special food from your town?

[patrice]

I asked in another thread about good food in the Atlanta/Georgia Tech area. What about your town? Is there a signature food for your town? Is it just at restaurants or do people only cook it in their homes?

[Jill123]

I'm originally from the Kansas City area and the best thing in the world has to be KC barbecue! We smoke meats at home, but there's nothing like Arthur Bryant's ribs! (Although I know they aren't cooking light!) :D

[funnybone]

I am not originally from here, but I live in Amish and Pennsylvania Dutch Country. I don't see the healthiest of foods here and some of it is plain gross. :( What I think is from here are Whoppie Pies and Shoefly Pies. I don't care for either one. I have heard that the Amish (or was it PA Dutch?) invented Angel Food Cake though, so that is a good thing.

I prefer to cook at home, but I have neighbors who are always eating out. I'm not against eating out, but there are not many good places around - most are the chains with the long waiting times too. I would rather not go there if I can help it.

[wallycat]

Milwaukee (a short ride from where I'm from) is known for
MILLER BEER!!!!!!!!!! (too bad I don't drink much beer, unless it's the reeeeally dark, rich ale type occasionally)...
and Cheese :D ;)

[honeygirl1971]

Well, stuffed pizza, italian beef, hot dogs, everything from Chi-town is fattening and heavy. And the celebrated "Taste of Chicago" (a whole food festival that lasts two weeks every summer) is almost ALL junk food!!! I don't think anyone makes this stuff at home, though, and there are lots of good restaurants that have healthy food on the menu, luckily.

Wisconsin person (forgot name, sorry!), isn't Milwaukee known for German food? Rollbraten (sp?), saurbraten (sp?), German beer, etc?

;)

[Little Bit]

We're a seafood town, mostly, but the thing I like best is some jelly you can get. The trees grow in boggy areas, which I'm guessing aren't as plentiful as they used to be.

Mayhaw jelly, to be precise. Tart, tangy but not sour. Pretty color, too! :)

[JackieO]

Originally posted by wallycat
Milwaukee (a short ride from where I'm from) is known for
MILLER BEER!!!!!!!!!! (too bad I don't drink much beer, unless it's the reeeeally dark, rich ale type occasionally)...
and Cheese :D ;)

secret stadium sauce..... which is still served at the new Miller Park, a "leftover" condiment from Milwaukee County Stadium. Perfect topping, along with sauerkraut, for a bratwurst.

And yes, honeygirl, we are into German food big time up here! smoked pork chops, spaetzle, fish fries (although I don't know if there's a real German connection there), and everything bathed in either gravy or butter. I think Wisconsin is second only to West Virginia in terms of percentage of the population that is overweight.

[AndreaU]

Here's a thread from a while back on regional cuisines... http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4279&highlight=regional+cuisines

There are a few of us here from the Buffalo/western NY area who can vouch for wings, fresh kielbasa, beef on weck/wick and the like.

[nmody]

Although I am not originally from St. Louis, the first thing I "had to try" was the St. Louis Style Pizza....Imo's pizza...basically a cracker (saltine comes to mind) with some sauce and provel cheese (combo of provolone and velveeta type thing??). At first I hated it because the cheese always stuck to the roof of your mouth:eek: , but now I almost prefer that style since it can be quite healthy with the right toppings!

We also have gooey butter cake (obviously not light), and ah, yes, Budweiser. The world's largest brewery is about 10 miles from where I live in St. Louis, and with proper wind conditions, you can get the lovely smell of hops. :D

So Pizza, beer and dessert...it's not such a bad town, eh!?!?

Nima

[andrea]

nima-- what about ted drewes?!?!?

another kansas citian here... i think, someone correct me if i'm wrong, that burnt ends are a kc original. also, a midwest thing is ott's dressing... yummy! it's like french with horseradish in it. don't forget lamar's donuts... better than krispy creme!

