Re: Chipotle?
 

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Ah ok, and what do people generally prefer? Taco Bell or Chipotle?

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Chipotle is clearly the higher "quality" food, as it is made with fresher ingredients, and it's a bit more expensive.

Taco Bell is cheap, greasy food, but sometimes you gotta have some cheap, greasy food.

Re: Chipotle?
 

You can definitely taste the cheap in every bite.

Re: Explain these foods to me.
 

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since you are from the UK, explain these foods to me:

1. eels
2. meat puddings
3. why do you call french fries chips

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1. Only old people eat eels, i live right next to the river where they catch them all. Eels as i'm sure you know, are slimy fish which look a bit like snakes, i can't comment on what they taste like, as like i said, only old people eat them. They look rather horrible to me. I think you eat them in pies, but they're quite rare now.

2. Meat Puddings. By this i assume you mean Suet Pudding, or Spotted Dick. I can't really comment on this either because no one eats this any more either. Well maybe old people again. Suet is raw beef fat, so i doubt it tastes very meaty anyway. So contrary to american belief, we don't order a meat pudding after a main course or anything.

Both the eels and the suet pudding are kinda 19th Century foods, for more information, read Charles Dickens.

3. French Fries/Chips - Why do you all call them french fries? They're not french, they're belgian. And the things you call chips, are actually crisps. Chips are thick chunks of potato cooked in animal fat. French Fries are poor imitations. The only places you can get 'french fries' in the UK is McDonalds and Burger King and everyone always turns them down when asked if they'd like them with their meal.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/images/rec...ps_300x193.jpg
Chips

http://elt.britcoun.org.pl/ffoto/crisps.jpg
Crisps

http://www.displayit-info.com/food/i...tfood/5510.JPG
'French' Fries

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Eel is delicious.

Re: Explain these foods to me.
 

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Thankyou samjjones, i can rest easy at night now.

Hmm, the US doesn't really strike me as a very touristy destination to be honest. But you all seem to rate these foods rather highly, so maybe i will have to come visit as an educational excursion.

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none of these things are worth visiting the US for, and there are plenty more reasons to stay out.

Re: Explain these foods to me.
 

what about bangers and mash?

Re: Explain these foods to me.
 

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Inspired by the Grapenuts post, and me not knowing what they were. Please could some americans explain to me

a) What a twinky is?

b) What Egg Nogg is?

and

c) What Taco Bell is?

We get none of these in the UK. Are we a deprived nation because of this, or are we better off without them?

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Others have answered your actual questions, but I'll give opinions on them.

There is no reason for you to try a twinkie. If you come across one, try it if you must, but not worth seeking out in any way, shape or form.

As for Egg Nog, there are recipes on the Internet -- and all the ingredients are at your disposal. Be forewarned that true, "homemade" egg nog is truly different than the faux gunk we buy in cartons near Christmas time -- which is what most posters here are probably writing about. This stuff is a thick vanilla-tasting milk drink with a bit of nutmeg spice and rum-flavoring.

Taco Bell is not worth a further thought from you ever. It is essentially extremely cheap ingredients and "stretchers" combined to somewhat resemble mexican food. (What I mean by "stretchers" is that their beef is not 100% beef -- there is grain meal used as a stretcher. Their cheese barely qualifies as cheese, etc.) The food is fodder for the younger as many items are very, very inexpensive. You can surely find better examples of mexican food even in the UK than this.

Re: Explain these foods to me.
 

Agreed on all counts.

And I'd especially agree that you shouldn't judge egg nog by the super-sweet, cloying crap you get out of the cartons at the supermarket. That stuff is pretty nasty. Any half-competent home-made stuff is way better than that. It's great when it has a good kick of booze in it. But super dangerous, because it's super rich, so it's not all that easy to taste the booze. Ye kin git likkered up on it afore ya knows it.

Re: Explain these foods to me.
 

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what about bangers and mash?

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What I was just thinking...this stuff is good.