Feast of San Gennaro
The Feast of San Gennaro is probably the worst time to visit Little Italy, but nobody asks me. It's been held on Mulberry Street since September 1926 and is one of New York's most…
Febrewary (February + brew)
Some people put the "brew" in "February" and spell it "febrewary." "October is the great time for brewing ale, we believe, but we should have thought…
Femivore
Peggy Orenstein wrote "The Femivore's Delemma" for the New York (NY) Times Sunday Magazine of March 14, 2010. A "femivore" is a feminist farmer -- and not someone who eats…
Fermentastic (ferment + fantastic)
"Fermentastic" (ferment + fantastic) is a term that celebrates the "fantastic" process of fermentation. "Fermentastic" was cited once in print in 2008, and then…
Fetashist (feta + fetishist)
There is no feta (a Greek cheese) in the words "fetish" or "fetishist," but there are jokes. "Fetashist" (feta + fetishist) is a jocular portmanteau word.…
Fettuccine Alfredo
Fettuccine (a pasta dish with Parmesan cheese, butter and cream) had been served at Italian restaurants in the 1800s, but Alfredo di Lelio's restaurant Alfredo on the Via della Scrofa in Rome…
FHB (Family Hold Back); MIK (More In the Kitchen)
The initials "FHB" stand for "family hold back." When guests (especially unexpected guests) were served dinner and there was not enough food to go around, the family members…
Field-to-Fork
"Field-to-fork" is a popular food industry expression, referring to the entire process from when food is made ("field") to when food is consumed ("fork"). The term…
Fifth Taste or Fifth Flavor (umami)
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wikipedia: TasteTaste (or, more formally, gustation) is a form of direct chemoreception and is one of the traditional five senses. It refers to the ability to detect the…
Filet Minion (filet mignon + minion)
"Filet mignon" should not be confused with "filet minion" (Minions are fictional characters that appear in the Despicable Me franchise), but there are jokes. "Filet…
Filet Minyan (filet mignon + minyan)
Filet mignon (a cut of steak) has nothing to do with a minyan (a quorum of ten Jewish adults required for certain religious obligations), but there are jokes. "FILET MINYAN WITH MUSHROOM…
Finger Food
"Finger food" (or "finger foods") are foods that are eaten with fingers rather than with a fork or a spoon. The "finger" foods usually contain meat and/or vegetables;…
Finger Steak
"Finger steaks" are a popular Idaho dish. The finger steaks are similar to chicken fingers, and are strips of steak that are battered and deep fried. Finger steaks were invented at the…
Firecracker Applesauce
"Firecracker Applesauce" is a dish that was created by celebrity chef David Burke for the Maloney & Porcelli restaurant in Manhattan in 1996. "Crackling Pork Shank with Fire…
Firemelon (fire + melon; jocular formation after “watermelon”)
Watermelon exists, so many people think there should be firemelon, earthmelon and airmelon (water-fire-earth-air + melon), all called the "elemelons" (elements + melons). "The…
First Lady (spare ribs)
"First lady" was lunch counter slang for "spare ribs." In the biblical story of Adam (the first man) and Eve (the first woman), Eve was created from Adam's spare rib.…
Fish Eyes or Fisheyes (tapioca nickname)
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wikipedia: TapiocaTapioca (Portuguese pronunciation: [tɐpiˈɔkɐ]) is a starch extracted from cassava root (Manihot esculenta). This species is native to the North…
Five-Second Rule (for food dropped on the floor)
A "five-second rule" (sometimes given as a "three-second rule") holds that if you pick up food within five seconds of it falling to the floor, that food is still safe to eat.…
Fivek (“fork” with five prongs/tines)
"Fork" does not have the number "four" in it, but some people believe that a "fork" with three prongs/tines should be called a "threek." It then follows that…
Flagel (Flat Bagel, or Flat)
The "flagel" (FLAY-gel) -- also called a "flat bagel," "bagel flat" and "flat" -- appears to have been invented in Long Island or New York City in the 1980s…