Regional foods

[VictorR]

Building off Gerald's travel thread, what are some foods that you consider a must-try or a local's favorite for a certain area?

I'll start - While Seattle, WA and Vancouver, BC share many things in common, such as high per-capita Starbucks coffee shops, and a love of the outdoors, one where they differ is that if sushi is your thing, Vancouver, with over 600 establishments, wins hands-down. You can't walk around any district or mall without running into several sushi restaurants.

 

[Owliet]

Rösti. You can get it pretty much anywhere here but it’s a national importance. It maybe fried potato with topping but it’s satisfying.

 

[Thinx]

Uk is small, but there are many regional foods, including some areas where people are originally from other areas or countries and bring their delicious food ideas to the table. Fish and chips is fairly much national, then there's Devon clotted cream teas, with scones and jam, Cornish pasties of minced beef, onion and potato in pastry casing, Scottish haggis which is presented in various ways but traditionally would I think be spiced minced mutton cooked in a sheeps stomach? Served with mashed turnips maybe.

Wales and Ireland have many special dishes too. Lancashire for a potato onion and bacon hotpot. Yorkshire puddings are batter cases that accompany a traditional roast, typically beef. Eccles cakes are made with pastry and currants. Bakewell tart has ground almonds and jam in a pastry base. Gosh there's so many regional specialities.

 

[Yeshuasdaughter]

NW Oregon (Willamette Valley, Columbia River Basin, and the Coast)

It's all about fresh, local, seasonal comfort food that is produced and sold organically, equitably, and sustainably.

Salmon and other wild-caught, migratory fish: fresh, smoked, candied, etc.

Shellfish

Soups and Chowders

Hazelnuts

Mushrooms: We are surrounded by deep, lush, temperate rainforests. And our wild mushrooms grow seasonally in the volcanic mountain soil.

Berries: Marionberries, Strawberries, Blueberries, Blackberries, Huckleberries, etc.

Pies, jams, and cheesecakes made with the aforementioned berries.

Potatoes and potato products

Fresh dairy (Home of Tillamook and Alpenrose)

Our cheese and butter is freaking amazing.

Russian Pieroshkis

Somali Sambusas

We have really good chocolate

Coffee!!!! From the humble pot in every kitchen, to the fancy lattes in the best coffee bars, every cup is an art form, and we take it very seriously how and where it is sourced, how it is roasted, who picked it (fair trade and equitable). Not to mention, when making that cuppa, we are very serious about how to brew it, for the perfect flavor notes.

Beer: We produce local Wheat, oats, barley, and hops. Locally we have more brewpubs than anywhere else in the USA. It seems IPAs are all the rage, but when you're in town, come try an Oatmeal Stout. You will not be disappointed.

Wine: The Willamette Valley is famous for our grape growing microclimate. Our Pinots are famous, but I prefer a nice, smooth rose.

There are several local producers of spicy chai tea and other herbal teas (Stash, Tazo, Dragonfly Chai, etc)

Grain products (bread, pastries). Our flour is grown just over the Cascades and milled locally.

Fresh produce

Apples and Pears (and the ciders, juices, sauces, pies, etc made from them)

Our grass fed beef is pretty darn good.

We have an incredible food cart culture. I'm not talking about the food trucks many cities have. We have hundreds of Le Cordon Bleu chefs, and they work in pods of food carts throughout the area. You will find long lines to purchase five star quality, local comfort food, in any of the pods, day or night.

 

[Gerald Wilgus]

Regional foods here revolve around cherries and fish. Creeping over from Door County, Wisconsin are fish boils. Usually, whitefish, which is boiled with other fixin's. At the end, the cook, with a flourish, pours kerosene on the fire to get the pot to boil over, removing the oils. Then, you sit down with Whitefish served with potatoes and corn with lots of butter. A treat is lake trout. You can get it sauteed, smoked, barbequed. But the best fried fish here are Walleye, or, yellow Lake Perch. The Port City Smokehouse also will smoke Salmon and Chub and anything you catch and want to smoke. The choice of deliciousness. Michigan Tart Cherries are usually Montmorencies and Balotons. Last week the Cherry Hut sold 3,000 pies. They are stuffed with cherries without the gelatenous glop of commercial pies.

