Local food you love or miss
 

Inspired by the cheerwine thread.

What do you like (or miss) in the way of regional food?

For me it's

St. Louis-
- Toasted Ravioli (meat ravioli, battered and deep fried. Served with a marinara sauce)
- German Cheesecake - (a coffecake - more in common with a cheese Danish than, say, New York style cheesecake)
- Lion's Choice (very good roast beef sandwich chain)
- Steak & Shake (high quality burgers - missed 'em when I lived in Seattle)
- White Castle (greasy burgers aka sliders)
- BBQ especially ribs (when I moved to Seattle, I had to learn to make my own)
- Vess orange and cream sodas (the best of their type)

Chicago-
- Italian Beef (shaved beef in a heavily spiced au jus served on a hoagie bun)
- Portillo's (one of the region's best purveyors of Italian Beef)

Innsbruck: Jumpys, a paprika snack made by Funny-Frisch. There aren't enough paprika snacks in the US. Everything is cheddar, or some other kind of cheese. BBQ flavor is close, but no cigar.

Jumpy's are made of dehydrated potato powder, formed into the shape of a kangaroo, and coated with MSG, paprika, onion powder, and some other stuff. The closest flavor here is Pringles, but Pringles is a coarse, crude flavor in comparison to the light crispy treat that is Jumpys.


http://www.vampirehost.de/pzn/extras...ort/jumpys.jpg

Chitlins

I'm with you on the Toasted Ravioli, Lion's Choice, Italian Beef and Portillos.

I love Portillo's - the bucket of coke is the absolute best! I also miss Giorodano's Spinich Pizza, Garrett's Popcorn (chicago staple) and Frango Mints from Marshall Fields.

You can buy most of this shit on the internet, but it's not the same as having it in the city!

Dar, you're in the Chicago suburbs, right? Couldn't you just go into the city to get the Chicago items you listed? Not to mention, unless they've all closed recently, there are over 70 White Castles in the Chicago area.

I was just ranting about how we lost our last White Castle in Philadelphia recently.

I'll second you on all the St. Louis items you listed, and will add to that:

--Imo's and Cecil Whittaker's Pizza
--Jack in the Box (closest one to me is in Charlotte)
--Sonic (closest one to me is in Virginia Beach)
--Caffeine Free Dr. Pepper (only the diet version is available here)

A saleswoman from Chicago that I work with sent me Frango mints for Christmas this past year...damn, they were good. And I'm not a fan of spinach, but I do like Giordano's pizza...good stuff!

I'm a breakfast nut. And a diner nut.

Diner on the [Rittenhouse] Square (Philly) - Chipped beef on toast.

Majestic Diner (Ponce de Leon; Atlanta) - 50's diner. Mighty fine omelettes served by waitresses with real beehive hairdos.

Virginia is too North to be Southern so no Southern breakfasts here and its too Southern to be Northern so no good Northern breakfast either. :mad:

I think there are a couple restaurants in the philly area that do the toasted ravioli thing.

There isn't really anything in particular that I miss in terms of regional childhood food. I guess I just had a bland childhood ... that and the BIG beloved items were imported from Philadelphia (TastyKakes). My uncle was Master Baker at Tasty, as was his father before him ... never returned to Chicago from a "trip back East" without bags full of culls.

I will confess to an occasional adult hankering for the Onion Rings from Capital City Brewing in Baltimore, though. That's more of a tourist craving, however.

Sonic rocks - apparently there is one close to me, but can't find it! Besides, only the Sonic's in Missouri have cheddar bites, the absolute best thing on the menu next to the fresh fruit slush.

I got a box of Frangos as a present recently and devoured them.l.. absolutely wonderful!


--Sonic (closest one to me is in Virginia Beach)


A saleswoman from Chicago that I work with sent me Frango mints for Christmas this past year...damn, they were good. And I'm not a fan of spinach, but I do like Giordano's pizza...good stuff![/quote]

Yeah, the Chicago items are regional food that I love and would miss if we ever moved. [Not likely. My wife and I have moved eight times since we got married. It would take an act of congress to get her to move again.]

I missed the Steak & Shake and White Castle when we lived in Seattle. Sorry to hear about the recent dearth of White Castle in your area. Sometimes you just gotta have a slider.

Syc, try to make sense out of this one ... no Sonic in this area of high population density and restaurant penetration ... but I'm pretty sure I saw one up in Clark's Summit.

Hmmmm ... I can't find anything on their website about one being there, though. Perhaps it was an illusion?

I miss Chicago Deep Dish pizza. Sonic too. I ate there in VA and FLA and loved it. Espesially the slushies on a hot day, of which there were plenty in Florida.

