Guess where these dishes got their names!
Food isn't just about taste—it's packed with history, culture, and unexpected geography lessons. Some of the most famous dishes worldwide are named after places, but do you know where they really come from? Surprise, surprise. Just because something is called "Hawaiian" or "Sicilian" doesn't mean it originated there.
This Food Named After Places Trivia Quiz will test your knowledge of dishes with locations in their names. Some are obvious (like New York-style pizza), while others will make you question everything (looking at you, French fries). By the end, you'll walk away with fun facts to drop at your next dinner party.
Why Does Food Get Named After Places?
Some dishes carry the name of their birthplace as a badge of honor, while others have names that are just plain misleading. Here are a few reasons why food names get tied to locations:
- They were invented there. The Philly cheesesteak? Born in Philadelphia. Key lime pie? Straight out of Florida's Key West.
- They honor a place but aren't from there. Hawaiian pizza? A Canadian creation. French fries? Belgium says they should get the credit.
- The name just stuck. Bologna sausage is inspired by an Italian meat product, but the American version is its own thing.
5 Surprising Foods Named After Places
If you think these foods are always straightforward, think again! Here are a few fun facts:
- Scotch eggs aren't actually Scottish—they originated in Yorkshire, England.
- Crab Rangoon sounds Burmese, but it's actually an American Chinese dish, with no solid ties to Myanmar.
- Neapolitan ice cream didn't start in Naples—it was just inspired by Italian tricolor desserts.
- Hawaiian pizza was created in Canada by a Greek immigrant. Hawaii had nothing to do with it!
- Mississippi mud pie's origins are well, muddy. Some believe that it's just named for its gooey, mud-like texture that resemble the banks of the Mississippi River.
How to Take the Quiz
This is a multiple-choice quiz with images to help you guess each dish. For every question, you'll get:
- A photo of the dish for visual context.
- Four answer choices—only one is correct!
- A short explanation with fun facts after you answer.
Want to prove you know your food? In this Food Named After Places trivia quiz, Every correct answer earns you points, and the highest scorers make it onto our leaderboard!
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20 Comments
16/18
14/18
15/18 Should have been 16 clicked on wrong one for scotch egg going too fast as if I don’t know what they are, highland egg my posterier, trying to be polite very annoyed at myself.
I got 18 out of 18!
You’re a culinary globe-trotter! With your impressive knowledge of dishes named after places, you could easily host your own international food fest. From crispy Buffalo wings to creamy New York cheesecake, you’ve nailed it! Time to treat yourself to a world-class meal!
I got 13 out of 18!
Not bad, foodie! You’ve got a solid grasp on geographically named delicacies. A little more exploration, and you’ll be a top-notch culinary connoisseur. Why not try cooking a dish like Hamburg steak or Brunswick stew to sharpen those taste buds?
I got 17 out of 18!
Finger problem led to the one mistake, but not bad for a vegetarian!
I got 15 out of 18!
You’re a culinary globe-trotter! With your impressive knowledge of dishes named after places, you could easily host your own international food fest. From crispy Buffalo wings to creamy New York cheesecake, you’ve nailed it! Time to treat yourself to a world-class meal!
You got 13 out of 18!
At least I got over half correct.
18/18
I got 17 out of 18 – 94%
You’re a culinary globe-trotter! With your impressive knowledge of dishes named after places, you could easily host your own international food fest. From crispy Buffalo wings to creamy New York cheesecake, you’ve nailed it! Time to treat yourself to a world-class meal!
5 / 6 / 25
I did good I got 17/18 right
16/18
16/18. I’ve eaten very few of these, the rest I know mostly from doing quizzes. I’m an Aussie and many of these foods are American and barely known here.
True. Most of the quizzes on the site have an American bias but it would be interesting to know more about culinary dishes and cuisine unique to Australia and New Zealand.
Americans generally probably know more about foods from the UK than cuisine from Australia (Aussies) or New Zealand (Kiwis)
Food in Australia (and New Zealand) is a lot like food from the UK and to some extent Europe. We have also picked up a lot of influence from Asia generally. We don’t really have unique food being such young countries, except for foods used by our indigenous peoples. We use a lot of fresh ingredients though, which we have in abundance. We use a lot of seafood and fresh vegetables and fruits, as well as beef, lamb, pork and chicken. Although we now use a lot of herbs and spices we tend not to over complicate food cooked at home. We have gotten over the meat and 3 vege meals common until only a few decades ago but still enjoy quite simple meals that might include meat with mashed potato and steamed or boiled veges or baked veges. We mostly use fresh or frozen vegetables. We also eat a lot of salads using fresh vegetables. We also tend to make simple versions of asian stir fries (simple being cheat using sauces out of a bottle), or curries. Many people cook far more complicated dishes from scratch – personally I kind of bypass most recipes that require more than about 6 ingredients. We have many different nationalities here who cook foods from their homelands which are really delicious and many of us have learned to cook these foods as well. We have restaurants catering for foods from dozens of different countries which these days serve quite authentic meals, rather than “Australianising” them for our previously unsophisticated palates. Obviously I have written this from the point of view of an old woman (75) who was born into a very “English” type family, and grew up with home grown vegetables and a dad who caught fish for us. I am not sure how American food has become so different from ours, but personally I find it looks really unappealing. Watching an American cooking show does not inspire me to make the food at all. I don’t mean to be insulting, it just doesn’t seem as fresh and natural as ours.
Not insulting at all. Lol.
To each their own.
And …. American foods do typically use more fattening content than most other countries, both European or Asiatic.
It’s funny you mentioned meat and 3 though, because that’s a cultural type of food here in the Southern U.S.
But it’s also common in Hawaii so maybe that’s a pacific connection to it🤔🙄
But thanks for your reply and for all the details.
I enjoyed everything you described
And U.S. food culture definitely “Americanizes” foreign cuisine that’s been brought here to suit our tastes, which is usually a watered down version of the original made more for commercial appeal at times. lol
Just being honest
(Edited)
18/18. I cook–and I also travel!
14/18 👍🏻
I got 17 out of 18!
You’re a culinary globe-trotter! With your impressive knowledge of dishes named after places, you could easily host your own international food fest. From crispy Buffalo wings to creamy New York cheesecake, you’ve nailed it! Time to treat yourself to a world-class meal!
18/18
You’re a culinary globe-trotter! With your impressive knowledge of dishes named after places, you could easily host your own international food fest. From crispy Buffalo wings to creamy New York cheesecake, you’ve nailed it! Time to treat yourself to a world-class meal!