# Canadian Food? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 25, 2007, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368 "2007-01-25T03:41:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/1 "2007-01-25T03:41:19Z")
Is there a type of cuisine that could be described as Canadian? Are there Canadian restaurants in other countries, in the way that there are Italian and Chinese, for example, here in the US? If so, what are the main dishes. If not, does anyone have guesses why not? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/2 "2007-01-25T03:42:08Z")
Aside from poutine and maple leaf cookies… I guess not. ---
**Author:** ![Khampelf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Khampelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khampelf)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/3 "2007-01-25T03:43:29Z")
[QUOTE=Bryan Ekers] Aside from poutine and maple leaf cookies… I guess not. [/QUOTE] Don’t forget back bacon. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/4 "2007-01-25T03:48:17Z")
Canadian opining… I can’t think of distinctly Canadian foods that aren’t regional foods. Poutine has spread, but it’s still a ‘French Canadian’ dish. Newfoundland food is distinctive enough that there are Newfie stores and Newfoundland restaurants up here. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/5 "2007-01-25T03:49:56Z")
Oooh, back bacon, good, vaguely non-regional, one. ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/6 "2007-01-25T03:52:24Z")
There’s regional specialties. [This nifty site](http://www.foodtv.ca/content/ContentDetail.aspx?ContentId=2370) gives you a pretty good overview of what kind of eatin’ Canajuns do. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/7 "2007-01-25T03:54:19Z")
Tourtiere, but it’s more a Quebec thing than a Canada thing. But no, there aren’t any “Canadian” restaurants out there. But, well, are there really “American” restaurants? Everything in North America is more or less a mix of culinary ideas from all over the place, from what I can tell. ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/8 "2007-01-25T03:59:35Z")
Kind of as I thought about regional…thanks for the replies. However, according to Wikipedia, > [@](#): > > Poutine is available in only a few places outside of Canada, including the northern United States and a handful of Canadian-themed restaurants and pubs throughout the rest of the world. Anyone know where those Canadian-themed restaurants are and what they are called? ---
**Author:** ![Cheez\_Whia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d26b3c/32.png) [@Cheez\_Whia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheez_Whia)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/9 "2007-01-25T04:05:37Z")
[QUOTE=kayT] Anyone know where those Canadian-themed restaurants are and what they are called? [/QUOTE] [Le Cellier](http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/dining/diningDetail?id=LeCellierSteakhouseDiningPage) , Canada Pavillion, Epcot, Walt Disney World, Florida ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/10 "2007-01-25T04:19:44Z")
Poutine sounds kind of tasty. The only thing I know that my Canadian freinds eat that Americans don’t is Malt Vinegar on French fries. ---
**Author:** ![PastAllReason](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f07891/32.png) [@PastAllReason](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastAllReason)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/11 "2007-01-25T04:22:06Z")
That’s a harder question to ask than you might think. Canada is a big country. Geography matters, in the east-west spread. Most of us live in reasonable proximity to the US border. There are cultural factors. There are many Canadians who are of aboriginal ancestry, including the Inuit in the north who have traditional foods with regional diversity. Then like the US we’ve had waves of immigration, and tendencies of immigrants from certain areas of the world to settle in the same geographic area. We have Newfoundland, settled for hundreds of years, but which only joined Canada in 1949. We have Quebec. And we have which only joined We have Quebec It has an official policy of multiculturalism, rather than the American melting pot. So: if you asked me if we have a single Canadian type of cuisine that is distinctive from the rest of the world but which is commonly consumed by all or nearly all Canadians, personally I would say no. I would say that there are examples of Canadian food that are Canadian in origin and are distinctive here, like the above-mentioned poutine. Likely, if you are an American, and you are eating in Canada, at an average restaurant (as opposed to the Italian, Vietnamese, Ethiopian, etc etc restaurants we have here as well), you would not find the experience much different than you would in the US. There might be a few menu items that would make you go “huh”,but otherwise likely not. If you venture into a restaurant that is a little more upscale or niche, you may find that there are a few more things that are