[ourthreegirls]

Well, I'm in N. KY, not far from Cincinnati, home of Skyline Chili (just to name one brand....there's also Goldstar and several other knockoffs)....It's sooooooooooo yummy and so NOT good for you! I ate a TON of it when pg with my first child, and thus gained 60 lbs with her. Did I mention how yummy it was/is? :D

Jennifer

[nmody]

Andrea--

OH MY GOD! I can't believe I forgot Ted Drewes! I think I've actually blocked it out of my mind because I gave up all things ice cream related 1.5 years ago! :eek:

To all who don't know about Ted Drewes, it is a legendary stopping point on Old Route 66. Basically a custard stand with the most awesome flavored concretes! My favorites are Apple Pie and Pumpkin Pie (imagine an entire piece of pie mixed into a cup of custard...crust and all). There is no place to sit...just about 10 walk up windows where you place your orders and about 50 high school kids are crammed into this shack making all the orders by hand. Sometimes the lines are so long in the summer, they block part of the street, and you park a few blocks away.

Such a throwback into the fifties and sixties, though, when you see families all hanging out eating custard sitting on the back of their cars.

Thanks for reminding me, Andrea...BTW, DH grew up in KC, and was thrilled when Lamar's opened a store in St. Louis about 10 minutes from our house! There goes the health kick!

Nima (

[Kahlico]

I can't think of anything OKC is known for except that we can take anything and deep fry it. The only thing I haven't seen anyone deep fry around here is a salad. :D

~Emilie

[jjsooner73]

Emilie,

I was trying to think up something Oklahoma is known for...all that comes to mind is Braum's. Though Braum's is in neighboring states, it's never seen to have had the same following as I remember it having in OK.

And you're right about the deep frying!! Most of what I think of is family related--stuff my grandparents made and the rest of the family likes (except me). Fried Okra, Pinto beans w/ ham hock in it, cornbread, chow-chow (some sort of relish), fried squash.

Do you ever eat Mexican at Ted's Cafe Escondido? Yummmmm, I haven't been there in years.
Also Pepperoni Grill--I ate there around Christmas. Though I've had better Italian, I love their bread and they are sort of a nostalgic place for me.

[Kahlico]

Originally posted by jjsooner73
Do you ever eat Mexican at Ted's Cafe Escondido? Yummmmm, I haven't been there in years.
Also Pepperoni Grill--I ate there around Christmas. Though I've had better Italian, I love their bread and they are sort of a nostalgic place for me.

My husband and family love Ted's but I hardly ever eat out and if I do, I rarely crave Mexican food. The last time I ate their was when I was a strict vegetarian (no dairy, no eggs) so I just got beans and corn but the waitstaff there is so friendly! They didn't mind helping me find food to eat.

I love Pepperoni Grill's cracked pepper bread. Before they took out their bakery from the Penn Square mall location DH and I would grab 2 loaves of cracked pepper bread and some mineral water and make that lunch. DH also loved their brownies, they put a hint of orange in them. Now you have me craving some Italian... mmmm....

my mom would fry everything from okra to yellow squash. Fried potatoes were a staple but I hated the way she fried them. Ugh. Fried, greasy starch.

:D
~Emilie

[Emilylynn]

Oh boy funnybone is my neighbor! Personally, I love shoefly pie and whoopie pies. There are some gross PA dutch concoctions like cup cheese (looks like snot and gets put on crackers) and hog maw (stuffed roasted pig's stomache), but there are some good creations. I really like good homemade chow-chow (veggie salad pickled in a briney liquid), chicken 'n waffles, and super yummy soft pretzels. The first pretzel bakery in the US was here in Lititz PA. The tourists come here for "Amish food" and go to huge smorgasborgs and eat, well, slop. The best creations can be found at Central market, or driving around a country lane and looking for hand lettered signs advertising homemade baked goods or saurkraut. Recently there was a local controversy over the Amish serving meals to tourists. They were charging a fee and serving groups of 50+ on a regular basis, with out having a liscense for food service. Some of these farms had wells and the water wasn't clean. These farms have agreed to stop this practice. Has anything like this happened in other areas of the country?

[Angela]

There is nothing quite like PA Dutch Whoopie Pie and Shoofly Pie!!! Oh and Chicken n Waffles...so good. People think I'm weird when I mention this meal. I grew up eat this yummy stuff!
I guess now that I'm in Baltimore I have to say crabs.

