# What's a well known (at least fairly well known) type of food or style of cuisine you've never, or only recently, tried? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [January 17, 2022, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931 "2022-01-17T14:45:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/61 "2022-01-18T00:28:59Z")
Crudo. A platter of a few types of raw thin slices of fish and a delicious salad with raw shrimp. I had to put my trust in the restaurant’s careful handling and preparation, but having felt no ill effects, my memory was of a gastronomic rapture. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/62 "2022-01-18T01:34:39Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > Try Cahill Bistro in Edina for Ecuadorian deliciousness. It’s tucked away in a neighborhood strip mall (like most fabulous ethnic restaurants) and the food is delicious. Will do, thanks for the tip. ---
**Author:** ![Tarataratara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Tarataratara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarataratara)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/63 "2022-01-18T01:58:34Z")
Russian, among other cuisines mentioned here. ---
**Author:** ![Tabco](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tabco/32/7644_2.png) [@Tabco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabco)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/64 "2022-01-18T02:18:27Z")
I’m not sure I’ve ever had any variety of seafood except for canned tuna and a freshwater fish I caught once. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/65 "2022-01-18T02:31:47Z")
How does this happen? 😲 Like, not even fish’n’chips? ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/66 "2022-01-18T02:39:13Z")
I used to know someone who swore off all seafood, “Ick, no!”. Except fried shrimp. Ok, well, I suppose that’s a fairly mild dish. But she also excepted hot smoked salmon which is undeniably fishy. She’d just decided that she would be someone that didn’t like seafood and no one could changer her mind, no matter what she actually enjoyed. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/67 "2022-01-18T09:11:54Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And I wasn’t aware that Peruvian was a distinct cuisine Ceviche is Peruvian - its national dish, in fact ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 10:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/68 "2022-01-18T10:28:51Z")
I’ve been really wanting to try Pho and finally walked into a nearby place for lunch the other day. It was very busy, which was a good indicator that maybe the food was pretty good. I was handed a paper menu that was so large and with so many items on it that I was completely overwhelmed and left without ordering. ---
**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:** [January 18, 2022, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/69 "2022-01-18T12:47:36Z")
> [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > I’ve been really wanting to try Pho and finally walked into a nearby place for lunch the other day…I was handed a paper menu that was so large and with so many items on it that I was completely overwhelmed and left without ordering. I’m guessing they were different options for what variations of Pho you could order? The menu at the Pho place I used to frequent pre-pandemic had a fairly simple menu-- the [Pho portion of the menu](https://www.phovinhmichigan.org/menus) featured ‘P1’ through ‘P10’ choices, which were pretty much the same base soup with different types and combos of meat offered (or no meat at all). I’m sure the servers at the place you were at would have been happy to advise a first-timer, as well as used to it. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/70 "2022-01-18T13:13:50Z")
I recommend the beef Pho, with whichever bits of meat appeal to you. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/71 "2022-01-18T13:18:51Z")
Pho is a noodle soup that you can add different items to the broth. Was it the kind of place where you fill out the slip, hand it to someone and edge down the line while they make your soup? I bet that the option were something along the line of size of the portion, broth type (beef, or a vegetarian broth) and then the items you want added. The first time there, simple is better. Pick a protein you like (beef, shrimp, tofu, etc.) and then a couple of vegetables like scallions, peppers, cilantro, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/72 "2022-01-18T13:20:49Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > And you left out _akutaq_ , or “Eskimo ice cream”, which is usually reindeer fat or tallow, seal oil, freshly fallen snow or water, fresh berries, and sometimes ground fish. Other than that, I’ve had pretty much everything mentioned above. That sounds a lot like pemmican. Which I have eaten. Once. > [@SanVito](#): > > Ceviche is Peruvian - its national dish, in fact Hm, OK, I didn’t know that. I’ve had ceviche, and enjoyed it. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/73 "2022-01-18T13:24:42Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > Ceviche is Peruvian - its national dish, in fact I unknowing ordered a peruvian dish that was raw fish in a cheese sauce. It was absolutely delicious! ---
