# American restaurants in foreign countries other than fast food? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 24, 2013, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417 "2013-07-24T21:13:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![jovan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/0ea827/32.png) [@jovan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jovan)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/61 "2013-07-25T12:55:15Z")
> [@Spoke](#): > > So the world’s idea of “American food” seems to be: burgers, steaks, fries, fried chicken, and maybe some occasional cajun food for a change of pace. Serious question: what would Americans consider “American food”? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/62 "2013-07-25T12:57:27Z")
> [@Spoke](#): > > So the world’s idea of “American food” seems to be: burgers, steaks, fries, fried chicken, and maybe some occasional cajun food for a change of pace. I think that’s also the American idea of “American food”. We have all sorts of other food, of course, but your standard “American Diner” or “Fast Casual” will have all those items (except maybe the fried chicken, but that’s just 'cause it’s a pain in the ass for most kitchens to make unless they make a lot of it.) ---
**Author:** ![Pitchmeister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pitchmeister/32/3459_2.png) [@Pitchmeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pitchmeister)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/63 "2013-07-25T12:59:35Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > Word, the Bird! [Menu](http://www.thebirdinberlin.com/menus/bird_berlin_menu_eng.pdf) > [@Spoke](#): > > Well, OK, but are those English muffins they’re using for buns? Yes. Yes, they are. They are quite delicious, because they don’t go all soggy (the meat patty is pretty big). It makes the burger just a bit hard to eat, because you got stuff hanging over the sides of the “bun” about an inch around. But, oh, the taste… ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/64 "2013-07-25T13:00:36Z")
American restaurants of all stripes in the UK, thought mainly of the burger/steakhouse variety. There’s a real fashion for posh street food of all nationalities at the moment, and restaurants of the moment in London are picking up on some of the American versions in places such as [Burger and Lobster](http://www.burgerandlobster.com/) (the menu is as limited as it suggests), and [Bubbledogs](http://www.bubbledogs.co.uk/home) (champagne and hotdogs, Yep, short menus are in vogue too). Not strictly ‘american’ restaurants, more US-food influenced. For a different approach, a very ‘in’ restaurant group that started out creating Italian small plate restaurants has opened a place called ‘[Spuntino](http://spuntino.co.uk/)’ which is described as ‘a carefully constructed London take on a New York take on road-food and Italian classics’. No idea if that counts. [Here’s a review](http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/may/15/jay-rayner-restaurant-review-spuntino) from a respected writer that says: > [@](#): > > This is an American diner, the sort of place you would find right now in Brooklyn. It is a shameless act of cultural larceny, executed with love. You may notice from my links that bare essential websites are also ‘in’. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Gray\_Ghost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Gray\_Ghost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gray_Ghost)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/65 "2013-07-25T13:13:00Z")
> [@JKilez](#): > > …ETA: I, too, have heard of the egg on burger thing, but still would qualify it as “unusual,” or at best “not uncommon”. Agree with the unusual, but you can also find it here in Texas. [The Petrol Station](http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/20090)’s [Rancor Burger](http://www.hankonfood.com/2012/02/review-petrol-station-rancor-burger.html) sports one, and is extremely tasty. As are most of the quite rare beers that they serve on tap. IMHO, probably the best beer bar in Houston, though [The Hay Merchant](http://www.haymerchant.com/) gives them a run for their money. Edit: Speaking of fried eggs, in my limited experience abroad, the Germans liked putting them on pizza. Weird looking, but it worked. Never saw an “American” restaurant other than McD’s in either Germany or Czech, but then I wasn’t looking for one either. The Bird looks great if I’m ever in Berlin. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/66 "2013-07-25T13:22:51Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > I once saw a Tex-Mex place called in Paris called “Indiana.” Didn’t go in, though, so have no idea what the food is like. Still, seems like they could use a geography lesson. I think I remember that too- wasn’t it a chain? I seem to remember one in the Latin Quarter and one somewhere else. ISTR that the UK had a slew of fried chicken takeaways that were named after just about every Southern state except Kentucky- Mississippi Fried Chicken, Alabama Fried Chicken, Tennessee Fried Chicken, etc… Don’t know if they count as “American” though. One thing to consider about this topic is that a lot of what we think of as “American” food is either just local adaptations or variants of European standards or food from elsewhere, especially British foods. Things like pizza, hot dogs, roast beef, chicken fried steak, etc… would be thought of as properly Italian, Austrian, British, etc… As a result, what would be interesting to foreigners would be the specifically American dishes, which are apparently hamburgers, fried chicken, Cajun/Creole, barbecue and sometimes Tex-Mex. I think steaks aren’t that unusual elsewhere, but the US steakhouse treatment may be. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/67 "2013-07-25T13:30:14Z")
> [@jovan](#): > > Serious question: what would Americans consider “American food”? That’s too big an idea to contemplate. But there would be more vegetables involved. ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/68 "2013-07-25T13:36:42Z")
A fried egg on a burger has been a standard item on the menus of NYC area diners for as long as I can remember - since at least the mid 1980s, when I started going to them myself (my parents didn’t take me into them). The funny thing is, they’re typically called a “Texan Burger” or “Texas Burger”, which puzzles Texans. So even within the US we have this regional-food-but-not-like-the-natives thing going on. Most Americans would list a burger (especially cheeseburger, or bacon cheeseburger) or hot dog as their first example of “American Food”. French fries, chicken nuggets breaded and fried, and pizza as well. There are regional varieties of pizza, and of course Italy can always lay claim to the “original” Margherita Pizza, but there is a baseline of (probably bad) pizza that is recognizably Standard American that seems to set the world standard. Meatloaf with mashed potatoes and steamed carrots on the side Roast turkey slices with (mashed?) sweet potato and corn [a traditional Thanksgiving meal] Peanut Butter & Jelly sandwiches What most of the country would consider “Southern” American food, but like pizza, there exists a debased Lowest Common Denominator form that is commonly available and sets a world standard for: BBQ pork ribs and chicken Corn on the Cob Baked beans in a tangy BBQ sauce (which I found part of a complete, “full” breakfast in Britain, BTW) ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/69 "2013-07-25T13:38:50Z")
If I think about it, I suppose a typical Thanksgiving dinner would be the quintessential American meal. It incorporates a native bird (the turkey), and native vegetables like corn, beans, potatoes, pumpkins and squashes. So yeah, pretty “American.” Also, barbecue (which uses a Native American cooking technique), with brunswick stew (which is basically just a riff on Native American stews). And I’m not saying burgers and steaks and fried chicken aren’t “American food.” They are. It’s just a narrow idea of American food. (Kind of like pizza and spaghetti is a narrow idea of Italian food, I guess.) ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/70 "2013-07-25T13:39:35Z")
> [@bump](#): > > I think I remember that _(Indiana in Paris)_ too- wasn’t it a chain? I seem to remember one in the Latin Quarter and one somewhere else. Yes, it’s a generic Tex Mex place, they even have [Chimichungas](http://www.indianacafe.fr/carte-restaurants/lunch-diner.html). ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/71 "2013-07-25T13:42:46Z")
> [@Gray\_Ghost](#): > > Edit: Speaking of fried eggs, in my limited experience abroad, the Germans liked putting them on pizza. They do that in Italy, which is probably where Germans got the idea. Pizza Fiorentina is the obvious version. We have that in the UK in italian style pizza restaurants, which have pretty much overtaken US style ones (though home delivery still tend to be US style, or a mishmash). If you think that’s weird, I went to a restaurant in Venice where the waiter brought my very respectable looking pizza to the table and proceeded to crack a raw egg over it. Yup. ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/72 "2013-07-25T13:43:24Z")
