Regional Traditions

[tvguy]

Also "toasted ravioli" which is actually deep fried.

Not sure of the origins of toasted ravioli but we have a restaurant here....Club Pheasant.....that has been in operation for 78 years and serves it, and apparently has since day one. Same family has owned it the entire time.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Follow up question...what is Vernors?

Ginger Ale

 

[mom2cookies]

Isn't anyone else from PHilly? Apparently we say " would-er " for water. We have hoagies not subs or what ever else they are called. They are made with a long soft Amoroso roll, mayonnaise or oil, deli meats and cheeses, lettuce, onion, pickles, tomatoes. you name it...
Our soft pretzels are shaped like an 8 not a rounded heart.
To us a steak sandwhich is made of shaved steak, grilled onions, green peppers on a long soft Amoroso roll.

a side note: my DS plays a game on his xbox with other players. And they insist he is from Austraila.. that philly accent sneaks in some how. lol

 

[Jaya]

Follow up question...what is Vernors?

Ginger ale on steroids. The only thing I've found that's stronger is Blenheim Ginger Ale that I find in North Carolina. I can drink the milder version of Blenheim but the "spicy" version about burns my taste buds off.

 

[maxaroni]

Both my dh and I grew up in north jersey and we now live in central jersey. Ds is in south jersey near philly. Lots of differences here

Sprinkles versus jimmies
subs versus hoagies
jetsor giants versus eagles
mets or yankees versus phillies

My ds loves to argue with his gf about some of the differences in language. We have to get used to since he is probably going to be living down there when he graduates from grad school.

He and his gf solved the baseball problem by going to a phillies/met and she wore a phillies hat when she came with us to DW.

DH and I born and raised in north jersey as well. Currently living in south jersey it is like 2 different states.

They still are sprinkles!
Taylor ham vs pork roll
Down the shore vs to the beach
Bagels vs begels
A phillies mets game is a must phillies Yankees even better if you can get tkts for inter league play.
Circles are long gone in north Jersry. Finally getting rid of them down here

 

[North of Mouse]

Louisiana is sort of split into (like someone mentioned IL) as north LA and south LA. People are totally different, especially in foods.

In south LA, we say, we're *fixin* to do something.

We're cooking up a *mess* of beans, greens,etc.

When guests come, we say, "Y'all get down and come in". Then the first thing after they come in the house, we say, "I'll put on a pot of coffee". When they are *fixin* to leave we say *Y'all don't have to hurry off", no matter how long they've been there!

When someone was sick, we'd say, so and so is looking a little *peak-ed* today.

 

[A_Princess'_Daddy]

Also "toasted ravioli" which is actually deep fried.

Love toasted ravioli! We actually had them in New England, but only out at restaurants. When we moved to Iowa we were pleased to discover that most of the grocery stores appear to dedicate around two entire sections of freezer case to the genre!

 

[maxaroni]

Pizza is just "pizza". We don't say "cheese pizza". That would be similar to saying a "cheeseburger with cheese".
I order pizza last night..."one large pie, please"

Bagels aren't toasted unless they are a day old.

Coffee is served with milk or half and half. You never hear the term "cream" with your coffee.

I am 40 years old and I've never been to a high school sporting event!

Manhattan is referred to as "the city". Where do you work? "the city" Where are you going on saturday? "the city"

We drive in the left lane. It is not just for passing.

Not everyone says "Lawnnng Guyland"!

Yup, NYC is the city....from North jersey. Now in south jersey and referred to Philly as the city and was looked at.

 

[BearcatsFan]

Just like we call the Florida Panhandle "L.A." (Lower Alabama).

We call Ohio "North Florida".

 

[Turn the Page]

I actually found southerners as a group to be more rude than northerners. Northerners are more direct but southerners tend to be very rude behind your back. I guess it's not considered rude if you insult someone behind their back.

Also, I found southern people to be very touchy. They are really easy to tick off and when you do tick them off an astonishing number of them were ready to go out in the parking lot and fight. I have even seen little old ladies threaten it. That is mind boggling to me.

While a lot of people in the south claim to be proud of their heritage and their southern roots I found a shocking number of people know absolutely nothing about the history of the area they grew up in. I once got in a full on debate with a guy who had lived in Kentucky his entire life and kept insisting that Kentucky was a member of the Confederacy. Ummmmm.....no. It was a border state and while occupied by the Confederate army for some time the state never actually seceeded from the Union. Speaking of the Civil War some people still refer to it as the War of Northern Aggression and claim it isn't over yet.

 

[jjarman]

Thought of a few more from the south.


We wave...at everybody.

Y'all is singular for the most part. All y'all is acceptable for a group.

Subs and hoagies are Poboys down here.

High school football is big but if you live in a college town football begins on Thursday, getting the food ready for tailgating. Friday you set the camper up. Saturday, no matter what time the game starts tailgating starts early. Depending on where you are the setup can be just a pickup or a camper or tables with linen and candelabras.

 

[laurafergie]

God bless Blue Bell!

My DS who just moved to GA, called me special from the grocery store to tell me there is BLUE BELL in Athens, GA!!!! (We're Okie transplants)

Which brings me to:

In VA, you do not go food shopping, you go grocery shopping.

