# Most iconic food from each state **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [May 4, 2024, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151 "2024-05-04T23:48:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![saucywench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@saucywench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saucywench)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/81 "2024-05-06T03:18:12Z")
I lived in San Antonio two different times. I remember at our high school football games and other places, they served frito pie. They cut the top off the frito bag, spooned the Wolf’s in and stuck a spoon in it. My favorite chicken fried steak place there is DeWese’s Tip Top Cafe. They were on Diners Drive Ins and Dives. > **[American Takeout Restaurant | San Antonio, TX | DeWese's Tip Top Cafe](https://www.tiptopcafesa.com/)** > > Since 1938, DeWese's Tip Top Cafe has been serving up some of San Antonio's best Southern comfort classics. We've been the destination diner of choice for over 80 years. Great pies, T-Bones, onion rings, everything! [https://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g60956-d469759-i138118809-Tip\_Top\_Cafe-San\_Antonio\_Texas.html](https://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g60956-d469759-i138118809-Tip_Top_Cafe-San_Antonio_Texas.html) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/82 "2024-05-06T03:18:25Z")
Yep. You can’t get them in Canada. ---
**Author:** ![saucywench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@saucywench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saucywench)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/83 "2024-05-06T03:20:05Z")
I like my own chili also, but Wolf’s was good when you didn’t have time to make your own. I liked to fry my own steak fries and pour the Wolf’s on them. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/84 "2024-05-06T03:21:18Z")
Texan poutine! 😆 Gotta have cheese curds too! ---
**Author:** ![LVBoPeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/858c86/32.png) [@LVBoPeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVBoPeep)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/85 "2024-05-06T03:25:35Z")
As a near-LV native, hands down the iconic food is casino cafe prime rib. Go to any local casino and everything else they serve in the cafe or whatever specialty restaurant they struggle to keep viable will be trash, but you can count on a decent prime rib. It was more iconic when it was $9.99 but still reliable. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/86 "2024-05-06T03:43:35Z")
Both the _Onion_ and _Food Network_ agree that the most popular and/or iconic food from New Mexico is **frito pie**. Of course the _Onion_’s take on it is funnier: > [@The Onion](#): > > Frito Pie: Proof that Midwesterners aren’t the only ones who can concoct an inedible casserole. The _Onion_’s take on Missouri is right on the money: > [@The Onion](#): > > St. Louis–Style Pizza: An interesting spin on a perennial classic. St. Louis–style pizza is just like any other pizza, except it fucking blows. I made the mistake of getting pizza in St. Louis once. It looked like pizza but tasted awful—insipid and bland. It was easily one of the worst pizzas I’ve eaten in my life, even worse than school cafeteria pizza and frozen Celeste pizza. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/87 "2024-05-06T03:47:12Z")
I liked the pizza served at my school’s cafeteria. It always had a nice layer of cheese on top. Red Baron and Tombstone are the only frozen pizzas I buy. Of course, my pizza is better than either of them. 😁 ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/88 "2024-05-06T03:59:05Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > Apple pie and cheddar cheese is Vermont? > > No, apple pie and cheddar cheese is Ontario. Maybe there is some overlap, because I absolutely associate Vermont with apple pie and sharp cheddar cheese. I first saw this at the annual “Big E” (Eastern States Exposition). It was notable for me because I had never seen that before. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/89 "2024-05-06T04:00:14Z")
True, too. I used to get Prime Rib as Sam’s Town, and the $2 Strip Steaks at Binion’s after Midnight. Hell, Vegas has all kinds of “iconic” food. Nature of the town. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/90 "2024-05-06T04:24:30Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Red Baron and Tombstone are the only frozen pizzas I buy. I take that back. DiGiorno is good too. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/91 "2024-05-06T05:23:04Z")
> [@zbuzz](#): > > I think Mission burritos are more of a San Francisco iconic food, not a California iconic food. You’d think if you were going to choose a burrito to represent California, you’d go with the one named after the state. > **[Everything You Need To Know About The California Burrito](https://lajolla.com/article/california-burrito/)** > > California burritos are a favorite among many San Diegans. Learn more about ingredients, how these are made and more. I’d like to see how they came up with this list, because the only thing anyone can seem to agree on is that they got their own state wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/92 "2024-05-06T06:29:59Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > Iconic food loved by, and eaten frequently by all walks of life would be the green chile cheeseburger. That’s true. Other cromulent answers are Allsup’s chimichangas (here in NM we pick our gas stations by their burritos) and any burritos or tamales sold out of the trunk of a car. But green chile alone isn’t the answer because red chile is also correct. Ordering food is like Sophie’s choice, if you order the red you wish you had ordered green, and vice versa. So you order Christmas and get both. And don’t forget an over easy egg with that. The diced tomatoes and shredded iceberg lettuce is accurate for NM, so at least they got that right. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/93 "2024-05-06T06:40:11Z")
> [@Dag\_Otto](#): > > But green chile alone isn’t the answer because red chile is also correct. Ordering food is like Sophie’s choice, if you order the red you wish you had ordered green, and vice versa. So you order Christmas and get both. And don’t forget an over easy egg with that. > > The diced tomatoes and shredded iceberg lettuce is accurate for NM, so at least they got that right. I’ve seen what your state calls “enchiladas”. They terrify me. ---
