OT: Favorite Foreign "guilty pleasures" ... foodwi

[d2]

OK ... trying to calm some international tensions with something a bit more pleasant.

When I travel abroad, there are various little "guilty pleasures" ... foodwise, that I find in various contries, that I can't easily find at home in the USA.

For instance, I love these little chocolate-coated oatmeal cookies called "Hob Nobs" which I can get almost anywhere in the UK, but haven't yet found here at home.

I often see foreign travellers form othe countries stocking up on San Francsico-style sourdough bread (you really can't even get decent sourdough in the Eastern USA, if you ask me)

I'd be interested in hearing any other notables, especially from non-Americans who travel to the USA.

[montrealbreaks]

OK ... trying to calm some international tensions with something a bit more pleasant.

When I travel abroad, there are various little "guilty pleasures" ... foodwise, that I find in various contries, that I can't easily find at home in the USA.

For instance, I love these little chocolate-coated oatmeal cookies called "Hob Nobs" which I can get almost anywhere in the UK, but haven't yet found here at home.

I often see foreign travellers form othe countries stocking up on San Francsico-style sourdough bread (you really can't even get decent sourdough in the Eastern USA, if you ask me)

I'd be interested in hearing any other notables, especially from non-Americans who travel to the USA.

I know that Rahlo (Blacksoilproject) really digs Poutine! It's a Quebec delicacy, essentially french fries covered with gravy and melting cheese curds! Top notch at "La Belle Province"...



Personally, the wierdest thing I ever ate when abroad was MukTuk - an Inuit delicacy of raw, fermented whale blubber.

Favourite? Damn that's a hard one... When I was in the Balkans, I got into Slivowitz (Spelling?) - it's Plum Brandy, pretty foul stuff until you get the taste for it... That and anything with Goose Livers that's cooked in Budapest. Sounds gross but DAMN tasty. For North America, Slurpees are pretty good, we don't get 'em here in Montreal - and they call this a city of culture!!!

[milfbait]

To me there's nothing like some southern barbeque, I just can't get any good bbq up here in BC. It's one of the few things I miss about the south. And speaking of San Francisco, I've really been craving an Anchor Steam lately.

[AdamJay]

when i'm in Oz, 80% of my diet is Flake (gummy shark)

oh, and the other 20% is Chips

[mcconaghy]

For instance, I love these little chocolate-coated oatmeal cookies called "Hob Nobs" which I can get almost anywhere in the UK, but haven't yet found here at home.

Depends where you are, I can get them almost everywhere throughout CT, they make Oreos seem like something out of an EZ-Bake oven.

[FaX-01]

I must confess I've been to Ireland / Scotland / UK / NewZealand / France and places like the Northern Territory here in Oz but I haven't been to the States.
Well I tried but my visa application was rejected due a certain 'medical' condition which required me to take meds with me .
That said here in "Sunny one day hideous the next Melbourne" we have a thriving multicultural community and a great choice of diverse restaurants.
One of my favourites would have to be Stewed Goat (Tibetan style).
Balkan cuisine is pretty tasty also.
Like a bit of Russian cuisine ,French ,Japanese ,Thai ,Vietnamese and I absolutley love Lebanese/Middle eastern mixed grills ,dips and salads.
Use to be this great place near hastings in England that did the best Fish and Chips (Cod) I have ever eaten.
Tried Haggis once and once was enough lol .
Pretty much up for most French cuisine ,traditional Italian and Greek seafood dishes.
Must get overseas again one day (before I cark it).
Places I'd love to see are Vienna , Prague , Moscow , San Francisco , Nevada , New York , Canada and Sapin.
I'd love to go back to Ireland again.
Thing is if I went to the UK again (I'm on a dual passport) I don't know if I'd want to come back as most of my family (aunts,uncles ,cousins etc) live either there or in France .

[special ed]

anyone ever try haggus? im just curious what it tastes like, not that id ever eat it. i heard rattlesnake tastes like chicken. i wonder what dog tastes like, or cat for that matter. what is it canibals like about human flesh (i really dont expect anyone here to know that one). oh well. just some thoughts to ponder. i would like to try every vegetarian dish in the mediterrenean and middle east.

[AdamJay]

Balkan cuisine is pretty tasty also.

yes indeed, i don't know how its pronounced but Bosnian style "Gevoppee" (?) is awesome. I really don't eat pork but i kinda had no choice but to eat it when i was there and i loved it, had it 3 more times before i left. Its basically seasoned pork sausages with grilled flat bread. Croatian style is different because of different bread, and its generally less greasy. but man that ish is addictive!

other favorites of mine are the Peanut Oil salad dressing i had in Graz, Austria, and my first experience of Chicken Molle' in Mexico City - who would have thought spicey chocolate on chicken could be so damn good?

