Last Friday, I came up with a list of road trips for readers and book people. This week is for people who love history but also love to eat. It was inspired by something I read about the Museum of BBQ, which opened in Kansas City, Mo., in April.
A whole museum dedicated to barbecue? How did we wait until 2025 to make this happen?
My stomach is growling just looking at their Instagram feed. What I thought was really cool about it is that even though it's based in Kansas City, a city known for its own unique style of barbecue, the museum doesn't discriminate. It covers all the regional styles and flavors from throughout the United States, though I'm sure there is some KC bias. Personally, I'm a Carolina barbecue kind of girl. Give me that whole hog with a vinegar-based sauce.
Anyway, the Museum of BBQ is open seven days a week. Here's more from its website:
The Museum of BBQ is an immersive, colorful environment that encourages you to play while you learn about the elements and regions of American barbecue. We’re intentionally based in Kansas City – a city known for its barbecue culture – and a place where lots of different influences come together to create unforgettable barbecue plates. We used the spirit of barbecues to inspire us to create a place for people to gather and talk. We‘ll excite your senses and make you a little hungry just like the sizzle on a grill or enticing smells from the smoker in the backyard. Come on over to the Museum of BBQ. We’ll save you a spot.
And that's where we're going to start this little tour of culinary history and education that meanders around the United States. Next stop: New Orleans.
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Southern Food and Beverage Museum (New Orleans)
After the barbecue museum, I have to admit that this is the one I'd most like to visit on this list that I haven't already. I love to eat Southern food — it's what I grew up on — but I also love to learn the history behind it. The Southern Food and Beverage Museum was founded in 2004 and has grown to become quite a destination. It's even been called one of the five greatest "museums dedicated to food" in the entire world.
According to its website, it's "home to several entities" beyond its exhibits, including "The Museum of the American Cocktail (MOTAC), SoFAB Research Center, Deelightful Roux School of Cooking, National Culinary Heritage Register, the Culinary Heritage Sign Gallery, The Gumbo Garden, and Nitty Grits Media Network. NATFAB continues to grow into the nation's most comprehensive cultural institution studying food and drink."
If you do decide to make the trip, find out what's going on when you're there. In addition to its many food and beverage exhibits, the museum hosts all sorts of events for kids and adults alike, like cooking demonstrations, adult beverage tastings, beer-making classes, culinary classes for children, and more.
Maritime & Seafood Industry Museum (Biloxi, Miss.)
Next, head about 90 miles northwest of New Orleans to the Maritime & Seafood Industry Museum in Biloxi, Miss. While this one isn't strictly a food museum, I love all things related to the ocean, so I had to include it. Plus, while you're there, you can check out some of the fun seafood restaurants and beach bars on the Gulf. As a matter of fact, the museum itself sits right on the water. It also parks two replica oyster schooners that you can visit or even charter for a group.
Here's what the city of Biloxi has to say about it:
Located on the Eastern tip of the Biloxi peninsula, the Maritime & Seafood Industry Museum preserves the maritime history and heritage of Biloxi and the Mississippi Gulf Coast. It is housed in a more than 19,000-square-foot building with exhibits, gallery spaces, meeting rooms, and a gift shop The main atrium is designed around the Nydia, a 30-foot wooden vessel built in the late 1800s on Biloxi’s Back Bay.
The current facility replaces the Museum's previous home which was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The former building was a Spanish-influenced structure built in 1934 as part of a U.S. Coast Guard station.
The museum was established in 1986 to preserve and interpret the maritime history and heritage of Biloxi and the Mississippi Gulf Coast. It accomplishes this mission through an array of exhibits containing historic photographs and objects.
Visitors can experience the tremendous impact of hurricanes on Biloxi through an exhibit and film on Hurricane Camille, which devastated the Gulf Coast in 1969. the museum has brought Biloxi’s maritime history to life by replicating two full-size Biloxi schooners, which sail the Gulf waters daily.
It also has a gorgeous little gift shop:
World of Coca-Cola (Atlanta)
Our next stop is in my hometown of Atlanta. It's been years since I've been to the World of Coca-Cola myself, but it's one of those must-do attractions in the city where the beverage was born. It's one of the first things my out-of-town friends mention when they visit for the first time. There's a Beverage Lab, a Scent Discovery Exhibit, and a fun Pop Culture Gallery. The World of Coke first opened in 1990, and one of my favorite things about it was that you could taste Coca-Cola beverages from all over the world. It's also close to a lot of other popular Atlanta attractions, like the Georgia Aquarium and the College Football Hall of Fame.
The Hershey Story (Hershey, Pa.)
What would a historic food tour of the United States be without a stop in Hershey, Pa.? The Hershey Story museum is filled with exhibits that explore one of the most famous candy companies in the world, as well as the man behind it, Milton S. Hershey. But even better, you can taste chocolate and even make your own at the hands-on Chocolate Lab.
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Idaho Potato Museum (Blackfoot, Idaho)
I'll probably get yelled at for skipping the northeastern part of the country, but I have to admit that these next few museums sounded kind of fun — and delicious — to me. I mean, who doesn't love potatoes?
