Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
You are saying you can't find or there is no fondness for, Tex-Mex, bbq or Southern food in Ohio, Washington or New Jersey???
They are very much part of general US cuisine, and yes available across the nation.
I would assume he's getting at that those regions aren't known for those types of foods, so its quality is probably going to be lacking in comparison to places where it's more common.
That being said, it's certainly easy enough to get authentic Mexican food in Chicago. The city has one of the largest Mexican populations in the country. There's also large enough Mexican populations in most metropolitan areas at this point that you can find more authentic food in the sea of watered down American versions.
On the topic of BBQ and the Midwest, both Kansas City and St. Louis are known for their BBQ styles, so the Midwest certainly isn't devoid of its own take on it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by in_newengland
You usually have to spend a bit of money here to get good food. Hint--When you eat in a restaurant and they give you those oversize portions, be sure and ask for a "doggie bag" so you can take it home. They will always wrap it up for you. Might be best to carry a styrofoam cooler in the car and stay at a place with a microwave so you can heat it up next day. Or get there early enough and order off the lunch menu and you'll get a normal sized portion of the same food.
(Call in advance to see how late they serve lunch.)
My kids just love cornbread when travelling in the U.S. I am sure there is somewhere they have that here in Canada but I have never seen it.
Also pancakes are the best in the U.S. They have them all over the place in Canada to but they never seem to be as good as in the States. (Though Quebec does do thin crêpes well but that's a different thing altogether.)
I was at a nice Italian restaurant on Long Island last week and enjoyed a very good pasta dish. By the time I was so full and couldn’t eat any more, the remains were still bigger than what I would expect to receive as a complete meal here at home!
I’ve learned to always get it boxed up now even if I know i won’t eat it because I can then avoid the awkward questions of “you didn’t like it?” or “was there something wrong?”. I’m sure they never believe me when I tell them it was great, just way too much.
The doggie bag used to be common place in Australia, but most places are very reticent to do it now and often cite health regulations or legal concerns if contamination occurs once the food has left their premises.
So Australian breakfasts are different, no bacon & eggs & pancakes?
Pancakes are more of a dessert here though you certainly see them on some menus for breakfast. Yes, we have bacon and eggs but maple syrup is not usually served with them. We do not usually have hash browns and the like with breakfast.
But I do not encourage my husband to go out much for breakfast normally. I think today he opened a can of baked beans.
Warm Apple pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream is pretty darn good in the U.S. Lots of diners have good pie, esp along the East coast in places like New Jersey, New York and Baltimore.
NYC which is famous for its Pizza, Sandwiches, Bagels, Hot Dog etc
Are you old enough to remember when, along with dirty-water dogs, knish were sold on the streets?
According to a relatively recent article, they are no longer sold on the streets, but you can find them at certain delicatessen dispersed throughout Manhattan.
The ones I remember were square, probably the Coney Island type, unlike the sort of roundish ones pictured in the article.
As for pizza, I doubt if you can still find old-time Neopolitan or Sicilian immigrants operating a corner pizza shop, hell, you could hardly find any even ten years ago in Milan. Nowadays it seems, on both sides of the Atlantic, the ingredients are trucked in from some godforsaken factory and assembled by a bunch of kids who don't really want to be there.
Last time I had a decent canolo was in Palermo, but there still might be a few pizza and pastry shops left on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx.
What are typical desserts? Is pecan pie American? I like that.
Yes pecan pies
Pineapple upside down cake
Hot fudge Brownie sundae
Cheesecake (NY style)
Fruit cobbler (more in the country areas considered "down home" but pretty widespread)
Some are more "seasonal" like pumpkin pies.
The US is the only place where you will also see Skillet cookies (giant cookies served warm in a skillet with ice cream on top). I would also say "Cookie cakes" but pretty sure I've seen those in Australia.
Some are really regional (whoopie pie...Bananas Foster...banana pudding...Gooey cake...)
Red velvet cake is now very widespread
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
