Bush’s Beans Visitor Center

Great movie, SUPER friendly people, new stuff. Lots of interactive exhibits for grown-​ups AND kids.
Nice country-​side to travel through to get there. A part of Americana everyone should see.
Enjoy!

This was a great experience! We really enjoyed the history of the Bush family at the museum and the movie was very insightful. The artifacts in the museum were very educational. This is a must see place and time well spent. It is awesome to live in a state that produces such great products.

Decided to visit on a whim and we were pleasantly surprised. Friendly staff and an excellent informative museum. The video tour of the plant is exceptional — better than the video tour shown at the World of Coke in Atlanta and the fake plant tour in Hershey, PA! Neat little gift shop — of course. Don’t forget to have your photo taken with Duke. Afterwards we stopped by the café. Very good food at a reasonable price. I had the chili pot — excellent! If you are in the Pigeon Forge, Sevierville area and in the mood for an adventure I highly recommend their Visitors Center and Museum.

Didn’t know it was there, we just «happened» to be driving by and had to stop. It reminds me of a really big Cracker Barrel. Lots of bean related tote bags and aprons and cans of beans for sale. They have a museum, a restaurant, a big store, photo opportunities with an old truck and just a really nice way to spend an hour.
Prices are a bit high for everything except beans, which are market price or a little below. There is a selection you won’t find anywhere else, so stock up on whatever you’ve never seen before.
Worth a stop.

We made a point to stop here coming back to NC from Pigeon Forge and Im sure glad we did. We had a great time, it is fun for all ages. The museum is chock full of interesting tidbits all of which are very interesting. You can watch a short video about the history in the theater, walk thru a giant can of beans and get your weight in beans. The country store has all kinds of things on some of the Bushs original furniture. I came away with a stuffed Duke! At the end of the tour you can have your picture taken and they print them right there for you, no charge! Yes thats right I said printed at no charge! Nowhere gives you free pictures! When we originally stoppped here I had never even tried any of their baked beans but picked up a small can of the new grillin beans southern pit bbq and oh my gosh are they yummy. I have since bought several cans though I wish I could find them in that small size like they have at the museum. Stores have a couple small cans but not the grilling beans in small.
Most wonderful time but slow down in the curve or you will run up on it going by it kinda sneaks up on you. We didnt eat at the café it was already 2pm, they close at 4 and there were almost 30 people in line ahead of us so well have to try that next time. Beautiful drive out thru the country to get there, I see why the Bushs chose to live out there!

Very very cool stop. Learned a thing or two about beans. The museum staff are very friendly and the museum was very nice. It looks like they’ve recently opened up a café. I would have liked to have gone in but they were closed. The sign says that they are only open till 4 PM. They might want to reconsider their closing times because as we were leaving a little after 4pm there were still cars pulling up to check out the museum.

This was a fun place to stop. They had a museum and a country store. You could even get your picture taken with Duke (simulated). We found a few trinkets to purchase and my husband picked up some beans that we don’t see back home. I would recommend this stop if you haven’t been before. Great history of the business on the video.

Fun place to visit and they are cheaper to buy there then the grocery store.
See how much you weigh in beans!!!
You’ll be surprised how many beans it takes…
Make sure you go to their website and check their hours and times…
Great experience.
You cant tour the actual bean factory for health issues but its a nice little drive and fun learning place. (See picture)

I am so educated about beans and canning that I am an expert! Well, maybe not an expert but I did learn a lot about beans and about the history of Bush’s. I had no idea that they cooked the beans in the can! The parking lot is large and has a great view of the factory across the street. The visitor’s center is very nice with tons of info. There was a movie too but we were too late and missed the last showing. The employees were nice and you get your picture taken at the end. I was surprised that they did’t give any bean samples. Overall, this was a fun stop and since it is free you might as well check it out.

Everyone at the Bush’s Beans center was super nice. The tour is interesting as you will learn about the history of the company and the family behind it. While its not the most exciting thing in the world, it is free and something to do. The gift shop has a lot of cute things besides the expected Bush’s memorabilia. You can take a picture with «Duke» at the end. You can also buy and eat your weight in baked beans.

