Duly noted. I always associate them with NYC because of the Beastie Boys lyric from License to Ill: “I love White Castle cuz it’s the best/But I fly a Fat Burger when I’m way out west!”
Do they still have Fat Burger in L.A.? And Okie(?) Dogs? It’s been a while since I’ve been out there.
[ul]
[li]Brunswick Stew- Don’t listen to those poor, misguided Virginians who think they invented it. Brunswick, GA is the point of origin. Done right, the ingredients (chicken and/or pork, tomatoes, onions, pepper, with potatoes and corn optional) are finely minced into a hot, delicious mash. MMMMMM[/li][li]Vidalia onions- True Vidalias are so sweet you can eat ‘em like apples. Have a big slice with your cornbread and pintos.[/li][li]Sorghum Syrup- Pour some of this tangy syrup over a hot, buttered biscuit, and enjoy the bliss. Sadly, this delicacy seems to be fading from the collective memory. It’s getting harder to find pure sorghum syrup. They still have a sorghum festival in Blairsville every year, though. Still use mules to turn the mill.[/li][li]Cornbread in all its many variations. Just plain cornbread (use white self-rising corn meal, not that nasty yellow stuff). It’s simple and delicious. E-mail me for an easy recipe. Pour some beans and bean juice over it, or butter up a slice. (Don’t forget the chow-chow.) Jalapeno cornbread. Cracklin’ cornbread. Etc.[/li][li]Pecans and their corollary, pecan pie. Georgia (despite its official affiliation with the peach) is actually the pecan capital of the US.[/li][li]Peach cobbler. Hey! Get that nasty cinnamon away from my peach cobbler! Cinnamon goes in apple cobbler, you dolt! Peaches have plenty of tangy delicious flavor on their own.[/li][li]Pickled peaches. None for me, thanks, but my kinfolk sure seem to like them.[/li][li]Fried okra None of that nasty battered stuff. Roll it in a mixture of corn meal and flower before frying.[/li][li]Sweet potato pie.. Make it like a cobbler. Add a little lemon juice to provide some zing.[/li]Fried pies.- I still remember my 90-year-old grandma hunched over that old wood stove, frying up apple pies and peach pies in an old iron skillet. You can get some pretty good facsimiles at the Varsity Drive-In in Atlanta, and a few barbecue places have them, too.[/ul]
As a former resident of Montreal, I second everything Matt_mcl said, especially the smoked meat (Schwartz’ on Boulevard St. Laurent is the only place in the world that makes it right) and the bagels - there really ain’t anything in the world that compares to a sesame-seed bagel fresh from the wood-burning oven of Fairmount Bagel Bakery: you can eat two or three with nothing at all on them, straight from the bag. Less puffy than a New York Bagel, slightly chewy and incomparably delicieux… I get homesick just thinking about them.
As for my current abode: Moscow has the following specialities to offer the gourmet (or more likely, the gourmand):
Borodinsky bread - dark, heavy, moist sourdough rye with cumin and caraway seeds, the irreplaceable accompaniament to any Russian meal; goes very well with
Caviar - admittedly not for everyday chow, but it’s one-fifth the price it is in North America, and much fresher;
Pickled garlic - buy at any market, peel and eat by the clove. Not as sharp as fresh garlic, with an almost anise-like taste; yummy, and probably very good for you;
Khachapuri - a Georgian cheese-filled flatbread baked with a very salty feta-like cheese;
Satsivi - also considered a Georgian dish, but the Armenian variant my wife makes is ambrosia: chicken or turkey in a fabulous sauce of broth, finely ground walnuts, garlic, a spice mixture called khumeli-suneli, and lots of chopped kinza (cilantro?). Great with piping-hot khachapuri to soak up the leftover sauce.
No problem, eh. 
BTW, anyone see Escanaba in Da Moonlight yet? I haven’t but I want to. Jeff Daniels flick.
Oh, yeah, those Georgia Vidalia onions! I love them on a sandwich. Take some sliced Vidalia and some sliced tomatoes…red, juicy beefsteak tomatoes (Maryland grown, and right off the vine), with a touch of mayo, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
Yummy!
