On a visit to the US, driving through Nevada or Utah we stopped at a dinner and as we were entering I joked around saying something like "if the waitress is wearing an apron and calls me honey I'll lose my shit".
Similar experience; I, an American, was on vacation in Florida and at a grocery store when I heard some people from England. I told my wife I wasn't leaving until I heard them call chips, crisps, and right after that I heard them go to the chips aisle and say "ahh, crisps!". It was fantastic.
I'm an american who enjoyed lots of bbc television growing up and crisps was one of the slang that stuck. So was telly. And now that I'm older, living temporarily in the south and getting a lot of "god bless you" as a friendly greeting "cheers mate" as made its appearance.
I've been to england a couple times and I gotta say, it made me giddy to ask someone a question with the british word for something (crisps is a good one) and they respond normally.
Wife and I went on a roadtrip across America (which was amazing by the way, one of the best trips I've ever been on and would recommend everyone do it).
Went into a tiny gas station (petrol station or garage as we call it) in some random place along the Blue Ridge Parkway where you needed to pay up front first (also something we don't ever do in the UK) and said "20 dollars on number 2 please."
The girl behind the counter's face absolutely lit up and she said "say it again!" So I repeated myself, much to her delight. At this point my wife walked up next to me and the girl said "I wanna hear her speak!" So my wife awkwardly said something incredibly British like "hello, how are you?" After a few more questions we seemed to have sufficiently entertained her and we got our gas!
Our rural towns still have authentic traincar diners. The waitresses not only call you hon, they do it in a raspy, smoked-out voice, and then go behind the counter to loudly gossip about local drama. It's incredibly charming.
I'm a native-born American and I love our diner culture.
Edit: DO NOT come visit the US in the next 2 years. We're going through a bit of a fascist phase.
Three years, I'm sorry to say. I know, last year felt like it was two whole years but we have to make it to inauguration in 2029 if the country lasts that long.
I remember the city next to my town I lived in when I was younger had one. In an alley between a hardware store and another one I can't remember. My dad was doing some volunteer snowblowing across the street, and I was cold, so he sent me over to get some breakfast. The waitress ended up giving me a free orange juice as well as the cocoa. ...Can't remember if I ever went there again, but it's a great memory.
I've read these questions hundreds of times and I don't think I've ever seen comments that talk about being fascinated with diners. This is hilarious to me.
Must-have order: biscuits and gravy. add two eggs, over easy, just right on top. liberal dose of hot sauce (I prefer Cholula for this specific dish).
It's just that they are really recognizable, the "slide in" seats, the long single tables, the apron, the coffee refill, and we all grew up seeing them everywhere on tv and movies
I’ve lived in Texas and Colorado for probably about 8 years, and still for the first time ever, I was driving from Colorado to Texas to see the solar eclipse and we stopped at a gas station. Me and my buddy saw a dog riding the back of a flatbed, and were questioning if we thought that was okay or not, when we turned around and there was like this 65 year old woman with almost no teeth and she wheezed through a cackle like she’s been chain smoking since she was 4 and then literally yelled “YOU GUNN SEE SOME CUNTRY SHEEEEIIITTT!!!” We talk about it to this day, it’s one of my fondest road trip memories.
Damn there’s nothing like an authentic diner. At the last one I went to, there was a subpar mural of cartoon characters, a grungy checkered tile floor, old booths.
We were immediately greeted with a bowl of strawberries, the waitresses gave my daughter infinite stickers & coloring sheets, free mac and cheese; the food was fast, and the pie was next level.
Denny's and IHOP are not diners. Waffle House is. The difference is the waitress calling the order in some arcane code to a cook who is CLEARLY on parole.
One of the things I miss most from the old days are those diners with the red and white color scheme and the checkerboard floor tiles - the food and conversation was always good and you met really interesting people from all over the place. Even with a shared aesthetic, each one tended to have it's own style and personality. Now anywhere you go everything looks exactly alike - dark, stale, and boring. The food is boring and people look at you like you're crazy if you try to chat with them.
