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Restaurants, Food and Drink | Signature dishes from 50 American cities
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Tucson, Arizona | Sonoran hot dog | Wrapped in bacon and covered with pinto beans and salsa, this hot dog is said to have come into Arizona from Hermosillo, capital of the Mexican state of Sonora.
bhofack2 / iStock via Getty Images
Tucson, Arizona | Sonoran hot dog | Wrapped in bacon and covered with pinto beans and salsa, this hot dog is said to have come into Arizona from Hermosillo, capital of the Mexican state of Sonora.

Signature dishes from 50 American cities

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<img loading="" class="lazyload size-article_feature" data-sizes="auto" alt="Signature dishes from 50 American cities | 24/7 Tempo has consulted scores of civic and regional websites and online food history resources to identify the signature dishes from 50 American municipalities, from coast to coast and border to border. For similar lists visit 24/7 Wall St. .” title=”Signature dishes from 50 American cities | 24/7 Tempo has consulted scores of civic and regional websites and online food history resources to identify the signature dishes from 50 American municipalities, from coast to coast and border to border. For similar lists visit 24/7 Wall St. .” data-src=”/wp-content/uploads/migration/2021/10/19/OD4L35QNVZFX4QJMJHAD534HC4.jpg”>
Signature dishes from 50 American cities | 24/7 Tempo has consulted scores of civic and regional websites and online food history resources to identify the signature dishes from 50 American municipalities, from coast to coast and border to border. For similar lists visit 24/7 Wall St. .
Atlantic City, New Jersey | Saltwater taffy | This soft candy, invented in Atlantic City in the 1880s and strongly identified with that city's Boardwalk, contains no saltwater.
Atlantic City, New Jersey | Saltwater taffy | This soft candy, invented in Atlantic City in the 1880s and strongly identified with that city’s Boardwalk, contains no saltwater.
Baltimore, Maryland | Crab cakes | Crab meat is formed into patties with cracker or bread crumbs and spices. The term “crab cakes” was first used in the 1930s.
Binghamton, New York | Spiedies | Marinated cubes of lamb (originally), beef, pork, chicken or venison are grilled on metal skewers (“spiedie” comes from the Italian “spiedo,” skewer or spit) and served on an Italian roll. Spiedies were first made by Italian immigrants in Binghamton in the 1920s.
Boston, Massachusetts | Baked beans |Navy beans or other small white beans are slow-cooked with molasses and salt pork and is the source of Boston's nickname, Beantown.
Boston, Massachusetts | Baked beans |Navy beans or other small white beans are slow-cooked with molasses and salt pork and is the source of Boston’s nickname, Beantown.
Buffalo, New York | Buffalo wings | Deep-fried chicken wings are glazed in hot sauce and served with celery and blue cheese dressing. Called simply “wings” in their hometown, the dish was invented in 1964 at the city’s Anchor Bar.
Charleston, South Carolina | Shrimp and grits | Sautéed shrimp (originally freshwater Charleston river shrimp) are served over grits (ground hominy, which is starchy corn treated with an alkali solution to remove the hulls).
Charleston, South Carolina | Shrimp and grits | Sautéed shrimp (originally freshwater Charleston river shrimp) are served over grits (ground hominy, which is starchy corn treated with an alkali solution to remove the hulls).
Chicago, Illinois | Deep-dish pizza | More a pie than a conventional pizza, baked in a pan, with a deep crust filled with layers of cheese, meat and/or vegetables and sauce, this dish is also called Chicago-style pizza.
Chicago, Illinois | Deep-dish pizza | More a pie than a conventional pizza, baked in a pan, with a deep crust filled with layers of cheese, meat and/or vegetables and sauce, this dish is also called Chicago-style pizza.
Cincinnati, Ohio | Cincinnati chili | This unique chili features ground meat sauce flavored with cinnamon and other spices, served over spaghetti and topped with various combinations of shredded cheese, onion and beans.
Cincinnati, Ohio | Cincinnati chili | This unique chili features ground meat sauce flavored with cinnamon and other spices, served over spaghetti and topped with various combinations of shredded cheese, onion and beans.
