I saw this clip on You Tube last week about West Coasters trying food from Minnesota and it got me thinking about how different the regions in the US are!
I was born in California & have lived here my whole life (expect for 4 years in college when I went to the University of Colorado) Colorado is still the west coast & it didn't feel like culture shock when I went to college there....probably because it has a similar vibe to California (just colder!) and a lot of people from California have moved to Colorado.
Anyways...I digress....back to the video I watched.
It made me start thinking about how even though we all live in the US, things are very different depending on what region you live in.
Food that we eat, traditions, clothing & the way we talk can be SO different!
So many of YOU are from different parts of our country...the Midwest, the South, the East Coast, etc.
I thought it would be fun to talk about some of these differences!
In the video about Minnesota, I had not heard of ANY of those foods that they tried. Not one!
What foods are specialized to your region?
If you have read my blog for awhile you know that I LOVE Cracker Barrel!
We don't have them in California, so whenever we travel to the South, I make sure we eat there at least once!
Here in California we don't have Sweet Tea...we have "normal" iced tea, it has no sugar, so if you want it sweetened, you have to add sugar packets to it.
You can't really find fried food here either. Everything is grilled. I've never had fried chicken expect for in the South.
Also, Okra? I guess that's a vegetable? I've never had it & I've never seen it at the grocery store.
Is it a Southern thing?
I had to google it to see what it looked like.
I had also never heard of Boiled Peanuts until last summer. One of my neighbors grew up in South Carolina, so he made boiled peanuts one day, so we all tried them. So salty!
None of us had had them before! I didn't even know there was such a thing.
What do you call soda?
Pop? Coke?
In California, you call soda, soda. Or you say exactly what type of soda...Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, Root Beer, etc.
What do you call dinner?
We call it Dinner. Do you call it supper?
I call a freeway a freeway, not a highway or interstate.
I call a sandwich a sandwich, not a sub or a hoagie.
We don't say y'all here in California...we say "You guys"
I also wonder about if decorating for Christmas before Thanksgiving is also a regional thing.
Here
in California, I don't know of anyone who decorates for Christmas
before Thanksgiving, even in our town/neighborhood, only 1 or 2 people
put up Christmas lights before Thanksgiving.
But, maybe that is a California thing?
In your town/state is it common to decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving?
Totally curious if it is a regional thing or not!
Don't worry I won't judge..... I am a firm No Christmas before Thanksgiving person, but I won't go there.....today :)
I am truly curious if that is a Regional thing also...maybe in other parts of the country people put up Christmas early because it is so cold & snowy already? We don't have that in California...again not looking to debate, just curious!
I know that clothing is different in other regions also.
On other people's blogs & Instgrams I notice that their kids wear smocking dresses.
I think they are adorable, but I have never once seen a girl wear smocking dress here in California.
And, what are those romper things that little boys wear? Again, I have never seen a baby boy or toddler boy wear one of those (what are they called?!?!)
Same with monograms, no one really wears monograms in California.
Same with bows in girls hair...girls wear little bows or headbands with little bows, not big bows.
So, if you are reading....where do you live?
What are some things unique to your state/region?
I would love to hear about it!
So funny! I am from Georgia, and all of the things you said about the South are true! We call all soda Coke, fried foods are everywhere, boiled peanuts are the best! Long all or Jon Jon is "the romper thing". There are little signs you can get in gift shops that say something like "Only in the south does macaroni and cheese count as a vegetable" hahaha...
ReplyDeleteFirst of all- fun topic!
ReplyDeleteI live in Nebraska, where we call carbonated beverages "pop" and eat runza's! Runza is the name of a popular restaurant and they sell runzas, which are meat totally wrapped in a pastry (I don't eat them so sorry I can't describe them better! #vegetarian). Overall, hamburgers and steak are popular (farm country!).
We are split in what we call the evening meal. For many in rural areas, they call it supper, but I live in a city, where we call it dinner.
No one I know dresses their kids in smocking dresses...just onesies and sleepers!
We call it the interstate, but really only have one that runs through our state, and we mostly have highways. ;)
Most people wait until after Thanksgiving to decorate for Christmas, but there are exceptions.
I'm also from Nebraska. Runzas are a German thing, they're made of ground beef and cabbage inside dough and baked. You can add other ingredients to them as well, like cheese.
DeleteI'm also from Nebraska. Runzas are a German thing, they're made of ground beef and cabbage inside dough and baked. You can add other ingredients to them as well, like cheese.
DeleteI'm from Ontario Canada. I'm sure a lot of things are different here! :)
ReplyDeleteI love this post! I am always interested in what other parts of the US call things. I live in the Midwest (Illinois) and have not heard of most of the food in that video. Ha! We call the tator tot meal a tator tot casserole and the jello salad I think is a generation thing that maybe grandmas only do. We call soda pop and then order it like you guys so if you want a Coke you get a Coke. I've never seen kids in a smock or romper here either. We do have a lot of fried foods here but maybe not as much as the south offers. Great post!