[Meffy]

I'm American so this won't be so interesting. But here goes: I like Japanese snacks. Pocky. Rice crackers, especially kake no tane and the ones with a tiny flake of seaweed wrapped around. Those little cookie-and-chocolate mushrooms.

If "you are what you eat," then I must be Italian. Pasta, pizza, the red sauce and cheese kind of Italian food that we post-WWII kids grew up eating. Made a vat of meatballs several days ago and my mate and I have been eating them ever since. :-) Mmmm. The more fashionable, authentic Italian food I don't care for and can't afford. Give me the cheap familiar kind, please.

Where I live I can get good Southern barbecue of many kinds. [edit: it's one of my favorite foods!] But I can't get a genuine Philly cheesesteak -- there's only one city where you can do that. (Does Philadelphia count as foreign to a Southerner? :-D)

Meffy

[robbmasters]

Coming from the opposite direction I love Boston Cookies. Apparently you can only get them on the East coast so my sister in LA can't even send me food parcels. Have finally found a UK importer though.

As someone with a weird diet (vegan), New York was heaven to me. I'd be huuuuuuuuuuuuge if I lived there. Partly those cookies, and partly the vegan (mainly Chinese) restaurants. Even meat eaters should try Vegetarian's Paradise or Vegetarian's Paradise 2 (aka VP2). You probably won't be able to tell the difference between their fake meats and the real thing. Or maybe my memory of the real thing is fuzzy now... Either way the food is fantastic.

Oh and haggis tastes OK. Kinda peppery, if I remember rightly, but nothing either remarkable or offensive, Of course now I only eat vegan haggis! Yes such a thing exists. Possibly an idea for meat eaters who don't like the idea of what's in a real haggis.

[peeddrroo]

2 drinks from india i can't get in france and i miss: tchai (the tea they make with cardamom seeds), and lassi (the 'sour' milk drink, either sweet or salty).

this reminds me of a sentence by jean-paul sartre (approx translation): "jazz is like bananas, it tastes better when you consume it on the spot"

[rikhyray]

I will limit myself to the US, because my international list would be too big, I love regional specialities, learning new ones and then enjoying old favourites. Muffins , brownies and that kind of things, the real ones you get only in the USA, OK, there is one place in London near Covent Garden. American breakfast, my favourite- Lox around Clock, NYC, of course talking NY, cream cheese bagels, Miami- cocktails and real Florida orange juice, S.F. lots of things don`t even know what they called.
Oye Peeedritooooo,
this one is for you, it is not easy to make it well, chai, I am specialist, in fact that`s how I survive Europe without ever getting sick.
You need- fresh ginger which is the most important , cardamom, cloves, canela - if it is good one then very, very small piece otherwise it will ruin the whole thing ( what is it called in English, Germans call it Zimt???), saffron (optional) also very little. You have to chop the ginger, crush the rest or at least break the cardamom`s shell otherwise you wont get the flavour. Then have to boil it for a while. If you sick then boil it a little longer and can add a bit of black pepper but carefull with that. Dont use any of these in the powdered form, only entire and ginger must be fresh and juicy.
Now the tea part is a problem here, to get real chai you would need the worst tea you could get. It wont work with exclusive Darjeeling. It is easier to get these best Indian teas in Europe then in India, you know imperialism, we export the best and drink the rest.
The best , available in Europe and easy to use "PG tips", comes from UK, but you can get it in Indian or Asian shops also in Paris. Then milk and sugar. The proportions you have to learn by experience.
I drink not less the a liter a day ! If you catch cold can use lemon instead of milk and drink 2-3 liter a day, no need for any medicine.

[forge]

anyone ever try haggus? im just curious what it tastes like, not that id ever eat it. i heard rattlesnake tastes like chicken. i wonder what dog tastes like, or cat for that matter. what is it canibals like about human flesh (i really dont expect anyone here to know that one). oh well. just some thoughts to ponder. i would like to try every vegetarian dish in the mediterrenean and middle east.

haggis is actually perfectly decent - just tastes like spiced mice



that should be mince!

[AdamJay]

i have a confession to make.

i love spaghettios.

[futureproof]

and lassi (the 'sour' milk drink, either sweet or salty).

ahhhhhh....mango lassi! My favorite!