**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:** [January 18, 2022, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/74 "2022-01-18T13:35:27Z")
Peruvian food has been mentioned several times; I mentioned upthread that I had the local news on in the background and they had a feature talking about new restaurants to try in 2022. In addition to the Filipino restaurant they mentioned, there’s also [Culantro](https://www.culantroperu.com/img/menu/Menu.pdf), a new Peruvian restaurant in Ferndale, Michigan. Also [Baobab Fare](https://www.baobabfare.com/menu), a Burundi restaurant in Detroit, MI. I don’t think I’ve tried any other African Cuisine besides Ethiopian. Looks like my wife and I have some new places to try if Omicron ever dies down! Or alternatively, I guess there’s always takeout. Not the same though, especially for the first-time experience. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/75 "2022-01-18T13:40:05Z")
If you subscribe to NYT recipes, this is a basic shakshuka recipe: [Shakshuka With Feta Recipe - NYT Cooking](https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1014721-shakshuka-with-feta?action=click&module=Global%20Search%20Recipe%20Card&pgType=search&rank=1) The first shakshuka I ever ate was in Egypt. It used fresh tomatoes and was heavenly. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/76 "2022-01-18T13:59:32Z")
> [@susan](#): > > The first shakshuka I ever ate was in Egypt. It used fresh tomatoes and was heavenly. It was the go-to breakfast when I was in Israel. I also tried a green shaksuka, which was NOT heavenly (an awful lot of leeks for that time in the morning). > [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > I unknowing ordered a peruvian dish that was raw fish in a cheese sauce. It was absolutely delicious! Interesting combo. Was the cheese sauce warm? I can’t imagine a cold cheese sauce being very nice, and a warm one would surely cook the fish! ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/77 "2022-01-18T14:00:43Z")
> [@solost](#): > > The Ethiopian feast is difficult to emulate at home because there are so many different things offered, and because there are no utensils- everything is eaten using a type of flat bread called injera, made with a grain called Teff that’s hard to find (I think can be ordered online though). My local Whole Foods sells teff, although not all the time - not sure if that’s due to pandemic supply issues or not. [Bob’s Red Mill sells teff](https://www.bobsredmill.com/whole-grain-teff.html). Not the cheapest grain but if you want to try making your own injera there’s a source for it. They sell both whole grain and flour. ---
**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:** [January 18, 2022, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/78 "2022-01-18T14:08:21Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > [Bob’s Red Mill sells teff](https://www.bobsredmill.com/whole-grain-teff.html). Not the cheapest grain but if you want to try making your own injera there’s a source for it. They sell both whole grain and flour. Thanks! You got me curious, so I checked Amazon, and I found this, which seems like a pretty good deal: [https://www.amazon.com/Brown-Pounds-Anthonys-Tested-Gluten-Free/dp/B00J83468M/ref=sr\_1\_1\_sspa?crid=1AUSF6NY7A728&keywords=teff&qid=1642514655&sprefix=teff%2Caps%2C73&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyU0hNWktON01IMDJBJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUExMDM4NzY0VDYzRE8yMjc1Sk5ZJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA2NzU2ODAyNzcyMEE2WVhIV1BZJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==](https://www.amazon.com/Brown-Pounds-Anthonys-Tested-Gluten-Free/dp/B00J83468M/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=1AUSF6NY7A728&keywords=teff&qid=1642514655&sprefix=teff%2Caps%2C73&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyU0hNWktON01IMDJBJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUExMDM4NzY0VDYzRE8yMjc1Sk5ZJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA2NzU2ODAyNzcyMEE2WVhIV1BZJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==) I’m thinking maybe I’ll be making some Doro Wat this weekend. Or maybe some spicy beef or lamb, red lentils and a couple other sides with injera. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/79 "2022-01-18T14:08:25Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Honestly, I’ve had French onion soup or even ratatouille (when it was at a buffet in a restaurant at Disney World after the movie was released) but I don’t think I’ve ever eaten a traditional French meal. If you’ve eaten in any upscale restaurant, you’ve probably eaten something very close to it - so much cuisine is influenced by French (hence the name ‘cuisine’!), it’s hard to distinguish sometimes in western restaurants. Many chefs are trained in French techniques and go from there. Omelette anyone? Dollop of mayonnaise? Some bearnaise sauce with your steak? ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931/80 "2022-01-18T14:09:45Z")
I’ve only recently been dabbling with Mexican-style cuisine. Being allergic to tomatoes and having a very low tolerance for corn makes that sort of difficult to really explore. Likewise, aside from not being overly-fond of Very Spicy, the ubiquitous presence of lentils, peas, and tomatoes in Indian cuisine (I’m told the latter is a frequent component of masala) makes it largely off-limits to me. As a general rule, if my allergies aren’t an issue I’ll at least try a food and I’m very willing to explore. Heck, I’m currently nibbling at the edges of Mexican/further south cooking that I can safely eat. Wouldn’t be opposed to Indian food that is safe for me. But I am not willing to take another trip to the ER with anaphylaxis. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-well-known-at-least-fairly-well-known-type-of-food-or-style-of-cuisine-youve-never-or-only-recently-tried/957931.md?page=5)