ReplyDeleteAn Iowan weighing in here!
ReplyDeleteWe call carbonated beverages pop.
In the rural areas, evening meal is supper. Now my kids go to school in big cities further south in the state and they eat dinner for the evening meal!
Fried foods are very popular here, but grilling is also popular because farm country=steaks!
We do tend to decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving here-heck, sometimes before Halloween!, but it gets WAY too cold, snowy and icy to be out putting up Christmas lights at the end of November!
We have highways...and lots and LOTS of county roads/blacktops! :) again, farm country.
Fun post! I always love discovering things outside my region as well . . . sometimes it's like a whole other world out there, haha! I was born and raised in the South. Let's see . . . what foods are specialized in my region? I live in the Atlanta area currently and honestly it's probably a good mix of foods from all over the country, but you can still find your grits, biscuits and gravy, fried green tomatoes, pimento cheese, and such. And yes, okra too! : ) I'm pretty sure that fried okra is on the menu at Cracker Barrel so you must give it a try next time you're there! : ) Love sweet tea and can't drink it without sugar, blahhh! Hehe! I've had boiled peanuts, but I'm not much a fan myself - too soggy for me. I usually say, would you like a "soft drink" or would you like a "Coke?" - as sort of a catchall for all soft drinks. I remember eating with a neighborhood friend as a child and her mom (a Northerner) asking me if I'd like a "pop" and I was so confused, like does she mean would I like a pop as in a spanking? Haha! I actually use both "dinner" and "supper", I say "interstate", "sandwich" and "y'all". I'm completely with you on no Christmas decorations until after Thanksgiving, and we leave ours up until the weekend after New Year's. You're correct on the smocked dresses - they are pretty popular here! My mom use to make smocked dressed for my sister and I, and she made several for my daughter. I personally was never a fan of the big bows so I never used them on my daughter, but you do see them here and there, but not as much as you would think, at least in metro Atlanta. I hope to make it to California one day, would love to visit your state . . . so many fun things to see and do there and I imagine, lots of good food and wine! I actually prefer grilled food to fried so I think I would love it there! : )
ReplyDeleteI'm from Mid Missouri...I just have to brag a minute I just had Cracker Barrel last weekend :) I believe we have a mix of culture...my hometown is in rural Missouri so we call the evening meal either dinner or supper we use both regularly just depends on the moods. We call sandwiches made at home sandwiches but if it is made at "Subway" or a Sandwich shop its called a "Sub"...We call I-70 the "interstate" and the other highways "Highways"...I personally don't decorate until after Thanksgiving but most people put up lights outside (if they don't leave them up year round) in September or October because we sometimes get snow in early November. Smocked dresses and big bows are very popular with little girls around here. My 1 yr old has lots of big bows but no smocked dresses. We have a mixture of grilled foods and fried foods...Fried ravioli is a STL thing along with ooey gooey butter cake. BBQ is HUGE Kansas City...since I'm in between them I get a good mixture of both...we have sweet tea and unsweet tea offered at most restaurants.
ReplyDeleteI'm from north Mississippi. Our girls wear smocked dresses and giant bows. Our little boys wear the rompers--we call them John-John's if they are shorts and longalls for pants. And we monogram just about anything we can get our hands on--for all ages!
ReplyDeleteMost people I know call sodas "cokes". The few that I can think of who don't actually didn't grow up here.
We call it the interstate here. The highways are typically the 2 lane roads or have reduced speed limits. As for Christmas, about half the people I know decorate before thanksgiving, while the other half wait until after. Our towns have a Christmas "open house" early so the town and shops get all decorated early....so maybe that's why we feel the need to do that. ��
The food: we have lots of fried food! Most places offer grilled and fried options equally. Okra is a veggie but we often deep fry it so I don't that's really a healthy option anymore. Ha! And I drink sweet tea every day. :) I've never thought much about whether we call it dinner/supper. I think it's equally used here....but I tend to call it supper more than dinner.
This is going to be so fun! I love this post and I have been wondering the same thing!! Its so funny that you guys had never had boiled peanuts before last summer :). I live in South Carolina and during the summer boiled peanuts are a STAPLE in our house.. And we go to cracker barrel every Sunday after church :) But I dont think I have ever heard of anyone use the word 'freeway' before. We just use the interstate ;) I have never been to California I always think of movies and a faster pace lifestyle than here in little ole S.C! Is that true?? And what about Sweet Tea? Do you guys drink it? Is it on every corner. And how about BBQ and collard greens? Do you guys eat that? hahaha so many questions but I am seriously curious!!
ReplyDeleteI'm from NC, but live in the Bay Area. My little girl wears monograms, big bows, and smocked clothing. Everyone always stops and asks me where I buy her clothes. She may have been born in CA; but I'm definitely raising her as a southern girl!! Enjoyed this post!!
