Place names sometimes leave a mark not only on the map, but
on the language. A few classic examples are:
Adirondack chair - The sloped-back lawn chair originated in
this part of northern New York, but was first known as the Westport chair, for
the community on Lake Champlain
Alabama egg - Egg fried in the hollow middle of a slice of
bread
Albany beef - An outdated term for the sturgeon that once
flourished in the Hudson River.
Arizona strawberries - A cowboy phrase for beans.
Arkansas toothpick - A large bowie knife.
Arkansas travels - Diarrhea.
Baked Alaska - This seeming oxymoron is a dessert of ice
cream covered with cake, pastry or meringue and baked in a hot oven. The name
reputedly was coined at Delmonico's Restaurant, in recognition of the newly
acquired territory.
Boston baked beans - Prepared with molasses and pork, Boston
beans were a Saturday-night tradition for many New Englanders.
Boston cream pie - Not really a pie but a cake. Designated
by the Massachusetts Legislature as the official state dessert.
Bronx cheer - A sputtering, often splattering, sound of
disapproval, generally traced to Yankee Stadium.
Buffalo wings - There are many legends about the fiery
finger food; the most popular places its origins at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo,
NY.
California collar - Hangman's noose.
California banknote - A cowhide.
California prayer book - A deck of cards.
Cape Cod turkey - Codfish, from the era when the fishing
industry ruled.
Cape Codder - A refreshing drink of cranberry juice and
vodka.
Charleston - The dance, believed to have been around since
the mid-19th century, was made popular by the "Ziegfeld Follies" in
1923.
Cincinnati oysters - Pigs' feet, for the local packing
plants.
Colorado Kool-aid - Coors beer.
Coney Island - A hot dog smothered in chili. Curiously, in
New York state, a Coney Island is sometimes called a Michigan.
Denver boot - Not footwear for the urban cowboy, but a
device clamped to the wheel of a parked vehicle, to prevent its driver from
skedaddling before he pays all those overdue parking tickets.
Denver omelet - Prepared with ham, onions and green pepper.
Easterners usually refer to the dish as a "western omelet."
Florida room - A sun room or lounge with big windows.
(Arizonans often call these "Arizona rooms.")
Full Cleveland - As defined by The New York Times (June 20,
2004), an outfit consisting of "a matching white belt and shoes
(preferably worn with a powder-blue leisure suit)." In Canada, the look is
called a full Nanaimo.
Georgia ice cream - Grits.
Kansas sheep dip - Whiskey.
Louisville slugger - Baseball bat invented in 1884 by
apprentice woodworker J.A. "Bud" Hillerich and made famous by
baseball greats Honus Wagner and Ty Cobb.
Manhattan clam chowder - Tomato-based chowder, as opposed to
the milky Cape Cod version.
Manhattan - Cocktail (of whiskey, vermouth and bitters),
actually invented in Queens.
Michigan bankroll - A wad of bills, with a large
denomination on the outside and smaller denominations on the inside. Also
called Oklahoma bankroll or Philadelphia bankroll.
Mississippi mud pie - A rich chocolate dessert, often with
graham-cracker crust.
Nebraska brick - A square of prairie sod used to build a sod
house.
New York minute - In the city that never sleeps, this is
just a blink of an eye. (Also the title of a Don Henley song and a 2004 movie
starring the Olsen twins.)
Oklahoma rain - Sandstorm.
Philly cheese steak - Grilled beef on an Italian roll with
melted cheese. The city's signature dish is believed to have been invented by a
local hot dog vendor named Pat Olivieri.
Rhode Island red - A breed of chicken known for its red
feathers and brown eggs.
Santa Ana - A strong, hot wind in southern California, for
the Santa Ana Mountains.
Saratoga - A lady's traveling trunk, named for the spa in
upstate New York.
Springfield - A rifle made in Springfield, MA. The
Springfield Armory manufactured arms for the U.S. military from 1794 to 1968.
Texas tea - Oil, as immortalized in the Ballad of Jed
Clampett.
Texas turkey - Armadillo.
Texas toast - Thick sliced bread, buttered, toasted and
usually served with chicken-fried steak.
Tuxedo - The jacket was actually named for the affluent
community in New York.
West Virginia coleslaw - Chewing tobacco.
Courtesy of www.epodunk.com
