Bompas & Parr launched the British Museum of Food as a pop up, opening for three months from 23rd October to 23rd January. I decided to pop along before it closes and found it to be delightfully quirky and before I forget the staff were incredibly helpful, happily explaining the various exhibitions so that I could fully engage with them, I had a brilliant time.

We start with a video of the Bolus experience, just to get you in the mood. The lucky couple next to me were sat in massage chairs which flung them back into the chair in unison as the film moved on, the startled lady passenger and I shared a glance before we both burst into spontaneous laughter.

We then move onto the serious act of chocolate eating, I kid you not. In this cubicle there are four rooms and with pen and questionnaire in hand one enters each cubicle, closes the curtain, eats a chocolate button whilst listening to the recordings and then records bitterness, sweetness and creaminess of the chocolate. It was brilliant.  As a woman that worked in market research for far too many years, I loved the concept and I’m not going to say anymore lest I spoil the research.

Next was the butterfly room, I know butterflies and chocolate together, who designed this exhibition, they were genius!  At this point I am getting giddier by the minute, I am having such a good time. There is the interesting side of the butterflies acting as pollinators in various parts of the world, but all I am seeing is the pretty, pretty butterflies. 

I have no idea what has happened to the white balance and its been impossible to correct, there were some interesting lights and lots of condensation.

Then there are a selection of historical and beautiful menus which were just lovely to read through, I am very partial to the idea of trying a goldfish in a bag. 

The prison menu was quite an eye opener.

There was food as art, I thought this knitted breakfast was incredible.

(Collaboration between Jessica Dance and photographer David Sykes)

But this set of four galleries, well, they are made out of Gingerbread!  On hearing this I laughed out loud as the memory of my Christmas gingerbread flashed before my eyes. Incredible aren’t they.

(Gingerbread and Candy Art Galleries by Henry Hargreaves and Caitlin Levin)

So although this is just a pop up and will close shortly the good news is that they are looking for bigger premises to open at the end of the year, so keep ’em peeled, I’ll definitely be going back to see what else they have done with the place.