unusual to you. Similarly, if you were attending a community event/family celebration in different areas of the country you’d likely see within any one region consistently available food, but they would vary from region to region. I live in Saskatchewan, pretty much due north of eastern Montana. In this region, there are many people whose families originally came from eastern Europe. Perogies (small dumplings stuffed with mixtures like cheese and potato and served with onions sauteed in butter) and cabbage rolls (rolled cabbage leaves stuffed with a rice mixture that may or may not include some type of ground meat) and baked in a tomato sauce) are incredibly common. This is not at all true in other areas of the country. All of that said, it seems to me that these are the same factors in play in the US. All of that said, Tim Horton’s may soon qualify as our national cuisine. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/12 "2007-01-25T04:22:48Z")
[QUOTE=DrDeth] The only thing I know that my Canadian freinds eat that Americans don’t is Malt Vinegar on French fries. [/QUOTE] Don’t forget maple syrup on baked beans. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/13 "2007-01-25T04:23:28Z")
Rye and ginger (alcoholic beverage). Other than a few French Canadian ishes, I can’t think of much uniquely “Canadian” although in Halifax, I noticed they put donair sauce on everything. ---
**Author:** ![PastAllReason](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f07891/32.png) [@PastAllReason](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastAllReason)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/14 "2007-01-25T04:24:26Z")
[QUOTE=Quiddity Glomfuster] There’s regional specialties. [This nifty site](http://www.foodtv.ca/content/ContentDetail.aspx?ContentId=2370) gives you a pretty good overview of what kind of eatin’ Canajuns do. [/QUOTE] Sure, go ahead, and be all succinct while I spend 20-odd minutes typing out my post! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/15 "2007-01-25T04:24:45Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] Don’t forget maple syrup on baked beans. :eek: [/QUOTE] It’s kind of like getting cans of baked beans in molasses. I’ve seen that in the U.S. My grandma’s recipe for baked beans has tons of brown sugar. So I don’t see maple syrup being that far off. ---
**Author:** ![Cerowyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@Cerowyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerowyn)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/16 "2007-01-25T04:33:43Z")
[QUOTE=kayT] Anyone know where those Canadian-themed restaurants are and what they are called? [/QUOTE] I saw the **Great Canadian Muffin Company** in London in 1992 (near Soho, IIRC). I didn’t go in, and haven’t seen it since. In Tokyo, there’s **Salty Dog** on Roppongi Dori, between Roppongi and Nishi-Azabu/Hiro-o. There used to be a tiny place called **Blue Jays Bar** in Harajiku, Tokyo that was festooned with Toronto Blue Jays memorabilia. It was probably the only non-Canadian run bar I have ever seen that sold Canadian whiskey and ginger ale as “rye and ginger.” It vanished about 2002. ---
**Author:** ![Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Throatwarbler_Mangrove)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/17 "2007-01-25T04:37:36Z")
Here in Calgary, we have [Ginger Beef](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ginger_beef). I’ve been living here a few years and I still can’t get enough of the stuff. ---
**Author:** ![StuffLikeThatThere](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc8723/32.png) [@StuffLikeThatThere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StuffLikeThatThere)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/18 "2007-01-25T04:41:36Z")
[QUOTE=DrDeth] The only thing I know that my Canadian freinds eat that Americans don’t is Malt Vinegar on French fries. [/QUOTE] I’ve been eating that all my life. Do I have to stop if I continue to live in Ohio? I hope not. It’s way better than ketchup. ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/19 "2007-01-25T04:43:34Z")
[QUOTE=PastAllReason] Sure, go ahead, and be all succinct while I spend 20-odd minutes typing out my post! 😉 [/QUOTE] ‘Succinct’ - ‘lazy’ ‘tomayto’ - ‘tomahto’ 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Who](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Doctor\_Who](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Who)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368/20 "2007-01-25T04:48:15Z")
[QUOTE=StuffLikeThatThere] I’ve been eating that all my life. Do I have to stop if I continue to live in Ohio? I hope not. It’s way better than ketchup. [/QUOTE] No, you don’t have to stop. But you do have to feel disgusted while you do it, and mutter things to yourself like “You dirty, filthy Canadian. Do you like that vinegar on your fry, you filthy Canadian?” in between mouthfuls of fries. The same procedure applies to “Canadian bacon.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-food/389368.md?page=2)