More U.S. Regional Foods You Might Not Know About

Now that we've got you drooling over Polish boys and thirsty for coffee milk, we're back with even more U.S. regional food specialties. From the molten cheese laden horseshoe sandwich to Spam rolls, you'll surely want to check out these unique eats during your travels.









Hot Brown, Kentucky

Wondering what to serve at your next Derby party? Consider the Kentucky hot brown (above)--a hot, open-faced turkey and bacon sandwich smothered in cheesy Mornay sauce. As the story goes, the dish was invented in the 1920's at the Brown Hotel in Louisville. In order to satisfy the late night hunger of the dancers who had grown tired of the usual ham and eggs, the hotel chef concocted the hot brown and a local tradition was born.


nickgraywfu, flickr

Beef on Weck, New York

While the Buffalo wing is one of America's most famous regional foods, Buffalo has another trick up its sleeve: the beef on weck. This meaty sandwich consists of thin sliced roast beef with jus and horseradish nestled in a kummelweck roll. Unique to the Buffalo area, the kummelweck is similar to the Kaiser roll and is topped with pretzel salt and caraway seeds. It's said that a German baker named William Wahr brought the kummelweck recipe from the Black Forest region of Germany. Local pub owners are credited with adding the meat, hoping a sandwich on the salty Kummelweck would make patrons thirsty. Fun fact: Buffalo Wild Wings was originally named Buffalo Wild Wings and Weck.


Ryan Harvey, flickr

Horseshoe Sandwich, Illinois

Not a meal for the faint of heart, Springfield, Illinois' horseshoe sandwich packs a diet busting punch. The dish starts like many-a-sandwich, with thick sliced toast. It's then topped open-face style with meat (often hamburger), piled high with French fries and drenched in creamy cheese sauce. Invented in the 1920's at the Leland Hotel, the horseshoe is so named because of the horseshoe shaped cut of ham used in the original sandwich coupled with potato wedges representing nails.


dane brian, flickr

Jibarito, Illinois

Introduced to the Chicago food scene in the 1990's, the jibarito is the most recent creation on our list. Though its roots are Puerto Rican, the Borinquen Restaurant in Chicago's Humboldt Park is credited with originating the dish. A sandwich, the jibarito consists of seasoned steak, lettuce, tomato, grilled onions cheese and mayo. But, what sets the jibarito apart is its use of thin-sliced fried green plantains (spread with garlic sauce) in lieu of bread.


rayb777, flickr

Loose Meat Sandwich, Iowa

Not a hamburger, and not quite a sloppy joe, this beefy sandwich is an Iowan staple. Some say the sandwich was created at Ye Olde Tavern in Sioux City, Iowa, while others give the honor to the Maid Rite sandwich of Muscatine, Iowa. In this simple sandwich, steamed or sautéed ground beef is mixed with spices and onions and served on a bun with pickles and mustard.


lookslikeamy, flickr

Spam Musubi, Hawaii

Spam is a widely popular food in Hawaii, having been introduced to the islands by soldiers during World War II. Combine that with Hawaiian cuisine's Japanese influences and you get SPAM musubi. Resembling Japanese onigiri, a sort of pressed rice ball, SPAM musubi is made by pressing rice into a square, topping it with a slice of seared SPAM and sealing it with seaweed. Fried egg and/or teriyaki sauce is sometimes added. Prevalent across the Hawaiian islands, this delicacy fan be found everywhere from restaurants to 7-11 stores.

For the first half of our list, see U.S. Regional Foods You Might Not Know About