On April 11, 2026, from 11 am to 4 pm, the Pimento Cheese Festival will be held in Downtown Cary.
The Pimento Cheese Festival isn’t a Downtown Cary event. It is THE Downtown Cary Event. It gives “The Big Cheese” a whole new meaning. There will be food, drinks, activities, and entertainment for all!
2026 will be the 8th annual Pimento Cheese Festival, and for first-timers or returning fans, it is a massive event. So here are some tips to help you have the best time possible at the “Gratest Festival in The South!“
Getting There
If you haven’t been to the festival before, we’re not kidding when talking about the scale. Streets in downtown will be closed off, and the event will cover all of the Downtown Park as well as South Academy Street. So the logistics of coming in the first place can be tricky and require some planning!
The event starts at 11 am, so one option is to arrive fairly early to get a nearby parking spot. Downtown Cary has a lot to offer, so maybe enjoying coffee and breakfast snacks at a spot like La Farm Bakery or Esteamed Coffee can be a relaxing start to a big day!
Another option is to be dropped off downtown by a friend or to use a rideshare service. Not worrying about parking will save you a lot of time and stress.
Finally, there is GoCary!, the handy bus system that can get you to the event from several surrounding areas, such as Raleigh and Apex. Their website and app make it very easy to plan where you want to go. Best of all, it is free to ride!
During the Festival
The event will last 5 hours, from 11 am to 4 pm, with activities throughout.
You or someone in your party should have a backpack or a bag to store things. This will keep your hands free so you can properly enjoy the food and drinks. There will be a Pimento Cheese Marketplace and a Merch Tent open during the event, and your souvenirs have to go somewhere. The Pimento Cheese festival will be outdoors, so it is also a good idea in general to keep water with you to stay hydrated.
Be sure to make the most out of this special event! There will be 35 food trucks serving dishes using pimento cheese and other unique dishes (plus their regular food items). There will be music performances at two stages (located at the Great Lawn and the Old Library Park). Catch the pimento cheese sculpting contest at 1 pm on the Great Lawn. Embrace the cheesy fun!
You can check out the schedule of events below:
| TIME | PROGRAM | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|
| 11 a.m. – 12:45 p.m. | The Embers Performance | Great Lawn Pavilion |
| 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Mouse Trap Kids Games | Gathering Garden |
| 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Scrap Exchange | The Nest Pavilion |
| 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Food Trucks and Breweries (see list below) | Surrounding the Park |
| 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Pimento Cheese Marketplace | Frantz Square |
| 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Pimento Cheese Lounge featuring DJ Tegan | Ivey Ellington Lot |
| 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Pimento Cheese Merch Tent | Academy Plaza |
| 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Closest to the Pin Golf Simulator | Park Street Arena |
| 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Cheese Carving by Sarah Kaufmann | Academy Pavilion |
| 12 p.m. – 2 p.m. | Puppy Cup with TST and Peak Lab Rescue | Park Street Arena |
| 1 p.m. – 2 p.m. | Pimento Cheese Sculpting Contest | Great Lawn Pavilion |
| 3 p.m. | Announcement of the Marketplace’s Best Pimento Cheese | Frantz Square Lawn |
| 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. | The Embers Performance | Great Lawn Pavilion |
We encourage you to check out the details of what you can expect for the Pimento Cheese Festival on the Downtown Cary Park’s website as well!
After the Festival
The announcement for the marketplace’s best pimento cheese for 2026 will happen at 3 pm. That is your last chance to enjoy anything you may have missed before everything is wrapped up at 4 pm.
Although the festival will end, the fun doesn’t have to! Downtown Cary always has plenty to offer its visitors.
If you still have room in your stomach, make dinner plans for the evening at one of our several restaurants, all within walking distance! Embrace more Southern cooking at Lawrence Barbecue or Scratch Kitchen. Or maybe you want to change it up with asian food at Zest, MC Cuisines, or SAAP. There are so many more restaurants, plus several places to get ice cream, drinks, and more to make the most of your trip. You can browse our directory to find what appeals to you!
If you really want to go all out and have the ultimate Pimento Cheese Festival experience, I recommend booking a room at The Mayton, the beautiful hotel right in the middle of Downtown Cary. You can enjoy the festival stress-free, where you can walk around without worrying about parking and other logistics. They are offering a special Pimento Cheese Festival Room Package that includes many benefits and perks to truly elevate your experience! Book now while it is still available.
Festival Number Eight is Going to be GRATE!
Hopefully, this guide helped you get ready and excited for the 2026 Pimento Cheese Festival! It is the biggest event of the year, and we always look forward to it! Enjoy your experience and if you are active on Instagram, you are welcome to share your fun pictures by tagging us (@downtowncary_nc) so we can showcase the excitement. We’ll see you there!