ReplyDeleteYAY Meg!!! I live in the Bay Area too, but we are from Richmond, VA. I never see smocked dresses and rarely bows here. Makes me so sad. My daughter (now 18) wore smocked dresses until she was in about 3rd grade. She was know all throughout elementary school for her bows. (She was actually referred to as "Bow Katie" by one of the little boys she was in school with...too cute) Keep your little girl Southern♥
DeleteI've lived in Oregon/Washington my whole life so as West Coasters our answers are similar. Except in the PNW we call it pop. My husband is from California and gives me crap since he calls it soda. I've slipped and said soda a few times and I don't want to because I feel like it's part of my identity! ha!
ReplyDeleteNo smocked dresses or giant bows here either. Or monograms. And we call it a freeway. And I've had fried okra at multiples restaurants actually and I love it!!
I am from South Dakota - everyone here calls pop, pop! I call it soda and people think i'm CRAZY! Jello salad is SO good! jello, fruit, marshmallows, what's not to love!? :) Lutefisk is a Swedish/Norwegian tradition - very common for people to eat Lutefisk and lefse for Christmas dinner. it's fish soaked in lye...horrible! My sister has to eat it every year with her in-laws and she takes a tiny bite and puts in in her mashed potatoes to cover the nastiness! Tater tot hotdish - very good! Minnesotans say hotdish for a ton of dishes (which we say casserole) but they're very similar! People have never heard of a JUICY LUCY!?!??! SO good. They "originated" in Minnesota as well...it's a hamburger stuffed with cheese - so so good! Nut goodies - I have seen them but never tried!
ReplyDeleteMost people here say dinner for lunch and supper for dinner! That's mostly small town country kids though! I say lunch and dinner. Fried pickles are very popular here - they are delicious! Also, putting green olives or pickle spears in your beer! Another one that apparently not everyone does is put tomato juice in your beer it's called a "red beer" - extremely popular here!
Northern Virginia here(we are VERY different from southern Virginia, virtually 2 different states...dinner is dinner (although I hear supper too). Every major holiday gets decorated for. I saw Christmas decorations out in October at the stores when I was shopping for Halloween! I was actually a little annoyed, but only because my kiddos are already showing signs of Christmas hype! People decorate for Christmas around Thanksgiving, but it gets fairly cold once December hits. Carbonated drinks are soda (you order by name of drink, ie Coke). I've seen a few smocks, my boys wore rompers and I LOVED them- super easy dressing and no bare tummies! Janie and Jack sells the BEST ones and I think they're a California company (?). We eat grilled in summer and very little fried, I don't know anyone who fries at home. Freeways are Interstates, but called I and number or interstate, ex I66 or I95. We have both sweet and unsweetened tea almost everywhere. I don't know anyone who monograms, but I've seen baby bags with them on.
ReplyDeleteI'm a lifelong Oregonian. When traveling in different states I've found it interesting that they don't have the drive-thru coffee places. Even the smallest of towns here have them all over town. Post people here say pop, or order specifically like Pepsi, Mt. Dew, etc. Everyone I know says dinner. Casseroles here, not hot dish. If going to the beach everyone here refers to it as going to the coast. I haven't seen smocked baby dresses or rompers on any baby for several years. For the most part everyone puts up Christmas decor after Thanksgiving (except in the stores). Grilling is super popular around here, as is smoking your meats. The only time you see macaroni and cheese on a menu is if it's the entree, and it's some type of fancier version. I've never seen grits or okra on a menu in Oregon, and everyone here just gets regular ice tea and put sweetener in to their own taste. Most people here have an umbrella but never use them. Even in the dead of winter it's not that unusual to see people wearing their burkenstocks (sp?) WITH socks. We always say freeway not interstate, and roads that aren't freeways are highways. Very fun post!
ReplyDeleteI'm from Pittsburgh and we are known to speak Pittsburghese-we are called Yinzers if we do. We say "crick" for "creek," " rowt" for "route," "warsh" for "wash," etc. We also have a cookie table at weddings...family members bake cookies for guests to eat after dinner and to take home. We are also known to have french fries on sandwiches and salads.
ReplyDeleteI am from Pittsburgh too but I live in DC now and it is so funny to see what is different even here vs home! I don't say "warsh" or "yinz" but I asked my new roommate if she had a sweeper before we moved in together and she didn't tell me until months later that she had no idea what I was talking about haha! I guess I should have said vacuum...
DeleteI live on the Mississippi Gulf Coast-where I have my whole life! There is a Cracker Barrel right up the road :). There is fried food galore here, but most places give you the option of grilled. Seafood is a staple around here...boiled/fried shrimp, oysters, many different fish, crabs, and we can't forget gumbo! Fried okra is delicious! Around here, we say sweet tea and sandwich. And the summer isn't complete with out several crawfish boils. We also say YA'LL. I have a 9 year old little girl and she lived in smocked, appliquéd and monogrammed clothes until she was at least 6. Around here, you can sometimes spot much older kids in smocked outfits. Big bows are a must, my 9 year old still wears them! Monograms are still very popular here, even for women...shirts, purses, jewelry, backpacks, bows, cups, school supplies, window stickers, etc. You name it...it's probably game for a monogram :)
ReplyDeleteChristmas- I would say it's 50/50 with the decorations
Labor Day- We wear white all year long
I have also heard that a lot of people say Smorgasbord. We say buffet!
