Ask Lemmy

Fried rice. Any kind, I just love fried rice.

Ohio.

Cincinnati-style chilli (ie., Skyline). It's an acquired taste but once you like it it's like crack.

Denver, CO

We have really good Little Donkeys

Green Chiliburger

It's just a cheeseburger with some good local new mexico green chili in it.

yum

Not sure if it's "local":

But the "燒賣"

From Guangzhoug, but the first time I remember eating it in a NYC Chinese Restaurant at a family gathering when we dined at the restaurant. So I assume its probably the Americanized version.

Now I'm in Philly, and I still occasionally have some 燒賣

Its not even like an "Entrée", more like afternoon tea-time snacks.

As a Chinese-American, I haven't even tried much "western food" besides the typical Pizzas, Fastfood burgers, chicken nuggets, fries, and I did have some "Hoagies" (aka: subway sandwitches), and a cheesesteak once or twice. Never had like an actual western "meal".

Idk, I feel like I'm missing out on stuff, but I don't know where to start, because I'm a picky eater... 😓

Australian here. I'm going with Vegemite with avo and toast. If I travel for too long, I end up missing it a lot.

From Maryland, steamed blue claw crabs, or crab cakes if you don't want to pick the shells yourself. Also Chincoteague oysters. Or actually, just about any Chesapeake Bay seafood is great.

Philly area

Yes cheesesteak, hoagie, soft pretzels.

But I believe strongly that a roast pork Italiano sandwich loaded up with sharp provolone, roasted long hots, and broccoli rabe is the best Philly sandwich.

Go a little out into the suburbs around Norristown, and you'll also find the "Zep" a sort of pared-down hoagie, one kind of meat, cheese, oil and spices, tomatoes, and plenty of onions.

I'm not going to wade into the minefield of which sandwich shops are best except to say Pat's and Geno's are garbage, but maybe worth it for the experience if you're a tourist. Avoid anywhere that advertises as a "Philly Cheesesteak" look for cheesesteak, steak sandwiches, or even just steaks. For a Zep I don't think it's controversial to say Lou's ro Eve's are the places to go.

Tomato pie- close relative of pizza, thick sort of focaccia-like crust, square, thick tomato sauce, dusting of Parmesan cheese, served cold. Staple of many parties here.

Also in the suburbs - Franzones pizza, Bridgeport is the original location, but the original owner sold it to a relative and opened the one in Plymouth/Conshy location and another in Manayunk. You're going to either love or hate the pizza, thin crust, very sweet sauce in a spiral on top of the cheese. There's a few imitators out there but Franzones is the original.

This is the right time of year for them so "Irish Potato" candies. Sweet cream cheese and shredded coconut, rolled in cinnamon. Nothing Irish about them but they kind of look like potatoes.

Zitners Easter eggs- chocolate candies with various fillings.

Goldenbergs Peanut Chews- chewy molasses candy with peanuts covered in chocolate

Mallow Cups- like a Reese's cup but full of marshmallow and coconut instead of peanut butter

Scrapple - don't ask what's in it, just eat it.

Pork roll (kind of a jersey thing, but ubiquitous in Philly too) it's basically round spam

Pepperpot soup- this is old Philly food, like revolutionary war Philly, it's damn hard to find these days but every few years some local restaurant gets the idea to recreate it. It's a hearty, slightly spicy beef and trip soup. There's some Caribbean pepper pot soups that are kind of similar.

From Arizona / Mexico:

Birria, especially Birria Ramen. It's slow cooked meat in a broth of spices and a bit of onion and Chiles. It's fall apart tender, and usually served with melted cheese (Queso Birria). But my favorite version is served on top of Tapatio Ramen. So it's fork tender beef with spicy noodles.

Really great on a cold day.

Funny thing is, I'm from the East Coast of the US, so actually have a bunch of favorites from there that are really worth giving a try too.

Especially a REAL Cheesesteak.

Shaved Ribeye cut thin and grilled on a hot surface for a char. Grilled and charred onions and green peppers. Add it to an Italian soft roll that's warmed, NOT toasted. Melt on top of it either Cheez Wiz (an Aerosolized Cheese snack that's awful by itself) or American cheese. Mix it all together on the bun along with a few slices of Italian peperonchinis and a couple dashes of celery salt.

