I couldnt keep my mouth shut

[Landscaping Wiz 808]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

I was born in Philly, lived in Massachusetts, Baltimore and now Northern VA (definitely not the south, ask anyone from Richmond). They have grits up north, they just call it cream of wheat. I guess it's sort of like the sweet tea/iced tea thing.

C'mon jakebrake, Geno's doesn't even use cheese wiz! Philly also gave the rest of the country delicacies like soft pretzels and tasty cakes. Scrapple is a big thing there too - I had a neighbor that made it in a trash can in his basement...YUCK!

Crab cakes beat all of those things...and grits too!

BOB

 

[pecheux]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

Having been born just outside of NYC and having lived all over the US, I guess I can offer a qualified opinion here.

First, people are people - they come in all sizes, shapes, colors and demeanors. When you get past the superficial issues, they are all the same. They have similar desires for themselves and most just want a better life for their kids. Some areas are known for being more open and warm than others, but friendship is just a conversation away in most places. One universal disqualifier for friendship, however, is to develop a "superior" attitude about something.

On food, each area tends to have items that it has become very good at. Philly Cheese Steaks just aren't the same anywhere else. Don't ask for a Milkshake in Boston, unless you want flavored milk - ask for a Frappe there! If it were only for the bread, a Po-Boy in New Orleans would be a Grinder, a Sub, a Hero, or something with a half a million other names. In New Orleans, you "gotta" try a half-n-half with "ersters" and shrimp, seasoned "just so!" Back in the day, I used to get cheese pizza at a little joint under the stairs to the Staten Island Ferry. You couldn't get it with any toppings - just cheese and it was sold by the slice. It also was better than se .... well, no it wasn't, but it was close! Mr grandaddy used to make a clam chowder with fresh Rhode Island clams, that would knock your socks off! It was usually served with Flounder that had been swimming that morning, and farm fresh corn. Don't get me started on my mama's potato salad, or her freshly picked Beefsteak Tomatoes, fresh from her garden in Rhode Island! In northern California, Abalone, sliced thin, breaded and saute'd, just rocks!

My whole problem is that I want to live everywhere. I want to know all sorts of different people. I want to get to know their customs, eat their food and enjoy their lifestyles. Oh, well - I guess I will just have to hope that reincarnation does exist!

That's the beauty of living in North America .. so diversified you need reincarnate several times to see it all ... LOL

 

[Jeff-in-PA]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

GOOD. BETTER.

And I'm originally from the North.
There is good food everywhere.
I wonder if those old gals form the North like SCRAPPLE?

I was born in Philly, lived in Massachusetts, Baltimore and now Northern VA (definitely not the south, ask anyone from Richmond). They have grits up north, they just call it cream of wheat. I guess it's sort of like the sweet tea/iced tea thing.

C'mon jakebrake, Geno's doesn't even use cheese wiz! Philly also gave the rest of the country delicacies like soft pretzels and tasty cakes. Scrapple is a big thing there too - I had a neighbor that made it in a trash can in his basement...YUCK!

Crab cakes beat all of those things...and grits too!

BOB

Scrapple is made from meat, corn meal and spices. Properly made, it's good.

Grits can be good too. One thing I have noticed with people eating grits, they put all kinds of stuff on them. Makes you wonder if they really like grits or all the stuff they add.

Here's my comment about eating in a NC diner. My wife and I were visiting my mom and step dad in Rocky Mount. We went to one of there favorite diners.

As we were walking to our table, EVERYBODY we walked past either nodded or said "hi" to us.

Unfortunately, it's no longer like that up here in SE Penna. The city expanded out into the country and ruined it.

 

[jakebrake]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

landscaper..
you gotta respect scrapple! the word "Crap" actually appears in the middle of it's name!

whiz? olgh...i'm a tony lukes pulled pork person anyway.

and to all people who may visit philly...DO NOT BUY PRETZELS FROM THEY RED LIGHT VENDORS!!!! TRUST ME!!!

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

IThey have grits up north, they just call it cream of wheat. I guess it's sort of like the sweet tea/iced tea thing.

Blasphemy!

Actually grits are different. They are made from corn, not wheat. They are also more solid, as made by most people. I never ate them until I was in the military - I was sent to a school for 6 months in Millington, Tn and they were a regular item on the breakfast menu. Strangely enough, they were one of the few things on the menu at the mess hall, that I really liked. I've been eating them ever since.