**Author:** ![zbuzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zbuzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zbuzz)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/94 "2024-05-06T08:11:49Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > You’d think if you were going to choose a burrito to represent California, you’d go with the one named after the state. Yeah, but, name aside, I think it has the same problem as the Mission burrito. The California burrito is massively popular in San Diego (as it should be, because it’s pure cylindrical deliciousness), but it gets far less play in Los Angeles or San Francisco or almost anywhere else in the state. But yeah the article is just yet another clickbait listicle anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/95 "2024-05-06T08:42:20Z")
> [@robby](#): > > Maybe there is some overlap, because I absolutely associate Vermont with apple pie and sharp cheddar cheese. There must be some overlap. I think of the many apple orchards in Ontario, and all the dairies that produce cheddar cheese, and there is nothing more “Ontario” to me than apple pie and sharp cheddar cheese. We were driving through New England one time, and we stopped for the night in Waterbury, Vermont. (Home of Ben and Jerry’s, yes, but since it had not been introduced to Canada at that time, we were puzzled about what it was and why it was a big deal.) At the restaurant where we had dinner, one of the dessert items was apple pie and cheddar cheese. “They must get a lot of Ontarians coming through here to have apple pie and cheddar cheese,” remarked my travelling companion. I associate Vermont more with maple syrup and associated maple treats than anything else. But of course, Ontario and Quebec have claims to that too. Maybe Vermont had better stick with Ben and Jerry’s—having had some, now that it has been introduced here, I can say that it is excellent. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/96 "2024-05-06T10:37:04Z")
Cheese curds are a good choice for Wisconsin, but kringle, the state pastry (really!) should at least get an honorable mention. Bratwurst is also worth mentioning. Brian ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/97 "2024-05-06T11:09:25Z")
I was about to say, having revisited the thread after a few days, that onion burgers are the thing. I went to OK for the second time in my life a couple months ago, and the first thing I did was find myself some nice onion burgers in OK City. Good stuff! I also had a theta burger, but that’s more obscure. Oklahoma onion burgers aren’t exactly universally known, but they’ve surged in visibility over the past few years if you watch lots of YouTube food videos. It’s the one _distinctive_ food I think of when I think of the state. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/98 "2024-05-06T12:43:32Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I thought Michigan would have the Coney Dog. I had that thought too, though I expected it to be the pasty and I’m fine with that. I do enjoy me a good pasty. The pasty is more of a U.P. thing though. If one was to split iconic foods between the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan, the L.P.'s food would have to be the Coney Dog. Though why a style of hot dog named after a New York amusement park came to be an iconic food of Michigan is a bit of a story: > **[The Origin of the Coney Island Hot Dog Is a Uniquely American Story](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/origins-coney-island-hot-dog-uniquely-american-story-180959659/)** > > They also have very little to do with the New York City amusement park ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/99 "2024-05-06T12:47:38Z")
Pastys are a good choice for Michigan, even if those are more associated with the UP and not the state as a whole. Brian ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2024, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151/100 "2024-05-06T12:54:03Z")
I suspect most people would suggest NY Style Pizza as the New York State Iconic Food, but there are a couple of examples from upstate NY that are unique to that state. 1.) The **Spiedie** from Binghamton and the surrounding area is almost unique to the Southern Tier (there was a place that sold them in Melrose MA for a while, I understand. They’re gone now). When I lived in Binghamton in the early 1980s the classic Spiedies were lamb, but pork was common, and the best ones were sterak. I understand that now chicken has taken over as the meatt of choice. > **[Spiedie](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiedie)** > > The spiedie (/ˈspiːdi/) is a food consisting of marinated meat that is often threaded onto skewers before being grilled and served on a long bread roll or sliced Italian bread. Spiedies are local to Binghamton in the central Southern Tier of New York, and somewhat more broadly known and enjoyed throughout Central New York.\[citation needed\] A spiedie consists of cubes of chicken, pork, lamb, veal, venison or beef. The meat is marinated overnight or longer, then grilled on spits over a charcoal Th... 2.) Rochester-style chicken with hot sauce of the Smitty’s/Country Sweet/ Boss Sauce type from Rochester, NY. Boss sauce is the easiest to get out-of-town (I don’t think Smitty’s exists any more). It isn’t at all like Buffalo Chicken sauce, and is unique in my experience – a hot and sweet sauce completely unlike, say, Thai chili. Someone on this Bosard likened it to something elsdewhere in the country, but I’ve never encountered the like. > **[Boss Sauce](https://bosssauce.com/)** > > Welcome to the home of the Boss Sauce. Some people might insist on nominating Nick Tahou’s **Garbage Plate** , but that’s not a single food item. [https://garbageplate.com/](https://garbageplate.com/) [https://www.cookingchanneltv.com/devour/2012/08/garbage-plate-nick-tahou-hots-review](https://www.cookingchanneltv.com/devour/2012/08/garbage-plate-nick-tahou-hots-review) Actually, there’s one m ore item – I think it’s part of the Garbage Plate, but is common all the way across upstate NY. It’s **hot dogs (“hots”) with Meat Sauce**, something I haven;'er seen elsewhere. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-iconic-food-from-each-state/1001151.md?page=6)