The one luxury I afford myself in Astoria is an occasional hefty slice of the heavenly homemade carrot cake served up at the venerable Peter Pan Market and Deli on Niagara Avenue in the eponymously named Peter Pan district that must have something to do with the 1953 animated Disney classic, but who knows? Sometimes I prefer not to unravel mysteries.

Quite honestly, its the best carrot cake Ive ever tasted, and I always get the slice to go but never depart before taking yet another tour of Peter Pans Museum of Long Lost American Food, Drink and Kitchen Products (and their concomitant graphic design trends) from the 1940s to 1980s.

Yes, a market and deli in Astoria has a free museum (which I just gave a title here), and a damn quirky throwback institution it is. From visiting, one gets the idea that each and every one of the exhibits was once for sale here and that Americans today are a completely different cultural animal than the 1950s. You are what you eat.

Some of my favorite exhibits are: Bing Crosby ice cream, instant sherbet, tooth powder, various Bumblebee items, including a huge can of Dungeness crab, a 45 rpm record of the Bumblebee Tuna theme song, vintage sodas, a bottle of Keiko Draft Root Beer, a massage vibrator (for men), and a host of kitchen utensils that defy definition.

There is more, much more, and even weirder exhibits than the aforementioned ones. Two words to entice you further: wasp nest.

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Matt Love lives in Astoria and is author/editor of 12 books about Oregon. They are available at independent bookstores or through www.nestuccaspitpress.com