Ziactrice: chicken fried steak ::drools::
LNO: you are a brave but sadly warped person. Lutefisk?! Maybe it truly is a regional taste. (My Ex was Norwegian; I’ve lived through lutefisk–barely. Thought I’d have to burn the kitchen down to get the smell out.) On this one I’ll have to take your word for it.
_spoke: omigod, good cornbread, the real stuff. And sorghum; when I was a kid we’d buy it in sterilized metal cans when a pressing happened. (It was a real thrill to be allowed to stir the sap as it cooked in the troughs.) I just wish we could get real Vidalia onions more often around here. And real fried okra. Now I’m really hungry.
To Doctor J: is cream candy specific to Lexington? When I was a kid we’d visit a little hole-in-the-wall candy shop there that made it; never seen it anywhere else.
Tiny little place, w/ huge slabs of chilled marble and a distinct aroma of cream. Wonderful stuff.
Veb
I always think of them as being from here. I know they’re in other cities. However, I’ve never met someone from elsewhere that liked them at all. I don’t know many New Yorkers, so maybe they have them and like them. But, seriously, anyone I know who likes them has been born and raised here.
Okay, I apologize. You guys are right. We have brats here so often, I guess I wasn’t thinking. Wisconsin lays claim to bratwurst. Oh, and you guys have some damn fine cheese as well.
Now I’m hungry…
I neglected to mention that I used to live in Winnipeg, which partially redeemed itself by the following specialities.
Kielbasa, accent on the bas (a.k.a. Kubasa, accent on the ku), a splendid Polish and/or Ukrainian sausage produced a few hours away in Elphinstone, MB. My mom made the world’s best scalloped potatoes from them, for which she was nationally famous. (No joke. Her recipe was once featured on Morningside.)
Sargent Sundae, the best ice cream shop north of the 49th parallel.
Former Kentuckian checking in here, and I must add these to DoctorJ’s excellent list:
Kentucky Hot Brown. It’s a heart attack in a bowl, and while I’ve had them from three different restaurants, only one was orgasmically good.
Take a glass or ceramic single-serving dish (shaped roughly like a shallow gravy boat), and fill it with layers of ham, cheese, turkey, cheese, bacon, cheese, tomatoes, and more cheese. Bake it until it’s scalding, then serve. (Did I mention the cheese?)
Kentucky (at least the area around Frankfort, Versailles, and Lexington) also has Rebecca-Ruth bourbon balls – chocolate candies with real bourbon content. The alcohol doesn’t all vanish during the baking process either.
Last but not least, Mint Julep. 'Nuff said.
Now that I’ve transplanted here to Arkansas, I’ve yet to discover real local delicacies. A local chain restaurant (not sure of it’s reach) called Dixie Cafe serves fried corn-on-the-cob. Very good!
Whoops – in my previous post about Kentucky Hot Brown, I neglected to mention that it is, in essence, a sandwich, and should have a slice of toast at the bottom of the whole shebang, and optionally on top, as well.
Here’s a recipe from Kentucky Governor Paul Patton and his lovely wife Judi.
The Albemarle Pippin apple is the pride of Central Virginia. Though the Newtown Pippin is thought to have originated in New York, the apple achieves perfection in the rolling foothills of the Blue Ridge. Jefferson raised them at Monticello, and referred to the apple as one of the two finest apples in the country (the other was the Spitzenberg). Queen Victoria had Albemarle Pippins specially shipped to her, and they were for a while one of this area’s biggest cash crops. Sadly, Albemarle Pippins are rarely grown today. They seem just too much trouble for the big orchardists. But if you happen to be in Virginia in late October, this incredible fruit is well worth seeking out.
I just spoke with a New Jersey friend about this topic, and he told me to claim pork roll for the Garden State – preferably ordered at a greasy spoon diner. IMHO, they can keep it; I’m holding back my gag reflex just writing about it.
South Cantral Pensylvania has a few interesting things. They have purloined all the good stuff from Maryland, plus have a few of their own. Pennsylvania Dutch, and Amish influences mostly.
My personal favorite Hog-Maw.(sp?)
Sounds vile, but really isn’t. Hog-Maw is Pig stomach. The maw is filled with pork sausage, diced potatoes, and onions, sewed shut, and baked. After baking, slice and serve. Some people eat the stomach, many don’t.
Shoefly Pie. Everyone’s heard of it. Molassas and (who knows) in a pie crust made with lard. Damn Tasty.
