Food on Display: 3 Museums for Foodies

The days of untouchable displays tucked safely behind a pane of glass are over. Museums are evolving. And with exciting titles like the British Lawnmower Museum, the Museum of Broken Relationships and the International Cryptozoology Museum, it’s clear that for every niche, there is an audience ready to gobble up the experience. As we continue to find new ways to share the things that we love, it’s only natural that humans would come together to enjoy something that unites us all — food.

Different from your average, run-of-the-mill experience, many food museums are fully immersive, encouraging visitors to smell, taste and touch their way through each well-thought-out display. The result is a delicious and unexpected experience that travelers won’t soon forget. And while there are so many fabulous food-focused museums to discover, here are three of the best for fun, culture and adventure.

The Museum of Ice Cream — Chicago, IL

Within the hustle and bustle of Michigan Avenue is a place where travelers can live out their wildest, sugar-fueled fantasies. The air smells of vanilla, and the facade is painted in a playful shade of pink. No, this isn’t heaven, it’s the Museum of Ice Cream. Representing the newest addition to a worldwide collection dedicated to the chilly confection,?Chicago’s Museum of Ice Cream?(MOIC) is what dreams are made of, dishing up unlimited sugary treats and endless photo ops.

Inside, visitors board a flavorful reimagination of Chicago’s famed “L” train where colorful scenes of cacti and sugar cones zip past the windows — a sweet reminder of the bottomless sugar rush to come. A friendly MOIC team member meets travelers around the corner for a brief introduction before giving them free rein to explore the museum’s various zones, each of which is marked by a larger-than-life version of a beloved treat. Jelly Belly jellybeans, cotton candy clouds, animal cracker carnival rides and maraschino cherries are just a few of the delightful desserts visitors will encounter. As they continue their journey, travelers will notice that the MOIC is totally immersive, encouraging guests of all ages to act like a kid with plenty of opportunities for taste testing and fun, perhaps the most well-documented of which is the museum’s Insta-famous sprinkle pool in which everyone is encouraged to take a dip.

As far as samples go, the star of the show is MOIC Chicago’s flagship treat, hot dog-flavored soft serve topped with mustard and relish served in a pink poppyseed bun. The strange combination is a creative ode to the Windy City’s beloved Chicago Dog and is reserved for the most adventurous of visitors. However, that’s not to say that those who find the thought of soft serve meat less than sweet are out of luck. Instead, the MOIC offers two versions of the treat — the original and a fruity, less meat-like version. Other goodies sprinkled throughout the museum are far less daring and include crowd-pleasing offerings such as cotton candy ice cream topped with real cotton candy, slushies, DOVEBARS? and more.

It is the MOIC’s hope that, by the end of their visit, travelers leave the space feeling inspired, connected and perhaps a tad bit more youthful. “Food is a language which we all understand,” said MOIC Founder Maryellis Bunn in a 2018 interview with CNBC. “When you have something as simple as ice cream, it’s something that’s really happy and it brings people together in a way that’s unexpected.” Once they eat their way through the Chicago installment, travelers can check out other MOIC locations in NYC, Austin, Singapore and Shanghai.

Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum — Yokohama, Japan

The Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum?is marked by a giant pair of chopsticks. Holding a hearty serving of Ramen, the familiar utensils float ghoulishly, their presence a playful homage to a dish beloved by so many. To the people of Japan, Ramen represents much more than a simple soup. Instead, it represents their culture and their history. And, despite its simplicity, some might argue that a good bowl of Ramen is culinary perfection. At Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum, travelers can explore this vast history through the power of taste with three floors of immersive exhibits, each of which acts as an unexpected gateway to a delicious world within.

Travelers begin their journey in the Gallery where they’ll discover a collection of curated exhibits focused on Ramen’s role in Japan and beyond. From tidbits on what the museum calls the “Dawn of Ramen” to modern renditions of the flavorful concoction, new noodle-y knowledge is sure to unfold. However, the real excitement begins on the basement level where a fantastical food court fit for travelers’ wildest Ramen-filled dreams awaits. Reminiscent of something one might encounter on the Vegas strip, the food court is cloaked in a constant state of twilight with dreamy reddish blue lighting and a cloud-dotted sky. The immersive set instantly transports visitors to the streets of Old Tokyo with red paper lanterns, old-school billboards and charming storefronts circa 1958. It also acts as the perfect backdrop for the main event — sampling Ramen from various regions of Japan.

Home to some of the best Ramen Japan has to offer all in one place, the museum presents travelers with a unique opportunity to try a wide variety of dishes. “From the start, our concept has been to be the one-stop place to enjoy the flavors of this national dish from renowned shops across Japan without stepping on a plane,” the museum website states. In order to allow visitors to sample as many dishes as possible, the museum offers two sizes (standard and mini), and travelers hoping to try them all are widely encouraged to opt for mini. Pork, kelp, miso and more, visitors’ tastebuds will embark on a delicious journey as they delight in the flavors of famous shops like Hacchan Ramen and Rishiri Ramen Miraku.

Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum made its debut in 1994 as the world’s first food-themed amusement park with the goal of bringing the magic of Ramen to people from around the world. The Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum is just a five- to ten-minute walk from Shin-Yokohama Station and is totally worthy of any foodie’s bucket list.

Disgusting Food Museum — Malm?, Sweden

There’s a lot of love for the world’s tastiest fare, but what of the foods and ingredients that don’t quite make the cut? Is there room in our hearts for the questionable choices and the downright revolting? What if I told you that there was a place where these misfit creations were embraced, nay, praised in all their gag-inducing glory? That place is the?Disgusting Food Museum?(DFM).

Located in Malm?, Sweden, the DFM opened its doors on October 31, 2018, a perhaps not-so-subtle nod to the ‘frights’ that wait within. However, while DFM’s namesake can come off as a bit alarmist, the inspiration behind the place is more about encouraging visitors to understand that the term ‘disgust’ is all a matter of perspective. “Disgust is one of the six fundamental human emotions,” said the DFM on its website. “While the emotion is universal, the foods that we find disgusting are not. What is delicious to one person can be revolting to another. Disgusting Food Museum invites visitors to explore the world of food and challenge their notions of what is and what isn’t edible.”

And for many, especially the less adventurous eaters, challenged they will be as the museum has some truly unique offerings on the table (quite literally). However, this brings us to a core question — who determines which foods are disgusting? Interestingly, each food that finds itself behind the DFM’s walls is there based on four criteria determined by museum Founder Samuel West — taste, texture, smell and the process by which it was made. Currently, 85 foods are on display, a respectable number compared to the over 400 items that were considered during the museum’s initial screening.

Among the foods that made the cut are several cultural delicacies that are considered strange to the uninitiated. Visitors will find dishes like cuy (roasted guinea pig), casa marzu (a maggot-infested cheese), stinky tofu (a fermented bean-curd dish) and surstr?mming (fermented herring) alongside informational displays and, in some cases, a smell if you dare option. However, Westerners will also notice some familiar sights like root beer, a drink that, according to many Europeans, is totally offensive as it tastes like toothpaste. When it comes to the museum’s most shocking offerings, travelers will find things like baby mice wine, bull penis, monkey brain, Ttongsul (a Korean wine made with human feces) and more. At the end of their tour, visitors are given the option to stop by a 25-item tasting bar to try some “disgusting” food for themselves where they might be happy that their ticket doubles as a barf bag.