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Each City's signature dish?

stephenc

By stephenc
in Food Traditions & Culture

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ludja

ludja

Posted
Posted
San Francisco:

Food:

Cioppino as mentioned

Chicken Tetrazzini (invented in San Francisco for Luisa Tetrazzini, an Italian coloratura)

Celery Victor (celery stalks immersed in chicken, veal and vegetable stock and served with a topping of salt, black pepper, chervil, tarragon vinegar and olive oil -- invented at The St. Francis by legendary chef Victor Hertler)

Crab Louis (invented At Solari's Restaurant In San Francisco)

Green Goddess salad dressing (invented at The Palace Hotel at the request of actor George Arliss when he was starring in William Archer's play, "Green Goddess")

It's It Ice Cream Sandwich (invented by George Whitney)

Beverage:

Mai Tai (invented by "Trader Vic" Bergeron)

Irish Coffee (developed at Buena Vista Cafe)

Martini (some say)

excellent list; I didn't have my thinking cap on tight enough...

Didn't know about the Chicken Tetrazzini... :smile:

Also between your description of Celery Victor and the other celery thread I feel compelled to make this soon.

"Under the dusty almond trees, ... stalls were set up which sold banana liquor, rolls, blood puddings, chopped fried meat, meat pies, sausage, yucca breads, crullers, buns, corn breads, puff pastes, longanizas, tripes, coconut nougats, rum toddies, along with all sorts of trifles, gewgaws, trinkets, and knickknacks, and cockfights and lottery tickets."

-- Gabriel Garcia Marquez, 1962 "Big Mama's Funeral"

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Carolyn Tillie

Carolyn Tillie

Posted
Posted

Okay, in my 12 years in the city, I can attest to having dined numerous times on all you mentioned except the fried catfish... (where did THAT come from?)

Shiro, Chinois on Main, Parkway Grill, et al.

Interesting..

How about Cobb Salad? Being reminded of what was invented in San Francisco by Squeat, Cobb Salad was invented by the Brown Derby in the 1930s. Very Los Angeles, n'est pas?

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Brad Ballinger

Brad Ballinger

Posted
Posted

Minneapolis - Walleye (I won't go the lutefisk route)

St. Louis - Deep-fried ravioli

New Orleans - Gumbo/Jambalaya

And a comment on Cincinnati chili. The stuff is served on noodles in a 3-, 4-, or 5-way. The history is that it is actually Greek pasta sauce, and not chili at all.

We cannot employ the mind to advantage when we are filled with excessive food and drink - Cicero

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hollywood

hollywood

Posted
Posted

Okay, in my 12 years in the city, I can attest to having dined numerous times on all you mentioned except the fried catfish... (where did THAT come from?)

Shiro, Chinois on Main, Parkway Grill, et al.

Interesting..

How about Cobb Salad? Being reminded of what was invented in San Francisco by Squeat, Cobb Salad was invented by the Brown Derby in the 1930s. Very Los Angeles, n'est pas?

Agreed. We think alike. I edited it in a while ago.

I'm hollywood and I approve this message.

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WoodleyGrrl

WoodleyGrrl

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I have lived in the DC area for over 20 years. The only places I see half-smokes are on the carts on street corners downtown. Affectionately know as "the dirt water dog." I think the carts in NY sell the same thing. Made by Sabretts. I don't think there is anything distinctly "DC" about them.

Having lived here for 20+ years, I have a hard time discerning any peculiarly "DC" concoction. Perhaps crabcakes, but that is more regional than "DC." Maybe "hot air."

Ya ever been to Ben's chili bowl? It's only a DC institution...

Jennifer
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mnebergall

mnebergall

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Posted
Ya ever been to Ben's chili bowl? It's only a DC institution...

I have never been to Ben's Chili Bowl. I thought the exercise here was to identify a city's signature consumable, such as Philadelphia cheese steak's or San Francisco sour dough bread or Kansas City barbeque. As near as I can tell, there ain't no "Washington, DC _____ ." Certainly, the city is not known for "Ben's Chili Bowl." People don't come to town and tell the cab driver "take me to Ben's Chili Bowl." When I want chili, I go to Hard Times Cafe, or make it myself. I think one of the reasons it is so difficult to identify a DC signature dish is because so many of the people who live here come from somewhere else and leave after doing a stint with the federal government or working on the Hill.

Ya been to the Tune Inn, it's only a DC institution?

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bilrus

bilrus

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Posted
Ya ever been to Ben's chili bowl?  It's only a DC institution...

I have never been to Ben's Chili Bowl. I thought the exercise here was to identify a city's signature consumable, such as Philadelphia cheese steak's or San Francisco sour dough bread or Kansas City barbeque. As near as I can tell, there ain't no "Washington, DC _____ ." Certainly, the city is not known for "Ben's Chili Bowl." People don't come to town and tell the cab driver "take me to Ben's Chili Bowl." When I want chili, I go to Hard Times Cafe, or make it myself. I think one of the reasons it is so difficult to identify a DC signature dish is because so many of the people who live here come from somewhere else and leave after doing a stint with the federal government or working on the Hill.

Ya been to the Tune Inn, it's only a DC institution?

WoodleyGrrl's point is that Ben's is more known for its' half smoke than for its chili.

I have seen one of these surveys before that identified the Half Smoke as the DC food item.

Bill Russell

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Busboy

Busboy

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Posted
Ya ever been to Ben's chili bowl?  It's only a DC institution...

I have never been to Ben's Chili Bowl. I thought the exercise here was to identify a city's signature consumable, such as Philadelphia cheese steak's or San Francisco sour dough bread or Kansas City barbeque. As near as I can tell, there ain't no "Washington, DC _____ ." Certainly, the city is not known for "Ben's Chili Bowl." People don't come to town and tell the cab driver "take me to Ben's Chili Bowl." When I want chili, I go to Hard Times Cafe, or make it myself. I think one of the reasons it is so difficult to identify a DC signature dish is because so many of the people who live here come from somewhere else and leave after doing a stint with the federal government or working on the Hill.