Cleveland, Ohio | Polish Boy | This dish featured Kielbasa (a Polish-style sausage), French fries, coleslaw, and barbecue sauce on a bun and may have been invented at a local barbecue restaurant in the 1940s.
Cleveland, Ohio | Polish Boy | This dish featured Kielbasa (a Polish-style sausage), French fries, coleslaw, and barbecue sauce on a bun and may have been invented at a local barbecue restaurant in the 1940s.
Des Moines, Iowa | Steak de Burgo | Steak de Burgo is steak (usually tenderloin) with butter, garlic, and herbs, sometimes in the form of a cream sauce. Possibly named after the Spanish city of Burgos and dating back to pre-World War II days, it has been called “a dish that is uniquely identified with Des Moines.”
Detroit, Michigan | Coney dog | The coney dog is a beef wiener in a steamed bun, topped with chili (no beans), diced onions and yellow mustard. It was probably first made in the south-central Michigan city of Jackson, west of Detroit, in 1914.
Detroit, Michigan | Coney dog | The coney dog is a beef wiener in a steamed bun, topped with chili (no beans), diced onions and yellow mustard. It was probably first made in the south-central Michigan city of Jackson, west of Detroit, in 1914.
Evansville, Indiana | Fried brain sandwich | Breaded and fried pig's brain is served on a bun and garnished with pickles, onions and mustard.
Evansville, Indiana | Fried brain sandwich | Breaded and fried pig’s brain is served on a bun and garnished with pickles, onions and mustard.
Freeman, South Dakota | Chislic | Freeman, a small town southwest of Sioux Falls, is considered to be the central point in what has been called the Chislic Circle. The term “chiclic” is a variation on “shashlik” — Russian kebabs — and comprises cubes of marinated, salted lamb or other meat, usually deep-fried but sometimes grilled, served on skewers or impaled on toothpicks for snacking.
Houston, Texas | Ph? | The emblematic Vietnamese beef soup with rice noodles, pronounced “fuh,” is Houston’s latest signature dish
Kansas City, Missouri | Barbecue | The pioneer of KC barbecue was a pitmaster named Henry Perry in the early 1900s.
Kansas City, Missouri | Barbecue | The pioneer of KC barbecue was a pitmaster named Henry Perry in the early 1900s.
Key West, Florida | Key lime pie | Key limes (also called West Indian or Mexican limes) were probably planted in Florida by the Spanish in the 1500s. The pie dates from the late 1800s.
Key West, Florida | Key lime pie | Key limes (also called West Indian or Mexican limes) were probably planted in Florida by the Spanish in the 1500s. The pie dates from the late 1800s.
Lafayette, Louisiana | Plate lunch | Rice, meat, peppery gravy, two vegetable side dishes and a piece of bread are heaped onto one plate in a practice that may have developed when Lafayette butchers cooked miscellaneous meat scraps and drowned them in gravy to feed local workmen at lunchtime.
Lafayette, Louisiana | Plate lunch | Rice, meat, peppery gravy, two vegetable side dishes and a piece of bread are heaped onto one plate in a practice that may have developed when Lafayette butchers cooked miscellaneous meat scraps and drowned them in gravy to feed local workmen at lunchtime.
Las Vegas, Nevada | All-you-can-eat buffet | The first example of this phenomenon was a $1 “Buckaroo Buffet” created by the publicist at El Rancho Vegas, one of the first hotels on the strip, in the mid-1940s.
Lincoln, Nebraska | Runza | Runzas are based on the German stuffed rolls called Bierocks, and comprise bread rolls enclosed around ground beef mixed with onions and cabbage.
Lincoln, Nebraska | Runza | Runzas are based on the German stuffed rolls called Bierocks, and comprise bread rolls enclosed around ground beef mixed with onions and cabbage.
Lockhart, Texas | Barbecue | Beef brisket (or sometimes the cut called shoulder clod) is slow-cooked and smoked over wood fires for as long as 20 hours and seasoned with only salt and pepper. The style was developed by Czech and German immigrants to the Hill Country, near Austin and San Antonio, Texas, in the late 1800s.
