# What can't you get when you LEAVE where you are? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 7, 2006, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177 "2006-12-07T04:38:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cabin_fever_1/32/2908_2.png) [@Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabin_Fever_1)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2006, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/21 "2006-12-07T19:13:18Z")
[QUOTE=Missy2U] Green River. [QUOTE=Sattua] Bad Moon Rising? [/QUOTE] [/QUOTE] I think I love you both. šŸ˜ƒ Food: I miss the Slaw dog. Weather: Snow. Just ainā€™t gonna happen here on the Texas coast. Vegetation: I so miss the trees changing color in the fall. They just turn brown here for a few months out of the year. :eek: Environment: I miss the Great Lakes. Hopefully I can take my daughters up there soon. Drink: Vernorā€™s Ginger Ale ---
**Author:** ![Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cabin_fever_1/32/2908_2.png) [@Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabin_Fever_1)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2006, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/22 "2006-12-07T19:21:07Z")
[QUOTE=lazybratsche] (now that Iā€™ve actually _read_ the OPā€¦) [/QUOTE] :smack: I skipped over the food reference myself. My apologies to **Pygmy Rugger**. ---
**Author:** ![According\_to\_Pliny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@According\_to\_Pliny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/According_to_Pliny)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2006, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/23 "2006-12-07T19:27:37Z")
When I left the midwest I could no longer get good German breads and pastries, strudel and kaiser rolls and creampuffs with real cream filling, or Polish sausage and Polish dill pickles worthy of the name. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2006, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/24 "2006-12-07T19:38:14Z")
> [@](#): > > Eegeeā€™s, which is the name of a delicious flavored ice drink and the local chain sandwich place it inhabits. Not my favorite, as Iā€™m not big on subs, but it has a lot of fans here. Yeah, Eegeeā€™s is pretty damn tasty! Theyā€™ll actually ship their ice drink out to you. My little brother and I had our graduation party this June (his high school, my college), and we had a tub of strawberry and a tub of pina colada. Oh, how I love dry ice! [QUOTE=Cabin\_Fever] :smack: I skipped over the food reference myself. My apologies to **Pygmy Rugger**. [/QUOTE] No need to apologize, no need to be food-specific. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2006, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/25 "2006-12-07T19:43:40Z")
Pretty much canā€™t get grits outside of the South. ---
**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:** [December 7, 2006, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/26 "2006-12-07T19:47:33Z")
[QUOTE=Ghanima] When you leave California, you enter a wasteland where fresh fruits and vegetables donā€™t actually exist (although the general public is convinced otherwise), tortillas come in a can, plain iceberg lettuce is considered a salad, ā€œextra spicyā€ means putting black pepper on your food, avocados are yellow and rock hard, and mexican restaurants serve food that no self-respecting Mexican (or Californian) would eat. [/QUOTE] Tortillas in a can??? ---
**Author:** ![Cemetery\_Savior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/439d5e/32.png) [@Cemetery\_Savior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cemetery_Savior)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2006, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/27 "2006-12-07T20:04:38Z")
Portilloā€™s, which encapsulates the best: [ol] [li]Hot Dogs[/li][li]Grilled Polish[/li][li]Italian Beef[/li][/ol] Pizza. I travel a good deal around the US, and I have yet to find an area with a decent pizza. Itā€™s confounding! The Southā€¦nothing even resembling a pizza (shrimp on a 'za!!!), NYCā€¦fuggedaboutit, and the West Coastā€¦no, sir. No good pierogi, Mexican food is sub-par (with notable exceptions in TX and CA), and no Old Style! -Cem ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2006, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/28 "2006-12-07T23:20:46Z")
[QUOTE=lazybratsche] Speaking from my tiny midwestern college down, letā€™s seeā€¦ Hipsters? Nope, plenty in New York or any other big city. Wacky pretentious ultraliberal college students? Again, probably could be found anywhere. Dirty hippies? I somehow donā€™t think we have a monopoly on such creatures. Cornfields and cow pastures? Again, see anywhere else in the midwest. Heavy lake effect snow? Now, thatā€™s a bit harder to findā€¦ Our specific combination of all of the above? That, at least, is pretty unique here. [/QUOTE] Iā€™m going to have to go ahead and disagree with you here. All those things are found here. Oh, and **Ghanima** , Iā€™ve never heard of a place up here that puts raisins in an enchilada. šŸ˜• Foods I canā€™t find when traveling and such: Maple syrup. That fuckin ā€œ1% maple flavor addedā€ shit is the pit secreations of Satan himself. Seriously, how do you people deal with it? Blech. Good cheese (having never been anywhere near Wisconsin, I canā€™t comment on their cheese, but I hear itā€™s pretty good too.) Any place not around here or there, though, and itā€™s tough to find anything good outside a speciality shop (which tend to be fewer and farer between.) I get world award winning cheese in my supermarket (hell, even the gas stations) for godā€™s sake. Apples. Outside Washington and the northeast, apples just suck balls. Beer. There are several local brews that I love (Magic Hat #9, Long Trail Blackberry Wheat, and, above all, Switchback) taht canā€™t be found too far from the northeast. ---