[Kimba]

I grew up in a mill city where the population was mainly French Canadian. There's this dish called ragout, that's absolutely horrid. Great big greasy meatballs in greasy brown gravy with greasy pigs feet. Bleagh.

OTOH, tourtiere, Canadian French meat pie, when done right, is awesome. We always have it at Christmas.

As mentioned in a previous thread on local favorites, RI also has clamcakes (fritters, for the uninitiated), doughboys, Block Island swordfish and tuna (see? it's not ALL fried), and Dels frozen lemonade. And, our state drink, which is coffee milk ;)

Kimba

[jazzyjas]

I have never lived there but no one from the Northern Tier of New York has chimed in. Where are all of the Binghampton/Endicott lovers of Spiedies?
What is a Spiedie you ask?

http://www.spiedies.com/what.htm sorry if this site is a little comercial but it is a good explination

and my boyfriend used to buy them uncooked for the freezer to bring back to vermont with us -- so I guess people do cook them at home.

jasmine

[funnybone]

Originally posted by Emilylynn
Oh boy funnybone is my neighbor!

The first pretzel bakery in the US was here in Lititz PA.

I guess I am! :)

I did forget the pretzels - how could I - they are everywhere. I have never seen so much shelf space devoted to pretzels anywhere else. When friends visit us and we go to the grocery store, they always as "What's with all the pretzels?" - I kid you not!

We both forgot to mention Wilbur Chocolates - the buds!!! YUMMY!!!:D

[kimmurphy94]

I live in NJ now, and they have a sandwhich here which you can't get anywhere else called a Sloppy Joe. No, its not the manwhich kind, but a layer of deli meat (beef, turkey or ham) with russian dressing and coleslaw arranged with in 3 slices of rye bread. Its tasty, but pretty high up there on the WW scale!

I grew up in Ohio where every year we had the Melon Festival (our local harvest fest). Its the only time of the year you can get muskmelon and watermelon ice cream. Sounds nasty, but it actually pretty good!

[SusanT]

The best BBQ in the world is in West Tennessee - specifically Memphis or my parents' house. Daddy was doing beer can chicken way before anyone else. He also BBQ's baloney (sounds weird but it's really delicious). Daddy's ribs are better than Corky's or Rendevous.

In my part of the country, BBQ refers only to smoked pork and when you cook anything else on the grill, that's called "cooking-out".

Hmmm... this is making me hungry! :D

[ChristineLiu]

Originally posted by nmody
Although I am not originally from St. Louis, the first thing I "had to try" was the St. Louis Style Pizza....Imo's pizza...basically a cracker (saltine comes to mind) with some sauce and provel cheese (combo of provolone and velveeta type thing??). At first I hated it because the cheese always stuck to the roof of your mouth:eek: , but now I almost prefer that style since it can be quite healthy with the right toppings!

We also have gooey butter cake (obviously not light), and ah, yes, Budweiser. The world's largest brewery is about 10 miles from where I live in St. Louis, and with proper wind conditions, you can get the lovely smell of hops. :D

So Pizza, beer and dessert...it's not such a bad town, eh!?!?

Nima

Hi Nima

I'm in St. Louis too! You forgot about Ted Drewes frozen custard and toasted (actually fried) ravioli. And if you're still wondering, provel is actually fake processed cheese.

Christine

[AndreaU]

Jasmine- Mmmmmmm spiedies! I lived in Rochester for a while and we used to make these quite often (when we didn't just buy 'em at "The Fair")!

[JHolcomb]

The best BBQ is from Lexington, NC :D . Actually, I think the styles are all SO different that I don't consider them to be the same thing at all and don't think you can compare them against one another, really. Like apples and oranges. But for good Western NC style BBQ, Lexington BBQ #1(Honeymonk's) is THE place. Though i like the slaw at Mr.Barbeque in Winston better.

And speaking of Winston, I have only 3 words. Hot. Doughnuts. Now. Yep, we're the birthplace of Krispy Kreme (or Kripsy, as my best friend calls it).