Or sloppy joes, named for Sloppy Joe’s.
But back to the OP, for a sec… the question was really, are there any individual, stand-alone restaurants that can truthfully say one or more of their dishes is “World famous”?
Most of the time, a joint that claims to have “world famous pizza” or “world famous margaritas” in engaging in puffery.
And most of the foods that ARE “world famous” are either mass produced or sold by major restaurant chains. So, Twinkies and Big Macs are famous, but they don’t fit the OP.
Thus far, we’ve seen just a few worthy nominees:
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The beignets and chicory coffee at the Cafe du Monde in New Orleans are genuinely famous all over America.
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Even people who’ve never been to either place are likely familiar with the cheesesteak sandwiches served at** Pat’s** and Geno’s (two rival joints located across the street from each other) in Philadelphia.
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The Navy Bean Soup served daily at the Senate cafeteria is famous, even if hardly anybody eats there and hardly anybody knows if it’s any good.
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I’ve never eaten at Lindy’s, and have no idea whether their cheesecake is really good- but it’s fairly well known.
The cheesesteak sandwiches at Pat’s and Geno’s are famous, although the sandwich is available elsewhere. So given that, I think we can add a few to the list. How about the pastrami at Katz’s Deli in Manhattan? The wings from Anchor Bar in Buffalo. And the clam pizza from Pepe’s in New Haven.
My Bulgarian teacher, who’s pretty well-educated, had never heard of Hershey’s. I don’t think I ever saw any Hershey’s stuff in Bulgaria. If you asked a bunch of Europeans, they’d come up with some wildly different answers, and be shocked that these brands aren’t commonplace in America. Like Milka. I can’t believe Milka products aren’t widely available in the US! They are far yummier than anything made by Hershey’s.
IME, I would agree that Lipton’s is world-famous. I’ve had Lipton’s tea served to me in several odd places, including BFE, Sinai, Egypt.