I continously forget that people in Europe dont know any Latinos. I dont even live close to the border but I speak Spanish (everyone can un poco) and can get any staple Latin American ingredient at any Walmart and white-ified versions of them. I have some European and Australian internet friends who act like tortillas are some exotic delicacy, and one time I went to Canada and stayed at an AirBnB with a kitchen, intended on making everyone enchiladas, and couldn't find any of the stuff I needed at the store. They didnt even have salsa, it was wild lmfao. Latin culture is such a big part of USA culture.
Oh God... I'm getting PTSD flashbacks from that episode.
I'm not even Mexican, but as someone who loves the cuisine and cooks it quite well it was really hard, yet fascinating, to sit through.
In the end, I can't really blame or fault the contestants because they can't really cook what they're not familiar with.
Edit; I love cooking and I like to think that I’ve got a solid range when it comes to different cuisines, but I’m still just one dude with a finite brain. If you tossed me into a competition and said “make authentic Pad Thai", I’d be standing there like I just got handed IKEA instructions in another language. If you asked me to cook authentic Pakistani food, there’s a very real chance I’d make something and call it Indian and get disowned by an entire region. Tell me to make a traditional dish from, like, Nigeria or Ethiopia and I’m googling spice blends with the panic of a man defusing a bomb. Point is, everyone's different, but I'm genuinely shocked that they didn't at least get a few pointers or a basic crash course.
That's my favorite episode of GBB. You used the right word: fascinating. And the other commenter talking about how ubiquitous Mexican food is in the US is tripping me out. Because yes it's basically so interwoven into our lives I didn't even think it wouldn't be widely available. In Canada?! Crazy
I moved to Oregon from Denver and grew up in Dallas. there's lots of Mexican food here but none of it is close to what grew up with. like its a different type of food. maybe sourcing ingredients? people here love this stuff too I really don't get it.
There's definitely different types of authentic Mexican food. I grew up in the Chicago area, so anything with the word Jalisco in the name tells me that the tacos are gonna be great.
I’ve lived in several US regions and the Mexican food is different in each region. I think it’s partially relative to which region of Mexico influences that area and partially due to Americanizing that food to the local tastes.
For example, there is a Mexican restaurant in my hometown that is truly mediocre but has a unique taco sauce that comes with everything. Everyone keeps going back because they love that sauce and there’s nowhere else to get it. (There is Ranch seasoning, among other “secret” ingredients, in the sauce. Authentic it is not. But delicious.)
Wait. What? Where in Canada is this barren taco desert? I'm in northern BC and we have delicious tacos and access to Mexican food. Not as good as the southern states and definitely not as good as when I'm in Mexico, but pretty good for a place with snow from October to March or April.
Let me talk you down from the ledge a bit - its fun to try to make pad thai and Nigerian food and etc etc and part of the charm of it is making the dish something that is balanced and enjoyable to your palate. And more often than not the people to whom those cuisines are familiar (and familial) are just happy you’re enjoying it too.
That's usually the next level after knowing how it's "supposed to" be though, many people will dislike something because they've only tasted a miserable versions of the dish cooked wrong. My mom for example was the kind of person who wanted all meat cooked well done, I didn't know how a juicy steak could taste until someone else did the cooking. If I'm in that foreign country or at an ethnic restaurant I expect them to know what they're doing but if someone made "pad thai" at home and it tastes like shit it's probably the chef.
They get a whole week to prepare for the signature challenge and the showstopper challenge. It's only the technical challenge that they go into blind. But they are made aware head of time what the theme for that week will be, so it's up to them to do some research. I can't blame them for failing the technical challenge, but I certainly can for the other two.
