This month, Chicago was blessed with an educational institution that millennials can really sink their teeth into: Foodseum. Foodseum is just what it sounds like, a Food Museum— the very first of its kind in Chicago and the second in the country!
Photo by Kirby Barth
It all started with a Kickstarter Campaign in November of 2014 to create a museum that would educate, celebrate and inspire individuals about food and food history through interactive exhibits. In just one short month, 312 backers pledged a total of $33,445 to bring Foodseum to life.
Since then, Executive Director and founder Kyle Joseph and his large team of scholars, carpenters, PR experts, marketing professionals, videographers, bloggers and many more have come together to gain support for this revolutionary idea.
Photo by Kirby Barth
Now that the foodseum is officially open to the public, the first exhibit is – wait for it – “The Hot Dog and Encased Meat of the World.”
At the first exhibit, visitors will be able to smell spice samples of 23 different sausage varieties, try their hand at grinding some play-dough meat in an authentic meat grinder and even get to taste some meat samples on select weekends.
Photo by Kirby Barth
Hot Dog establishments like Superdawg have also donated artifacts to the museum to show how the hot dog and its production have evolved over the years.
Photo by Kirby Barth
Over the past year they’ve displayed Foodseum at local food festivals like Hot Dog Fest but are now excited to find a more permanent (yet still temporary) location for the first official exhibit.
Photo by Kirby Barth
Foodseum is still looking for support to help them find a permanent location in Chicago, so that they can keep bringing Chicago exhibits about food items like chocolate, cheese, and much more.
Check out its Instagram (which I got a chance to to work on this summer as an intern) and its blog, which features dozens of food writers and is always looking for more contributors and volunteers.
Explore their awesome website to find out how you can get involved or just head on down to Block Thirty Seven to get a taste of some Encased Meat knowledge. Major plus: admission is free!
Don’t forget to follow Foodseum on Twitter and Facebook too!