My husband is in the US Coast Guard and when he was in school in Petaluma, CA, his friends would get on the phone with me and say, "just talk" They didn't care what I said, they just wanted to hear my accent. Of course, I don't think I really have one, but I guess to other people, I do!
I live in Pennsylvania, specifically suburban Philadelphia. There is definitely a large Pennsylvania Dutch influence in the foods in this area. My husband loves scrapple, which is a breakfast meat that is basically everything leftover of a pig. Yeah, it is not for me. There is also apple butter which is sort of like a jelly; I do not personally like it. But we also have the influence from Philadelphia. A sandwich can be called a hoagie or a zep. Pizza MUST be thin crust, pizzeria style, and everyone knows and has an opinion about a cheesesteak with Whiz (as in Cheese-Whiz). I went to college about 2 hours from home and was surprised about the differences there, especially because it was still PA! But the center of PA is very farm country or old steel towns. I also studied for a semester in London; talk about cultural differences!
ReplyDeleteI have visited the San Francisco area and Napa; you live in a beautiful area of the country. I will definitely be back but as far as living there, I would really miss the more drastic seasonal changes we have on the East Coast. I think it is all about what you are used to!
Here in Iowa, we put Cheez Whiz on cinnamon bread! And the older generation will add a sliced olive on top! :)
DeleteHaha! The food thing was SO funny! My first roommate in the dorms in college (love her) is from Minnesota. Soda was pop and rubberbands for your hair are called rubber binders. My sister and I both had smocked dresses...and I had a few for Anna. Hmmm...maybe it was from my mom's generation and she did the same for us? They were very popular. Could've been a San Francisco thing...that's where she and my dad were born and raised. And, I usually decorate for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. Right now I have to put away the wrapped up Halloween decorations, have Thanksgiving in one room and a few Christmas decorations up in another. It's a bit of a mess, really! I plan on having it all done by Friday...who am I kidding? ;)
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun post! I live in Utah and grew up calling soda, "POP" but people do say both here or the specific name of the drink. In Utah a freeway is a freeway and we call courts, cul-de-sacs, which is something I noticed after reading your blog. We generally don't decorate for Christmas until the day after Thanksgiving but on really grey and cold years we sometimes put it up the week of Thanksgiving (a few days prior) just because it helps deal with the dreariness, but that has only happened a time or two. We eat dinner and say "you guys" also. Utah is unique for a couple things, namely Mormon culture. Which means most people say "shoot", "dang", "shizz", "gosh"...instead of the other words. We are famous for fry sauce, jello salads and casseroles and we drink soda instead of coffee. Soda shops are the new thing here and they are often called "Mormon Bars".
ReplyDeleteOh! I forgot about the baby bows and flowers. It has gotten better in recent years, but generally bows and flowers are the size of a babies head. It's a horrible, horrible trend that I hope goes away someday!
DeleteI'm from Eastern Kentucky and pretty much we are considered the "Hillbillies" of the land! We drink "pop" and drive on 4 Lanes which is what we call our highways! I live up a holler (really just a dead end road). Monogram is THE thing around these parts. We are huge on wearing smocked clothing for kids and ruffles seems to be the newest trademark! Big Bows, Big Hair...it's all part of where I'm from. Y'all is definitely what lots of people (myself included) say! We still have dirt roads, can you believe that. Driving around town you will find most everyone (not me cause I'm pretty dead set on not) has their Christmas Decor up but then again we live in the Bible Belt and everyone around here loves Christmas! It's funny how different things are in different places. For instance today we went to a funeral and a friend of mine thought it was so odd that after the service we all gathered in a church for dinner that was prepared by the ladies of the church and people in our community. I guess maybe that is just small town living. My grandma lived on fried okra! We eat fried cabbage too! Mustard Greens, Soup Beans, Kraut, Pickled Corn, Cornbread, Fried Bologna...those are some very common foods. Grits, Syrup Butter and Biscuits, Fried Potatoes, Fried Hot Dog Weiners (those are common breakfast foods). Pretty much we fry everything including Deep Fried Oreo's and Twinkies. If you haven't had one, your missing out on life!!!!
ReplyDeleteThis is funny, since I was thinking of doing a post about this...but forget about regional differences, there differences in cities..trust me!! I am in BC, Canada, and you have the Islanders, the Notherners, the interior people (us), the Okanogan, the Coast...the red necks...we're all so different. I love it. I call soda pop...I call candy bars, chocolate bars, I think smocking is ridiculous (just my opinion), and since TG is in October, the second Halloween is over, it's Christmas! Feel free to come and visit my blog!
