Taters for Out-of-Staters

October 30, 2015 1:56 PM

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. From the original potato planted in Idaho, to the largest potato crisp made by the Pringle’s Company in Jackson, TN.

"You’ll be intrigued as you stroll through the historic building which was built in 1912. Once a bustling flurry of activity, the stone depot represents significant ties between the railroad and the potato industry. The Potato Museum provides information on potato history, the growing and harvesting process, nutrition, trivia and educational potato facts. Watch a short video presentation on how the potato industry has developed."

Site includes recipes, potato care, history (including 'Why Idaho?' that explains why potatoes grow so well there, which you can probably already guess), some sort of potato-based game.

The Idaho Potato Museum was voted "one of the top 50 museums worth traveling for".

But perhaps you can't get to the museum; here's a video presentation of the museum and what you could expect to see there, including the largest potato masher.

Oh, and there's also a giant baked potato there. (All this reading about potatoes -- you'll be sure to spell it correctly.)

posted by joseph conrad is fully awesome (16 comments total)

a unique museum

Now wait just a second there, eh
posted by saturday_morning at 2:03 PM on October 30, 2015 [3 favorites]

Wait, why aren't dogs allowed here?
posted by progosk at 2:05 PM on October 30, 2015 [3 favorites]

uhhh I can't be the only one who thinks that maybe the metafilter front page isn't the right place for linking to explicit hardcore tater content. Or really, to taters at all — hardcore OR softcore. for one am strongly considering starting a metatalk thread about it.
posted by You Can't Tip a Buick at 2:12 PM on October 30, 2015 [12 favorites]

I have been to there. I thought it was great, but my father felt that it was a little too pro-potato.

Seriously, though, it was a great small museum, well worth a stop on our grand road trip. I learned things, I was delighted by things, and the fact that multiple collectors of potato mashers donated their collections made me vicariously happy. It had everything: oversized depictions of potatoes, old-school ephemera, cool machinery, weird facts, and cool pictures.
posted by julen at 2:42 PM on October 30, 2015 [1 favorite]

my father felt that it was a little too pro-potato.

Taters gonna tate.
posted by progosk at 2:59 PM on October 30, 2015 [10 favorites]

Now wait just a second there, eh

And here I was thinking you were linking to this Canadian potato museum...

My husband and I visited there mostly to snark, but came away impressed with the importance of the potato to PEI. It was strange to see roadside signs offering new potatoes the way you would see ones that said corn or tomatoes here in NJ. The exhibit about potato diseases was interesting, though I thought displaying the examples in a long row of satin-lined black coffins was a little over the top.
posted by booksherpa at 3:24 PM on October 30, 2015 [3 favorites]

I was on a driving vacation and saw a sign for this from the interstate. Of course, we immediately stopped.

They have a potato signed by Dan Quayle. That alone is worth the price of admission.
posted by Automocar at 3:35 PM on October 30, 2015 [4 favorites]

Canada: 2 potato museums
USA: 1 potato museum

Bet you're sorry about that war of 1812 now, aren't ya
posted by saturday_morning at 3:40 PM on October 30, 2015 [8 favorites]

Do they have potato pancakes? Other tater recipes to sample? If not they should. Or at least a tater restaurant where one can have lunch. In Ireland there is Tayto Park for kids, named after a popular brand of crisps. It features Mr. Tayto (I have the keychain) who may be the Irish cousin of Mr.Potato Head.
posted by mermayd at 3:57 PM on October 30, 2015 [2 favorites]

Other tater recipes to sample? If not they should. Or at least a tater restaurant where one can have lunch. In Ireland there is Tayto Park for kids,

oh my god they're exposing children to taters now?? No wonder kids these days can't even recognize a portobello mushroom!
posted by You Can't Tip a Buick at 4:06 PM on October 30, 2015

When we paid our admission, they did give each of us a box of something potato related. Maybe dried mashed potato mix? We never actually ate it.
posted by julen at 4:12 PM on October 30, 2015 [1 favorite]

Bandwidth Exceeded - I think we blew out their tater server. Animals!
posted by halfbuckaroo at 6:40 PM on October 30, 2015 [1 favorite]

wait a bit. It will be back up a little tater.
posted by shockingbluamp at 7:06 PM on October 30, 2015 [3 favorites]

My hometown! We make the kids pose in front of the potato every year or so. Now they give you dried hash browns but they used to have actual baked potatoes and butter and sour cream, and signs along the highway on the way to Blackfoot advertising the "free taters for out of staters." The hash browns are ok but I have a major cache of them because I live on the other side of the country now and my mom sends them to me at christmas and I never get around to eating them.

Also I have to add that last time I was there, in the gift shop they had red potato-shaped soap and it was huckleberry scented and very nice soap that I can recommend. It even comes in a little burlap sack.
posted by jenjenc at 10:21 PM on October 30, 2015 [3 favorites]

Bandwidth is still exceeded. Is there any mention of the fact that the Idaho potato was developed in Massachusetts by Luther Burbank?
posted by Kirth Gerson at 9:35 AM on October 31, 2015

(The website appears to be up and working now.)
posted by joseph conrad is fully awesome at 9:27 AM on November 1, 2015