Brian

Beestie, where in VA do you live? I am on the VA/TN border, and "Southern breakfasts" abound here. There are tons of little diner places and greasy spoons that even the most Dixie-esque of Southerners would be proud to chow down on.

Pretty much anything from Farm Restaurant, in the Adirondaks. Most especially the though, the

I'd have to say it was an illusion. I look at their site occasionally to see if they're getting closer...Virginia Beach is better than it used to be (Bristol, VA).

Sonic didn't come into the St. Louis area until 1996. Prior to that, I had only seen them in smaller towns in Southeastern Missouri. Perhaps they employed a small-market strategy until the mid-90s.

hmmm..

chicago style hotdogs... from a vendor.. (sure you never know really what you're getting...hmm? where did Jimmy Hoffa go?)

south carolina..
Huddle House grits and omlettes at 5:00 in the morning
real Jambalaya
okra and tomatoes
dafuskie island stew... sure I can make it.. but it's just not the same
fresh fresh shrimp and crabs.. caught that morning

new york style white pizza (we have a new york style pizza place here.. but once again it's just not the same as buying it from a little pizzaria in Brooklyn... luigis by Pratt art school to be specific)

here?
there used to be a place called tommy burger.. tiny little burgers..5 for a buck.. I still think they used crack somewhere in the process of making them

Foods I miss:

Ledo's Pizza: Yummmm!
Festival Eatery: Just for the nostaligia (after school hang-out)

Clodfobble (on another thread) reminded me of another regional favorite:

Cashew chicken - This was a very popular choice when I was going to college in Springfield MO. That's the only place I've seen it made this way - the chicken is battered and fried much like for sweet and sour. But then the sauce is an oyster sauce and it's sprinkled with cashews and scallion bits.

Anyone else ever had this?

Unfortunately (in this regard) I live in Northern Virginia in the DC suburbs. Outside the beltway, the only thing that comes close is a Cracker Barrell (20 miles from here). There are a couple diners here but they really suck. Their chipped beef tastes like the microwave stuff you get in the frozen food section and their omelettes and hash browns are not worthy.

Beestie, if you ever make it down to Bristol, I'll take you to Memaw's, Mother's Restaurant and Treasure Island. Best breakfasts you've ever eaten, served on semi-clean tables, and available all day. :)

Ohhh Speaking of N.VA, I totally forgot about a little place called Mario's. Ah, their poppers were the best! Oh and their other stuff was good too. ;)

You got yourself a deal!http://www.cellar.org/images/smilies/yumyum.gif

From western Kentucky, Starnes BBQ, Whalers Catch Blue Cheese Dressing, Patti's Porkchops.

From So Cal Chariles Chili, Nick's Pizza (the best pizza ever!)

Shit, I forgot about Ledo and Mario's in the DC area...fucking awesome!

Rho and I ate at Silver Diner in Arlington once...God, that was awful.

mmm salmon jerkey from Trader Joes in the San Diego area.. man do i miss SoCal... :(

Chicago: Gold Coast Char Dog....yumm.
TX: Sonic #2 burger, onion rings and 44 oz limeaide.
TX: Shady Grove: Green chilie cheese fries.
TX: Guerro's: tacos, every damn kind.

From my college days in Atlanta ...

Fat Matt's Rib Shack (half chicken, half ribs combo - money!)
Willy's special burrito, no beans, chicken, easy on the cheese, diced jalapenos and extra guac

I mentioned to a friend the other day just how successful a Waffle House would be in NYC. I think it's got enough of a reputation that the place would be packed. Worried about not having waitresses with attitudes? Won't be a problem here in NYC.

Native foods from NJ ... any of you folks in the area must go to two places in Princeton:
Hoagie Haven (if you don't mind border jumpers sleeping above the same place they make you chicken parm sandwiches)
Chuck's Cafe (formerly owned by the Menendez brothers (anyone hear that Eric got married in prison recently? My brother was classmates with them in middle/high school), this place has the BEST buffalo wings in existence. Hands down.)

I live where I grew up, so I don't have any local treats to miss.

As far as my college years in Raleigh go, I can honestly say that there wasn't a damn thing down there that I ate or drank that I'd want but can't get here, now that Cheerwine has surfaced. Grits? Feh - wallpaper paste. Bojangles? Not interested. Checkers? There's one in Wilmington if I want it bad enough, and there are better burgers around here. Char-grill? Every town has its own mom-and-pop burger stop. Barbecue? REAL barbecue isn't vinegar-based.

Local foods to central PA for me are 1) disgusting, and 2) still totally available where I am.