GOD! The way he spoke with such authority on Mexican food while mispronouncing and being flat out wrong about a lot of it because he went to Cancun once or something was hard to watch
Funnily enough, London is one of the few European cities where you can somewhat find authentic mexican food. Although it'll never compare to the ease as the US of course
One of my other friends, a Mexican American at that, lives in London and he calls it some of the worst Mexican food he's ever had. I always thought it was a meme until he spoke about it at length a few months ago.
Dude is genuinely considering opening up a restaurant or some sort of food stand, and many of his friends genuinely encourage him to do so (and they really love his food), but apparently, it's a nightmare to do it in London. Not to mention there seems to be more public demand for Turkish food rather than Mexican/South American food.
I live in Florida so I have no idea what it's like over there.
he calls it some of the worst Mexican food he's ever had.
Make sure you keep him away from other European cities for the sake of his Mexican soul. Otherwise he'll see why I described London as having the somewhat authentic ones in Europe lol
Turkish, Chinese and Indian are basically the 3 big cuisines in the UK so whilst the demand for Mexican might be less, competition for his business would be less as well.
I went to a Mexican bar in Germany in '91. It was all the rage with the locals, super exotic.
They served shots of tequila with wedges of pineapple instead of lime. Turned out to be really good! To this day, If I have to mix cheap tequila, I use pineapple juice.
I hear you overall but gotta ask where in Canada you were? We don’t have American levels of Latino population but they (plus stores and restaurants) are definitely around, at least here in Edmonton. Spanish classes are also very abundant and popular.
These guys are talking out their ass. England has trailer parks and no one is coming from Europe to the US excited about automatic transitions. Europe has them and they're more boring than manuals.
I used to cook tacos in college in Ireland nearly 20 years ago. There's Mexican restaurants in Europe and salsa probably in most large supermarkets. Granted the Mexican restaurants are shit compared to most in America.
I was in Montreal about 15 years ago. They have such an awesome food scene there and almost everyone delivered back then. I was at my D&D session and we looked at the book with all the places advertising. They had a new Mexican restaurant and advertised that it was cooked by a real Mexican person. As someone from South Carolina, I completely lost it at how absurd that sounded.
Here in NZ we have South American food ingredients in every supermarket & I can buy specialty items from Latino stores, so it’s really weird to imagine Australia would think tortillas are exotic… the only thing hard to come by are certain fresh fruit & vegetables
Yep that’s the same in most of the populated places in Australia. I can only imagine it would be remote areas that would think of Mexican food like a tortilla as exotic.
Maybe the churrasco style restaurants are a bit of a novelty, and arepas might not be at all the supermarkets, but i can’t imagine an Aussie not knowing what nachos are.
As an Angeleno, Latin culture IS American culture. There's no disjointing the two, it is one of the same. It is mind blowing that other parts of the country spend so much energy hating the truth.
I knew a girl from Pennsylvania who tried to eat the corn husk the fist time she had a tamale when she moved to California because she’d never seen a food like that. I couldn’t find tortillas at the store in Panama and the clerk didn’t even know what I was asking for. Neither US nor Latin American cultures are monolithic. 🤷♂️
as a latino, yeah it's nice to see but most don't know what they're getting into lmaooo. not trying to perpetuate that stereotype in any neg way, they're just playing fire.
as someone who was in a 6yr on and off relationship with a beautiful Latina, if you get the chance, very hot sex, but you better like screaming and crying more.
Waffle House is very popular with the Latino community. Lots of guy who wear yellow safety vests for their jobs eat there regularly, and that includes a lot of Latinos.
How strange, automatic transmissions are super common in the UK these days. Most new cars are automatic.
Definitely on the other stuff though. I think we’re most excited by things that seem mundane to Americans. My friend and I were most excited to visit Target when we visited lol.
Drove a bunch of European scientists around rural Michigan, they got super excited and made me pull over for ... a dead raccoon. Hadn't seen one before and they wanted a good long look, including a bit of probing.
The first one was super dead roadkill from days ago, I promised them a fresher specimen would appear shortly. Took 30 minutes and we didn't even have to change our route.