Oh, and creamy cole slaw (as opposed to the vinegar based slaws in Germany and Eastern Europe) is an American invention, too, right? Also the “fish stick”, the even poorer relation in the mashed-protein-breaded-and-fried family of foods to the more beloved Chicken Nugget. Though now we’re veering into the realm of Foods Most Americans Know, But Only From A School Cafeteria And So Help Me God I Hope Never To See It Again. ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/73 "2013-07-25T13:50:45Z")
The menu at Captain Americas of Dublin is pretty accurate, actually, especially with the option to upgrade the burger to a full pound. That’s the American Way, all right! Go XL or go home! Though what a Goujon or Gougon is (spelled differently at different places on the menu) escapes me. Clearly something meaning chicken strips, which I assume are breaded and fried, but I’ll have to go look this term up now. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/74 "2013-07-25T13:56:44Z")
A goujon is literally a gudgeon (a type of fish), but it just a fancy French term for fried strips of stuff. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/75 "2013-07-25T14:00:31Z")
> [@robardin](#): > > The menu at Captain Americas of Dublin is pretty accurate, actually, especially with the option to upgrade the burger to a full pound. That’s the American Way, all right! Go XL or go home! Yeah aside from the chicken curry they totally nailed it. That could easily be a menu right off the table of a TGI Chilibee’s. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/76 "2013-07-25T14:01:14Z")
> [@robardin](#): > > A fried egg on a burger has been a standard item on the menus of NYC area diners for as long as I can remember - since at least the mid 1980s, when I started going to them myself (my parents didn’t take me into them). Well, then, maybe Captain Americas of Dublin is accurate in calling that burger “The New Yorker.” I’m a bit older than you, and the first time I remember ever hearing of an egg on a burger it was the Australians who were doing it, and everyone thought it was weird. (Don’t they also put beets on their burgers?) But maybe it’s a New York thing, too. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/77 "2013-07-25T14:07:27Z")
> [@Miss\_Woodhouse](#): > > You have solved a life long mystery for me. Growing up my dad tried to pass off fried rice as a standard omelet filling. I knew it wasn’t normal, American fare. I guess it’s standard for a man who spent several years living in Japan when he was in his twenties. (I’m still not going to eat it even though I know where he got the idea now. I don’t do eggs and rice.) Glad I could help. 🙂 Personally I always thought omurice seemed kind of off-putting, although for me it’s not the egg/rice combination but the inclusion of ketchup. I’m fine with ketchup in other contexts, but this just seems wrong to me. ---
**Author:** ![eenerms](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/cdc98d/32.png) [@eenerms](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eenerms)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/78 "2013-07-25T14:15:15Z")
In Florence, italy there is Mama’s Bakery, has American coffee and bagels. The Grill has a Thanksgiving Dinner with all the trimmings.( well it did a couple years ago) and The Diner, with American burgers, etc. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/79 "2013-07-25T14:34:52Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > It’s not unheard of in NW Indiana. If you’ve ever heard of Miner-Dunn, in Highland, they have the Major Dunn burger, which has fried egg and bacon on it. I think Three Floyd’s in Hammond used to have a burger with fried egg, too, but I don’t see it on their current menu. It’s not common in your neck of the woods, but it does exist. I had a wonderful sandwich at a place in Lafayette years ago. It was built something like this: toast cheese bacon hard-fried egg toast lettuce tomato cheese bacon hamburger mayo toast ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417/80 "2013-07-25T14:38:41Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > But, seriously? I have _never_ heard of serving a burger with a fried egg on it this side of the Atlantic. Admittedly, I’m midwestern - it _could_ be some East Coast thing I’ve never heard of. Add me to the chorus of folks seeing it not only this side of the Atlantic, but in the Midwest–when we still had Chili Company in Oakley, it was always on the menu. Mind you, we’d typically get the chili burger… or pancakes at oh-fuck-thirty in the morning, in the middle of a D&D session… When I needed American food in Санкт-Петербург, I just went to МакДоналдс. But there was a faux-English pub there, on one of the canals: [Диккенс](http://dickensrest.ru/). I popped in there most every Saturday afternoon for fish and chips and a pint of Old Speckled Hen. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-restaurants-in-foreign-countries-other-than-fast-food/664417.md?page=5)