American cuisine is diverse and delicious, and for those born and raised in the states, even the wackiest food combinations make perfect sense. Peanut butter and jelly, anyone? However, many people in other countries would rather pass on a number of these beloved staple foods.
Non-Americans also are often baffled by some American food habits, like deep frying everything that can be classified as food, or like the American habit of putting sugar into everything.
After a deep dive on Quora and Reddit, we found the most common U.S. foods that don’t agree with non-American palates.
Root Beer
Love it or hate it, root beer is an American classic that has been around for centuries. But as it turns out, this beloved soft drink just doesn’t tickle non-Americans’ taste buds.
What Non-Americans think of it: “I love soft drinks, but I’ve had cough syrups that tasted better than those things.”- Juliano Oselame
Pop-Tarts
This beloved toaster pastry has been a breakfast staple for American kids (and adults) for generations. But some non-Americans find the sweet, gooey filling and crispy pastry crust of these bad boys a little too much.
What Non-Americans think of it: “The texture of Pop Tarts is weird. It literally tastes like cement at times. Every bite gets more and more weird. Strange part is, these tarts disappear from the vending machine boom, boom boom!” – David Fantuzzo
Buffalo wings
While Americans love this bar food staple, the idea of slathering chicken in hot sauce and blue cheese dressing can be a bit daunting for folks from other parts of the world.
What Non-Americans think of it: “An American friend wanted me to try them in a restaurant known for its –and I quote- ‘mind blowing buffalo wings.’ When I first smelled it, I was strongly disgusted. When I tried it, it almost made me sick. I was able to eat one single very small bite, which made me feel nauseous for a couple hours.
I sincerely don’t understand how somebody can eat those and enjoy it.” – Lisa Dutour
Hershey’s Chocolate
A Hershey’s bar is a comfort food that brings back childhood memories for a lot of Americans. But the taste of Hershey’s seemingly doesn’t agree with everyone’s taste buds.
What Non-Americans think of it: “I genuinely thought it was rancid and spoilt, until i tasted another, and it was the same, I have no idea how people can routinely buy it, i would rather have nothing than hersheys chocolate.” – Sir_Fancy_Pants
“Hershey’s is not amazing, it’s one of the poorest excuses of chocolate I’ve ever tried.” – kjerstih
American bread
Apparently, bread with high fructose corn syrup is not a thing in the rest of the world.
What Non-Americans think of it: ” Went to get white bread, it was sweet. Went to get wholemeal loaf, it was sweet. Seriously, is everything in America loaded with unnecessary sugar?” – jubileo5
Marshmallow-Topped Sweet Potato Casserole
A staple at American Thanksgiving dinners, marshmallow-topped sweet potato casserole is a true mash-up of sweet and savory flavors, but it is not the best experience for some non-Americans.
What Non-Americans think of it: “Tried it once, made me gag, and even the thought of it now makes me nauseous.” –Kuzma Kremen
“As a non-American, marshmallow-covered yams sound nasty. Why would you take something already sweet, put sugar on top, and cover it with sweet marshmallows?” – lassidoggy
“This vegetable is supposed to be savory. Just WHY?” —u/milkandnosugar
Biscuits and Gravy
As it happens, non-Americans find the concept of smothering a fluffy, buttery biscuit in a sausage gravy a bit off-putting.
What Non-Americans think of it: “Don’t get me wrong, I love America… But who the *bleep* decided to one day drown poor and unsuspecting biscuits in half a pint of creamy, sausage gravy? How did these two seemingly uncorrelated food items converge to form this hybrid monstrosity?”- Karla Poleski
Deep Fried Oreos
Non-Americans are not huge fans of this sugary fair favorite. At all.
What Non-Americans think of it: ” People often joke that americans will deep-fry anything, but it seems to be true. It does not taste good AT ALL. And I love Oreos” –
Aerosol cheese
Well, in all honesty, cheese in a can may not be the pinnacle of American culinary achievements, but it sure has become a memorable part of the food culture.
What Non-Americans think of it: ” Unanimously, Cheez Whiz, Easy Cheese, Velveeta, and American cheese in general. That is not cheese. That is [censored] in a can.” – Irene Rivera
Corn Dogs
The idea of a hot dog coated in cornmeal batter and deep fried on a stick may sound like the perfect snack to a lot of Americans, but for people from other parts of the world …
What Non-Americans think of it:
“For some reason I thought they would be sweet. When I hit the sausage I nearly vomited.”- Deirdre Beecher
“I’m yet to find any food in any local cuisine which would be more disgusting than that.” – Ivan Cherevko
“Corn dogs, because, seriously, why would you eat that?” – Brenda Mathovani
Ranch dressing
From dipping pizza crusts to drizzling over salads, ranch dressing is the quintessential American dressing. However, some non-Americans find the tangy, herbaceous dressing overpowering.
What Non-Americans think of it: “Why don’t you people want to taste the actual salad you’re eating?” –tigersmadeofpaper
Grits
Grits are another Southern comfort food that has been a staple in American cuisine for centuries, but for non-Americans, the concept of a savory porridge made from ground corn can sound unappetizing (but they’ll eat polenta no problem. Makes no sense).What Non-Americans think of it: “I had grits for breakfast — WHY ARE YOU EATING TINY ROCKS? And after looking at pictures, even tiny rocks looks tastier than that. Blergh.” – Esoterria
Corn on the cob
A summer staple in America, with the sweet, juicy kernels being the perfect addition to any backyard barbecue is apparently not a big hit in other countries.
What Non-Americans think of it: “I lived in Paris for one year. The French are dumb-struck, at the thought that Americans eat corn on the cob. In Europe, corn is generally considered to be animal food.” –Charles Edward Martin
This article was produced and syndicated by MediaFeed.