Sundown Town
A "sundown town" is a town where certain groups of people are accepted to work during the day, but not to live there (and sleep there after sundown). The term "sundown town" has…
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Oscar (Academy Award)
The Academy Award was first awarded by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (AMPAS) in 1929. The origin of the name "Oscar" for the Academy Award has long been contested.…
Hello Dolly Squares (Hello Dolly Bars; Hello Dolly Cookies; Hello Dolly Cake; Hello Dollies)
The Broadway musical Hello, Dolly! opened on January 16, 1964, and became one of the longest-running Broadway shows ever. The musical features a restaurant scene. The origin of foods named…
Restaurant (Refectory)
New York City has long had eating places, with the earliest being called "taverns" or "inns." George Thompson (in a post to the American Dialect Society on December 21, 2007)…
Texas Sheath Cake
"Texas sheath cake" is probably the same as "Texas sheet cake" -- a brownie-like cake made on a large baking sheet. "Sheet cake" is cited from the early 1900s;…
“Worst Bar-B-Q in Texas” (Rudy’s Country Store & Bar-B-Q slogan)
Rudy's "Country Store" & Bar-B-Q's untrademarked slogan (not that anyone else will take it) is "Worst Bar-B-Q" in Texas." Some think that Rudy's is…
“Funny Name, Serious Sandwich” & “Just one sandwich…it’s that good!” (Schlotzsky’s slogans)
Schlotzsky's deli began with in south Austin in 1971 with just one sandwich -- "The Original," a version of the famous New Orleans muffuletta sandwich featuring three meats.…
“One from column A, one from column B” (Chinese menu ordering)
American Chinese restaurant menus have long had columns (Column A, Column B, etc.) for ordering food family style. One could choose one item from Column A, two items from Column B, and so forth.…
“Courtesy, Service, Protection” (Texas Department of Public Safety motto)
"Courtesy, Service, Protection" is the motto of the Texas Department of Public Safety. The DPS website states that the DPS was created in 1935, but the motto is cited in print being used…
Alamo City (San Antonio nickname)
The Alamo is the popular national landmark in San Antonio. San Antonio itself was called "the Alamo City" by the mid-1800s. In the 1880s, "Alamo City" showed up in book titles.…
Chinese Hot Dog
The "hot dog" has had many variations, so it was inevitable that Chinese cuisine would come up with a variation. Various recipes appeared in the 1960s (see below), usually with small hot…
“A community bound by books” (BookPeople slogan)
BookPeople is an independently owned bookstore that opened in Austin in 1970. BookPeople claims to be the largest bookstore in Texas, but takes pride in serving the community. "A community…
Comal
The comal (or comalli) is a flat dish or griddle that is popularly used for making tortillas and other foods in Mexican and Tex-Mex cuisines. Comal County in Texas is named after this flat dish.…
Stinkadena (Pasadena nickname)
The city of Pasadena (near Houston, from a Chippewa Indian word meaning "Crown of the Valley") was a small, strawberry-growing community until the 1920s, when petrochemical plants began…
Food for the Gods
"Food for the Gods" is not to be confused with ambrosia ("Food of the Gods"). made of fruits and coconut layers. Foor for the Gods contains dates, walnuts, and cracker crumbs.…
“Keep Georgetown Normal”
Georgetown is a suburb north of the city of Austin, but it's not nearly as quirky as the capital city is. "Keep Georgetown Normal" is a 2005 imitation/parody of the popular slogan…
“Keep Round Rock Mildly Unusual”
Round Rock is a growing suburb of the city of Austin, but it's not nearly as quirky as the capital city is. "Keep Round Rock Mildly Unusual" is a 2006 imitation/parody of the popular…
Texas of Panama (Chiriqui province nickname)
The Chiriqui province on the western coast of Panama has an agricultural economy. Bananas and coffee are grown in Chiriqui, and there are many cattle farms and horse ranches. Chiriqui has been…
Texas of Cuba (Camagüey province nickname)
Camagüey province is a large province in Cuba, with an agricultural economy of primarily cattle and sugar farming. The province is known for its cowboy culture and has been called "the Texas…
Texas of Venezuela (Zulia state nickname)
The state of Zulia in northwest Venezuela has oil, cattle, and mostly conservative politics and has been called the "Texas of Venezuela." The nickname comes from a news story in the April…