Anyone making the trek into the California high desert this week should look out for the triangular cheddar-orange sign jutting into the horizon.
For one week only, Cheez-It has transformed a Joshua Tree gas station into the Cheez-It Stop, a pop-up store featuring merch, postcards and, of course, crackers.
The pop-up, at 61943 Twentynine Palms Highway, is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day through Sunday. The outpost is approximately 130 miles from downtown Los Angeles and 170 miles from downtown San Diego.
“We know many Cheez-It fans love to travel and they never hit the road without their beloved Cheez-It,” said Erin Storm, Cheez-It brand senior director, in a statement. “We created this brand-first desert outpost to capture the excitement of summer road trips.”
Yucca Valley resident Maggie Downs said she was the fourth person in line for the Cheez-It Stop on Monday. She had driven past the gas station as it was undergoing the transformation and it piqued her curiosity.
“When I saw it was going to be a Cheez-It thing, I was like, ‘That’s weird enough that I have to go,’” Downs said.
Downs described the pop-up as a “choose-your-own adventure for snack crackers,” with every detail being “very cheesy,” literally.
“The first thing I noticed was the cacti had shellaced Cheez-Its on the needles,” Downs said.
One unique feature of the destination is the “Cheez-It Pump,” a device that resembles a gas pump but dispenses bags of Cheez-It crackers into souvenir duffel bags provided by the event.
“It was bizarre,” Downs said, “and kind of wonderful.”
The pop-includes a shop that sells apparel including sunglasses, T-shirts, aprons and headphones, as well as souvenirs like postcards and shot glasses.
And for the real Cheez-It fans, the shop offers hard-to-find flavors, such as “Hot & Spicy” and “Cheddar & Bacon Duoz.”
Jeremy Childs
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