ReplyDeleteSo I am from Boston/New England and now reside in NH (right over the boarder.) We say "tonic" or "Coke". We also say "wicked" and "you guys". As far as decorating for Christmas before Thanksgiving, it is a mixed bag up here. There is no general rule. Some do and some wait. We decorate the weekend after Thanksgiving. Something new I learned recently is that Bell Seasoning is not popular across the country as it is here in New England. We use it in several fall dishes and especially at Thanksgiving! I used it in one of my stuffing recipes which brings me to my next point- stuffing not dressing :) This was a fun post!
ReplyDeleteNice to see there is another New Englander! I am from RI and we too say "wicked" as in wicked cool! We have coffee cabinets (coffee ice cream in coffee milk), grinders (like a sub or hoagie), and gaggers (hot weiners). We also are known for clam cakes and chowda! Great post - thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteTennessean here! I was raised in TN but live in Huntsville, AL, now which is part of the Tennessee Valley. You have to try okra, it is so good -- I like it grilled and fried. I hate to listen to myself when I record interviews because I have the most southern fried accent. It does not sound like that in my head but when Marc and I travel, people always ask me to talk! Yes, we are big on monogramming and bows but Alexa grew out of them when she went to elementary school -- and for us, they were really for church and special occasions, not everyday wear. I know we shop at a lot of the same places because she and your girls often have the same tees!
ReplyDeleteAs for Christmas, my own personal POV is that the holiday season starts after Veterans Week (ere in the Rocket City we have a really vibrant, active veteran and military retiree community so we celebrate Veterans Day for an entire week) but we don't decorate until the week of Thanksgiving -- sometimes the weekend before if we are traveling during Thanksgiving. Currently there are 5 houses out of 100+ in the neighborhood, that have their lights up. And I know that Alabama does not always come off very well in the national news -- especially right now with Gov. American Gothic joining the refugee ban (sigh) -- but Huntsville, due to its being the home of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Ctr., the second largest research park in the country and Redstone Arsenal -- which is a DoD Center of Excellence (and home to the Missile Defense Agency and various Army missile commands) -- has the highest number of rocket scientists in the world AND ranks second in the country behind D.C. in the number of spies! Which I find both interesting and creepy. So it is an interesting place. :D
Love this! Born and raised Ohio girl here :) Most of the food in the video looks like things I know, they seem to have different names for it. Hmm...
ReplyDeleteLove Cracker Barrel! I actually worked there as a server during college for a bit! As a kid we could only find Cracker Barrel down south when we were on vacation so we always made a point to go there. Now they are all over the north as well. There is actually one right down the road from me so we go quite a bit because Xavier loves the pancakes there :)
Let's see -- Quite a few places serve sweet tea now, but that only started about 5 years ago. You can usually find more flavored tea than sweet. I love sweet tea! Most places offer the option of fried or grilled so I don't even think twice about it. lol! Honestly, the only reason I know of okra is because I worked at Cracker Barrel. I have never tried it and it doesn't appeal to me. Not a fan of boiled peanuts either, but that seems to be a southern thing.
We 100% say POP here in Ohio! I still remember ordering pop in when we were on vacation in South Carolina and the server asked what kind of soda or coke I wanted. I had no idea what she was talking about! lol! I only knew of one kind of Coke. Then of course the other kinds of "pop" were Pepsi, Sprite, etc. Strange!
My grandma always said supper, but everyone I know says dinner. I think it is an age thing around here.
And we typically say highway here :)
I have seen little girls wear dresses like that and those big bows, but usually when we are down south for vacation. lol! The smaller bows and headbands are normal here.
As for Christmas...most people start decorating before Thanksgiving. It can start as early as November 1st around here. Mainly because we never know what kind of weather we will have so they get their outdoor likes up and such while it isn't snowing. For the most part, people won't turn on the outside lights until after Thanksgiving. We do decorate our house, put up our tree, etc. fairly early because we don't have anyone in for Thanksgiving. The week after is Xavier's birthday, then my birthday, then Christmas so we don't have much time during the month of December to do it. Plus, I want to enjoy it as long as possible :)
Lifelong Iowan here! That video was hilarious. I wouldn't touch lutefisk with a ten foot pole, gross! I can honestly say that I feel bad for anybody who has never had tator tot casserole. It's one of my favorite foods ever!! We say "pop" here. If you want a coke or pepsi, you say coke or pepsi. I agree with the fact that people decorate (not me, I love Thanksgiving) prior to Thanksgiving and it is many times due to the fact it is way too cold to wait until December. --Jamie
ReplyDeleteI think you covered a lot of the southern stuff but I did have to comment to represent North Carolina, aka home of pulled pork and buttermilk biscuits (we just call them biscuits). Because you can get biscuits just about anywhere, our standards for biscuits are pretty high. They're not just eaten plain, they are eaten as sandwiches- most popular are fried chicken biscuits and country ham biscuits (country ham is different than regular ham). Here would be my ranking of biscuits:
ReplyDelete1. Rise Biscuits and Donuts - local Raleigh chain, hands down the best biscuits and sandwiches of my life
2. Biscuitville - this is a North Carolina chain that is only open for breakfast and lunch. In spring they do a peach biscuit, topped with fresh peach jam and peaches and sugar.
