The Omnivore's Hundred

Here's a fun meme to do - so I'm going to do it.

Also seen on Jayne's, Keefie's and Grumpy Goat's blogs.

Let's start at the very beginning with the instructions:
1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten. (I've also used Burnt Orange coloured text)
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Add comments to taste.
5) Optional extra: Post a comment at Very Good Taste (at last count, there were already 1,066 replies)

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1. Venison Now known as Cervena if the deer is free-range farmed, under 3 yrs old when slaughtered in a cervena-certified slaughterhouse, and made in New Zealand.

2. Nettle tea Why - when there’s peppermint tea?

3. Huevos Rancheros Your cabin mates will not like the aftershocks if you eat this before a flight.

4. Steak Tartare With Vodka at an industry event called “A Day in the Life of Russia”. ‘Twas messy and I had a hangover at work the next day - just like a Russian.

5. Crocodile Tougher chicken with more bite.

6. Black pudding Never again.

7. Cheese fondue Remember the 70s? No respectable party house was without a fondue set.

8. Carp

Not carp but fish of some sort with shrimps on top

9. Borscht It’s just wrong to eat something this colour that isn’t a dessert.

10. Baba ghanoush

11. Calamari Salt and Pepper the way that J makes it, or stuffed with soft Greek cheese and baked.

12. Phở So what?

13. PB&J (peanut butter & jelly) sandwich Yes, but I question the maturity of people who eat it more than once.

14. Aloo gobi Yum.

15. Hot dog from a street cart From a halal hot dog stand in NYC – the home of corner street carts.

16. Epoisses Anything more pungent than a Stilton and I’m outta there.

17. Black truffle Grated – on the best meal that we have ever eaten at 1800 on Santorini. Also had meals cooked in black truffle oil.

18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes Kiwifruit.

19. Steamed pork buns A staple of Yum Cha meals.

20. Pistachio ice cream

21. Heirloom tomatoes Maybe, who knows? Probably had one from a home garden long before they started to be called Heirloom tomatoes.

22. Fresh wild berries Blueberries picked while hiking in Iceland and Germany.

23. Foie gras

24. Rice and beans Together with a nice bit of Mexican chicken with a chipotle and lime glaze.

25. Brawn Once - don't need to do it again. Seriously.

26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper I value, and wish to retain, my taste buds.

27. Dulce de leche Not my favourite – I don’t like lumpy, custardy things.

28. Oysters Preferably Tasmanian, Bluff or Pacific – in that order.

Christmas 2007 - Crab, Moreton Bay Bugs, Oysters, Crayfish (Rock Lobster) and champagne. That's the way (uhuh, uhuh) we like it

29. Baklava Afterwards, I always feel sick, but it doesn't stop me from eating it again.

30. Bagna càuda Sounds yummy – must go to Piedmont to try it.

31. Wasabi peas Love them.

32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl On the Embarcadero in San Francisco – oh yes!

33. Salted lassi Prefer mango.

34. Sauerkraut With a German partner, I couldn’t escape trying this - once. Now I leave it all for her to eat.

35. Root beer float I hate root beer and the ice cream didn't help to disguise the taste of it either. I prefer a Coke or Lemonade float, and only vanilla ice cream.


36. Cognac with a fat cigar Cubans no less – at a friend’s wedding in NZ.

37. Clotted cream tea A.K.A. Devonshire tea. I love freshly baked warm scones, cream and strawberry jam - hold the tea.

Our preferred version of Devonshire Tea at the Burj Al Arab. It qualified because there was clotted cream

38. Vodka jelly At a kid's birthday party. They were the adult treats: a reward for enduring 20 screaming 9 year old girls.

39. Gumbo The authentic made in a roux-based gravy by a chef from Louisiana – in New Zealand.

40. Oxtail A favourite – floured and seared in a pan, finished in the oven in a red wine jus.

41. Curried goat

42. Whole insects

43. Phaal I prefer to not cry during a meal, and to keep tasting my food after the first mouthful.

44. Goat’s milk

45. Malt whisky from a bottle costing £60/$120 This is what flying First Class is for, isn't it?

46. Fugu I haven’t, but J has eaten it in Japan.

47. Chicken tikka masala

48. Eel As smoked eel in NZ and as Unagi in Japanese restaurants.

49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut Sadly, yes and only just recently in Melbourne. It took me a day to stop bouncing off the walls.

50. Sea urchin Raw and fresh out of the sea after diving and often as Umi in Japanese restaurants.

51. Prickly pear

52. Umeboshi We called them Chinese Lollies in Fiji and as a dried, salted fruit they were a favourite. Sucks all the saliva out of your mouth as soon as you pop it in.

