4. Deep-Dish Pizza

Chicago’s pizza looks and tastes different. The dish is deep, meaning the crust rises high and allows for a large volume of cheese and tomato sauce. So it’s unsurprised that they call it a pie. It’s not for the lighthearted and should only be tried while wearing a large napkin or dark clothes. For an especially authentic meal, mix the pie with sugary soda. You may like to do this at an Uno Pizzeria, claiming to have invented the Italian American hybrid dish in 1943.

5. Texas Barbecue

While Australians may like to stoke up a barbie on the weekend, Texans live and die by the practice. Mesquite smoked meats and tenderizing rubs are common obsessions, and it is common to go to football games and find people beinging entire ranges to the parking lots worth upwards of five or even ten thousand dollars – a pastime named tailgating.

6. Drop Biscuits and Sausage Gravy

A biscuit in America means a flaky scone usually made with lard and buttermilk. In places like Montana, where people burn energy working on horse ranches, biscuits are used at breakfast smothered in a thick white gravy studded with bits of sausage. It wakes you up in the morning. For a fun twist, try a musical version in Texas, where Biscuits and Groovy offers variously with names such as the Aretha Franklin (with maple bacon, Colby jack cheese).

7. Bagel and Lox

Attempting to narrow New York City down to a single representative cuisine is a fool’s errand. Pastrami from Katz’s? A Nathan’s hot dog? A bad cup of diner coffee? Let’s pay respects to its strong Jewish population and go with bagels and lox, a weekend staple on so many Manhattan tables. Studies have been conducted to work out why the city’s bagel reigns supreme over all others. Whatever the reason, head to Russ and Daughters on the Lower East Side and tell them that you want a selection of smoked fish, cream cheeses, and caviar.