Ya been to the Tune Inn, it's only a DC institution?

Ben's is vastly overrated as far as the quality of its chili, but an institution nonetheless.

The DC transient thing is a cliche. What, New York isn't full of transients? Also, vaguely racist, as it ignores the generations of stable black history here.

For DC's food, I'd suggest the oyster -- with an iced beer or a chilled sauvignon blanc, it goes upscale and downscale, and was historically a staple of workingclass diets here.

DENVER: green chili. or steak.

I'm on the pavement

Thinking about the government.

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SeaGal

SeaGal

Posted
Posted
Seattle- Beer or Salmon

I'd second the Salmon and add Dungeness Crab. And beer, but specifically microbrews.

Jan

Jan

Seattle, WA

"But there's tacos, Randy. You know how I feel about tacos. It's the only food shaped like a smile....A beef smile."

--Earl (Jason Lee), from "My Name is Earl", Episode: South of the Border Part Uno, Season 2

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FistFullaRoux

FistFullaRoux

Posted
Posted

You should add Lucky Dogs to New Orleans.

And Austin is wither Tex-Mex or BBQ. People get in fights over the stuff. Much uproar was caused when a restaurant from San Antonio won a salsa contest in Austin once. I think they changed the rules after that...

Screw it. It's a Butterball.
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slkinsey

slkinsey

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Posted

For Boston, I think you're better off with scrod than anything else. No one particularly eats baked beans there, and clam chowder is really more regional than local.

Folks in Wisconsin would probably dispute giving the bratwurst nod to Milwaukee, as Sheboygan is really the Mecca of bratwurst.

A lot of places are going to end up with barbeque as the specialty. Certainly North Carolina is famous for two different styles (Western and Eastern), and Memphis, Kansas City, and even Chicago have barbeque styles for which they are justly famous.

San Antonio is very well known for Tex-Mex, and "puffy tacos" are a specialty.

What about smaller cities that are associated with famous foods? One could argue that the top places for NC and TX barbeque are not found on your list (not to mention the top place for bratwurst, as previously mentioned).

--

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mnebergall

mnebergall

Posted
Posted
WoodleyGrrl's point is that Ben's is more known for its' half smoke than for its chili.

I have seen one of these surveys before that identified the Half Smoke as the DC food item.

As luck would have it, Ben's Chili Bowl has a website. Their signature product appears to be chili. They do list a half somke on the menu, but it is a chili half smoke, but it comes after the regular chili hot dog. I don't think that DC has a national reputation when it comes to half smokes. Most all of the half smokes you get down at the corner cart are made by Sabretts which is a national brand made in New Jersey. I would be willing to bet that Ben's Chili Bowl does not make its own half-smokes (they probably get them from Sabretts).

What is it that is made better in DC than anywhere else (food item that is)? Could it be that DC has no "signature dish."

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Mudpuppie

Mudpuppie

Posted
Posted (edited)
Las Vegas = 99-cent shrimp cocktail  :laugh:

Don't forget the $.99 Foot Long Chili Dog. :blink: I have a story, but I'm not going to tell it now.

As for Austin, I'd nominate BBQ, migas, and chili from the Texas Chili Parlor. Enchiladas are certainly in the running, but that's a little vague.

Edit:

Was Ft. Worth on your list? If so, Joe T. Garcia's tex-mex and big ol' honking steaks.

And for New Orleans, how about Oysters Rockefeller?

And for SF, clam chowder in a bread bowl is very popular on Fisherman's Wharf.

Edited by Mudpuppie (log)

amanda

Googlista

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mnebergall

mnebergall

Posted
Posted
The DC transient thing is a cliche. What, New York isn't full of transients? Also, vaguely racist, as it ignores the generations of stable black history here.

For DC's food, I'd suggest the oyster -- with an iced beer or a chilled sauvignon blanc, it goes upscale and downscale, and was historically a staple of workingclass diets here.

I'm going to ignore the racist comment.

Let's face it, most of the oysters you get in DC come from someplace else. The Chesapeake Bay oyster industry is in decline. Most of the oysters I see come from the Northeast or the West Coast. You have to go to a faily high-end seafood or steak place to get really fresh oysters and by and large they are expensive. When you refer to "workingclass diets" you must be referring to the diet of the K Street Canyon lobbyists and lawyers. No, oysters are not a DC signature dish.

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Carolyn Tillie

Carolyn Tillie

Posted
Posted (edited)
My nominations for must-eats when you come to the Bay Area are:

and last but not least, See's candy!

See's is Los Angeles born.

Amen, brother.

But there's always Ghiradelli!

Edited by Carolyn Tillie (log)

I MAKE FOOD JEWELRY!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Feast Blog

Fried Dough Ho Blog

Ultimate California Wine Blog

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mnebergall

mnebergall

Posted
Posted
Folks in Wisconsin would probably dispute giving the bratwurst nod to Milwaukee, as Sheboygan is really the Mecca of bratwurst.

I agree with you that Sheyboygan is the Brat Mecca of Wisconsin. When you get a good brat in Milwaukee, it probably was made in Sheyboygan, just up the coast. Actually, I sort of associate bratwurst with Wisconsin in general, not Milwaukee in particular.

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mnebergall

mnebergall

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My nominations for must-eats when you come to the Bay Area are:

and last but not least, See's candy!

See's is Los Angeles born.

Amen, brother.

But there's always Ghiradelli!

I thought we were dealing with "signature dishs" not "must eats." When it comes to San Francisco, it has to be sour dough bread.

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