National Potato Chips Day

The story

Food historians trace thinly sliced, fried potatoes back to at least 1817 with William Kitchiner’s The Cook’s Oracle, but the real drama kicked off in 1853, with George Crum, a chef at Moon's Lake House in Saratoga Springs, New York.

Legend has it that a picky customer (allegedly Cornelius Vanderbilt, though that's highly debated) sent back his French fries, complaining they weren’t thin enough. Fed up, Crum sliced the potatoes paper-thin, fried them until crisp, and heavily salted them, hoping to make a point. Instead, he sparked a culinary revolution, the customers loved them.

Crum didn’t stop there. He added the so-called “Saratoga Chips” to the menu, and the rest is history. Or is it? Some say Crum’s sister, Catherine Adkins Wicks, was the real genius behind the chip, while others credit figures like Hiram S. Thomas or even Eliza, a cook at the same restaurant years earlier. Whoever deserves the credit, one thing is clear: Saratoga Springs has embraced its role as the chip capital, with "Saratoga Chips" still a beloved term and brand.

Potato chips went from a local delicacy to a national obsession in the early 20th century, thanks to mass production and the innovative packaging of Laura Scudder, who introduced wax paper bags to keep chips fresh.

Herman Lay’s chips became the first nationally marketed brand, cementing the snack's place in American homes. By the 1950s, flavored chips entered the scene, with Cheese & Onion and Barbecue leading the way.