Any traveller knows that the most important – and most conflicting – part of visiting any new city is savoring the local cuisine. Sometimes you’ll ask about a certain food and the locals’ eyebrows rise, having detected a tourist in their midst. The first rule of any proper traveller is “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” This means that you should seek out not only the obvious choices, like cheesesteaks in Philadelphia or chowder in San Francisco, but also find the fare which the locals love and appreciate. Eating like a local helps you appreciate local culture, so step away from the easy and obvious, and enjoy some of these lesser-known local cuisine favorites.
Buffalo
Obviously, the first local cuisine that comes to mind associated with Buffalo, New York, is the crispy, saucy chicken wing. We believe these wings are perfect the way they are, so we’ll make them the exception to the “no tourist food” rule. If you’re in Buffalo, hunt down some wings.
But the second-most beloved original buffalo fare is doubtlessly Sponge Candy. Buffalo’s signature confection is a light combination of caramelized spun sugar and chocolate with a crisp, airy texture and molasses-like flavor. Watson’s Chocolates has been making sponge candy for three generations, and still produces the best sponge candy – and sponge candy ice cream – worldwide.
Sponge Candy in its natural, half-eaten state.
Sponge candy is so popular in the western NY area that it has made its way into the craft beer world, now that it has been made into the Sponge Candy Stout from brand-new Buffalo brewer Resurgence Brewing Company. Resurgence also makes a beer based around another lesser-known Buffalo favorite, Loganberry Drink, which tastes like a sweetened raspberry-blackberry hybrid.
From Left to Right:
Sponge Candy Stout, Loganberry Wit, Session IPA, The Bridge Kolsh, Hefeweisen, and more Loganberry Wit
The third lesser-known delicious dish in Buffalo is the Roast Beef on Weck sandwich, a combination of tender roast beef and horseradish on a kummelweck roll, a soft bread topped with sea salt and caraway seeds. The sandwich, another Buffalo original, has even made its way into sushi roll form thanks to the innovative chefs at Seabar, who have created the beef-on-weck roll, a roll of cooked strip steak, spicy mayo, and sushi rice wrapped in beef carpachio and topped with the sea salt and caraway, to give it the real “weck” experience.
Philadelphia
Yeah, we know you’re going to eat a cheesesteak. When you’re done polishing off a one “wiz with”, it’s time to go hunting for a lesser-known Philadelphia favorite: The soft pretzel. Typically made as one long braided double-knot instead of the more common pretzel twist, these salty doughey snacks are to Philly what bagels are to NYC. Soft, chewy, and available on basically any corner, pretzels are the greatest local cuisine you can get in the City of Brotherly Love. Whether you decide to top it with yellow mustard or not.
These should really have mustard on them.
PS: If you’re thinking you might want to combine your pretzel and cheesesteak love, Philadelphia Pretzel Company has you covered.
Portland
Portland, Oregon, has the best craft beer in the country, period. But you should probably have something to eat while sampling the many hoppy microbrews, and in addition to the literal hundreds of food trucks that dot the city, Portland’s real treasure is its artisanal pizza scene. Several food trucks make pizzas from scratch on board for a quick bite, but for those who don’t mind sitting, most of the city’s pizza places can build pies beyond your wildest dreams, with toppings ranging from alligator sausage to organic, low-fat goat cheese. Add in a variety of sauces and fire-baked crispy crusts, and a Portland visitor could eat nothing but pizza and beer for weeks, and never experience the same flavor combination twice.
Boston
Boston’s Chinese food is unlike any Americanized Chinese food you’ve ever experienced. A great deal of Boston’s immigrants come from the Southwestern China province of Sichuan, whose dishes typically employ dried chilies, chili oil, and Sichuan peppercorn. People who love their noodled on the spicy side should explore Beantown’s offerings, with Sichuan restaurants serving up complex dishes like Aromatic Pork Ribs with Bamboo Shoots or Oxtail and Tripe with Roasted Chili Vinaigrette.
San Francisco
Because you can’t live by chowder and bread bowls alone (though you’re welcome to try), San Fran has a blossoming ice cream scene, offering up desserts that go far beyond your normal 31 flavors. Locals know of Bi-Rite Creamery and their delicious salted caramel and honey lavender flavors, but in recent years other shops have started experimenting. Pushing the limits of ice cream logic, a tour around San Francisco can have you scooping up sundaes inspired by balsamic strawberry vinegar and Vietnamese coffee. Reflecting the hip eccentricity of the City by the Bay, San Fancisco’s ice cream is the dish you need to try.
What Next?
What’s the best dish in your hometown? Tell us your favorite local food in the comments below, or on Twitter (@MsCareerGirl) and they may appear in future lesser-known food articles!
Disclaimer: Portions of this article were made possible by Visit Buffalo-Niagara. All opinions are those of the author. For more information, see Ms. Career Girl’s disclosure policy
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photo credit: Chinkerfly via photopin cc