“It looked simple, but the flavor was unreal. Why is this not worldwide?”

Despite a reputation for the ridiculous, both in calories and portions, the United States has a deep and colorful food culture. There is an abundance of items, from snacks to ingredients that tend to not exist anywhere else. 

Someone asked, “Non-Americans, what’s your favorite American food you can’t get in your country?” People shared their experiences and dishes that they simply could not recreate outside of the USA. So get comfortable, assemble some snacks, and get scrolling. Be sure to upvote your favorite posts and comment your thoughts below. 

Image credits: ballroombritz

#1

A friend of mine who’s a foreign exchange student misses Wisconsin deep fried cheese curds the most.

anon,Sarah StierchReport

unfilteredCigarette73 2 years ago (edited) 

These are a separate food group in the upper Midwest, I live there(MN) and can confirm

#2

American pancakes. Doughnuts. Basically diner food! I want American diners in Norway!

Gobagogodada,Polina TankilevitchReport

Doctor Strange 2 years ago 

Come to New Jersey, Land of the Midnight Diner. NJ is known for its excellent, twenty four hour diners.

#3

Was in Houston in August 2016. Me and my girlfriend (British) went to a mexican bar/restaurant called Paparruchos. Honestly, ruined Mexican food for us. We can’t ever have it in the UK again, I’ve tried three or four times since from various places and it just doesn’t even begin to compare to the pure culinary joy we got from Paparruchos.

Sam0n,Vinícius CaricatteReport

Final score:

Ace  2 years ago 

I don’t know the chain you mention, but you should probably never go to Mexico to sample the real thing, otherwise this too will be ruined for you.

View more comments

While internet culture and memes have perhaps skewed most people’s perception of American food, the reality is that many, very common ingredients all hail from North and South America. Tomatoes, potatoes, squash, and pumpkin, to name a few. Think about a handful of your favorite dishes and you will no doubt find an ingredient that came from the Americas. 

Given the massive size of the nation and all the different cultural influences, it’s no surprise that certain American dishes are simply better. This is a country that takes every single meal very seriously, so it simply stands to reason that non-Americans will encounter some dish so powerful that they can’t stop thinking about it. 

#4

Dr Pepper is for the ascended Gods who have transcended the coke vs pepsi debate

CosmicMemer,cyclonebillReport

#5

Mozzarella Sticks with Marinara Sauce! Ugh I loved that when I went to the states. Come back to Australia, and cannot find them anywhere!!

alannah_rose,Sarah StierchReport

Mad Dragon 2 years ago (edited) 

These are incredibly easy to make at home!

#6

Jesus hasn’t anyone still mentioned MAC AND CHEESE? Creamy, tasty, super delicious

Toutouka19,TexasfoodgawkerReport

Where do you live that you can’t get Mac and Cheese?

In fact, the US is so large that it becomes hard to pin down what exactly is “American cuisine,” despite the stereotypes of burgers and fries. Each region has its own variations, and every group of immigrants brought with it techniques, dishes, and concepts, which were then tailored for the host of ingredients available in the USA. 

#7

It’s almost sacrilegious of me to say as an Englishman but I miss breakfasts. I love my full English but breakfast is something the US does so well. I lived in Manhattan for a few months and a diner, somewhere on Essex I think, did poached eggs with fried potato and onions for about $2-3 and I must’ve eaten that dozens of times whilst there. Pancakes and bacon too, we have US style places here but it is not the same.

reWindTheFrog,WordRiddenReport

Ian Reynolds 2 years ago 

As a Welshman, I prefer bacon in the states over bacon in the UK, and I love bacon.

#8

When I was living in the UK, I couldn’t find good Tex-Mex for the life of me. People would swear by some places, “no, this place has THE BEST burritos in all of the UK! The chef is from Tijuana, gets all the ingredients imported, it’s amazing!” I show up, it’s burnt and dried-up meat, a half a can of s****y beans, and some other stuff rolled into a tortilla in the shape of a softball. Terrible. To be fair, I think it’s not the fault of the restaurants, but the lack of ingredients. Even my own home-made guacamole was terrible over there. The avocados just weren’t the same as the standard California ones, they had no flavor at all. No matter how you try to make the Tex-Mex over there, it’s just never going to be the same.

chemistographer,Travis YewellReport

HTakeover 2 years ago 

You also might run into a problem of the good stuff being too far removed from the local familiarity. As in, make it the good way and people won’t touch it because they can’t recognize it or the taste is too far off what they know/like. Many a restaurant has gone under because of it.

#9

Every time I’m down in Montana, Sonics is my go to. I barely eat fast food in Canada, but I’m drawn to those cherry lime slushies, and those delicious massive f*****g chili dogs. God damn it. I’m hungry now.

anon,Natalia MarcelewiczReport

View more comments

At the same time, the United States might be the undisputed fast food king of the world. To the degree that for many people, Mcdonald’s was the first bit of exposure to American “culture,” for better or worse. Love it or hate it, fast food is a massive, dominant industry, and the US has restaurants to satisfy every craving. 

#10

Can’t get biscuits and gravy in the UK. Or goldfish crackers.

anon,Michael KmakReport

Tristan J 2 years ago 

Two words that have very different meanings here. In either interpretation, the outcome would be disgusting

#11

Australian here. I have dreams about eating another everything bagel. 😭