I was traveling by myself, so I only stopped for a few minutes… but it’s really an interesting place. I will stop again when I have my husband and kids with me. I think they will love learning about the Bush family and getting their picture taken with DUKE! LOL Roll that beautiful bean footage!
They have several different varieties of Bush’s beans to purchase, some even with poptops so you can eat them roadside or in a picnic. There is also a good-​sized gift shop with Bush’s merchandise as well as «country» items.
If you read my reviews, I frequently comment on restrooms and entering/​exiting a place I’m reviewing. The Bush’s Beans Visitor Center has spotless restrooms. When you’re driving from Newport-​Sevierville or vice versa, be aware that this comes up on you fast. You’re driving in the mountains and there are tight turns. Slow down and watch for oncoming cars to come around the buidling (just about a blind curve.)
Plenty of parking, also for buses and RVs.

After visiting the Forbidden Caverns just down the road we decided we were starving and wanted some beans! We took a nice (free) tour around the bean museum. My daughter did the scavenger hunt. We got lots of neat pictures and then we’re very lucky to get to the restaurant during a lull. We only waited 15 minutes. The food was delicious! I had the BLT, hubby had the Rueben, and my daughter had the chicken strips. We spent some time trying to distract her so we could mooch chicken and sweet potato fries off her plate. The chicken tenders were the biggest, moistest and most generous portion we’ve ever had. Plus!!! The seasoned coating they were in was a taste sensation!!! A neat thing was also the bean of the day which the waitress brings a sample for you to try before you order your meal. Worth the wait. Hint, put your name in then go for the tour.

ROLL THAT BEAUTIFUL BEAN FOOTAGE!
When I heard of this place, I could just imagine how hokey and corny it had to be. «A BEAN TOUR! HOT DOG!» I shouted in my head, laughing like a moron all the way into the building.
Don’t make that mistake, you’ll be in for a big surprise.
The visitor center is laid out by decades of the Bush family’s work in the canned goods industry. There’s a fair amount of technical stuff (can crimping, soldering, bean sorting), but it’s far outweighed by the humorous self-​awareness of it all. Blooper reels of commercials are particularly good. The farm-​to-​store video series is interesting (they cook them inside the can!), and the little interactive exhibits are quick, fun, and eye catching. HOW MANY BEANS DO YOU WEIGH?! a giant scale screams. THIS IS WHAT A BEAN POT LOOKS LIKE IN PAKISTAN! another exhibit yells in big bold colors. I weigh 172,000ish beans, who knew.
For the kids, there’s a letter scavenger hunt that nets you a certificate and a sticker. And of course, you can get your picture with Duke. I wanted the photo guy to edit it so ol’ Duke was just peering over my shoulder, all creepster-​like, but that guy was just so darn friendly I couldn’t bring myself to do it.
It’s silly and a little odd, but the place does a relatively dry subject with a lot of heart. Definitely worth your time.

I don’t know why I was touring a bean museum, but there I was! This is really not about beans it is about the humble beginnings of ONE family that built an empire. This is about the strength and perseverance of an American family (reminds me of Wall Drug in South Dakota) which is always heartwarming to see.

When we pulled up it was so cool! We parked by the restaurant & general store/​tour (only place visitors can go). Across the street is the HUGE plant and a house (where the Bushes lived for a long time and still own and use for holidays and gatherings). As soon as you get out of the car, you smell the amazing smell of beans. YUM! We went inside the store to take the tour. The kids had a miniature fact scavenger hunt which yielded them a prize at the end (which was a certificate of completion & a sticker). The tour was great… had a movie you can watch about the history of how Bush’s came to be. The rest of the tour is self-​guided and you can see props from the commercials, the history of beans, the history of canning, and it was great (especially for free)! At the end, you can even green screen yourself into a Bush’s photo for free. We got 3 photos — one of each kid — where they picked their own backdrop from 1 of 4 choices. Great souvenir! The store itself is nice but had a lot of non bean-​related stuff. They do have some great Bush’s stuff like flying pigs and stuffed Dukes. We each got a can of beans and a spoon and went to the car for some lunch — hobo style. We would have eaten at the café but it was a 45+ minute wait and it wasn’t busy so we gave up. If you want to eat there, put your name on the list first, then tour the store/​tour and then it’ll be time to be seated for food at the café. They were a bit pricey anyway so we were okay with beans!