Faschnaughts(sp?) “Foss-nots” Regional version of the Poonch-key (sp?) Donuts, fried in lard, (are we seeing a theme here?) only on the day before lent.
Hard Pretzels. Locals claim the pretzel was invented locally. Don’t know if it is true, but they eat huge quantities of them.
Doh. That would be South Central Pennsylvania
From my homeland, Devon:
Clotted cream, especially in the form of a cream tea. A proper cream tea has scones (plain, not fruited) and tuffs (slightly sweet white bread rolls) spread with jam, then cream. JAM UNDERNEATH, then CREAM ON TOP. Served with tea, as the name indicates.
Smoked mackerel, and all sorts of good seafood.
From my new home, Cumbria:
Cumberland sausage. Damn fine sausage.
Pie and pea supper. Meat and potato pie with mushy peas.
Cartmel village shop sticky toffee pudding. Madonna’s favourite, so we hear.
RE: the possible Greek origin of Spiedies:
I wouldn’t be surprised if Spiedies originated as a variation on the souvlaki theme. There are lots of people of Greek descent in the Finger Lakes area, though I don’t know which came first - the Greek immigrants or the Greek place names (like Ithaca, Ovid, Ulysses, Homer, etc). I’ve heard that the place names came first, that they sprung from some desire of the locals to be “literary,” though I’ve never investigated that claim. Growing up, it felt weird NOT to have a Z in my last name.
RE: screech-owl’s Cornell Apple Cider: I used to buy it by the gallon at the Dairy Bar! BTW: I only have 2 Uncork NY glasses left. All others have met lamented deaths in the years since I left Ithaca.
I have about 5 different Spiedie recipes that came from one of the Spiedie festivals. I can email to anyone who wants it. Unless you think it is appropriate to post it here.
Would all of you please post some of these recipes over at my recipe thread?
I want to get my hands on some of that Green River soda. I sometimes lay awake at night wondering why no one makes a fine lime soda.
That Kentucky Hot Brown makes the old coronary-on-a-plate Fettucine Alfredo look like a diet dish! Holy guacamole!
Also, there seems to be some confusion about Keilbasa and Kulbasy sausages. Yes, they are both Polish but the grind and smoke are totally different between the two. Do a side-by-side sometime and see for your self.
It’s really a gas to see so many people reminisce about their favorite regional foods.
Chris
With a nod to the Dallas poster, here’s a couple of things I thought of from Houston.
BBQ. Brisket, chicken, sausage and ribs, beef or pork. Slow cooked until they fall apart. BBQ sauces vary, but generally they’re going to be somewhat sweet and tangy.
Tex-Mex. Mexican food with, as near as I can tell, extra cheese. As the other poster said, green chili enchiladas are excellent, as well as sour cream chicken enchiladas. Home made tamalles are one of the best reasons to be a Texan.
The beauty of Houston is that you can find cuisene of almost any ethnic flavor, from Jamacan to traditional Mexican to Ethiopian to British. It seems like there are 4 resurants on every corner, from all different price ranges.
Well, seeing as how Georgia my current home town has already been covered, I get to talk about a couple of places I’ve lived in the past.
Chattanooga. Tennessee, my place of birth, is, well, the home of the Krystal company’s corporate headquarters. If you’re not familiar with these…I’ll attempt to describe them. I hear that they are like White Castle burgers, only with somewhat more grease.
Just outside Chattanooga, we reach Collegedale, home of the Little Debbie Bakery/ That’s right, home of the Little Debbie Snack Cake.
Now, when I lived up in Maine, I became a huge fan of Moxie cola. It was described as a licorice-like, rootbeer-ish beverage on one web site I visited to try to find a seller here in the south. I have, however, recently realized that Harris Teeter is able to special order items, and I may be able to get some.
I’ll do some thinking…especially Monday, as I make a drive down to Vidalia…home of the famous onion.
Yeah, that was a good description…
They are small, square burgers, served on buns that, in height, are easily 5 times the size of the burger. The only items that can be on Krystal burgers are steamed onions and mustard. Anything else is a crime. As noted, they are quite greasy, and they can have an adverse effect on your digestive system if it’s sensitive. Also known in some circles as “rockets”, for their ability to, er, zip through your system. I eat them perhaps once a year.