Lockhart, Texas | Barbecue | Beef brisket (or sometimes the cut called shoulder clod) is slow-cooked and smoked over wood fires for as long as 20 hours and seasoned with only salt and pepper. The style was developed by Czech and German immigrants to the Hill Country, near Austin and San Antonio, Texas, in the late 1800s.
Los Angeles, California | French dip sandwich | The French dip was invented, apparently accidentally, by Parisian immigrant Philippe Mathieu at his sandwich shop in downtown L.A. in 1918.
Los Angeles, California | French dip sandwich | The French dip was invented, apparently accidentally, by Parisian immigrant Philippe Mathieu at his sandwich shop in downtown L.A. in 1918.
Louisville, Kentucky | The Hot Brown | The Hot Brown was invented by a chef at Louisville's Brown Hotel in 1926. It's an open-faced sliced turkey sandwich on toast, with bacon, tomatoes, and Mornay sauce (Béchamel sauce with shredded cheese melted in).
Louisville, Kentucky | The Hot Brown | The Hot Brown was invented by a chef at Louisville’s Brown Hotel in 1926. It’s an open-faced sliced turkey sandwich on toast, with bacon, tomatoes, and Mornay sauce (Béchamel sauce with shredded cheese melted in).
Madison, Minnesota | Lutefisk | Definitely an acquired taste, this “lye fish” is dried cod or other firm white fish preserved with lye, soaked to remove the preservative, and steamed to flaky, gelatinous consistency.
Memphis, Tennessee | Barbecue | Barbecue is considered the city's official cuisine, and there are said to be more than 100 barbecue places in town.
Memphis, Tennessee | Barbecue | Barbecue is considered the city’s official cuisine, and there are said to be more than 100 barbecue places in town.
Miami, Florida | Stone crab | A variety of Atlantic crab found all along the Eastern Seaboard, stone crab is noted for its meaty claws.
Miami, Florida | Stone crab | A variety of Atlantic crab found all along the Eastern Seaboard, stone crab is noted for its meaty claws.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Fried cheese curds | Fried cheese curds are pieces of curd left over from the cheesemaking process, then battered and deep-fried.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Fried cheese curds | Fried cheese curds are pieces of curd left over from the cheesemaking process, then battered and deep-fried.
Minneapolis, Minnesota | The Juicy Lucy | The Juicy Lucy, a cheeseburger with the cheese enclosed inside the patty so that it melts into liquid as the burger cooks, was invented in a bar in south Minneapolis in the 1950s
Minneapolis, Minnesota | The Juicy Lucy | The Juicy Lucy, a cheeseburger with the cheese enclosed inside the patty so that it melts into liquid as the burger cooks, was invented in a bar in south Minneapolis in the 1950s
Nashville, Tennessee | Hot chicken | According to legend, the dish has its origins in the 1930s, when a woman who had been wronged by a man-about-town named Thornton Prince sought revenge by serving him the spiciest chicken possible.
Nashville, Tennessee | Hot chicken | According to legend, the dish has its origins in the 1930s, when a woman who had been wronged by a man-about-town named Thornton Prince sought revenge by serving him the spiciest chicken possible.
New Haven, Connecticut | Pizza | Thin-crust pizza in the Neapolitan style, cooked in very hot brick ovens (sometimes coal-fired) to produce a signature char on the crust was popularized started Frank Pepe opened his Pizzeria Napoletana in 1925
New Haven, Connecticut | Pizza | Thin-crust pizza in the Neapolitan style, cooked in very hot brick ovens (sometimes coal-fired) to produce a signature char on the crust was popularized started Frank Pepe opened his Pizzeria Napoletana in 1925
New Orleans, Louisiana | Po’boy | Legend has it that the po’boy — a French bread loaf filled with anything from roast beef to fried shrimp — was invented by two New Orleans brothers in 1929 to feed striking streetcar workers (the “poor boys”).
