Beergasm (beer + orgasm)
"Beergasm" is a portmanteau of the words "beer" and "orgasm." "How do you describe the sensations of an ice cold beer drunk under the conditions in which I found…
New York City
Beerita (beer + margarita)
A "beerita" (beer + margarita) is a drink composed of beer, tequila, and lime juice or limeade or lemonade. "Beerita" appears to have been cited in print in 2005, but was…
Beertail (beer + cocktail)
A "beertail" (beer + cocktail) is any cocktail that contains beer. Beertail recipes vary widely. Miller Brewing Company popularized the term with its "Beertails and More"…
Beertini (beer + martini)
A boilermaker is a beer cocktail of a glass of beer and a shot of whiskey. A beertini (beer + martini) is any beer drink that resembles a cocktail. Beer poured into a martini cocktail glass and…
Beervana (Portland nickname)
"Beervana" (beer + nirvana) is a nickname for the city of Portland, where brew-pubs are almost everywhere. Portland's craft beer movement started in the 1980s and the…
Begathon (Beg-athon; “beg” + “telethon”)
Marvin Kitman is a longtime Newsday television critic who has often appeared on New York area television. I wrote to him several years ago, and he told me that he coined the term…
Beirut or Bar Ridge (Bay Ridge)
Bay Ridge, Brooklyn has had two nicknames in recent years, both playing with its official name. Bay Ridge has been called "Bar Ridge" because of its many bars on Third Avenue and Fifth…
BelDel (Below Delancey, or “Belancey”)
"BelDel" is a recent Manhattan neighborhood nickname for "Below Delancey" (or, "Belancey"). Not everyone likes this one.…
Belgian Waffle
An issue of Saveur, June/July 2004, pp. 31-32, credits the 1964-65 New York World's Fair for the "Belgian Waffle." The Belgian waffle was mentioned in the United States slightly…
Bell of the Unforgotten
The "Bell of the Unforgotten" was put in place on October 16, 2005 to commemorate the unnamed victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center. The bell is supposed to…
Bellbottom (9 West 57th Street)
The tower at 9 West 57th Street in Manhattan has been called the "bellbottom." The building slopes (like a ski jump) at the bottom. http://www.thecityreview.com/57w9.html9 WEST 57TH…
Belly Bomb or Belly Bomber (White Castle hamburger nickname)
White Castle's hamburgers have been unofficially called "belly bombers" (or "belly bombs") since at least 1982 because of what the hamburgers supposedly do to the human…
Belly-up
kkEntry in progress -- B.P. Merriam-Webster DictionaryMain Entry: bel·ly–up Pronunciation: \-ˈəp\ Function: adjective Etymology: from the floating position of a dead fish Date: 1939 :…
Belmont Breeze (former official drink of the Belmont Stakes)
The Belmont Breeze was the official drink of the Belmont Stakes, the third leg of racing's triple crown that takes place each June in Belmont Park. The drink -- Belmont's equivalent to…
Belmont Jewel (official drink of the Belmont Stakes)
The "Belmont Jewel" became the official drink of the Belmont Stakes in 2011. The drink contains bourbon, lemonade and pomegranate juice and is garnished with a lemon wedge or a cherry.…
Belmont Park (cocktail)
A "Belmont Park" cocktail recipe appears in the book Americana: Eight Cocktail Napkins, Hand Blocked, with Recipes and the Histories of Eight Famous Drinks (1925?). The recipe contains…
Beltbuster (1/2 pound hamburger)
Texas Dairy Queens have offered a "beltbuster" sandwich since 1971. It appears that Chicago-area restaurants offered a "belt buster" sandwich from 1969. Bob's BBQ &…
Beltway (“Inside the Beltway,” Beltway Insider)
Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway) is a 64-mile Interstate Highway that encircles Washington, DC, that was finished in 1964. The terms "iinside the Beltway" and "outside the…
Beltway Bandit
Washington, DC, is encircled by Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway). Many government workers retire on a pension and then set up consulting firms along the Beltway. These highly paid individuals --…
Beltwaytarian
Washington, DC, is surrounded by a highway called the Capital Beltway (Interstate 495). Someone who is "inside the Beltway" is a Washington (or federal government) insider; someone…