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The Best Episodes of The Food That Built America

Every episode of The Food That Built America ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of The Food That Built America!

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The fascinating stories of the families behind the food that built America, those who used brains, muscle, blood, sweat and tears to get to America's heart through its stomach, those who invented new technologies and

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
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    The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 4 - Drive-Thru Burger Revolution
    8.8/10(25 votes)

    #1 - Drive-Thru Burger Revolution

    S7:E4

    Three burger operators race to serve a new generation on wheels, and a primitive intercom and sliding window evolve into the drive-thru — revolutionizing fast food and kicking off an industry arms race.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 7 - Cheesecake Chronicles
    8.8/10(21 votes)

    #2 - Cheesecake Chronicles

    S7:E7

    A struggling cheesemaker, a New York restauranteur, a small-time baker, and a determined mother-son duo transform a humble cheese pie into a decadent American dessert--turning cheesecake into a grocery staple and the star of a restaurant empire.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  3. The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 2 - Cereal Killers
    8.6/10(26 votes)

    #3 - Cereal Killers

    S7:E2

    Rival cereal giants race to invent the next must-have bowl, sparking a sugary arms race of mascots, crunch, candy, and the first ever chocolate cereal.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  4. The Food That Built America Season 2 Episode 5 - Cola Wars
    8.5/10(115 votes)

    #4 - Cola Wars

    S2:E5

    In the 1970s, one major cola brand launches a blind taste test marketing plan that takes direct aim at their biggest competitor. As a new era of competition heats up between the behemoth brands, each side selects a new leader who takes the companies to battle in a rivalry that will birth countless iconic soda products and memorable marketing stunts.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  5. The Food That Built America Season 3 Episode 7 - The Beef is On
    8.4/10(73 votes)

    #5 - The Beef is On

    S3:E7

    When Col. Sanders sells his company to investors in 1964, the new owners identify a rising star within the organization: Dave Thomas.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  6. The Food That Built America Season 3 Episode 12 - Pasta Party
    8.4/10(66 votes)

    #6 - Pasta Party

    S3:E12

    Hector and Mario Boiardi open an Italian restaurant in Cleveland in 1924 and soon introduce Italian food to Americans; the brothers eventually find themselves in competition with James Kraft and his newest offering, macaroni and cheese.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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    The 20 WORST Episodes of The Food That Built America

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  7. The Food That Built America Season 5 Episode 2 - Ice Cream Revolution
    8.4/10(43 votes)

    #7 - Ice Cream Revolution

    S5:E2

    A cab driver turned ice cream entrepreneur comes up with the idea to mix name brand candy into high quality ice cream to create new novel flavors. After opening an ice cream shop to share his mix-in creations, his concept skyrockets.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  8. The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 1 - Pizza Power Play
    8.4/10(25 votes)

    #8 - Pizza Power Play

    S7:E1

    Two pizza juggernauts expand their empires as a hungry new contender turns the fight into a three-way race to become America’s biggest pizza chain.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 9 - Burgers, Burritos, & the Battle for Fast Food
    8.4/10(17 votes)

    #9 - Burgers, Burritos, & the Battle for Fast Food

    S7:E9

    An upstart chain innovates iconic menu items and fast food staples including a value menu and free refills, while fending off a new competitor to bring Mexican inspired fast food to the masses.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 13 - Cereal Sensations
    8.4/10(15 votes)

    #10 - Cereal Sensations

    S7:E13

    Cereal pioneers battle for control of America's breakfast table.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  11. The Food That Built America Season 3 Episode 4 - A Dish Best Served... Soft
    8.3/10(71 votes)

    #11 - A Dish Best Served... Soft

    S3:E4

    When his ice cream truck breaks down, Tom Carvel discovers that half-melted ice cream is a surefire hit with customers.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  12. The Food That Built America Season 3 Episode 6 - Cookie Fortunes
    8.3/10(66 votes)

    #12 - Cookie Fortunes

    S3:E6

    Hollywood agent Wally Amos transforms his professional life when he decides to make and sell his own gourmet chocolate chip cookies, and opens America's first cookie store; housewife Debbi Fields opens her homestyle cookie shop in a mall.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. The Food That Built America Season 3 Episode 9 - Beyond the Burger
    8.3/10(69 votes)

    #13 - Beyond the Burger

    S3:E9

    Restaurateur Glen Bell works to create a burger alternative for the fast-food market and after several setbacks goes on to help introduce the taco to America; two brothers look to beat the burger by betting that a roast beef sandwich can compete.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  14. The Food That Built America Season 5 Episode 7 - Champions of Breakfast
    8.3/10(39 votes)

