# Over Rated Items from your Regional Cuisine **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 12, 2009, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940 "2009-01-12T17:31:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![masterofnone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@masterofnone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/masterofnone)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/181 "2009-01-15T21:18:09Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > You got it mail order, I presume? I’ve never tried it mail order, but delivery from the restaurant ain’t half bad. And they have the only “gluten free pizza” I can find that delivers. (The “crust” is molded sausage, with sauce and cheese on top; my daughter loves it.) It’s not the best pizza in Chicago, but it’s not nearly the worst! > > And people cook the sausage before putting it on the pizza? I’ve never heard of such a thing! Doesn’t that dry out the sausage, cooking it twice like that? Yes, I got it mail order, but even taking that into account and eating it knowing that it is not pizza and should be rated on it’s own merits, it was disgusting. I suppose if you’re making a pizza that deep you wouldn’t want to fully cook the sausage due to the long cooking time, but I’d at least render out some of the fat. Like I said, grease was the predominant flavor. As for the cheese, the [tastes of chicago website](http://www.tastesofchicago.com/category/1)claims it’s mozzerella on their cheese pizza at least, but it has all the flavor of Kraft american slices. YMMWV, to each his/her own, and all that. ---
**Author:** ![masterofnone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@masterofnone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/masterofnone)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/182 "2009-01-15T21:23:12Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > I can see how someone might eat Cincinatti Chili based on a recomendation or just because they like chili and don’t realize that the Cincinatti version isn’t the same, but how anyone can look in a cookbook at the ingredients and think “that looks good, I think I’ll make that” is beyond me. It was more like, “That sounds weird, but it can’t be too bad. I’ll give it a shot!” I’m pretty adventurous when it comes to food - I’ll try anything once. I specifically was trying not to compare it to chili or spagetti sauce when I tried it, but that doesn’t help when it is completely inedible. I have no doubt the real thing is better than the recipe I followed, but then again so’s canned dog food. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/183 "2009-01-15T21:32:13Z")
> [@masterofnone](#): > > Yes, I got it mail order, but even taking that into account and eating it knowing that it is not pizza and should be rated on it’s own merits, it was disgusting. That’s really unfortunate; I’m sorry their stuff was so disappointing. Truly, that’s the place I usually take out of town guests to when they insist on deep dish pizza because I just can’t stomach another Giordano’s creation, like, ever. For what it’s worth, I consider pizza almost exclusively “restaurant” food. I know my oven won’t get hot enough or stay steady enough for a really good 'za, and I don’t want to bother with building a brick oven inside it, no matter how often Alton Brown tells me it’s “really quick and easy!” Riiiiight. The little crappy electric pizza oven we used at a concession stand where I used to work made better pizza than a home oven. Life’s too short for homemade pizza in Chicago…unless you \*do \*have a brick oven, I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![masterofnone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@masterofnone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/masterofnone)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/184 "2009-01-15T21:43:05Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > …unless you \*do \*have a brick oven, I suppose. That’s next on my list! Last year I built a smoke house and made my own bacon. Mmmmmm…Bacon… ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/185 "2009-01-15T22:02:53Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > What’s throwing people off Cincinnati Chili? It’s different, I’ll grant you that, but it’s not bad. Is it the cinnamon? It’s OK if you have the taste buds of a four year old. ---
**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:** [January 15, 2009, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/186 "2009-01-15T22:04:45Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > It’s OK if you have the taste buds of a four year old. I have no idea how to interpret this. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/187 "2009-01-15T22:05:25Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I have no idea how to interpret this. Seriously. Do you saute them with the beef, or sprinkle them on top? Daniel ---
**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:** [January 15, 2009, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/188 "2009-01-15T22:09:44Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Seriously. Do you saute them with the beef, or sprinkle them on top? > > Daniel For fullness and freshness of flavor, the taste buds go in towards the end of cooking. No, but seriously. Does the comment mean Cincinnati “chili” is too seasoned or not seasoned enough or what? ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/189 "2009-01-15T22:27:17Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > For fullness and freshness of flavor, the taste buds go in towards the end of cooking. > > No, but seriously. Does the comment mean Cincinnati “chili” is too seasoned or not seasoned enough or what? It is seasoned improperly. Cinnamon and chocolate are for dessert, not an entree. And the huge mound of waxy cheese on top further drowns out what mild flavor is in the meat. It’s like putting ketchup on a steak. