American cuisine is often seen as simple hamburgers and hotdogs. Or a bastardization of imported cuisine, such as Italian here in the Northeast or Mexican in the Southwest. But that limited view of what we Americans offer the dining world ignores the innovative and wonderful treats that make our country just as viable a source of fine foods as France. What I have below is a list of 5 food items that come from a specific region of the country and simply need to be more pervasive in the average American diet. Too many of these dishes simply dawdle in their respective areas of creation, missed by millions.
The focus of this list is on foods that I’ve actually eaten on a fairly frequent basis. Sure I know there are thousands of regional dishes I haven’t tried, and maybe some of them deserve to be on this list. I hope that someday they will be. For now, these are the dishes you need to get your hands on.
5 Great Regional Foods That Deserve To Pervade Our Culinary Consciousness
Spedie – When you have a food that has a disputed origin, how do I choose which history to go with? That’s simple, I’ll go with the one I’ve tried. The spedie is a simple dish: marinated cubes of chicken or pork, skewered and grilled over charcoal, then served on a soft Italian roll with lots of butter. Peter Sharak opened Sharkey’s Bar and Grill and began serving the sandwich in 1947. It’s highly likely that his were not the first in the Binghamton, NY area. But they are the ones that made the dish popular. In fact, the best spedie I’ve ever had was during my college search when we stopped in at Sharkey’s and delighted in the sandwich. They are served with the metal skewer, and the customer spreads butter on the roll and then grips the meat tightly with the roll to remove the skewer. The result is a squished product that is as tasty as it is deformed.
Best spedie: Sharkey’s Bar and Grill, 56 Glenwood Ave, Binghamton NY
Garbage Plate – Oh the glorious Garbage Plate. It is probably what you’re thinking: a dish that serves up the menu to late night revelers looking for a way to soak up the last hour’s worth of alcohol. The name “Garbage Plate” is actually trademarked by the creator of the dish, Nick Tahou’s in Rochester, NY. But there are a lot of diners and dives in Western New York that serve similar concoctions. So what goes into a Garbage Plate? Your choice of meat (hamburger, hot dog, fish, what have you), two sides piled on top, that’s all topped with onion, ketchup, mustard and some cat food looking “hot sauce.” There is no food I can think of that looks less edible when sitting on your plate, and is the most delicious end to a night of drinking.
Best Garbage Plate: Nick Tahou’s, 320 W Main St, Rochester NY
Beef on Weck – This is an interesting choice because I’ve only had this sandwich at a few restaurants, and it’s never that good. I think the reason is that outside of Buffalo, NY restaurants tend to leave out the “weck” part. In Germany a kummelweck is a type of roll that has salt on top so as to encourage more beer drinking. It’s the same concept behind bar peanuts. A Kaiser roll just doesn’t quite do it, and the only true beef on weck sandwich I’ve ever had came from my parent’s Crock Pot. I’m starting to realize that a lot of my childhood favorite foods were the most simplistic of meals. How I got interested in cooking is a mystery, especially since I still consider these items to be the pinnacle of culinary satisfaction.
There are a few things to know about this particular sandwich. Its basic components are slow roasted rare roast beef and kummelweck. There’s the option of dipping the top half of the roll into the juices of the roast, this is highly recommended. The other thing is you should have horseradish. You should have a lot of horseradish. You combine all of that and you have yourself a sandwich to be proud of.
Best Beef on Weck: My parent’s house
Frito Pie – Ah yes, the Frito Pie. I’m not 100% sure when or where I first heard about this dish, most likely in college. It’s the ultimate in street food, and with some fancy preperations can be a presentable dish for a party. In essence it’s Frito’s with chili served in the bag. There are ways to prepare it just right so that you get the maximum crunch factor in relation to chili goodness. Traditionally you’d serve this with a Texas style chili, which means no beans. Sorry, but I’m from the northeast and I’ve gotta have some black beans in my chili. That’s just how I role.
Best Frito Pie – Late at night, drunk, in the dorms of college.
Breakfast burrito – OK, this one is making the list on the recommendation of Munch Monster co-owner Josh Tyler. Hey, he also runs a little side site called Cinema Blend. All the kids are talking about it, so that must mean he knows his breakfast burritos. And yes I know that you read something somewhere on this page saying all of the items on the list are things that I’ve actualy tried. Well, times change people. It was a long few minutes between that paragraph and this one.
I know that I’ve had good ones, and I’ve made some quite tasty ones. But according to Josh you can grab the best breakfast burrito man has deemed fit for mortal consumption in Belton, TX. I’ve been to Dallas airport on a number of occasions, but that’s about the best I can do for any sort of Texas recommendations. It’s OK if you can’t hit up Belton though, because the second best breakfast burrito can be found at Ken’s Tacos. Looking at the image of the rundown looking spot I can believe they’d have a fantastic breakfast burrito. Food like this always seems to be best at the places that look the worst.
Best Breakfast burrito: Ernie’s Fried Chicken, Belton TX
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