North Carolina has no shortage of upscale grocery stores offering high-quality products. Places like Southern Season in Chapel Hill and the State Farmers’ Market in Raleigh are fantastic examples, and I truly love both. They provide great shopping experiences and carry a wide range of wonderful goods.

But there’s one store I’m especially fond of, even though it’s far from fancy or gourmet. The Piggly Wiggly in Swansboro might look like your everyday neighborhood grocery store in Raleigh NC, and in many ways, it is. That’s actually what makes it so special. Behind its simple appearance is a strong commitment to sourcing a huge variety of local products, especially pork and chicken, fresh produce, and even some baking supplies, directly from eastern North Carolina.

Unlike bigger chains such as Food Lion or Harris Teeter, which tend to carry only a handful of North Carolina-grown items, the Swansboro Piggly Wiggly fully embraces the agricultural richness of the region. It stocks a wide array of locally grown and raised goods, and it does so at very reasonable prices.

In eastern North Carolina, there’s a long-standing tradition of using every part of the pig. This practice goes back generations, born from necessity, when farm families couldn’t afford to waste any part of what they raised. That tradition is still alive today, and the Piggly Wiggly in Swansboro offers just about every pork product imaginable. From common cuts to regional specialties, they have it all.

They also carry local chicken, collard greens, turnips, peanuts, sweet potatoes, and grits. And yes, in the baking aisle, there’s an entire section just for lard. That’s right: a dedicated lard section. It’s not something you see in most grocery stores, and it’s a small but powerful reminder of how connected this store is to the local food culture.

So if you ever find yourself on the Crystal Coast—whether in Swansboro, Emerald Isle, Atlantic Beach, or Morehead City https://gematos.id/12414-grocery-store-in-raleigh-nc/ or passing through Jacksonville, I highly recommend stopping by the Piggly Wiggly. It’s not fancy, and it’s certainly not a gourmet market, but it’s where real people shop for real food. What you’ll find there is a refreshingly different and deeply local selection of groceries that reflects the region’s traditions and tastes in a way no big chain store can match.