**Author:** ![MikeG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikeg/32/4329_2.png) [@MikeG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeG)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2006, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/29 "2006-12-07T23:42:21Z")
**Cemetary Savior** , Iā€™ll see your Portillos and raise you to Johnnies, truly among the top three Italian Beefs in the city. Beats Portillos like a red headed step child. Combo dipped with sweet peppers and a large italian ice on the side, thats some damn good eating that you just canā€™t rea;;y get outside Chicago. ---
**Author:** ![Ghanima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Ghanima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ghanima)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/30 "2006-12-08T00:43:18Z")
[QUOTE=bouv] Iā€™m going to have to go ahead and disagree with you here. All those things are found here. Oh, and **Ghanima** , Iā€™ve never heard of a place up here that puts raisins in an enchilada. šŸ˜• Foods I canā€™t find when traveling and such: Maple syrup. That fuckin ā€œ1% maple flavor addedā€ shit is the pit secreations of Satan himself. Seriously, how do you people deal with it? Blech. Good cheese (having never been anywhere near Wisconsin, I canā€™t comment on their cheese, but I hear itā€™s pretty good too.) Any place not around here or there, though, and itā€™s tough to find anything good outside a speciality shop (which tend to be fewer and farer between.) I get world award winning cheese in my supermarket (hell, even the gas stations) for godā€™s sake. Apples. Outside Washington and the northeast, apples just suck balls. Beer. There are several local brews that I love (Magic Hat #9, Long Trail Blackberry Wheat, and, above all, Switchback) taht canā€™t be found too far from the northeast. [/QUOTE] I think it was a special at Tortilla Flats or something. There are plenty of foods in Burlington that I miss too. The entirety of the Vermont Pub and Brewery, for one, with their sweet potato fries and annual Bobbie Burns dinner and whiskey tasting. I miss lobster rolls. I miss the sandwiches at The Red Onion, the upstairs bar at the Culinary School restaurant and Foodeeā€™s pizza. I can get grade B maple syrup here in California, but itā€™s not as good. Oh, and real wild blueberries, not the frankenfood variety they have here. Mmmmmā€¦Vermontā€¦ Oh and yes, tortillas actually come in a can, I swear. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Perro\_Fumando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e9c0ed/32.png) [@El\_Perro\_Fumando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Perro_Fumando)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/31 "2006-12-08T01:37:35Z")
Old Bay Berger Cookies GOOD steamed Crabs We moved to a suburb between Bawlmer and DC and now we have to search for Berger cookies and crabs, but we can still buy Old Bay. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/32 "2006-12-08T01:47:40Z")
Vernors ginger ale. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/33 "2006-12-08T02:30:08Z")
[QUOTE=MikeG] **Cemetary Savior** , Iā€™ll see your Portillos and raise you to Johnnies, truly among the top three Italian Beefs in the city. Beats Portillos like a red headed step child. [/QUOTE] Johnnieā€™s on North Avenue in Elmood Park? I was married in the church across the street, and I think if my husband had his way, we would have served Johnnieā€™s for the reception! > [@](#): > > Combo dipped with sweet peppers and a large italian ice on the side, thats some damn good eating that you just canā€™t rea;;y get outside Chicago. That is yummyā€¦I love their Italian Sausage, myself. Double yum! ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/34 "2006-12-08T02:45:00Z")
Gas at $0.65/gallon. ---
**Author:** ![Booker57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Booker57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Booker57)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/35 "2006-12-08T04:06:09Z")
White Hots. Garbage Plates Not that I eat a lot of them but they are local comfort foods. Grape pies. Seasonal at best. Iā€™ve never left for long so I donā€™t know what Iā€™ve got, 'cause itā€™s not gone. ---
**Author:** ![M.Meursault](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b487fb/32.png) [@M.Meursault](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/M.Meursault)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/36 "2006-12-08T06:19:22Z")
When I left Chicago, I missed two things greatly: Renaldiā€™s Pizza (on Broadway, near the Century Centre) and the ability to order a wine that I canā€™t find in any store (itā€™s a minor South African wine). Indiana, for some retarded reason, doesnā€™t allow wine to be shipped through the mail. (Boo!). ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/37 "2006-12-08T08:01:01Z")
Define ā€œanywhere elseā€. My hometown is famous by its veggies. Itā€™s the only place where Iā€™ve ever found Black Lettuce but, since the Black Lettuce Hearts Salad got famous, you can find Hearts all over Spain, Italy and Franceā€¦ but you canā€™t find the whole damn lettuce anywhere unless you know someone who grows them! Never seen fresh white asparagus outside of Spain. And no idea yet as to whatā€™s unique to Basel šŸ™‚ but I was very happy to find ā€œalmendras garrapiƱadasā€ (of course here they have a German name I still canā€™t pronounce), itā€™s my favourite winter treat! ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/38 "2006-12-08T10:17:47Z")
Crawfish, as in spread out the newspaper, toss in the taters-n-corn and cayenne, and add pounds of fresh live crawfish for a good old-fashioned crawfish boil. (Iā€™m originally from Louisiana) ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/39 "2006-12-08T21:12:30Z")
Hmm, I could be wrong about this but Iā€™ve never seen it outside of Cleveland: Cleveland-style Po Boys (Polish) - Polish boy topped with BBQ sauce, cole slaw and French fries. Man, thats some good stuff. Coronary inducing, but good! ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177/40 "2006-12-08T21:21:35Z")
**Sorghum syrup.** (It just ainā€™t breakfast without some sorghum syrup on your biscuits.) Sadly, itā€™s even getting hard to find sorghum syrup here in the South. Few grocery stores carry it these days. Plus I understand it can be hard to find **self-rising cornmeal** in some parts of the country. Or at least it used to be. My sister used to complain about that when she lived in California. Itā€™s hard to find **okra cooked right** , except in a few Southern home-style restaurants or on the tables of your Southern kinfolks. (\*I.e., \* fried after being rolled in a mix of cornmeal and flour. NOT battered, dammit.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-cant-you-get-when-you-leave-where-you-are/383177.md?page=3)