Unique Food Museums Around The World Every Food Enthusiast Should Visit
There are few things more fun for a food enthusiast than exploring different museums dedicated to this delicious subject. Here are five of the most unique food museums to check out on your travels.
What are Food Museums?
A country's evolution over the ages is often evident from the way its cuisine has changed over the years, from one generation to another. While a country's natives may have one distinguished style of cooking, ingredients and flavors in its food, new settlers and immigrants often add new variations to these and create new versions of the same dish. For example, the famous chili dish that is attributed to Texas. Legends say that immigrants from the Canary Islands brought the chili recipe with them when they settled in San Antonio in the 1700s. The chili recipe is now popular across the country, with each state adding their own variations and history to the classic dish. These historic facts and origin stories associated with different dishes across the world are found in cookbooks of different eras. But where can you, a food enthusiast, lay your hands on these fascinating pages of history? Try food museums!
When food enthusiasts embark on a tour, they mark their journey across places by the local cuisines, speciality foods, and unique offerings of each town, street or country. While history buffs and art enthusiasts have their share of galleries and monuments spread across the world, there are a few places dedicated to food history. However, there are a few hidden spots here you can acquaint yourself with the most interesting stories related to your favorite dishes. In this blog, we explore some of the most interesting food museums of the world.
Peanut Museum (United States)
The oldest forms of peanuts or groundnuts that have been found among archaelogical remains date back 7,600 years. These were possibly a wild species of the nut as we now know it. Peanuts are known to be a native produce of South America, but the first peanut museum was set up in Virginia in the United States. This was where a local resident started trading in peanuts in the 1800s. It was Dr. Matthew Harris who first experimented with different kinds of nuts, to finalize upon a few that he liked. He loaded his wagon with these nuts and rode to Petersburg, where he sold them in what was the start of a long and fruitful career in trade.
One can find these stories and various equipment and artefacts from those times at the peanut museum dedicated to Harris. The museum is housed in the Miles B. Carpenter Folk Art Museum complex in Virginia and has a dedicated building of its own. The museum welcomes groups keen to listen to the fascinating stories around this humble but ubiquitous nut.
Museum of Bread Culture (Germany)
If you're looking for fresh bread, you may not find a good loaf here. What you will find is the 6,000-year-old history of this staple food, across the different stages of humankind. From the tools used in the early ages, to famous artworks related to bread such as those by greats like Picasso, the museum has a collection of various objects that mark the evolution of bread. One will also find here exhibits that demonstrate the religious, cultural and social significance of bread.
The Museum of Bread Culture is located in the 16th-century city of Ulm in Germany. In total, there are over 16,000 artefacts related to the history and culture of bread consumption. You will also find here over 6,000 books that talk about the multiple histories of bread and how different recipes came into being.
Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum (Japan)
This is a museum and theme park in Yokohama City that celebrates everything related to ramen, the popular Japanese noodle. The museum displays different types of noodles, bowls, toppings, and serving styles seen across Japan, along with the information about processes of preparing the noodle and broth. Showcasing the history of noodle-making through a broad collection of utensils and tools used to prepare ramen over the centuries, it highlights how Healthy Eating became a way of life in this part of the world. The museum-cum-theme park also has nine ramen restaurants on its premises that belong to different regions of the country.
The Original Pizza Hut (United States)
That the iconic brand of Pizza Hut was started by two brothers in a small brick hut in Kansas, United States, is a popular fable most of us know. But do you also know that this hut is now a popular tourist destination that has been remodeled as a museum? Wichita State University students Dan and Frank Carney started a small pizza business on a street corner in Wichita in 1958 and operated it with the help of some friends and family. The business became a huge success in no time and the two went on to open more franchises in different cities. The original hut has now been shifted to the WSU campus and has been converted into a Pizza Hut museum that celebrates the journey of the brand, and the Carney brothers. From the stories behind their Bread Recipes to how the brothers went from one small hut to six stores and thousands later, this museum has some fascinating tales to tell.
Museo del Peperoncino (Italy)
Museo del Peperoncino or the Chili Pepper Museum is a small establishment located at the Ducal Palace in Maiera city of Italy. It was founded by Calabria's chili society. The museum houses paintings and art pieces, along with 150 varieties of the classic chili recipe. Since 2016, the museum has been part of the National Association of Small Museums. Its collection contains an exhibit on the 'chili road' a 5,000-year history of the chili recipe, from its journey across America and Europe. It also has a roomful of paintings and books on this berry fruit, and a dedicated section on famous pop culture references, including a Walt Disney collection and a satirical collection curated around the chili pepper.
Final Word
Food museums tell unique stories of how Food Trends have developed across geographies, over centuries, civilizations, and cultures. They are a great way to learn about different races and ethnicities, and the foods they enjoy. With so many different types of foods available, it can be hard to know where to start. Thankfully, there are plenty of unique food museums around the world that can help you broaden your culinary horizons. These were only a few examples of the many unique food museums out there, waiting to be explored. So next time you plan a holiday, why not include one of these fascinating institutions to your itinerary?