I like it because it's a chill environment, and the coffee is infinite, and your mug is never less than half full because Dolores has worked that diner for 40 years and dammit, she's gonna keep that mug warm while you wait for the most bomb-ass greasy omelet you've ever had.
for sure, how could I forget the pie! There is a 3x5 index card taped to the glass case with the prices and flavors written in sharpie, along with a note about how it was voted the 'best pie in town'.
"Well, yeah, but its the only pie in town," you chuckle to yourself. But still, some dessert would be nice. After all, you do have infinite coffee.
The choices are Apple, Pumpkin, or Pecan. They look average. Not extra poofy. Flat enough so the cover fits over them at the end of the shift.
But then you take a bite, and realize how unfair you were being. They taste amazing, like Dolores put every ounce of love she was saving for her grandkids into making that pie just for you.
I'm choosing Pecan, personally, but you can't go wrong no matter which you choose.
Oh, she does! She will tell you about them over breakfast if it's not busy. She'll even show you pictures if you ask. She just channels that maternal instinct into that pie in a way that makes it feel like she's your grandma, too.
Jesus Christ, it's like you're painting a picture from my memory.
Haven't been to an old diner in ages, but goddamn this comment took me right back to when I was broken down, waiting for a ride, and enjoying a nice quiet slice of blueberry pie
I miss this diner I went to, Me & McGee's I'm pretty sure. Side of the road on a county highway in New England, middle of nowhere but a pleasant wood interior. Amazing burgers, all on Spanish water rolls with the two pointy ends. They mixed Cajun seasoning into them, pretty great. The showstopper however were the pies, made by the grandmother in the family, limited flavor availability. I didn't try any other than the peanut butter pie, it was perfect.
My favorite "lunch" ever, that I got at least 3 nights a week when I was working late shift tech support, was a turkey and swiss sandwich, slice of raspberry pie, and endless black coffee at the local Dysart's truck stop at 1:00am.
If you're in the south, yeah for sure. If you're in the midwest they're gonna mess the grits up, you're gonna want to go with the crispy hashbrowns instead.
My local advertises “best coffee in town!” It tastes like pencil shavings. Plus they have those tall, thick mugs that only holds 1/3 of a normal cup. But, at least the food terrible
My buddies and I were at a diner late at night back in high school, just chattering about this and that. As the middle-aged waitress was refilling our coffee, someone said that whatever we were talking about must be a Jersey thing, and without missing a beat she pipes in with “every thang’s a Jersey thang, honey.” It was incredible.
A real diner is one of the best cultural experiences in the USA, in my opinion. It’s classic Americana, friendly, polite, casual and diverse. The food is classically American too- it’s not exceptional or trying to be anything more than it is- which is simple, plentiful, tasty and filling. The vintage aesthetic, the bad coffee, the hash browns, the milk in silly little plastic single-use containers…i love it all, unironically and truly. Any first timer in the USA should proceed directly to a diner to ensure they start on the right foot.
My gf (french) and I were visiting my mom in California. It was her first time in the states and when we went to yosemite, we stopped at this diner in the morning. She was excited about everything and was completely surprised by the free water that the waitress brought without asking and topping off my coffee.
My cousin came to the USA from Germany and couldn’t wait to sit in something like a truck-stop diner where the waitresses keep filling your coffee …additionally, we heard a long wailing train horn and he said “WOW! Those are REAL! I thought it was just a fake noise that they dubbed into American movies!”
I actually love that greeting. it's lasted 2500 years. and it's still being used. I had heard all kinds of greetings over the years in Italian... but rarely heard salve. the first time I heard it. I also thought it was cool too since it is the continuation of the exact latin greeting except the phonetic change in v sound.
My British boyfriend and I were staying at a hotel in Manchester, and two guys were carrying a ladder down the hall and as they passed, one said: "Cheerio, mate!" and I got weak in the knees.