The only oddity here is the butchers competing to make sausage. bulk to bratwurst you can find some mighty fine eating, especially after the fairs where they bid on prize livestock.

The most miserable regional food news of the last week was Florida's creepy governor declaring Strawberry Shortcake the state dessert rather than Key Lime Pie.

 

[Gerald Wilgus]

NW Oregon (Willamette Valley, Columbia River Basin, and the Coast)

It's all about fresh, local, seasonal comfort food that is produced and sold organically, equitably, and sustainably.

Salmon and other wild-caught, migratory fish: fresh, smoked, candied, etc.

Shellfish

Soups and Chowders

Hazelnuts

Mushrooms: We are surrounded by deep, lush, temperate rainforests. And our wild mushrooms grow seasonally in the volcanic mountain soil.

Berries: Marionberries, Strawberries, Blueberries, Blackberries, Huckleberries, etc.

Pies, jams, and cheesecakes made with the aforementioned berries.

Potatoes and potato products

Fresh dairy (Home of Tillamook and Alpenrose)

Our cheese and butter is freaking amazing.

Russian Pieroshkis

Somali Sambusas

We have really good chocolate

Coffee!!!! From the humble pot in every kitchen, to the fancy lattes in the best coffee bars, every cup is an art form, and we take it very seriously how and where it is sourced, how it is roasted, who picked it (fair trade and equitable). Not to mention, when making that cuppa, we are very serious about how to brew it, for the perfect flavor notes.

Beer: We produce local Wheat, oats, barley, and hops. Locally we have more brewpubs than anywhere else in the USA. It seems IPAs are all the rage, but when you're in town, come try an Oatmeal Stout. You will not be disappointed.

Wine: The Willamette Valley is famous for our grape growing microclimate. Our Pinots are famous, but I prefer a nice, smooth rose.

There are several local producers of spicy chai tea and other herbal teas (Stash, Tazo, Dragonfly Chai, etc)

Grain products (bread, pastries). Our flour is grown just over the Cascades and milled locally.

Fresh produce

Apples and Pears (and the ciders, juices, sauces, pies, etc made from them)

Our grass fed beef is pretty darn good.

We have an incredible food cart culture. I'm not talking about the food trucks many cities have. We have hundreds of Le Cordon Bleu chefs, and they work in pods of food carts throughout the area. You will find long lines to purchase five star quality, local comfort food, in any of the pods, day or night.

Once, in Oregon, I got to try Razor Clams. I've had Abalone, but I prefer the razor clams I've had in Oregon. Plus I've had an Oregon Tempranillo that was lucious.

 

[Luca]

Seafood is our local “favorite” and our main export.

I’m not a fan of lobster honestly, but everyone else says it’s great. If I was going to recommend something really good that’s a must-try, it would be fish tacos or fried scallops.

I’m not a beer fan either, but if anyone else is, we have a lot of independent breweries. Our restaurants that primarily serve chicken and burgers (and bbq) are very good too.

 

[Unclewolverine]

In kansas city you gotta go to Arthur Bryant's bbq. I consider it the best restaurant in the world; many Hollywood stars and presidents have been there.

 

[Gerald Wilgus]

Seafood is our local “favorite” and our main export.

I’m not a fan of lobster honestly, but everyone else says it’s great. If I was going to recommend something really good that’s a must-try, it would be fish tacos or fried scallops.

I’m not a beer fan either, but if anyone else is, we have a lot of independent breweries. Our restaurants that primarily serve chicken and burgers (and bbq) are very good too.

Seafood is a favorite of mine. I see food, I eat it (I can hear the groans already). Only in New England can one find the best lobster rolls. Burger and Lobster in London, came close, though. I was quite surprised, and they had Sam Adams Boston Lager to wash it down with.

 

[Shevek]

In Newfoundland, there are Redberries. Spotting some red berries, a visitor asked a local "Are these Redberries?"
"No, ma'am," he replied "those are Blueberries. They're only red because they're green."

 

[VictorR]

In Albuquerque, NM, a longtime locals' favorite for Southwestern food, located on the corner of Cornell Dr and Central Ave (Route 66) is Frontier Restaurant.

While it doesn't look that interesting from the outside, once inside, there's a long, but fast moving line (~5-10 minutes) to place your order, and there's lots of decor, which also varies in each of the dining rooms.