3. Any southern BBQ place that serves pulled pork
4. Bojangles (Boberry biscuit!)
5. Cracker Barrel, if it is in the south. Cracker Barrel outside the south does not have southern women working in the kitchen so their biscuits taste terrible to me.
My kids won't eat the biscuits in a can because they think they taste awful.
I am in Waterloo, Ontario Canada! One thing...we have snow tires! Winter is longer than any other season. We have Thanksgiving in October. I couldn't imagine having Thanksgiving and then decorating for Christmas the next day....crazy! We have a mixed population of very modern/busy business, posh type people (hello, home of the Blackberry) AND old order Mennonites. Its not unusual to see a porch or tesla passing a horse and buggy on the road. I am sure there are many other differences but that is a few!
ReplyDeleteI am from Kansas City, MO, but currently live in Minneapolis. I've only lived here for about 2 years. I can't wait to watch that video you posted. The regional foods here are fairly odd! That being said, the food here in Minneapolis (which really is a big city) is perfectly normal. People here and in KC say "pop" for soda. I lived for a long time on the east coast where everyone says "soda." We have had a very mild fall and last weekend was unseasonably warm (almost 60 on Sunday) so everyone was putting up their christmas lights. It's a good thing too, it's only going to be in the upper 20s this weekend. In the winter here, you HAVE to wear snow boots. For example, I wear snow boots to and from work and bring along my shoes to wear the rest of the day. And if you go to someone house in the winter, they'll have mats or trays for you to leave your boots in as to not mess up the house. So you always wear nice socks and I've know people who'll sometime bring along their own slippers to wear inside. Everyone here is every polite (people talk alot about how people are "Minnesota-nice", but not overly friendly. Love this blog post!
ReplyDeleteBorn and raised in ND and currently live on the East Coast.
ReplyDeleteNo johnjohns, bows or smocks here. Lots of vineyard vines, JCrew, etc...
Still love red beer and always the brunt of jokes... East coast just can't appreciate :)
Lutefisk - gross gag...yes it was at every christmas but thank god we didnt have to eat it. LOVE leftsa but can't get it here. or potato sausage. or summer sausage. or Dakota Kid sunflower seeds :( Just recently have been able to find Carmex LOL
NoDaks say hotdish. Haven't heard hotdish or casserole on the East Coast.
East Coast : thruway, ND - interstate.
East Coast: open bar for wedding extremely lavish! ND: cash bar, whole town is invited - many men would come in direct from harvesting if you married in the fall.
I take my coffee regular: ND, this means black East Coast this means cream+sugar. Used to drive my father nuts!!
ND baking uses lots of crisco!! East Coast - not so much.
ND has drive thru for EVERYTHING - even liquor!
such a FUN post
I'm from SD and we have drive thru liquor stores too - I've never thought twice about it but anyone who visits from out of town thinks it's crazy!! haha.
DeleteBorn and raised in northern Kentucky, about 10 minutes from Cincinnati....so I think we are more "north" then "south". Interstates are highways or expressways....we have sweet tea....fried, grilled, blackened chicken is always an option.... "Soda" is a soft drink (or, just specify what kind you want).... I haven't seen any Christmas decorations actually lit up yet, but people may have put them up since it hasn't been super cold yet....we say "you guys" or "you all"....it's "dinner" to us....we have a breakfast meat called "goetta" (pork and oats) that I don't think you can find in a lot of other places....and we have Cincinnati- style chili that is different than any other chili in the country (but good!)
ReplyDeleteBorn and raised in northern Kentucky, about 10 minutes from Cincinnati....so I think we are more "north" then "south". Interstates are highways or expressways....we have sweet tea....fried, grilled, blackened chicken is always an option.... "Soda" is a soft drink (or, just specify what kind you want).... I haven't seen any Christmas decorations actually lit up yet, but people may have put them up since it hasn't been super cold yet....we say "you guys" or "you all"....it's "dinner" to us....we have a breakfast meat called "goetta" (pork and oats) that I don't think you can find in a lot of other places....and we have Cincinnati- style chili that is different than any other chili in the country (but good!)
ReplyDeleteI'm from Oklahoma. We call soda - pop in our area. Although there are other parts of the state that call it different names. Smocked clothing for little girls isn't too big of a thing here, but all of the other Southern goodness like ruffled pants and big hair bows are. I've never seen a little boy in longalls outside of the blogosphere. We love a good monogram...or at least I do. I grew up calling dinner, supper, but our family calls it dinner. Our little town just did it's big "Light's On" Ceremony today, so I guess it's safe to say that we decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving. Fried Okra is a common food around here, although, I much prefer it when it's pickled. Sweet Tea is a big deal here. The majority of people I know drink it for every meal. We call our major roads highways. =)
ReplyDeleteI always love this topic! I am from the mountains of NC :) We refer to it as the "App-uh-la-chin" mountains as opposed to the "App-a-lay-shun" mountains. It's a sign that one isn't from 'round here if you say it the second way! In North Carolina, we have very different dialects from the Mountains to the Coast. In the south, we do all the things you listed above. :) I would also add that we also don't have "bbq's", we have cookout. Speaking of bbq, NC has two very different kinds of BBQ sause-Eastern (vinegar based) and Western (tomato based) :) I also tend to "code-switch" and my accent gets way more southern when I am talking to older people, and people who's accent is thicker than mine. :)
ReplyDeleteLove videos like that and learning about food differences in regions and other countries. I grew up with my grandma or aunt making ambrosia salad which is pretty similar/same as jello salad. Occasionally I've made juicy Lucy's but I like to do it with lamb burgers & but blue or goat cheese in the middle & top it with an olive tapenade and mixed greens on ciabatta. Always wishing we had more biscuits vs bread and sweet tea in restaurants here. The south really does things right by food.