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/190 "2009-01-15T22:39:44Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > It is seasoned improperly. Cinnamon and chocolate are for dessert, not an entree. And the huge mound of waxy cheese on top further drowns out what mild flavor is in the meat. It’s like putting ketchup on a steak. That’s not a demonstration of other folks’ immature tastes; that’s suggesting that your tastes are provincial. Cinnamon has a long illustrious history in savory dishes, from [medieval meat pies](http://www.theepicentre.com/Spices/cinnamon.html) to [Moroccan Chicken Dishes](http://www.foodbycountry.com/Kazakhstan-to-South-Africa/Morocco.html#Chicken_Tajine_with_Almonds_and_Prunes). And I assume mole sauce is too well-known to need a link. I thought you were gonna suggest that the dish was overly sweet. If your complaint is that it combines flavors unusual in American cooking, that suggests its flavors are too sophisticated for your taste buds, not the opposite. Edit: that said, I don’t think your tastes are provincial or unsophisticated. First off, de gustibus and all; second, I’ve never tried it, and I might think it was nasty. I’m just saying your four-year-old taste buds comment was unwarranted. Daniel ---
**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:** [January 15, 2009, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/191 "2009-01-15T22:45:19Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > It is seasoned improperly. Cinnamon and chocolate are for dessert, not an entree. And the huge mound of waxy cheese on top further drowns out what mild flavor is in the meat. It’s like putting ketchup on a steak. I agree on the cheese, but cinnamon and chocolate? In addition to the Moroccan cuisine, cinnamon as an ingredient in savory dishes is common in both Mexican and Indian cuisines, as well as many cuisines throughout the Middle East. And, of course, for chocolate we have no further to look than mole Poblano (and some other moles) of Mexico. That said, chocolate is not a requirement in Cincinnati chili – it’s cinnamon that’s the distinct note and, as millions if not billions of people around the world can attest, it’s not an unusual ingredient in savory dishes. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/192 "2009-01-15T22:46:14Z")
Dude, Skyline “chili” is great! And this is coming from a chili purist. I don’t like the way they’ve hijacked the name of a completely different dish, but Cincinnati-style is Righteous in its own right. Gimme a 5-way and watch out for my elbows! ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/193 "2009-01-15T22:58:12Z")
A concoction pretty similar to Cincinnati-style chili is common here in western PA. It is almost never called chili, though. The places that serve it generally refer to it as hot dog sauce. ---
**Author:** ![Huerta88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/82dd89/32.png) [@Huerta88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Huerta88)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2009, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/194 "2009-01-16T04:55:44Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > Sorry–goetta is some exceptionally foul stuff, in my admittedly limited experience. I tried it once. A lovely shade of sickly grey, it was slimy and bland. I’d give it another try if someone else was buying, though. Well, there is a spicy version of goetta out there. [www.goetta.com](http://www.goetta.com). The other thing I take from your comment is that yours was undercooked. As goetta (like scrapple or haggis) contains grain (oatmeal), it needs to be cooked till a bit “toasty” to bring out the flavor and avoid sogginess. > [@](#): > > I think much of the bile directed at (delicious, heavenly, sublime) Cincinnati chili is due to its unfortunate name: it has almost nothing to do with tex-mex chili, and ought probably to have a different name, perhaps based on whatever ‘traditional stew’ the recipe was derived from. … I think the wateriness, compared to say even Hormel or Wolf or other canned brands, messes it up for me more than anything. But sure, call it something other than chili, and it might make a good topper for some things, for some people. > [@](#): > > of course, now I want a 3-way… Well, naturally, we’d all like . . . that is . . . oh, you’re talking about food. Carry on. > [@](#): > > And I forgot all about La Rosa’s. It’s a thin smear of tomato sauce with cheese served on cardboard. I’d prefer Red Baron (or almost any other grocery brand) to it. I cannot understand what the rest of this city sees in it. Agreed. ---
**Author:** ![Bites\_When\_Provoked](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bites_when_provoked/32/18073_2.png) [@Bites\_When\_Provoked](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bites_When_Provoked)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2009, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/195 "2009-01-16T12:56:12Z")
Can I go against the flow and recommend an UNDERrated regional cuisine? It looks disgusting, and there’s no way I’d go the mint sauce route, but [pie floaters](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pie_floater) are actually really pretty tasty. Not that I can convince any tourists of this fact. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2009, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/196 "2009-01-16T13:58:27Z")
> [@Bites\_When\_Provoked](#): > > Can I go against the flow and recommend an UNDERrated regional cuisine? It looks disgusting, and there’s no way I’d go the mint sauce route, but [pie floaters](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pie_floater) are actually really pretty tasty. > > Not that I can convince any tourists of this fact. ☹ Ooh! I think I’d love that! I’d try it for sure. What’s not to love? It’s pie and pea soup! For a local underrated favorite, I nominate tongue tacos\*. Can’t even get most of the (white) locals to try it, let alone the tourists. But oh, so much tastier than ground beef! \*Okay, that just sounds dirty. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2009, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/197 "2009-01-16T14:06:22Z")
Can you guys start your own thread for under rated items? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2009, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/198 "2009-01-16T14:10:10Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > A concoction pretty similar to Cincinnati-style chili is common here in western PA. It is almost never called chili, though. The places that serve it generally refer to it as hot dog sauce. Hey, that’s not a bad description. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2009, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/199 "2009-01-16T14:34:45Z")
Hi, I’m the only Southerner in history who doesn’t like barbeque no matter where it’s from. Too meaty and saucy. 😉 Also (round here at least) the sauce is sugary, and all the side dishes suck too. Potato salad, edible but nothing to get excited about. Cole slaw: cold cabbage and mayo, ick! Baked beans? Oh hell no. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2009, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940/200 "2009-01-16T14:48:38Z")
It’s almost time now for everyone in southeast Michigan to go bananas over Paczki. It peaks on Shrove Tuesday and you can’t swing a dead cat without seeing paczkis. I hate them. It’s like they took a humongous doughnut and injected it with jelly. Too much jelly. Way too much jelly. Or cream. Or whatever. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/over-rated-items-from-your-regional-cuisine/480940.md?page=11)