New York City, New York | Bagel | First brought to New York's Lower East Side by Polish Jewish immigrants in the late 19th century, bagels are now found everywhere in the city and far beyond.
New York City, New York | Bagel | First brought to New York’s Lower East Side by Polish Jewish immigrants in the late 19th century, bagels are now found everywhere in the city and far beyond.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Philly cheesesteak | The cheesesteak was invented in 1930 by a local hot dog vendor, Pat Olivieri — namesake of Pat's King of Steaks, one of the city's most famous purveyors of cheesesteaks to this day.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Philly cheesesteak | The cheesesteak was invented in 1930 by a local hot dog vendor, Pat Olivieri — namesake of Pat’s King of Steaks, one of the city’s most famous purveyors of cheesesteaks to this day.
Portland, Maine | Lobster roll | Lobster rolls — cold lobster meat dressed with mayonnaise, sometimes mixed with scallions, chives, celery and tarragon and served on a hot dog bun — are found everywhere around the state.
Portland, Maine | Lobster roll | Lobster rolls — cold lobster meat dressed with mayonnaise, sometimes mixed with scallions, chives, celery and tarragon and served on a hot dog bun — are found everywhere around the state.
Providence, Rhode Island | Stuffie | The origin of these stuffed clams is unclear, but quahogs became popular in the region only after 1938.
Providence, Rhode Island | Stuffie | The origin of these stuffed clams is unclear, but quahogs became popular in the region only after 1938.
Racine, Wisconsin | Kringle | A flat, oval Danish-style pastry filled with nuts and sometimes fruit and glazed with icing, the kringle was introduced to Racine in the late 19th century by Danish immigrants.
Racine, Wisconsin | Kringle | A flat, oval Danish-style pastry filled with nuts and sometimes fruit and glazed with icing, the kringle was introduced to Racine in the late 19th century by Danish immigrants.
Rochester, New York | The Garbage Plate | A plate heaped with meat (originally a couple of hamburgers) is served with macaroni salad, home fries or beans and served with bread or rolls and various condiments.
Rochester, New York | The Garbage Plate | A plate heaped with meat (originally a couple of hamburgers) is served with macaroni salad, home fries or beans and served with bread or rolls and various condiments.
St. Louis, Missouri | Toasted ravioli | The preparation, which involves coating ravioli in breadcrumbs and deep frying them, is said to have been invented in the 1940s by a cook at Oldani's restaurant.
St. Louis, Missouri | Toasted ravioli | The preparation, which involves coating ravioli in breadcrumbs and deep frying them, is said to have been invented in the 1940s by a cook at Oldani’s restaurant.
San Antonio, Texas | Puffy taco | This San Antonio specialty, made from fried raw masa dough that puffs up like funnel cakes, was invented at the city's Ray's Drive Inn in the 1950s.
San Antonio, Texas | Puffy taco | This San Antonio specialty, made from fried raw masa dough that puffs up like funnel cakes, was invented at the city’s Ray’s Drive Inn in the 1950s.
San Diego, California | Fish taco | Originating in Baja California and possibly inspired by tempura dishes eaten by Japanese fishermen there, fish tacos feature batter-fried fish on a tortilla with shredded cabbage.
San Diego, California | Fish taco | Originating in Baja California and possibly inspired by tempura dishes eaten by Japanese fishermen there, fish tacos feature batter-fried fish on a tortilla with shredded cabbage.
San Francisco, California | Cioppino | This thick, tomato-based fish and shellfish stew probably gets its name from the puréed Ligurian fish soup called ciuppin and was developed by fishermen in the city's North Beach neighborhood in the late 1800s.
San Francisco, California | Cioppino | This thick, tomato-based fish and shellfish stew probably gets its name from the puréed Ligurian fish soup called ciuppin and was developed by fishermen in the city’s North Beach neighborhood in the late 1800s.
Santa Maria, California | Santa Maria barbecue | Though the meal, traditional in the region since the early 1930s, is called “barbecue,” the meat is cooked directly over hot coals, and the beans are usually a variety called pinquitos.