53. Abalone Known as Paua in NZ and popular in Fish & Chip takeaway shops sold in fritters.

54. Paneer

55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal Unfortunately yes, but no more. Besides, have you seen what passes for food in McDonald's nowadays? Processed cardboard.

56. Spaetzle Are you kidding? With a German partner, it’s a must-do whenever it’s on a menu.

57. Dirty gin martini And we told dirty jokes while drinking them.

58. Beer above 8% ABV A 1997 17% Sam Adams Triple Bock in New York in 2001. I was not well for the next few days and my credit card didn't recover for a few months - but that could have been due to the martinis and champagne also imbibed on the same night. Since that night I can no longer drink dark ale or martinis, but my credit card suffered no long term effects. This is proof that it has short-term memory and my brain doesn't.

59. Poutine

60. Carob chips If it’s not chocolate then I’m not interested, although my dog liked them.

61. S’mores Just give me the toasted marshmallow and forget the rest.

62. Sweetbreads We had a NZ takeway chain that used to do them beautifully. Sadly they closed down.

63. Kaolin In morphine and most likely toothpaste.

64. Currywurst Living in Berlin and not having currywurst? Sacrilege. Best currywurst in Berlin is at Curry 36 on Mehringdamm in Kreuzberg.

65. Durian Ugh, the smell. Had to block my nose. Done it, don’t need to do it again.

66. Frogs’ legs At a French restaurant in New Zealand. Our class was celebrating finishing our last year at college. We walked into the restaurant to find about 20 of our teachers at another table - also celebrating that we were leaving.

67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake Churros with hot chocolate from a street stall in Melbourne, Australia.

68. Haggis Once with plenty of whisky and no strong desire to pursue having it again.

69. Fried plantain With sugar and brandy and flambéed, served with fresh whipped cream. To.die.for. And I probably will.

70. Chitterlings, or andouillette I ate them in a Chinese restaurant before finding out what they were. Little wonder that I didn't like them.

71. Gazpacho Cold tomatoes belong in a salad.

72. Caviar and blini Served with champagne. This is what Lufthansa First Class is good for.

73. Louche absinthe A popular teenage tryout when I was a teen – but without the sugar. Uncouth youth.

74. Gjetost, or brunost Warning: I throw away brown cheese.

75. Roadkill

76. Baijiu Have had Japanese Shochu which I believe is similar.

77. Hostess Fruit Pie Once only, and a Hostess Twinkie too – once only.

78. Snail Drowned in garlic butter and poshily named escargots.

79. Lapsang souchong

80. Bellini As a bartender, I made more of them than I drank – thank God.

81. Tom Yum A favourite but less coriander in mine, please.

82. Eggs Benedict With added smoked salmon and lemon juice.

83. Pocky In Japan, then we bought some for the kids who didn’t like them.

84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant Yeah, right! Pretentious. Wouldn't actively seek to do this even if I had the money.

85. Kobe beef

86. Hare

87. Goulash

88. Flowers Nasturtiums in a salad.

89. Horse

90. Criollo chocolate Maybe, but not sure.

91. Spam In sandwiches or as slices.

92. Soft shell crab Over-rated - tried them for the first time during my 40th birthday bash in NYC. Give me hard shell crabs with lots of meat in them.

93. Rose harissa Rubbed as a marinade over some lamb.

94. Catfish In above mentioned Gumbo.

95. Mole poblano In a Mexican restaurant at Formosa Beach in LA – the chocolate in it appealed to me.

96. Bagel and lox In NYC – the home of bagels and lox, with cream cheese and thin, thin slices of white onion.

97. Lobster Thermidor A waste of good lobster to be drowned in so much richness. Better to boil in salted water and eat with a melted butter dip and fresh bread.

Crayfish - A.K.A. Rock Lobster - in the middle section

98. Polenta

99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee I don’t drink much coffee so probably wouldn't get a kick out of drinking this. Nor would I be able to distinguish it from Nescafé.

Ain't nobody here but us coffee

100. Snake Why, when there's so much chicken? But I guess that snakes' and chickens' reactions are the same when you chop off their heads.

Additional from Keefie:
101. Deep-fried Mars Bar A staple in any good chip shop. My home version is to wrap half a Mars Bar with half a banana (or fruit of your choice, but banana works well because it’s firm) in phyllo pastry. Brush phyllo with melted butter and bake until phyllo is cooked. The Mars Bar melts and caramelises the banana and the phyllo is crunchy. Serve with hot chocolate sauce/fruit purée and ice cream, and it won’t take long before your arteries start to harden.


In Summary
Already eaten or tried: 82
Not yet eaten or unsure: 09
Will never cross my lips: 10