#food-culture

#food-culture

In Italy, food is never just food. It's memory, identity and, sometimes, a full-blown argument. This season, we explore how the past continues to shape the present, one region and one extraordinary meal at a time.

The first type of American: people who joyride the day's updrafts like marvelous, glossy crows. They easily recall the locations of treats encountered over their lifetime. They answer this question Glock-shot fast, as if they have been waiting to be asked it. They are happy.

In 1924, Lionel Sternberger, at just 16 years old, first put cheese on a hamburger and served it to a customer at the Rite Spot in Pasadena. This simple act changed the course of American food history, leading to the creation of the cheeseburger, a dish that billions of people have enjoyed since.

Americans celebrate pizza every day, consuming approximately three billion pizzas annually, averaging three pizzas per person each month, which equates to about eight slices.

Rosa Parks' pancake recipe, featuring peanut butter, showcases a unique twist on traditional pancakes, emphasizing the importance of food in the Civil Rights Movement.

Food has been used as more than a form of sustenance. Food trade melds cultures and stimulates economies, religious traditions almost always involve some aspect of food, and, most importantly, food brings people together.

L.A.'s only dedicated cinnamon roll shop, All About the Cinnamon, was born during the pandemic when Lindsay Sears-McDonald began baking at home to satisfy her cravings.

Many of the sandwiches we refer to as Italian sandwiches in America are usually not Italian at all. Rather, they are Italian-American creations, developed by immigrants from Italy or their descendants to suit a fast-paced lifestyle in their new country.

Making pastrami is a major process, and there are a number of places serving up absolutely iconic pastrami sandwiches all across the U.S. We're here to talk about Los Angeles, though, and there are so many spots to pick up such a great sandwich you might argue the city is giving New York a run for its money as the pastrami capital of the country.

Unlike the former Station and the other restaurants that have graced this bizarre island over the years, the food at the Station is very good, if not great, and the prices are reasonable - everything is under $14. The vibes are lovely, too. The new owners expanded the garden, added a fresh coat of paint, good music, a fire pit and a lot of seating.

The road to ramen paradise ends in the unlikeliest of places. At Men Endo, located in a suburban street, next to a school and a low-rise apartment block, bowls of noodles disappear in a flurry of slurps, gulps and hurried but heartfelt exchanges of appreciation between customer and chef. On a cold afternoon in Yamagata, a city in Japan's northeast, the wait for a seat at Men Endo's counter is mercifully short.

For much of the mid-20th century, cheese-based Jell-O salads were a familiar presence across the United States. The fluorescent salads wobbled proudly in decorative molds and Bundt pans, studded with edible chunks that could be stuck in, leading to creative combinations like pineapple and olives with nuts and maraschino cherries. These extravagant dishes typically utilized cottage cheese or cream cheese, folded into or layered with artificially fruit-flavored gelatin.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations via Today's Dietitian, America ranks 171st out of 175 countries for offal consumption, meaning organ meat. Most of the 0.97 pounds the average American eats per year comes from hot dogs and sausage. Americans just don't want to eat organ meat. Unless, of course, they're Boomers. Although chitlins, made from pig intestine, or sweetbreads, made from thymus glands or pancreas, are regional delicacies, most organ meats are not eaten by the majority of Americans.

When I look at the shrimp on the platter, I don't see odd food anymore but, rather, individuals. Creatures piled on a platter, their black eyes still visible, their segmented, armored bodies intact. It's also a contrast to how we usually consume meat-the animal processed, the individual disappearing. Not so in the case of these shrimps. But that's only part of the explanation for my change in attitude

Lawrence Chu, also known as Chef Chu, garnishes a plate of sweet and sour pork at Chef Chu's in Los Altos on December 11, 2025. Chef Chu's is a family-run business, owned by Lawrence Chu, which has been operating since 1970 and is known not only for the food but also for hosting celebrities and tech innovators. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)

Farmers markets in particular are a way of understanding the people who live in any given place. Not only the produce or products that are sold, but how fresh are they, and where are those products from? Are the majority locally sourced or imported? What are the vendors like that are selling them? Who is shopping there?

Fresh produce cost pennies at farm stands, potlucks were filled with top-tier dishes, and the local farmers' market and restaurants were overflowing with flavorful and fresh foods. My great-grandfather, an Italian immigrant, passed down his passion for food, and I was lucky enough to inherit his love of cooking and eating. As a chef and recipe designer, born and raised in Vermont, there's nothing I love more than trying new restaurants.