    #14 - Champions of Breakfast

    S5:E7

    Will Kellogg is on top of the cereal industry after beating out post, but now, the king of cereal has met his match with a young flour mill executive; a decades long war for dominance ensues as Kellogg's and General Mills battle it out.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  15. The Food That Built America Season 6 Episode 3 - Baking Chocolate Chip History
    8.3/10(32 votes)

    #15 - Baking Chocolate Chip History

    S6:E3

    A teacher turned restaurateur invents America's most popular cookie which leads to a battle of food giants, and one of the most iconic packaged cookies in history.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  16. The Food That Built America Season 6 Episode 5 - Legends of the Mall
    8.3/10(34 votes)

    #16 - Legends of the Mall

    S6:E5

    Early American malls have no food court, until a cinnamon bun, a pretzel, and a panda all move in to create three of the world's most iconic food brands and transform the American Mall.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  17. The Food That Built America Season 6 Episode 9 - Asian Food Invasion
    8.3/10(28 votes)

    #17 - Asian Food Invasion

    S6:E9

    A down-on-his-luck Japanese businessman and a Chinese immigrant and her son change the American palette when they introduce instant noodles in a cup, Peking Duck, and the biggest Chinese restaurant chain in the nation.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  18. The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 3 - The Birth of Bubblegum
    8.3/10(23 votes)

    #18 - The Birth of Bubblegum

    S7:E3

    A struggling candy maker’s botched experiment leads to the world’s first bubble gum, its distinctive color, and a decades-long bubble gum war fueled by colorful mascots, comic strips, baseball cards, and novelty flavors — transforming gum into a pop culture.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  19. The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 5 - Chocolate in a Glass
    8.3/10(23 votes)

    #19 - Chocolate in a Glass

    S7:E5

    A chemist unlocks a chocolate syrup that transforms milk into a magic sensation, a scrappy soda shop owner cracks the code to bottling liquid chocolate for the masses, and a dairy innovator turns wartime surplus into instant cocoa gold.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  20. The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 8 - Rice to Riches
    8.3/10(19 votes)

    #20 - Rice to Riches

    S7:E8

    A keen-eyed immigrant, a candy mogul, and two pasta-making brothers reinvent rice for America’s kitchens by making it faster, easier, and impossible to resist.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  21. The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 10 - Icons of Ice Cream
    8.3/10(17 votes)

    #21 - Icons of Ice Cream

    S7:E10

    From the first ice cream bar in history, to the invention of classic flavors, a century of bold innovators transforms ice cream from a rare indulgence into a $100 billion American powerhouse.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  22. The Food That Built America Season 7 Episode 14 - Say Yes to the Dressing
    8.3/10(14 votes)

    #22 - Say Yes to the Dressing

    S7:E14

    Richard Hellmann deli's mayonnaise launches America's condiment revolution.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  23. The Food That Built America Season 1 Episode 3 - The Spoils of War
    8.2/10(108 votes)

    #23 - The Spoils of War

    S1:E3

    As the Great Depression hits, the titans of food push the envelope of innovation to feed a hungry nation. Then WWII sees competing industrial empires joining the war effort in a united front to fuel the forces fighting for freedom abroad. And in Post-War America, visionaries like Harland Sanders, the McDonald brothers and Ray Kroc battle to revolutionize the restaurant industry, and pave the way for the golden age of the American dream.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  24. The Food That Built America Season 2 Episode 2 - The Chocolate Rush
    8.2/10(107 votes)

    #24 - The Chocolate Rush

    S2:E2

    In 1919, Milton Hershey is king of the chocolate, but everything changes when sugar prices drop in the new post-WWI era. Competitors spring up, including Hershey's former employee HB Reese, who goes on to create one of the bestselling candies ever.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  25. The Food That Built America Season 2 Episode 3 - The Kings of Burgers
    8.2/10(123 votes)

    #25 - The Kings of Burgers

    S2:E3

    In the 1950s, Ray Kroc franchises McDonald's nationwide, but right behind Kroc, a wave of other entrepreneurs try to cash in on the fast-food restaurant craze. Two Florida visionaries start up what will become Kroc's biggest rival, by re-inventing their kitchen's equipment into the pioneering "flame broiler."

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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Best Episodes Summary

"Drive-Thru Burger Revolution" is the best rated episode of "The Food That Built America". It scored 8.8/10 based on 25 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 5/10/2026. This episode scored 0.0 points higher than the second highest rated, "Cheesecake Chronicles".