DogHill Kitchen from Food Buzz  put this blog post up yesterday, so I thought about doing it too! This is a list of a hundred foods every omnivore should try and it comes from Andrew Wheeler, co-author of the British food blog Very Good Taste.

In my 21 years in the restaurant biz I have come across quite a few of the items on this list, but I am amazed at the number that I have not set my lips onto, or about 32 of them to be exact. Just to be accurate about some of those on the list I was unsure about I ran a few Google searches to confirm that I have or have not consumed them, such as Nettle Tea and Pho. I have linked a few of the recipes and food items to wiki or other sites for further reference.

It turns out that after a few searches I was determined to find out if I had actually tasted more of them than originally thought. Pho for example I was not sure about, but it turns out that I have had this Vietnamese rice-noodle soup a few times many years ago in New Orleans Oriental restaurants. Carp is another one I was not sure about, and after some quick researches the most notable carps are goldfish and koi, but I have not eaten any of them either! Aloo gobi was another one I could not remember, and it is a combination of potatoes and cauliflower with a dry curry spice, it is a Punjabi preparation, don’t remember having ever eaten it either.

A few other curiosities on this list are Epoisses, from a particular region in France and is a pungent unpasteurized cows-milk cheese, nope, never had that one, I’ve had Limburger, but that is from Germany. Steamed pork buns, nope. Bagna cauda sounds really good, it is an Italian dip made with garlic, anchovies, olive oil, butter, red wine, and sometimes cream and is eaten by dipping in raw vegetables, but nada, never had that either. What about Salted lassi? A North Indian drink from the Punjab region made with yogurt sweetened with honey, salt, and spices and blended until frothy, never had it! Fugu, aka Puffer Fish, no! Prickly pear, aka nopales,  or flat cactus spines, turns out I have eaten these a few times. Umeboshi is dried or pickled fruits and popular in Japan for breakfast or lunch snacks, never had that one either. Paneer is a Persian cheese found in many Eastern Indian cuisine preparations and I have not tasted that one either. Poutine is a French dish similar to cheese fries, but uses fresh cheese curds and brown gravy and other ingredients in variations. I have had cheese fries but I’ve never had this exact preparation! Kaolin, not sure what this is all about,  but my searches turn up a lot of clay and mineral references, so no, never cooked with or eaten this one either. Currywurst sounds great, but never had it either. Louche absinthe, does Pernod count? If so then this one is a yes!  Gjetost another cheese and looks interesting, but nope! Baijiu a Chinese alcoholic beverage, no, but I would like to taste it however. Lapsang souchong  is a Chinese black tea I may have tried but cannot recall. Tom yum turns out is one of those big pots of broth soup that is shared at the table and I have had this at the Vietnamese restaurant in New Orleans a few years ago. Pocky is a popular Japanese snack food, cannot remember ever having that either. Rose harissa are rose petals, and I never remember ever had these in any form.

If you’d like to play along, here are the rules:
1. Copy the list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2. Bold all the items you’ve eaten
3. Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4. Optional extra: post a comment on Very Good Taste, linking to your results.

The Omnivore’s Hundred List

Those I’ve eaten are in bold.
1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile (I’ve had alligator, does that count?)
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. Peanut butter and jelly sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart (Lucky Dog)
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut 
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings or andouillette 
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini 
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong 
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake