The United States of America is often referred to as a giant melting pot - but when it comes to regional cuisine throughout the United States, nothing could be further from the truth. From New England to San Francisco, from Dallas to New York, there are regional specialties that are inextricably associated with a particular city, a specific state, even a neighborhood - foods and cuisines that are so much a part of the culture of one little area of the nation. Just the mention of one quickly brings a thought of the other.
If you take a drive down the Atlantic seacoast starting in Maine and concluding in Florida, what will unfold before your eyes is a delicious map, dotted with seafood delicacies, spiced with the culture of those who settled the region. In Maine, the seafood is stick-to-your-ribs no-nonsense. There's nothing simpler, or more satisfying than a steaming pot full of Maine lobsters. Littlenecks, cherrystones or mussels, steamed in beer and dipped in pure creamery butter, is a treat fit for those who understand that serving food au natural allows the flavor to stand on its very own. New England is famous for its "plain cooking;" clam chowder, baked beans, New England boiled dinners and famous Yankee Pot Roast are all dishes that simply aren't the same anywhere else in the country.
However, seafood is just the beginning. Everyone is well aware that the only place to get a cheese steak is in Philly, a bagel and lox in NYC, and Chicago does the best ribs in the world. You can't leave New England without trying the salt- water taffy or travel through Vermont without picking up a keg of maple syrup. No trip to Georgia would be complete without a slice of pecan pie, and if you think you're going to find real chili anywhere outside of Texas, well, Texans will tell you different.
For some, regional cuisine is a matter of the culture. In New Mexico, the blending of Native American and Spanish foods gives us blue corn tortillas with salsa, along with a mingling of piquant flavors sparked with native herbs and spices. Many Pennsylvania favorites have grown from Pennsylvania Dutch roots, such as shoofly pie and apple pandowdy, which have graced many a hausfrau's table back in the old days. In Louisiana, the influence of the Caribbean and African cultures shine through in dishes such as gumbo and blackened swordfish, both of which are mouth-searingly delicious.
Even within regions there are smaller pockets that are bastions of regional cooking. On opposite sides of the country, both San Francisco and New York City are famous for Chinese food. This is in large part due to their heavy immigrant populations. Boston's North End is a feast for any lover of Italian food, but is renowned throughout the United States especially for its Italian pastries.
Like its people, the cuisine of the United States is a mélange drawn from other nations and other cultures. From coast to coast and border to border, each region has its own specialties and delicacies. There exists no true 'U.S. cuisine'. Instead, each region, state, city and neighborhood has its own unique style and flavor, drawn from the people who settled there and first called it home.