Hayman Potatoes are available in Chicago?
I’ve had fried okra up here in Minneapolis, but it was whole, and the batter didn’t include cornmeal as I recall. There wasn’t enough of it.
But yeah, it’s not at all commonplace.
I’m trying to think of truly local dishes or foods, and right now I’m stumped. Maybe cream of wild rice soup…
Made properly with extra bonus bits like carrot and meat du jour (no fish, please. That’s just wrong), it should come out looking like the dog’s lunch. 
Cioppino was supposedly invented in my immediate area, either in San Francisco, or my hometown of Martinez (as was the disputed Martini). The Wiki article says North Beach, but we had a huge tomato canning plant right near the wharf in Martinez and the same families that fished from SF also came into Martinez (like Joe DiMaggio’s family, Aliotos, Tarantinos, etc).
It’s basically whatever seafood you have on hand with a fresh herb and tomato sauce base. It’s multi-ethnic. It sounds Italian, but was supposedly invented by Portuguese OR Italian (most likely Sicilian) immigrant locals, as both immigrant groups occupied similar labor niches of fisherman, dairy and beef. The story goes that it was after the markets had closed and it was dinner time and these guys are standing there with the crab pots on hand and leftover fish so they came up with an ultra-quick recipe.
The other Weekender, who is 100% ethnic Italian from San Francisco, makes killer cioppino. It’s pretty easy to make; most of the work is prepping the seafood itself because you start with live crabs, live clams, mussels scallops etc. It’s good to throw in some kind of fish too, of course, like bass or something in boned fillet form. The tomato sauce, which is basically garlic, onion, fresh herbs and fresh-made or canned sauce, comes together in 20 minutes or so. I’m sure there are recipes but it’s one that it done by memory. The most important thing is to not overcook the seafood.
In my hometown of Martinez, cioppino feeds were pretty common for the social clubs. It’s truly one of the finest dishes you can ever enjoy, and what makes it special is our local Dungenness crab, which i prefer over lobster any day (it’s tangier).
Local foods here include fried potatoes. They’re not deep fried, but fried in a greasy skillet, maybe with onions. It differs from hash in starting with raw potatoes.
Fried okra is a standard food, but it needs to be cooked a long while. All vegetables are cooked longer here than people from northern places cook them. This is why they think they don’t like some vegetables. I don’t like them either, if they don’t cook them any better than that.
Poke salet and eggs is another one. It is absolutely essential to boil the poison out of the pokeweed first or you will get sick.
My grandma used to make tremendously good fried yellow squash. It’s rolled in a cornmeal and flour mixture, the same as okra, but the squash is sliced paper thin, and then it’s fried to a crisp in an iron skillet.
Another thing I think is mostly local to this region is peanut patties. It’s plain sugar pralines with Spanish peanuts and usually dyed red.
and if we didn’t, if I had to come over to your local to get them, are you saying I, as a nonlocal, probably wouldn’t like them once I tried them?
Ahem! 
Not local here but being that my mom is from the Philippines (where I was born), a Filipino thing that I loved growing up of which people don’t think sounds too appetizing is Avocado Milkshakes. Easy to find the recipe by googling it. Very tasty and refreshing!
It’s all about the bacon grease.
Another thing I liked in the Philippines was deep fried kangkong. The leaves were battered in a very light batter.
I’d recently been pondering the avocado milkshake thing, and it seems to me a bit like how Americans sweeten pumpkin and cinnamon for use in desserts, whereas these may be used in savory dishes in some other countries. Filipinos tend to sweeten avocados, whereas Americans usually use them unsweetened in salads or savory dips. We had an avocado tree in our yard, when I was 12-years old and living in the Philippines. It would get loaded with wonderful avocados of a large size that is not seen in the grocery stores here.
Really couldn’t say if you’d like them or not, but I don’t think they exsist outside of the Delmarva Peninsula so its hard to judge whether all nonlocals would like them or not. But they are a uniquely regional food grown here since the 1600s likely.
Unfortunatley, that’s an impossible standard and one that cannot be proven, so I’ve completely ignored it. I’ve seen video footage of Amazonian tribes eating fried tarantulas (or the local equivalent) - I’d say that’s something only locals would like, but I’ve known entomologists who say it’s tasty.
Eric
Avocados can be rather expensive although they are commonly used in California cuisine (especially burgers). Luckily, we have an avocado tree in our backyard.
True. Then, I submit: Chitlins. (Which I have never and will never try.)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitlins
I once was in a local Bojangles (a southern fried-chicken franchise), wherein
some grease must have gotten stuck somewhere and gone rancid, because
the smell was just awful. An African-American gentleman in front of me
turned to his companions and asked in a loud voice, “When did Bojangles start
serving chitlins?” We all laughed: it was funny because it was true. That
stuff smells terrible.
You can find raw Chitterlings in any grocery store in the greater Chicago area that markets food to African American people
but if you want to see old friends and socialize you make the trip down to Moo & Oink on the southside of Chicago.
I was first introduced to Chitterlings at an office pot luck. They were brought in by one of my Mexican American coworkers who’d discovered them at a previous office party and couldn’t get enough of them.
Anyone have a recipe for Bitter Melon pickles? I had them at an office party once too. Yum!
Bitter melons are pretty easy to find in this town too.
You don’t have Raw Foodies in San Diego, CA? Avocados in a green leafy smoothie is pretty standard fare for those in the cult of Victoria Boutenko and her raw family.
Those Bitter melon pickles I tasted at an office party were brought in by a Filipino co-worker. I don’t suppose you could ask your mom if she’s got a recipe I could make them with?
Pickled biter melon??? that sounds good. Took me while to like Halo-Halo, but I really like the beans and coconut now.
Biscuits and gravy
fry up a pound of loose breakfast sausage till it’s really tiny, crispy pieces
DON’T drain the fat and be sure there’s no water left in the pan
add 1/4 c flour, stir and cook for several minutes, till the flour begins to brown a little
remove the pan from the heat and let it cool a little
add 2 c milk, put it back on the flame and cook, stirring till it’s come to a mild boil and it’s all thickened and well-mixed.
Serve over biscuits, preferably real drop biscuits
Hey! If you read the buttery recipe you’ll note the bit at the bottom where various celebrities from outside the area have said how disgusting they are!
2 lt rum
1 amaretto
1 triple sec
3 sweet & sour
3 pineapple juice
splash grenadine and dk rum on top
One could argue that it’s not “food”, but it’s what I’m having for dinner tonight…