Tea is sweet.

Coffee is always served with cream, even if it is milk.

Bless your heart is not ALWAYS "sweet rude".

Men in particular out in the country tend to have a softer, slower, not so twangy accent than deeper in the south.

In my particular area, folks get excited when it is oyster season, and also for soft shell crab sandwiches and shad roe.

Folks are quite "cliquey" here. Who are your people? And where are they from? Though everyone is friendly and polite.

 

[WowLookAtThat]

Sweet tea, it is the house wine.

From S. California and never had sweet tea so when I went to Georgia for a month I tried some. At the first sip I was like "Too sweet!" by the third gulp I was on my way to ordering another one.

I do know from S. Cal we say the "the" 405 or "the" 91 to describe the freeways. So if you were going to Disneyland I would say "Go on the 91 south to get to the 5."

 

[Colleen27]

so what exactly is a boston cooler?

Vernors and ice cream, blended so that it is smooth like a shake. Dairy Queen serves them but IMO they just aren't right with soft serve; they should only be made with real Vernors (not other ginger ales, which taste different) and hand-scooped vanilla ice cream. My mom worked at Sanders (another Detroit thing, the BEST ice cream shop ever) when she was in high school/college and learned to make perfect Boston coolers... a skill my friends really appreciated when I was a kid.

 

[Colleen27]

Coney Dogs!!! How could I forget Detroit Coney Dogs? Lafayette Coney Island or American Coney Island? Tough little dogs with "grey" sauce -- no red sauce....huh-uh! Both were on Lafayette Street when I worked at the Detroit News in the 70's. The agreement was that we ALL had to have coney dogs or NOBODY could have coney dogs......because you could NOT get them without onion....no sir...no way. And don't even ask for ketchup. Mustard only and it wasn't optional. This wasn't Burger King....you got it THEIR way or you didn't get it at all.

They're both still there. I prefer Lafayette personally... no printed menu, just the board above the counter, and the pop comes in cans. Old school and still worth the trip any time we're downtown.

 

[MichelleinMaine]

Maine- we have some of the Boston things (jimmies, Sweet Caroline, wicked as an adverb- wicked good, wicked cold, wicked sharp... count me in the club of never having anyone say wicked pissah.)

We don't say bubblers (water fountain) or packies (package store=liquor store).

Our sandwiches are Italians (ham/salami, cheese, tomatoes, green peppers, olives, onions, pickles, salt, pepper and oil on a long soft roll.) Italians do not have lettuce and certainly don't have mayonaise or mustard or anything like that.

We have a festival for clams. (Ok one for lobsters too, but clam fest is my local one.)

 

[BearcatsFan]

Just finished reading through, and with all the talk of coneys, I have to add that we in Cincinnati eat coneys, also. Made from the same "Cincinnati-style" chili, it's a soft hot dog bun, preferably steamed, with a hot dog, mustard, onion, chili, and shredded cheddar cheese on top. That's how we eat a coney. Or you can have a "phony-coney", also called a chili-cheese sandwich, which is basically a coney without the hot dog.

We also serve that same chili over fries or sometimes even baked potatoes. We love our chili here.

For others talking about coneys, what is "grey" sauce or "red" sauce?

 

[twinboysmom]

I actually found southerners as a group to be more rude than northerners. Northerners are more direct but southerners tend to be very rude behind your back. I guess it's not considered rude if you insult someone behind their back.

Also, I found southern people to be very touchy. They are really easy to tick off and when you do tick them off an astonishing number of them were ready to go out in the parking lot and fight. I have even seen little old ladies threaten it. That is mind boggling to me.

While a lot of people in the south claim to be proud of their heritage and their southern roots I found a shocking number of people know absolutely nothing about the history of the area they grew up in. I once got in a full on debate with a guy who had lived in Kentucky his entire life and kept insisting that Kentucky was a member of the Confederacy. Ummmmm.....no. It was a border state and while occupied by the Confederate army for some time the state never actually seceeded from the Union. Speaking of the Civil War some people still refer to it as the War of Northern Aggression and claim it isn't over yet.

Not sure why you felt the need to attack an entire region and it's residents. That to me is rude. This is a lighthearted thread about cultures and traditions specific to a region. No reason to be so condescending. Btw, all four adults in this house are mighty proud of our southern history but know the role Kentucky played in the civil war. There are plenty of people in the south that are very knowledgeable about history.

 

[christineann]

twinboysmom

FWIW, folks around here call it "The War of Northern Aggression" or "The Unpleasantness" as a joke and to get our neighbors to the north riled up as a joke.

 

[design_mom]

Not sure why you felt the need to attack an entire region and it's residents. That to me is rude.

I agree with you but there have been a number of posters on this thread claiming that things like "good manners" and "friendliness" are southern things, while claiming that northerners (NY/NJ has been called out specifically) are rude, cold, unfriendly, unhelpful, etc.

In truth, there are polite and impolite people from all areas..."the south" certainly doesn't have a monopoly on good manners. (And it seems tasteless to joke about civil war. What a horrible part of our nation's history.)