ReplyDeleteI am so surprised you haven't really had much fried chicken since we both live in the Bay Area but there are tons of places with great fried chicken here. I kind of love comfort food especially fried chicken or macaroni & cheese so I might just be more adept at finding it. Plus I love fried pickles which seem popular in most of the burger places on the peninsula.
I'm a lifelong Californian who moved to GA 4 years ago. There are MANY things I LOVE about the South, but boys in those john johns and long-alls is NOT one of them. Too effeminate. My husband actually told me he'd have to "re-consider our relationship" (he was TOTALLY kidding!) if I dressed our boys in those. I wouldn't because I personally think they are hideous, but smocked dresses on girls are super cute.
ReplyDeleteFunny story...shortly after we moved here I needed to mail a ton of Christmas gifts to CA for family and friends. I saw the words "package store" and ASSUMED I could mail things there. Um...WRONG!!! A package store is what we call a liquor store in CA. The employee in the store must have thought I was a nutcase, but he politely pointed me to the UPS Store across the parking lot.
I am from California, but have lived in MN for 9 years. I can confirm that all of those foods are served in MN. My mother in law makes multiple jello salads around the holidays. Usually a red one and a green one. My husband (a native MN) eats a ton of it around the holiday. Lutefisk is usually only served at the homes of people who are really proud of their Swedish or Norwegian heritage. They used to serve it at my college around Christmas time for a special meal. The smell alone is awful. Tater tot hot dish is just about the most delicious comfort food ever. My husband and I always make this one: http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2011/01/26/taconite-tater-tot-hot-dish/. It is the favorite of US Senator Amy Klobuchar. Juicy Lucys are the very best way to eat a cheeseburger. Hands down. You should totally try it.
ReplyDeleteI'm from South Florida. There is quite the convergence of cultures here both regional and international. There are not many true "Florida Crackers" left. If someone is actually from here they tend to be very southern in dialect and behavior. But mostly the people here are from the Northeast and Mid-west or the Caribbean Islands or South/Central America. Most people call soda just that "soda" or by the specific name. The only major roads we have are the Interstate and the Turnpike. My neighbor has his Christmas decorations up. I think that is personal preference not regional. Sandwiches are sandwiches or subs. We eat dinner not supper. Some people say "ya'll" but most say "you guys". We have lots of Cuban restaurants and our pizza is mostly New York Style unless it is a chain like Domino's or Pizza Hut. We have Cracker Barrels but we also have Pollo Campero and Pollo Tropical. I was just in California and you have In and Out Burger and Dutch Bros. Coffee and I am jealous! This was a fun post. Happy Thanksgiving!
ReplyDeleteBorn and raised in Alabama! We have a Cracker Barrel at every interstate exit! (Yep, we call it the "interstate") Foods that I think are "southern"... sweet tea is EVERYWHERE here, you get the option of sweet or unsweet, rarely do you have to sweeten it on your own. Chic Fil A has yummy sweet tea! Fried chicken is amazing... but when it's REALLY fried, in LARD... the good stuff! Corn bread made in the skillet, biscuits and gravy, BBQ (Dreamland is the best!). I can't believe y'all (yep, I say "y'all") haven't had okra! Grow that stuff in your garden! It's good fried (battered in cornmeal and buttermilk), grilled, and you can find it pickled - consistency is sort of like a dill pickle. Where I live, there is a decent offering of healthy (cleaner) options when eating out, which has been a big improvement over the years. I've never even seen an In & Out Burger. :)
ReplyDeleteThe smocked dresses are more of an "old fashioned" trend here, but I've always dressed my girls in them for church. My mom smocks most of their dresses. We do bows usually just for church or a special occasion. Mine won't wear a bow to school. Monograms are a big deal and they are everywhere. I've even seen adult women wearing a big thick sweatshirt with a gigantic script 3 letter monogram on the front. Hats, car tags, purses, bathing suits - I've seen it all.
I'm definitely "team Thanksgiving"... and wait to put up the tree until the day after Thanksgiving, at the earliest. I don't see a lot of early decorating here, it's very sporadic.
I think it's such a funny thing, but we do refer to all soda as "Coke"... as in "let's go get a Coke" - then when you go to the store you decide which kind you want! haha! I guess it's like saying "I need a Kleenex" if you need to blow your nose.