One curiosity for me, is that I often hear that the "correct way" to make a Cheesesteak, is to use cheese wiz. I hear this often enough that there has to be somethng to it, but they weren't made that way any place that I ever ate them as a kid, on the Main Line in the 60s. It was always Provolone with salad peppers on the side. There was a little place behind Bryn Mawr hospital that made some great cheesesteaks! I don't know if this is just a "time period thing," or whether the recipe varied from one part of Philly to another. Regardless, however, there is just something about the taste of the meat, that is different in other places - it just isn't quite right anywhere else!

Bagels are another thing that seem to have a regional taste. Here in New Orleans, were are lucky to have a business that is owned by a couple of guys from Long Island. These guys are so fanatical about their bagels, that they actualy had a chemist figure out exactly what is in the water in the NYC area. They then had him devise away to change the properties of New Orleans water to mimic it as closely as possible - that water is used to make the bagels and the result is pretty amazing!

 

[Bart Sr.]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

Cream of wheat is made from wheat and are eaten with milk and sugar.

Grits are made from corn and eaten with salt,pepper and butter.

Also from "My Cousin Vinnie"--No self-respecting southerner would use instant grits!!!!!!

Sorry but I just can't keep my mouth shut.

 

[CAVU V]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

Grits is the stuff used to hold all the junk together which is thrown in them.

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

The BBQ statement made me chuckle... Up north when they cook a burger on the grill it's called BBQ and not burgers off the grill...

I have noticed that in Illinois. They call anything cooked outdoors barbecue-ing. That is NOT the case in eastern Ohio, where I was born and raised. (and also in very northern West Virginia, where my Aunt and Uncle lived) It was called "cooking out". I have been more than a little disappointed to attend a "BBQ" in Illinois to only find burgers and hotdogs. I assure you, the cool people from Ohio do not mess up the term barbecue with cook outs!

(My Cousing Vinny reference number 3 -- "Are you sure about that 20 minutes? I'm done with this guy!")

 

[Landscaping Wiz 808]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

Jeff-in-PA - Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Scrapple. I just prefer the pre-packaged Rappa type. Anybody that likes bacon or sausage or chops will love Scrapple! Like my brother says, "Every part of the pig but the oink!"

jakebrake - HA HA HA! Shhh, those are for the tourists. There's nothing like snapping pictures of the Liberty Bell with a mild case of food poisoning.

jay_merrill - Don't blame me, the only place I've ever had grits where they were actually called "grits" on the menu was at a 'Cracker Barrel' down here in VA and I'll be damned if it wasn't cream of wheat.

As far as the cheesesteak goes, as long as it's made w/ thinly sliced ribeye and served in or near Philla, with or without, wiz or prov, then it's authentic. The trick is the Philly baked bread it's on...and the delicious background neighborhood smell. Truth be told I grew up in Chester and ate most of my steaks some place on Florida St...only been to Pat's twice!

BOB

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

jay_merrill - Don't blame me, the only place I've ever had grits where they were actually called "grits" on the menu was at a 'Cracker Barrel' down here in VA and I'll be damned if it wasn't cream of wheat.

Those were probably instant grits. As Bart, Sr. suggested, they are in another universe, as compared to "real grits!" They're usually watery and generally taste like slime. Don't ever eat them with a hangover - you'll probably puke immediately!

I'm with Bart on prepping grits too. I leave out the salt (blood pressure), but I "gotta" have some pepper and butter on them - even if its "fake butter" to keep the doc happy!

And, like I said a few posts ago - cheese grits are just evil! I think they must be a communist conspiracy .... where's McCarthey when you really need him?

 

[CheapboatKev]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

Well..I was born & raised in SoCal...Been in Florida bout 7 years now..
When I tell people I am a California native they assume I only eat wheat germ and alfalfa sprouts! Must be prejudice based on what they percieve a "tree hugger from Calif would eat

Don't eat grits, and dont think less of anyone that does

We are truly products of our enviroment..Grew up across the street from my best buddy and his family was old school Mexico..Ate home made tortillas fresh off the hot plate made by Grandma Moreno...Fresh salsa and chile ground in the stone bowl with a pedestal..Tamales to die for...Menudo, tacos de lingua (beef tounge) my all time favorite! I make the best Guacamole you ever tasted..

I am lucky enough to have travelled most of this great nation and my sales territory is Oklahoma south and Oklahoma east..The entire South East..
Have had beignets in New Orleans for breakfast and a big ol po boy @ Domilices....
Had great BBQ in TN, SC, NC..(North & South Carolina have been locked in a BBQ battle for years!,lol)


When I am in a specific area, I love to try the local flavor....And above all..Enjoy the people that are around me...
I would never dare go to NH and make loud comments about pickled herrings for example...

