba Peninsula staple for 150 years. Bergman Orchards is as much a tourist staple up here as Lakeside, Cedarpoint, or Kelly’s Island. They sell the produce they grow wholesale, but their three retail locations are always super busy. I am most familiar with the one on Rte 269, which is their oldest location. Although you can find other things there, they mostly just stock produce.
Coming back from South Bass Island, we stopped at the location on Rte 53 and it was eye-opening. Instead of just produce, they had a huge selection of baked goods and other delicious local food. They also had mums and patio furniture for sale. I was eyeing a porch swing, but Tom reminded me we had to repair the deck before he wanted to buy any furniture for it. One of the unique items for sale was cider of different varieties. I loved mulled apple cider on a hot day, but they also had peach and blackberry cider. These are not hard ciders and they were selling out as soon as they came in. The person in front of me in line bought the last gallon of peach cider.
Dad always sticks to fruit at Bergman Orchards so he bought some melons and peaches. I bought a selection of cookies – it was hard to choose just two kinds to get – and a cinnamon apple bread. Mom, Tom and I spent a while admiring the gourds, pumpkins, and squashes in their resplendent beauty. Such a huge variety! I love the heritage gardening that is being done now. Not only are flavors enhanced, but the colors are spectacular!
Bergman Orchards is a wonderful place to stop if you happen to be near the Catawba Peninsula. I do not know how much longer they will be open, or if they are open year-round. You can check them out on Facebook. Their website is particularly useless unless you only want to know their locations.