Who doesn’t love guacamole?! Guacamole is a delicious dip that pairs perfectly with chips and beer. National Guacamole Day is September 16, so read on to learn eight delicious facts about guacamole to celebrate.

1. Avocados have decades of history
Before avocados were avocados, they were known as ahuacate. They were cultivated and eaten in Mexico, Central America, and South America as far back as 500 BC.

2. Guacamole was invented by the Aztecs
You have the Aztecs to thank for your favorite dip. When the Spaniards arrived in Mexico, they were introduced to an Aztec sauce called ahuaca-molli. Molli was the Nahautl word for something mashed or pureed, and the word ahuaca relates to avocados.

3. Avocados have been rebranded
Did you know avocados used to be called alligator pears? The exterior of avocados resembles bumpy green alligator skin, but the interior is soft and delicious. In 1927, the California Avocado Growers’ Exchange complained about the alligator pear name and requested it be changed.

4. The avocado has notable relatives
The avocado is a member of the lauracae family, which is the same family of bay leaves, cinnamon, camphor, and sassafras.

5. The most popular avocado variety was patented by a postal worker
Yes, you read that right! The Hass avocado was patented by Rudolph Hass, a postal worker who purchased the seedling from a farmer in 1926 and filed a patent for it in 1935.

6. California leads the U.S. production of avocados
If you’re eating an avocado that was grown in the U.S., odds are that avocado was grown in California. Nearly 90 percent of all avocados grown in the U.S. are grown in a five-county region of southern California.

7. Mexican avocados were once banned in the U.S.
In 1914, Hass avocados were not allowed to be imported into the United States from Mexico. However, after a two-year debate, the USDA lifted the ban in 1997.

8. The biggest guacamole serving weighed almost 3 tons
When 450 students in Tancitaro, Michoacan, Mexican prepared a serving of guacamole, they set a Guinness World Record. Their dish ended up weighing 5,885.24 pounds, or as much as some elephants.

Hungry from some guacamole yet? If you are, you must visit Verde Kitchen & Cocktails! Head over to our restaurant at 70 E Main Street in Bay Shore today!

National Guacamole Day | Best Mexican in Long Island