I went with their signature "Frontier Burrito" (beef, beans, green chile inside, green chile stew & cheese on top, w/rice & flour tortilla) along with a shake.

You order at one of 8 cashier counters, then move to the end and wait for your number to be called to pick up your order, prepared by one of the 20+ kitchen staff.

To be honest, getting the large shake might have been a mistake as the burrito was of a rather hefty size, and the shake was quite thick and a meal of its own.

(I put the salsa on the tortilla rather than in a cup to avoid wasting a cup)

Anyways, about an hour later, I finished the burrito (and half the shake) and was on my way to continue my explorations of Route 66. But while I was doing so, I got to admire the beautiful Southwest rugs that hung on the ceiling on the room I was in, which was the one furthest to the end (east side, away from the entrance).

I'm not sure this is a place I would want to visit every day if I lived in town, but it was definitely very distinctive and well-loved and a place I would visit somewhat regularly. A great example of a greasy spoon with character that would be a must-visit if you're ever in that part of America.

 

[Gerald Wilgus]

I am sad that Hurricane Ian savaged Matlacha, between Pine Island and the mainland. The old Sandy Hook restaurant in Matlacha always had great local seafood, and Florida spiny lobster, when fresh, is as good as Northern lobster. Their crab au gratin was rich and savory. I enjoyed the Pine Island sound for great sea kayaking. One of my favorite areas of Florida with lots of local character.

 

[VictorR]

My culinary explorations of America next took me to Becky's Diner in Portland, ME.

Located at the waterfront, when I visited in the early afternoon on a early spring weekday, there was a wait to be seated, which when combined with the local plates parked outside was a sign that this was a local's favourite.

The diner has a pretty awesome backstory - of a mother trying her best for her children, and after many years of working for others, taking a chance by opening her own restaurant and getting to see it become successful, fulfilling her American Dream.

The inside features a combination of classic sit-at-the-counter diner along with some booths.
(on the right is a fridge with some to-go stuff if I recall correctly, and before that, at the cashier's, the have some merchandise available)

And the food was excellent.
Pictures here is the haddock reuben and fried scallops.

Definitely would visit again next time I'm in town.

 

[Gerald Wilgus]

On my recent trip to Florida I tried Cajun Jimmy's Seafood Seller & Cafe. Pretty nondescript, located in a mall in Crystal River, BUT the food was excellent. I had two meals there, one was their Crawfish Étouffée, very savory with a great roux and savory mudbugs with great cajun seasonings. I was in heaven. Then had a meal of steamed Cedar Key Littleneck Clams (fifty of them) with garlic butter and a side of Jambalaya. My desire for clams was well sated. They had other Cajun favorites; Gumbos, Shrimp 'n' Grits, Po'Boys, 'Gator, and an amazing selection of fish and shellfish.

Southern American seafood at its best!

 

[tazz]

Having caught up with this thread, I'm now very VERY hungry.

In the balkans there's a dish called shakshuka made from tomato, onions, sweet peppers, garlic, and paprika, baked with an egg on top. Coriander probably. And lots of variations with meat or veg too.

 

[Princess Viola]

You come on down here to South Florida, and you gotta get yourself a Cuban sandwich and a slice of Key lime pie for your lunch.

And yes, South Florida Cuban sandwiches are the best ones. Don't listen to what the people up in Tampa say, those people put salami on their Cubanos.

 

[Gerald Wilgus]

You come on down here to South Florida, and you gotta get yourself a Cuban sandwich and a slice of Key lime pie for your lunch.

And yes, South Florida Cuban sandwiches are the best ones. Don't listen to what the people up in Tampa say, those people put salami on their Cubanos.

Actually had a great Cubano at a small place in Inverness. And they also made a very tasty Ropa Vieja, as good as I can make with a recipe from a Cuban born friend.

And, I knew your governor was mentally ill when he named Strawberry Shortcake rather than Key Lime Pie as Florida's dessert.

 

[Mary Terry]

I'm in the southern USA, home of soul food, Cajun and Creole food, fried chicken, fresh vegetables and fruits, and the marine bounty of the Gulf of Mexico. Need I say more?

Asian and Hispanic immigrants to this area have brought extraordinary flavors, ingredients and dishes, too.