Even before you get to the door of The Dutch Kernal Gourmet Popcorn, 2518 Walton Blvd., Warsaw, the aroma lures you in.
It could be the smell of the caramel popcorn, or the cheddar popcorn. Maybe it’s the cookies and cream popcorn, or the pizza popcorn. With so many flavors, at least one of them is going to be your new favorite snack.
On Friday, the Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce had a ribbon-cutting ceremony for The Dutch Kernal, whose grand opening is Saturday, March 9.

    A batch of salted caramel almond popcorn is made Friday at The Dutch Kernal, 2518 Walton Blvd., Warsaw. Photo by David Slone, Times-Union
  

Owner Veronica Miller said, “We have over 40 different flavors of gourmet popcorn. Some of it is chocolate drizzled, some of it is traditional. We have, of course, the cheese and caramel. And then we sell popcorn supplies, nostalgic candy, cotton candy. We make over 10 different flavors of cotton candy. We have fudge - a few different flavors of fudge. Taffy. We get our candy out of a company in Texas that’s just a wonderful candy company.”
They have sports tins.
The popcorn is kept rotated and fresh.
“We’re not cooking quite every day, but, yes, we go through it fast enough,” Miller said.

    Veronica Miller, owner of The Dutch Kernal, 2518 Walton Blvd., Warsaw, scoops up one of the more than 40 flavors of popcorn the business offers. Photo by David Slone, Times-Union
  

They also offer fundraisers where organizations can earn 40% profit.
“Typically, people take orders for up to two weeks, and then once they turn that in, they get to keep 40% at that time, and give us some time to put the order together and they deliver it then,” Miller explained. “We try to have it to the consumer within a month of them ordering it.”
The Dutch Kernal in the Walmart shopping plaza is their second location. Miller opened a location in Nappanee in 2018, and they’re opening a third location in South Bend in a couple weeks.
“We got a lot of Warsaw customers in Nappanee, and people kept saying they want to see us in Warsaw,” Miller said. “A friend of mine actually was going to partner with us, and then she ended up backing out. We went on with it and Warsaw just seemed like a good fit. Everybody’s been so welcoming, so friendly and very supportive to this little small business and we don’t even have our sign out yet.”
The Warsaw location has been open since Jan. 19, which was National Popcorn Day.

    The signature gold tins at The Dutch Kernal, 2518 Walton Blvd., Warsaw, come in various sizes. Photo by David Slone, Times-Union
  

For the grand opening on Saturday, March 9, Miller said they are offering 20% off of all of their popcorn; $1 slushies; and are giving away buttered popcorn and offering free samples.
“What I want people to know is, when they come in here, we’re going to offer them free samples of popcorn. I’m going to hook you up with a cup of any flavored popcorn, and we want people to have a good time when they’re here,” she said.
Hours of The Dutch Kernal are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
They offer weekly specials. On Mondays, they have a name game where they pick a random name and that person can go in that day, show their ID and get a free bag of popcorn. There are $2 Tuesdays, and on Wednesdays tins are 60% off for refills. Thursdays are $1 slushies day. The tins are The Dutch Kernal’s signature gold tins that can be refilled for 50% off.
For more information, including ordering, visit their website at www.thedutchkernal.com.