Incredibly unhealthy, but quite an experience if you ever get to try one (or make one yourself! I'm literally eating one I made for dinner right now haha 😂)

Indian with a sweet tooth here. My vote goes to Halwa. It is a broad category of sweet dishes that can be made using different ingredients and each one of them are delicious in their own ways. They range from quick ones made of whole wheat flour, samolina or gram flour to tedious carrot and dry fruit ones. A bowl of home made Halwa is the very definition of comfort food for me.

Brazil: Feijoada, it is a traditional food that is pretty much "just" pork and beans, but its fucking rad lol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feijoada

UK here and the best thing I can think of is a full English in a bun, there's a butty van near me where they taste amazing. it's basically a heart attack in a bun with how much oil is on there but it's so good.

I'm not from Lazaro Mexico, but let me tell you that the Mixtas there are the best food I've ever put down my gullet.

Boston baked beans. To my taste, good ones are cooked low and slow so that the beans almost start melting together, and they should be both sweet and tangy.

Czechia and it's a tie between goulash (the Czech variety, not the Hungarian one) and Vepřo knedlo zelo.

Stamppot. I’m from the Netherlands and I really love stamppot.

It’s basically boiled veggies (usually a type of kale, but it can also be made with endive or carrots (but then it’s called hutspot) and potatoes mashed together. Add a smoked sausage and some gravy over it. delicious!

But it’s best when it’s winter and it’s really cold outside and when you make it, the windows steam up. Then it’s really gezellig

Chicago, rosattis pizza

Finland: only had it a couple of times 'cause it's expensive, and takes long and is tedious to make, but loimulohi (fire salmon). It's salmon nailed to a plank and then heated up by an open fire. Very tasty.

Pretty much any big enough fish can be made like that, but I've only had salmon.

in Guatemala, the spicy rice tamales are probably my favorite thing here.

but today I'm getting the chipilin tamales, which have little leaves mixed into the dough and are also real good.

One that's great just to see reactions to the name: leather britches.

But my favorite? There's something very comforting to having a bowl of soup beans. Chili's humble cousin is far more satisfying than it's got any right being.

For a crowd pleaser, though? Cornbread spread with apple butter. Listen to me, now: Do not sweeten the cornbread. Sugar in the cornbread is just cake.

As an Australian, I'm going to say Pavlova because it's the only thing that comes to mind when I think of favourite foods

I call bullshit on new zealand's claim with their so called unnamed chef that probably didn't even exist

Palt. Potato dumping filled with meat.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palt

Fish and chips

I've lived all over the U.S., so here are some of my favorites:

Texas:

• Beef barbecue. The classic is beef brisket, but a lot of places have great beef rib, too.
• Tex Mex: fajitas hit the spot every time.
• Breakfast tacos, especially with leftover smoked brisket from the day before, or some other smoked meat like smoked sausage. Undeniably Texas, undeniably delicious.

Louisiana:

• Boiled crawfish, with red potatoes and corn and andouille sausage. Some people overcook their potatoes and corn, but even then there's still a charm to it. But the whole experience of a crawfish boil is everything great about food culture: socializing around a big table, making a big mess, teaching kids and newbies how do engage in that task of peeling crawfish. The Vietnamese riffs on these traditions are also great, and Viet-Cajun is a great genre of food in general, too.

The American South in general:

• American Southern style fried chicken. It's just great.
• Pecan pie. Easily my favorite American dessert.

Southern California:

• Burritos. Something about the fresh made flour tortillas in Southern California are just better than everywhere else in the U.S. So a good burrito provides flavor from the fillings, and also flavor from the wrap itself, in a way that all the parts just complement each other.
• Ensenada style fish tacos (yes, I know this originates south of the border but it is "local" to the general region). There's just something refreshing about fish tacos with a crunchy cabbage slaw, fresh lime juice, a crema-based sauce, eaten outdoors. Can't beat it.

New York:

• Bodega style breakfast sandwich. The basic concept is universal across the U.S. (egg, a breakfast meat like sausage or bacon, and cheese on some kind of roll, bun, or even bagel, griddled with generous amounts of butter), but something about the New York bodegas just make these taste better when you're on the go.

Chicago:

• Deep dish pizza. Looks kinda dumb, but it's delicious.
• Chicago style, "dragged through the garden" hot dogs. Every component makes this ensemble great.
• Italian beef sandwiches. I don't know why these aren't more popular outside of Chicago. Get it dipped, get a little messy with it.

The Seattle Dog.

Basically, a hot dog with cream cheese and sauteed onions.

Its not as common as it once was, afaik you can only get it from street vendors in a few spots, or maybe way overpay for one at a restaurant or two.

... It is from Seattle, Washington State, USA.