We consume an amazingly wide variety of foods, and many of those foods (or their names) have colorful origins. Here we present a sampling of amusing tales about the births of some popular consumables.
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Potato chips resulted from a cook's moment of pique.*
Chop Suey is an American dish.
The term hot dog was coined in the early 1900s by a cartoonist who couldn't spell "dachshund."*
A choice cut of beef taken from the upper hindquarter (i.e., the loin) of a cow is called sirloin because an English king was once so delighted with his meal that he knighted the meat, dubbing it
Pumpernickel bread is so named because a Frenchman derisively declared it was fit only for his horse, Nicol. ("C'est du pain pour Nicol.")*
German chocolate cake comes from Germany.*
Graham crackers were named for a man who believed that unhealthy diets led to sexual excess.
Caesar salad was invented by, or named for, Julius Caesar.
Gatorade was invented by researchers at the University of Florida and named in honor of the Florida Gators, the school's football team.
The "Luther Burger," a bacon cheeseburger served on a Krispy Kreme doughnut bun, is a real food named after R&B singer Luther Vandross.
Fortune cookies come from China.
The French dip sandwich was invented to placate a restaurant patron who complained about stale bread.
Melba toast and peach melba were named for an opera singer.
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