"The Idaho Potato Museum is a unique museum which appropriately showcases Idaho’s Famous Potatoes®. Located in the old Oregon Short Line Railroad Depot you’ll discover the world of potatoes. The rich graphics showcasing the history of the potato will lead you through the revolution of the potato industry," according to its website.
As you tour it, you'll learn about he revolution of the potato industry, the history of the potato, the growing and harvesting process, nutrition information, and some fun trivia. You'll even get to see the largest potato chip ever made.
Potato signed by Dan Quayle at the Idaho Potato Museum pic.twitter.com/BsgyULGLht
— (˃ᆺ˂) (@jebbiearchive) January 27, 2025
National Dairy Shrine Museum (and bonus National Mustard Museum) (Fort Atkinson, Wis.)
It probably doesn't come as a surprise that Wisconsin seems to have a lot of museums and other attractions dedicated to food. It's also probably not much of a shock that one of them is dedicated to dairy. Here's more on the National Dairy Shrine Museum:
Discover the rich heritage of the dairy industry at the National Dairy Shrine Museum. Where else can you learn the history of ice cream, see a dog-powered butter churn and check out photos of champion cows dating back nine decades? You’ll leave with a better understanding of why, for nearly 8,000 years, people have depended on the dairy cow for life-sustaining milk and a better quality of life.
The dairy museum is located in Fort Atkinson, which is just outside of Madison, but if you wanted to make a day of it, you could head about an hour or so west to Middleton, Wis., to visit the National Mustard Museum, as well. It's got the world's largest collection of mustard after all. After you explore the museum, you can shop for mustard, mustard merch, and specialty products that you won't find in your average grocery store.
International Vinegar Museum (Roslyn, S.D.)
The International Vinegar Museum is a small one, and it's only open during the summer for a few days a week, so check ahead if you plan to go. Just looking at its website, it sounds a lot more interesting than I thought vinegar could ever be. Here's a list of what you can do there, straight from the museum itself:
- Taste different vinegars
- See hundreds of vinegars from all over the world
- Learn how vinegar is made
- Learn the many uses for vinegar
- See paper and ceramic made from vinegar
- Bring home something unique from the gift shop including vinegar apparel, artwork and of course vinegar!
If you happen to get there the third Saturday in June each year (which is tomorrow, oops), you can also attend the Vinegar Festival. I saw some pictures from the festival on X, and it actually looks really fun. How cute is the Vinegar Queen?
my sister in law was telling me there's a vinegar museum in roslyn, south dakota and i thought it was funny so i looked it up and there's a whole ass vinegar festival. they have a vinegar queen! this looks rad as hell. tasting vinegar at a museum and meeting a tortoise pic.twitter.com/Io9lrBW6Iy
— Geppetto San Martín 🚬🌭𓅸 (@SmalltimeJones) March 25, 2022
The International Vinegar Museum
— Rural Indexing Project (@ruralindexing) November 7, 2024
Roslyn, SD pic.twitter.com/Y0gbI03YlF
California Citrus State Historic Park (Riverside, Calif.)
Next, we head out to the west coast to the California Citrus State Historic Park, which is part state park, part living museum, "dedicated to preserving and showcasing the history and significance of the California Citrus Industry." Here's more from its website:
The park covers over 250 acres and features groves of citrus trees, historic buildings, interpretive exhibits, and guided tours. Visitors can learn about the agricultural heritage of California, the development of the citrus industry, and the role it played in shaping the state's economy and culture. The park also offers educational programs, special events, and opportunities for recreation such as picnicking and hiking.
Assuming Gavin Newsom hasn't ruined it, too, it looks like a fun place to spend a day.
Dr Pepper Museum (Waco, Texas)
Last but not least, we circle back to Texas for the Dr Pepper Museum. While I'm definitely a (Diet) Coke kind of girl, I thought this looked pretty cool and actually learned some history about Dr Pepper that I didn't even know, just by looking at the website. Plus, I'd tried to pick museums with the highest reviews, and based on all I've read, people were really impressed with this one. And there are lots of other things to do in Waco if you wanted to make a weekend of it. Here's more:
Built in 1906 by architect Milton Scott, the Artesian Manufacturing and Bottling Company was the first building dedicated to the manufacturing of Dr Pepper. Creating a Dr Pepper Museum was the vision of a few devoted enthusiasts of both Dr Pepper and its history. The Artesian Manufacturing and Bottling Company became the Dr Pepper Museum in 1989. Today it is the Museum’s largest artifact and a tribute to the imagination and talent that fueled Dr Pepper’s success throughout the years.
And another blurb from the website:
The Dr Pepper Museum holds one of the finest collections of soft drink memorabilia in the world. The items are not just Dr Pepper-related. All soft drink brands are welcome at the Dr Pepper Museum! From Pepsi-Cola to Kickapoo Joy Juice, the collections are a resource for information about the entire soft drink industry. The Dunagan Archives, soft drink related publications, audio-visual media, both the Dr Pepper Company and Dr Pepper Museum annals, and numerous original photographs are contained in the archival collections. The Dr Pepper Museum is frequently called upon to open the collections and archives to academic research, the motion picture and television industry, exhibition and graphic designers, and other museums making it a treasured public resource.
