The Hot Potato Tram: I tried the viral TikTok Preston baked potato everyone is talking about

When you think of hearty foods, you think wisps of rising steam, you think guilt-inducing portions of carbohydrates, and you think melted, thick, and dripping. The classics of the genre are famous for their ability to satisfy and make simply any situation immeasurably better. Bad day? Pie. Tough week? Pasta and garlic bread. Tricky month? Baked potato.

And so when a purveyor of baked spuds gains the kind of fervour-provoking reputation usually reserved for celebrities and sports stars, you know it’s worth checking out. Which is a roundabout way of explaining why I found myself standing in the thin air of Preston’s Flag Market recently, watery sunlight bouncing off the Harris Museum. There was a queue.

The Hot Potato Tram is no overnight sensation - they have been peddling potatoes since 1955 - but they recently went stratospheric thanks to their burgeoning TikTok presence. Since starting to live stream on the social media site, the establishment has blown up, gaining over 620,000 followers and earning more than 20 million views. 

So it was time to see what all the fuss was about, frankly.

Opting for the chicken curry and cheese special by the flawlessly pleasant and polite Spud Brothers team of Jake and Harley Nelson, I was presented with a hefty package filled with steaming pomme de terre goodness. Having practically danced back to the office in anticipation, I pried open the almost-overflowing container and was not disappointed.

The potato itself was cooked perfectly, the ideal balance between soft and fluffy whilst also not being mushy. The topping - chosen narrowly ahead of The Hot Potato Tram’s famous garlic butter, cheese, and beans combo - was very good indeed. The curry was fruity and flavourful and there was a mountain of now-melted cheese to excavate.

One minor criticism might have been the slightly underwhelming amounts of chicken in the curry, but the overall flavour and moreishness of the whole thing more than made up for it. Hands gradually thawing from a foray out into the cold, I was also happily warmed from the inside by one of the heartiest lunchtime offerings Preston has to offer.

Give it a go. You won’t be disappointed.