- Scrapple: everything they wouldn't put in hot dogs, held together with corn meal

- Lebanon Bologna: highly spiced lunch meat with a large percentage of gristle.

:vomit:

Oh yes and "funnel cake"

:vomit:

Funnel cake has made it to Missouri (at least Silver Dollar City in Branson). It's been a while, but I used to enjoy it occaisionally when in a "damn the fat, full speed ahead" mood.

In the immortal words of one of the old Morning Zoo comics, "I won't eat scrapple, 'cause I won't eat anything that has the word 'crap' in the middle."

That was the first thing that came to my mind, sliders. Those cheap little burgers you buy by the bag. Yum.

i'm originally from the Quad Cities area in illinois so i miss Arthur's Garden Deli, Happy Joes's Pizza, and Whitey's Ice Cream. that and a miss a true chicago style pizza - both thin and thick crust.

Happy Joe's Taco Pizza... that is good stuff.

But nothing beats a good In'N'Out Burger, fries, and a shake.. mmm.. But only from Cali, no Nevada or Arizona wannabees.

Whooooooaaaaa! how do you know about the holy grail... i mean happy joe's taco pizza? :eek: i really miss that stuff. they don't even have taco pizza in arizona at all.

Okay, I'll bite: whatinhell is a taco pizza?
- Pie

I don't know about HAppy Joe's, but the ones I've had are a thin crust, with refried beans and taco beef, lettuce, tomato, onion, taco sauce, and salsa and sour cream on the side.

This taco pizza had a spicy taco flavored sauce, cheddar and mozzerella cheeses, taco meat, topped with lettuce, tomato and crushed up doritos. It was on a thin crust and sooooo good.

melidasaur - where did you experience happy joe's?

I had my 13th birthday party at a Happy Joe's in St. Louis.

awesome. we had my nephew's at a happy joe's in geneseo, IL last november. in the quad city area there is a happy joe's pizzeria on every corner.

it's always something
 

From Ohio, chip-chop ham sandwiches.

From Michigan, having 5 different flavors of Peirogies to choose from. Steak fries with your hamburger.

From Boston, Grape-nut or Indian pudding, thin pizza.

Has anyone ever had creton, a "meat" spread, up in Maine?

I grew up in Maine. Never heard of that meat spread.

It was a french canadian thing...maybe I am misspelling it. like...meat salad. you spread it on toast.

Sounds yummy. I had half a dozen French Canadians households on my street, spent a lot of time with them, but never heard of it.

This thread reminds me of my aunt Kay, who grew up in Pittsburgh then movied to chicago. Now, every time she visits here, she goes home with 3 pounds of chipped ham (real chipped ham, transparently thin), and 2 big bags of wise potato chips. She used to bring Heinz ketchup, too, but now you can get it everywhere.

What I miss from NYC:

- New York-style pizza, specifically from Pizzarama on Franny Lew, right across 200th St from my house.

- Baked goods in general: bagels (Top Hat Bagels on Bell), pastries (Mario & Sal's on...Northern, if I remember right), rolls (I think there was a place in Whitestone we got them from.), etc., etc.,

- Italian food. And if you're someone that thinks Olive Garden or something of the sort is Italian food, do me a favor and start wearing blue-colored tinfoil on your head, so I know who you wackjobs are.

- White Castle burgers.

- IHOP. Once you enter the area between the Appalachians & the Mississippi, they cease to be. Hell, maybe between the A's and the Rockies, for all I know.

- Drake's Coffee Cake.

- Cheesecake from just about anywhere: Junior's, Bayside Diner, it's all good.

I used to miss the Chinese food, but the damnedest thing happened: a store opened in Plum under the same name as the place we always went to three blocks from my dad's place in Bayside. Except for very, very minor differences (pork fried rice in Bayside place has bits of egg in it, Plum doesn't), the food is exactly the same. I mean, it's eerie. God-thankingly fantastic, but eerie.

I grew up in Ames, Iowa. Everyone had a birthday party at one point at Happy Joe's... plus, they had great ice cream sundaes!

Good mustard. When I was in Germany in 60's I ate some of the best mustard I've ever had. Thinkl they called it "Self." I have bought a ton of crap, but never found anything to compare. Maybe my taste has changed in last 40 years?

Buster, I spent 3 years stationed in Germany in the late 70's and you're right, the mustard was the best! I believe the word is 'senf' in German. Man, what I wouldn't give for a real 'bratwurst und senf mit brochen' right now! mmmmm!

Boy to smell the fresh bread when you passed though a small village. Stop & get a few rolls & a beer. Go to the Fest? & get the wurst off the grill, then head to beer tent. A beer was about 10 or 12 cents per liter. Cheeper than Coke.