This was a fun idea! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
We live in Maryland and have lived in New York and Pennsylvania. We visited California for the first time this year and you are right, so many little things were different! My favorite different things were the weather and the mexican food. Even in Northern California the mexican food was so authentic and delicious. Here in Maryland most of what we call mexican food is really tex-mex. It's good, but it's totally not the same.
ReplyDeleteHi Mel - I have lived in Pittsburgh, PA for 20 years but am originally from Upstate New York (outside of Albany). I grew up calling soda "soda", here it is pop. I grew up with sneakers and a vacuum cleaner - here it is tennis shoes and a sweeper. Also rubber bands are "gum bands" so I even had regional differences to get used to here. In Pittsburgh it is definitely "Yinz" for you all or you guys. Foods I was introduced to here that I was not used to are pierogies, haluski - definitely a Polish influence on the foods. Also - french fries are on everything - from salads to sandwiches. We have a restaurant here called Primati Brothers - which was originally for the truckers that drive the big rigs - so everything is on the sandwich - french fries and cole slaw. That way the truckers could just get it and go! Here it is a highway. I definitely do not decorate for Christmas until after Thanksgiving - and most people here don't. But there are the few that do. I have not seen the smocking dresses here. And - if bows are in the hair they are definitely not big bows (unless it is a competition cheerleading team). It is fun to read about all of the differences - thanks for doing this! xoxo - Kristin
ReplyDeleteI am from Southeast Texas... Most people in Texas use the word y'all particularly if you are born and raised here. Everything around here is fried, but people eat healthy too, just depends on who you are talking to. ;) We love love love Tex-Mex food, BBQ, cajun cousine, fried seafood (fish, shrimp), and GRITS for breakfast (I hear people up north do not eat grits?) .. I cannot believe you have never heard of okra.. wow! It is good fried, and its typically used in gumbo. (assuming yall know what gumbo is) We also like to eat boudin around here.. pronounced boo-dan, google it. LOL We love sweet tea, and yes a cracker barrel is at least every 20 to 30 miles. Everyone is very polite here, hold doors for strangers, conversations with strangers, very friendly people all around. Things are often monogrammed, and most little girls wear bows. A lot of people say "coke" for everything.. but I personally will say soda or whatever specific drink we are referring to. Christmas pretty much begins the day after halloween around these parts.. but I wont put up our decorations until the day after. We have been listening to Christmas music this morning. :) We say dinner and supper... but supper would be more what an older generation would say.
ReplyDeleteTexas is a huge state so I'm chiming in on this one. I live in Dallas so I could be anywhere from 2 to 6 hours north of Anonymous. We drink cokes, BBQ is consumed at least once a week and always with friend okra, most people I know drink unsweetened tea but sweetened is a real treat! We also eat Tex Mex at least once a week and then gripe about how fat we are. Nobody wears smocked clothes and if a little boy showed up in one of those smocked outfits he might be booted in the behind. My neighborhood is already lighted up because our neighbor does it as a side job this time of year and we all want to support him. Love this post!
DeleteI'm from Southern CA. Not sure if there's Lucilles BBQ or Dickies BBQ near you (both are chain restaurants) but they serve okra there. I'll get sweet tea from Chickfila from time to time.
ReplyDeleteOh and I've just recently been thinking about that monogram thing. I've seen so many Jane Daily Deals with monograms & keep wondering, who is buying all this monogram stuff?! Lol.
ReplyDeleteI am from Alberta Canada and we say pop, drive on highways, our Thanksgiving is in Oct so most wait until after Remembrance Day to start decorating for Christmas, Alberta is known as cowboy country so beef is one of the top things people eat. we call candy bars chocolate bars, our iced tea is sweet, we have ketchup chips, and split pea soup is a good winter meal and not all Canadians say "eh".
ReplyDeleteI'm in Minnesota. Yuck to lutefisk and marshmellow salad! The others... you seriously gotta try the Juicy Lucy and the tater tot hotdish. Yum!
ReplyDeleteI love this post!! Such a fun idea! I live in Southern California, originally from Northern California, so sadly I don't think I have much insight on anything different than what you said. The only thing I've noticed about living here rather than there is that down here we say "the" before the freeways. Like "take the 5 to the 55" (and I've started to do it too!) and we don't say hella (which I hella used to say all the time lol).
ReplyDeleteI am from the Southern part of Ohio so we do a lot of Southern traditions. We love sweet tea, everything is fried even the vegetables. My grandma would make mac and cheese and then the next day fry the leftovers in butter, yum. Also we love Cincinnati style chili and add lots of cheese on top.
ReplyDeleteHaaaa!!! I have to say, thank God the area of Pennsylvania I'm from wasn't crazy different in these cultural things from CA. We always said soda, never ever said y'all, I scoff at big bows and monograms (sorry but...I don't get it?), never have had okra, and only ever heard of sweet tea thanks to chickfila. HAHA. Granted, culture in general is different however these things are at least familiar to me. :) haha!
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