Armadillo Eggs (stuffed jalapeños)
"Armadillo eggs" are jalapeño peppers stuffed with cheese. Armadillos don't lay eggs. It's not known who coined the name. 15 August 1992, San Francisco (CA) Chronicle, pg.…
Chicken Fried Steak (CFS); Country Fried Steak
Chicken fried steak (CFS) is one of the most popular dishes in Texas. It contains no chicken. The exact origins of the dish (sometimes called "country fried steak") are unclear.…
“National Drink of Texas” (Dr. Pepper)
Dr. Pepper (a soft drink) is sometimes humorously called "the national drink of Texas." Dr. Pepper has called itself "the world's oldest major soft drink" and "the…
Texas Caviar (black-eyed peas)
"Texas caviar" is the name for pickled black-eyed peas. Helen Corbitt helped to popularize the dish, but she didn't invent the name. The dish is sometimes called "Cowboy…
Singapore Chili Crab Festival
The Singapore Chili Crab Festival began in 2004. http://www.tigerbeer.us/newyork/history.php#Sunday,August 6th, Tiger Beer is proud to present the 3rd Annual Tiger Beer Singapore Chili Crab…
Son-of-a-Bitch Stew (Son-of-a-Gun Stew)
"Son-of-a-bitch stew" (or the more politely titled "son-of-a-gun stew") is a cowboy stew with a little bit of everything in it. In the closing years of the range (by the early…
Brazilian Film Festival
The Brazilian Film Festival is an annual event that began in 2003. http://www.brazilianfilmfestival.com/2006/scripts_eng/home.asp4th Brazilian Film Festivalof New YorkAugust 06 to 13The Brazilian…
Tex-Mex (cuisine)
"Tex-Mex" (never "Mex-Tex") became popular in the 1960s as the name of a cuisine. (Oxford English Dictionary)Tex-Mex, a. and n.Also Texmex. A Texan style of cooking using…
Diamond Horseshoe (Metropolitan Opera House ring of seats; Billy Rose nightclub)
The "Golden Horseshoe" -- sometimes called "Diamond Horseshoe" -- was the ring of seats for the rich patrons of the Metropolitan Opera House, at Broadway and 39th Street. The…
Oysters Rockefeller
"Oysters Rockefeller" (also called "Huitres en Coquille a la Rockefeller" and "Huitres, a la Rockefeller" was invented at Antoine's Restaurant in New Orleans,…
New York Game (baseball, under the Knickerbocker rules)
The "New York game" referred to baseball under the Knickerbocker rules of 1845. This was the birth of modern baseball, in comparison to the "town ball" then played in New…
“Chocolate by the Bald Man” (Max Brenner)
Max Brenner is a bald man who makes chocolates. "Chocolate by the Bald Man" began in Israel; in 2006, a shop opened near Union Square in Manhattan. Max Brenner's is not the…
German Chocolate Cake
"German chocolate cake" is from Texas? The story is familiar to food historians. The cake's name is from German's chocolate, a chocolate named after Sam German. A Texas…
Bucktown (Brownsville, Brooklyn or the borough of Brooklyn)
"Bucktown" is a hip-hop term for Brownsville, Brooklyn or the entire borough of Brooklyn. Maybe Brownsville receives lots of "buckshot." Urban Dictionary bucktownBrooklyn, NYC.…
BX (Bronx)
"BX" has long meant "the Bronx," but the hip-hop popularity of the term dates from the mid-late 1990s. "BK" has been used for Brooklyn. Urban Dictionarybxshort for the…
BK (Brooklyn)
"BK" is a recent abbreviation for "Brooklyn." It's become popular since 2000, when Burger King began its "BK" campaign (trademarked from July 31, 2000).…
Brooknam (Brooklyn + Vietnam)
Brooknam (Brooklyn + Vietnam) has been a hip-hop nickname for rough and tumble Brooklyn since 1997-98. Brooklyn has been gentrified in the 2000s, however; the nickname doesn't really fit and…
New York Run by the Swiss (summary)
Peter Ustinov called Toronto "New York run by the Swiss" in 1987. He meant that Toronto is a big city (like New York City), but that it's cleaner and more efficient (as if run by the…
Queens Topographical Poem
A Queens topographical poem -- written in 1926 by Ellis Parker Butler -- attempted to easily explain the new street numbering. 3 December 1926, New York Times, pg. 8:VERSE AFFORDS MEANSTO GET ABOUT…
Lone Star State (Texas nickname)
Texas is called the "Lone Star State" from the single star in its flag. “Why is Texas called the Lone Star State?"/"It’s their Yelp rating" is a modern joke. Wikipedia:…