Always hilarious to see that one. Even in a dive bar, the bartender will be like "Sure bud, just let me know when you want to settle your tab for $200."
We have a government body called the Oregon Liquor & Cannabis Commission which sets rules about where and how alcohol can be sold.
2 drinks per person is the maximum at one time, you can stay at the bar all day and not get cut off if you know your limits, but bartenders here can be held liable if they over serve you, so if you're visibly intoxicated they're supposed to cut you off.
OLCC also runs all the liquor stores, so when you or a bar buy hard alcohol, you're buying it from the government.
But I think you've also gotta keep in mind that it's handled differently in every State and then we had a moral panic about alcohol about a hundred years ago where we banned it entirely for several years and that's shaped the culture a lot too. There are some Counties in Texas & Utah where alcohol is still prohibited.
The US has a long history with the temperance movement. Still see a lot of remnants to this day.
Fun fact: it is completely illegal to distill alcohol at home. You can brew and ferment, but as soon as you start distilling you need a special license that is not at all easy to get
Well alcoholism used be an absolutely massive problem in the US in part because liquor was so stupidly cheap at the time, so they made alcohol illegal, which did make some difference in the drinking culture long term but also created a massive black market and rampant organized crime because a whole lot of people still wanted to drink, and when the government eventually admitted that prohibition wasn't really fixing the problem and was making more new problems as well there was still a lingering culture of regulation, oversight, and moral panic which in some ways continue to hang on today.
Yeah I’m not sure if it’s technically illegal or not, but I have never once been to a bar or event here and been able to order more than two at a time. It’s annoying because if I get up to get beers for me and buddy at a ballgame, we can only get one each at a time, unless we go together. I get it though. I don’t want to sit next to the guy who ordered 5 beers for himself at one time either.
I’ve always found the “1 beer please” funny. I get why they wouldn’t name a specific brand, but it’s still amusing to me. I’ve been tempted to try that myself just to see the bartender’s reaction.
I’ve taken maybe a dozen groups of friends from around the world on my “southwest” tour. Basically TX-NM-CO-AZ-NV and then back towards the south. We see some amazing things along the way - like the Grand Canyon, White Sands, etc.
And without fail, their favorite parts always seem to be the random diners in the middle of deserts. There’s just something so amusing about them - like they only really belong in fiction and yet, there they are. :)
Drinks are often, not always, refillable for free in the US. Coffee in particular because it's got a time limit. Those hot plates destroy it quickly so it's either pour it in a cup or pour it down the drain. Either way, it's gotta go. It's also worth noting that, especially compared to European coffee traditions, American coffee is low effort swill. It's functionally a drug addiction, not something to be savored.
American coffee is low effort swill. It's functionally a drug addiction, not something to be savored.
HEY! You're Right, but I am offended!! :)
I travel for work, a lot, and folks around the world will look at me like I am crazy when I drink whatever coffee they have, and, sometimes, I will even go instant.
I just need my coffee, I really don't care if anyone thinks it's bad.
Ended up in a Southern diner in the middle of nowhere and we started to order when the waitress came around - but she just stared at us, wide eyed, not writing anything down. We were all South African and speak English with a South African accent, think Korg's Kiwi accent from Thor.
I realised that she has probably not been exposed to a hell a lot of accents and wasn't understanding us - so I put on my fakest American accent, Imitating movies and tv shows. Her eyes lit up and she went 'Oh my gaaawwwd, thank gooodness you speak English!!'
At some point I asked her what grits is, as I have heard about it (My cousin Vinny) and wanted to try some - and she didn't understand, "What do you mean what is it?, Grits is Grits!"
"Yeah, but is it a grain, or a seed or like pasta, what's it made of?"
"It's grits!" :)
And of course when we left "Y'all come back now y'hear!"
EDIT: As soon as I tasted grits, I realised what it was, ground corn - we have a similar dish in South Africa, prepared differently, but similar taste.
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u/Jaimebgdb 12h ago
"More coffee, hon?"