I’m making a list of food i need to try before i die.
Rules:
It has to be a local dish (not seen outside region and/or country), and it has to be something that usually only the locals like.
So far i have haggis and meat pie floater on the list.
Any interesting suggestions for me? 
Unless you’re asking for Native American cultures’ foods, here in the New World everything else pretty much came from the Old World
and if everybody didn’t like them they would have never survived much longer than the voyage since we’re all family at some level now.
No?
Injera and watt http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Injera. I’s an ethiopian dish.
It’s quite good!
It’s a food, not a dish - it’s not cooked. But you might be interested to try this:
Haggis is available in many countries outside Scotland, it’s just not called Haggis.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haggis#Similar_dishes
Meat Pie Floaters are also available in Fourecks.
http://wiki.lspace.org/wiki/Meat_pie_floater
For another traditional scottish dish try Stovies:
http://www.fife.50megs.com/scottish-stovies.htm
Some people say you can make these with corned beef, those people are wrong (except my girlfriend, because apparently she’s always right 
). Leftover roast beef or lamb only.
And for a special treat from the North East of Scotland try baking some Butteries (or Rowies/Rolls depending on which town you’re from). Don’t eat if you have high blood pressure or a history of heart disease!
http://www.scottishrecipes.co.uk/butteries.htm
Poutine - the arteries seize up at the mere mention of the name. That’s good eating.
djm
Squash Fritters, Hayman Potatoes, from the Eastern Shora of Virginia, Smithfield or Edwards Ham from “Southside” (Isle of Wright Co., Surrey Co.)
Fritters(zucchini)
2 cups slightly cooked squash
1 beaten egg
1 TBSP sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
pepper
2 TBSP milk
small chopped onion
cooked corn (optional)
Mix all ingredients together and drop by tablespoons in hot oil.
Serve as quick as possible.
Hayman Potatoes
You have to realize that Hayman potatoes are unique to the Eastern Shore and as such they must be treated accordingly. This technique is passed down from generation to generation through the female of the species. Men grow them. Women developed the cooking methods and passed their secrets down from mother to daughter.
What to do with Hayman potatoes after you got a bushel of 'em.
Storage
Keep them in a dark place preferably at a temperature of about 40 to 50
degrees. Do not allow to freeze or to get too warm. Do not store them to be in a lighted place. Do not store more than a few months before cooking .Do not wash. Allow plenty of air circulation.
How to cook 'em
a. Now you can wash them.
b. Grease them with bacon drippings or Crisco while still wet
c. Preheat oven to 350 to 375 degrees
d. Place potatoes in large flat shallow pan one layer deep.
e. Bake for 1 1/2 to 2 hours
f. When potato is soft to touch, turn off heat and allow oven to cool
g. When oven cools, remove pan of potatoes and cover them with a wet cloth. Some think that this will make them peel better.
h. Keep one third for near term consumption and freeze the rest for future
use.
i. When first third are gone, repeat the above until all the stored
potatoes have been cooked and frozen or eaten whichever comes first.
3) How to eat
a. Remove from freezer and allow to thaw at room temperature. Do not reheat.
b. Pinch each end and pull ends apart. Much of skin slides right off this
way. Remove the rest
c. Each medium potato is normally one serving
d. Put potato on plate and smash with a fork to precisely 1/2 to 3/4 inch
thick.
e. Cover liberally with gravy (any kind) and eat.
f. Goes good with roast turkey, stuffing, etc.
When I was in Scotland - Edinburgh, Dundee, Glasgow and various points West - I had stovies many times, and never tasted stovies without it was made with bits of sausage. I never even realised it was supposed to be made with “leftover meat”. Edinburgh University Union stovies was always sausages.
I believe sausages are acceptable, though it sounds like central belt nonsense to me. Corned beef is probably their doing as well.
Just because us Americans came from all over the globe doesn’t mean we haven’t developed our own unique dishes!
Chicken Fried Steak (be sure and smother the friend steak in white gravy if you truly want authenticity): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicken_fried_steak
Burnt Ends (a Kansas City gift to the food world - but you need a smoker/true barbeque pit - grills won’t do): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burnt_ends
Just about anything Cajun/Creole:
Gumbo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gumbo
Jambalaya: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jambalaya
Crafish Etouffee: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Étouffée
That’ll keep you busy for a bit…and now I’m really hungry.
Eric
I may be bending the rules a bit here, but you’ve got to try my recipe for “North American Falafel.” I made it up:
Chestnuts
onion
cilantro
rice milk
flour
salt
Slice an “X” on each chestnut and roast them in the oven until the “X” opens up (They’ll be somewhat soft).
Set chestnuts aside to cool or run some water over them to speed up cooling.
Peel chestnuts and then mash and chop them up finely, adding some chopped onion and cilantro. I use a broad cleaver for chopping. Make a big pile of the stuff and chop, chop, chop. Put the mixture in a bowl, add salt, a bit of flour just to hold it together and then add the milk – enough milk to be able to make some patties.
Make small patties and fry them in oil of choice (we tend to use coconut oil) until golden brown.
Set on paper towel to soak up extra oil, then serve.
Michael
I don’t think you see fried okra outside of the Southern U.S.
It’s one of my favorite dishes, when done well (it’s easy to screw up).
Basically, it’s sliced okra, breaded with a cornmeal-buttermilk mixture
and deep fried. Mmmmm. You can do the same with squash or zucchini,
but I think okra takes to it the best.
http://www.cooksrecipes.com/sidedish/southern-fried-okra.html
Man - I love fried Okra…this is a good example of what ElPollo wanted - something folks either love or hate with those who love it mostly being the locals.
My dad is from Oklahoma, so I grew up eating fried okra and loving it. My Minnesotan wife won’t touch the stuff.
Eric
What about that southern flea market specialty of boiled… I mean b_a_ld peanuts.
I never did learn to make a proper pan of southern corn bread.
I’m surprised no-one has volunteered polk salad.
djm
I knew a girl who loved that…Annie I think 
Not a one of you, even ElPollo, has stuck to the criteria of the second part of the question.
Btw, even this Chicago gal knows Polk salad is delicious if you know how to properly prepare the Pokeweed,
otherwise it either kills you flat out or makes you wish it would go ahead and finish the job instead of taking its time.
Sounds like good eating. But, if you want to do cajun food right, you need to get a local Louisiana recipe, preferably one that you have to fight them to get . Otherwise, you just get that pap that is circulating the country. If you eat cajun food in cajun country, it is worlds different than if you find it anyplace else. It don’t seem to travel well, for some reason. Brits will not appreciate this, as they seem to have genetic taste deficiencies.
And you never will, up in minnesota. It is “Bawled” peanuts, not bald peanuts, fer cryin out loud.