When I travel about the USA, I like to taste the special foods that are typical of the region that I am visiting.  Many of the regional specialties that were once unique to certain places, are now available all over the USA.  You can find Philadelphia Cheesesteaks, New England Clam Chowder and Buffalo Wings in restaurants and fast food stands in every state.  Other items like Cinncinatti Chili are seldom found far from their home territory.  None the less, the best quality and most authentic regional food can usually be found only in its original home.

We have a type of sandwich that is popular all over the USA.  It typically comes on a large soft bun shaped like a small loaf of bread.  It is often called a Hoagie or an Italian Hoagie, but is also known in some cities as a Submarine Sandwich or simply a Sub.  In the New England States it is called a Grinder.  In many of the Southern States it is a Poor Boy or a Po Boy.  This sandwich comes in many different varieties with special regional adaptions.  As you travel from state to state, it is interesting to sample the local variety and compare it to all the other regional adaptions.

The most common Hoagie, Sub, or Grinder is the Italian.  It consists of a variety of luch meats and cheeses usually including ham, salami, capacola, provolone cheese and possibly pepperoni sausage.  Sometimes it is baked until the cheese melts.  It is typically dressed with some fresh tomato, shredded lettuce and a bit of oil and vinegar seasoned with a bit of dried oregano. Every city and town has many local shops and pizza parlors that serve Italian Hoagies or Subs, Each shop has its own way of adding a touch of variety to this old standard.  The local residents all have their opinion on who makes the best Italian Sub in town.

Another common variety of Hoagie is the Philadelphia Chees Steak or Pilly Cheese Steak.  This too is served in towns and cities in every state with many variations and local enhancements.  The best place to find the original authentic Cheese Steak is in Philadelphia.  Pat's and Geno's in South Philadelphia are the two most authentic cheese steak restaurants in the USA.  Pat's reputedly invented this sandwich, but Geno's has also been making them for almost as many years.  There are dozens of other restaurants all over Philadelphia that make similar Philadelpia Steak Sandwiches with Cheese, and each one offers its own slight improvement on the recipe.

A regional specialty that has become very popular across the USA is the Buffalo Wing.  No, it is not something made from Bison meat.  It consists of fried chicken wings spiced with a fiery hot pepper sauce, and it was invented at the Anchor Bar and Grill in Buffalo New York  History tells us that the Anchor Bar ran out of snack foods to serve to its customers one busy evening, and all that was left in its refrigerator were some chicken wings.  The cook decided to fry the chicken wings, then douse them with some hot pepper sauce and serve them to the customers.  It became an immediate success.  The Anchor Bar has been serving them ever since.

Now, Hot Wings or Buffalo Wings are served as snack foods in bars and restaurants across the USA.  They are a favorite snack for sports fans watching football games or hockey matches.  There are endless varieties of Buffalo Wings served in various eateries.  The original Buffalo Wings are still the fiery hot ones, but restaurants typically offer Mild, MNedium, Hot or Super Hot wings.  They offer Honey Mustard flavored wings, Pamesan flavored or Barbeque wings.  The traditional accompanyment with hot wings is typically celery sticks with ranch style salad dressing.  This was originally designed to cool off your burning tongue after you eat some of those fiery hot original Buffalo Wings.

When I travel about in the USA, I like to find these regional specialties and sample them in their home territory.  When in Cincinatti, I search for Skyline Chili, served over spaghetti and topped with onions, cheese and diced tomato.  In Chicago, I love the deep dish pizza and the loaded hot dogs.  In New York, I sample the thin crust brick oven pizza, Nathan's hot dogs, bagels, cheesecake, and the myriad of foods served from sidewalk carts.  In New England, it is the clam chowder, fried clams and lobster.  In Baltimore, the crab cakes.  In florida, key lime pie.  Barbeque comes in so many varieties, that one must taste it in North Carolina, in Texas, in St. Lous, in Memphis and in Kansas City to appreciate some of the many culinary possibilities. Tacos, Burritos, and other border Mexican specialties are best in the border states of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.  The USA is so large, and there are so many regional foods, that one could devote a lifetime to tasting them all.