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

When I am in a specific area, I love to try the local flavor....And above all..Enjoy the people that are around me...
...

I am with you on that Kev. I may not try the spiciest local foods, but I don't like eating at chain restaurants when visiting friends/family in different parts of the country. I do the same here, when family comes to visit, I take them to local places (okay, some are local chains) only. Peoria isn't really know for any type of food, but there is a burger place on the river, with crappy docks, that is to die for, in my opinion!

 

[lowkee]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

I would never dare go to NH and make loud comments about pickled herrings for example...

Now that just sounds disgusting. Granted, I have seen some truly odd things in grocery stores everywhere I have been. Never really considered people really eating that wierd stuff.

This may sound funny, but I challenge you to try it as a rule. When I travelled for work, I would make it a point to go to a local dive bar in every town I stayed. My theory was (is) everything in most towns is fake or contrived. Walk into any dive bar and you'll immediately see what a town is made of. You hear the dialects, see 'real' people (arguably some at their worst), and get to meet the old timers that "have come here long before it was a dump". Those places are national treasures to me. They are the museums of people without the flasehoods of modern life. ..if you can stomach the crappy beer

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

LOL I am sure glad that VT is best known for it's pure maple syrup and just wierd people.

 

[drewmitch44]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

When I saw the title of this thread I thought "thefairlaneman" was going to be a screen name for Joe Biden.

 

[Jeff-in-PA]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

Now that just sounds disgusting. Granted, I have seen some truly odd things in grocery stores everywhere I have been. Never really considered people really eating that wierd stuff.

This may sound funny, but I challenge you to try it as a rule. When I travelled for work, I would make it a point to go to a local dive bar in every town I stayed. My theory was (is) everything in most towns is fake or contrived. Walk into any dive bar and you'll immediately see what a town is made of. You hear the dialects, see 'real' people (arguably some at their worst), and get to meet the old timers that "have come here long before it was a dump". Those places are national treasures to me. They are the museums of people without the flasehoods of modern life. ..if you can stomach the crappy beer

My late Dad and step mom used to travel a lot. Their favorite way of finding the good local eats was to stop at a local gas station to fill the car and ask where the good food was.

They ended up getting great food from places they never would have picked themselves.

 

[seven up]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

Our absolute all time favorite grits recipe is made with half n half and sugar

and slivered almonds then baked and cooled and served with whipped cream

on top.

i'll bet most of you have not tried it but it is scrumpdillyicious

 

[CheapboatKev]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

Some of the best food I ever ate was served wrapped in brown paper..

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

The next time y'all are in New Orleans, try "Coop's." Its on Decatur St., in the French Quarter - right across the street from Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville.

The food isn't really authentic cajun ... more like tourist cajun ... but its good and inexpensive. Coop is an avid fisherman too and sometimes serves what he caught that morning. For those that might need to get a little business done, he also has wi-fi. Leave the kids at the hotel, though, because he has poker machines in the main room and they aren't allowed.

The place very definately qualifies as a "locals joint" and is always lots of fun. I have literally seen a lawyer and a gutter punk engaged in a two hour conversation at the bar, and they were actually listening to one another! While I usally hate overused words like "eclectic," it really fits the place.

They also serve a full menu late - sometimes as late as 3am. Go getya a Turbodog (beer) and some "Chicken Tchoupitoulas!" Its good stuff!


Disclaimer: Coop has gotten enough of my money over the last 20 years or so to qualify me as an "investor," but the only thing I ever got out of the deal is a fat belly and some goods times. In other words, its just a place I go and I accept no responsibility, for any hangovers or strange women (both in terms of acquaintance and demeanor) in your hotel room the next morning! Dang! Now I'm hungry for some gumbo and crab claws!

 

[jakebrake]

Re: I couldnt keep my mouth shut

drewmitch;

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! that's priceless! (stand up chuck!)

what we need to do, is find a way to ship our local favorites around the country to one another! we'd all need much larger boats really quick, along with a few hours of angioplasty, but hey,it'd be worth it.

as for bob in vermont, The folks in vt are pretty darned nice (honeymooned in killington. and, no. I don't ski )'course,when i ordered scrapple, the waitress asked if i was from south carolina.
i think that's how this thread got started.