Why Pizza Hut hasn’t snagged this for a new topping idea, I’ll never know.
So many people to respond to ;). Let’s give it a try, shall we ?
adam yax and by extension GingeroftheNorth :
No, poutine is not the only true Canadian food, there’s also, beaver tails (a waffle-like sweet), sugar pie, farlouche pie (maple syrup-based pie), ragoût de patte de cochons avec boulettes {pork feet stew with meatballs in gravy), cipâte or six-pâtes (same thing written differently according to the region it comes from), if you like tourtière, Ginger, you’ll love cipâtes. Think of it as tourtière on steroids. And that is just a small sample.
cher3 and Wump :
cheese curds are little cheese nuggets (in French fromage en crottes, litterally cheese droppings). They’re not hard to find here and they’re not that expensive. As for the gravy, I don’t know, it is a thick brown gravy, I would guess beef, but it is a WAG.
bughunter :
Yeah, you could call it California Poutine (or cheap Italian poutine, up here :D). If you can get cheese curds, the taste will improve exponentially.
It is Beef gravy- thick and almost black. If it’s made from some sort of fowl, it must be fermented…
irishgirl, that superchip sounds identical, depending on what kind of cheese it is…
and thanks eunoia
Hmm. Poutine. That’s what I’ll be hunting for this weekend.
love that artery-clogging mess. I wonder if people eat it with the Dutch fritesauce (mayo).
The story I heard was a Quebec truck driver stopped at his usual road-side stand and had the cook put this mixture together. The cook said “You’ll have a bloody mess.” (which apparently translated to poutine). It was found sporadically in Southern Ontario a few years ago, but the chains and lots of Mom and Pops are now serving it.
Cheese curd is the curdled cheese before it is shaped and aged, and therefore very mild (almost bland)…delicious. It also has a fun texture and melts easily.
In Yorkshire, England, I had the misfortune of witnessing the English equivalent of poutine…chips with mushy peas and malt vinegar loaded on the top. mushy peas{shudder}
Don’t forget butter tarts - apparently a Canadian thing only (I was quite surprised to learn this.)
Okay, now I know why there are no Canadian restaurants (I’m flashing back to Canadian Bacon.)
bughunter:
I would kill for a Tommy’s cheeseburger. Of course I would need a whole bottle of tums, but damn…
Hey !!! Don’t dis it. It’s good winter food. It will stick to your ribs and will make a real man (or woman) out of you ! 
You’re right Pipeliner, I forgot about it. Attention Canadian Dopers, any other foods that should be listed ? (barring beer, of course, it’s a given).
And cantara, I’ve heard the story, but I’m not sure about this origin of the poutine story (never heard the word poutine to describe a “bloody mess” as you put it). I’ve heard of a New Brunswick specialty called a poutine râpée, but I have no ideas what it is. I know that in the mid-70s I had a roommate from the Bois-Francs area who introduced me to poutine for the first time, saying that he grew up with the stuff. It didn’t come readily available in Montréal 'til the early to mid-80s