Sheboygan, Wisconsin | Bratwurst | This German-style link, brought to eastern Wisconsin by German immigrants in the early to mid-19th century, was originally made with veal. When that meat became too expensive, pork and beef were substituted.
Sheboygan, Wisconsin | Bratwurst | This German-style link, brought to eastern Wisconsin by German immigrants in the early to mid-19th century, was originally made with veal. When that meat became too expensive, pork and beef were substituted.
Sioux City, Iowa | Loose meat sandwich | Said to have been created in 1924 at Sioux City's Ye Olde Tavern and sometimes called a tavern sandwich, the loose meat sandwich features crumbled burger meat cooked with chopped onion, served on a bun with pickles.
Sioux City, Iowa | Loose meat sandwich | Said to have been created in 1924 at Sioux City’s Ye Olde Tavern and sometimes called a tavern sandwich, the loose meat sandwich features crumbled burger meat cooked with chopped onion, served on a bun with pickles.
Springfield, Illinois | The Horseshoe Sandwich | This open-faced sandwich — consisting of white toast, hamburger patties (originally slices of ham cut into horseshoe shapes), French fries and cheddar cheese sauce — was created by the chef at Springfield's now-defunct Leland Hotel in the late 1920s.
Springfield, Illinois | The Horseshoe Sandwich | This open-faced sandwich — consisting of white toast, hamburger patties (originally slices of ham cut into horseshoe shapes), French fries and cheddar cheese sauce — was created by the chef at Springfield’s now-defunct Leland Hotel in the late 1920s.
Tampa, Florida | Cuban sandwich | This sandwich — made with pork, ham, salami (sometimes), Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard and grilled on crusty Cuban bread — was developed by Cuban cigar factory workers in the Ybor City in the late 1800s.
Tampa, Florida | Cuban sandwich | This sandwich — made with pork, ham, salami (sometimes), Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard and grilled on crusty Cuban bread — was developed by Cuban cigar factory workers in the Ybor City in the late 1800s.
Trenton, New Jersey | Pork roll | Invented by one John Taylor in Trenton in 1856, it was originally dubbed Taylor's Prepared Ham, but because it didn't fit the legal definition of ham, it was renamed John Taylor's Original Pork Roll.
Trenton, New Jersey | Pork roll | Invented by one John Taylor in Trenton in 1856, it was originally dubbed Taylor’s Prepared Ham, but because it didn’t fit the legal definition of ham, it was renamed John Taylor’s Original Pork Roll.
Tucson, Arizona | Sonoran hot dog | Wrapped in bacon and covered with pinto beans and salsa, this hot dog is said to have come into Arizona from Hermosillo, capital of the Mexican state of Sonora.
Tucson, Arizona | Sonoran hot dog | Wrapped in bacon and covered with pinto beans and salsa, this hot dog is said to have come into Arizona from Hermosillo, capital of the Mexican state of Sonora.
Utica, New York | Chicken riggies | No one is quite sure when and where the rigatoni-and-chicken dish was invented, but it first appeared in the late 1970s or early '80s, possibly at Clinton House restaurant in nearby Clinton.
Utica, New York | Chicken riggies | No one is quite sure when and where the rigatoni-and-chicken dish was invented, but it first appeared in the late 1970s or early ’80s, possibly at Clinton House restaurant in nearby Clinton.
Washington D.C. | Half-smokes | Nobody knows how the sausage got its name, but it was first made by a meatpacking plant in Arlington, Virginia, and served for breakfast at that D.C. suburb's Weenie Beenie stand.
Washington D.C. | Half-smokes | Nobody knows how the sausage got its name, but it was first made by a meatpacking plant in Arlington, Virginia, and served for breakfast at that D.C. suburb’s Weenie Beenie stand.
Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Moravian chicken pie | Chicken and gravy in a pie crust has been a staple of the community's church suppers and bake sales there since about 1920.
Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Moravian chicken pie | Chicken and gravy in a pie crust has been a staple of the community’s church suppers and bake sales there since about 1920.

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