Taste of the Midwest

Hot Brown: We got this at a bar in Louisville, KY. It's an open face turkey sandwich with bacon and tomato, and smothered in something called a mornay sauce. I'm not sure what mornay is, or what a Hot Brown should taste like, but that mess tasted pretty good. Meaty and cheesy.

Hot Brown is the yellow pile on the right. Standard chili cheese fries on left.

Cincinnati chili: We got the chili in.....Cincinnati, OH. We went to the Skyline Chili, which is a local chain. The "chili" comes on top of either spaghetti or a hot dog. It tastes a lot less like chili, and more like a sweet and meaty spaghetti sauce.

I stuck my finger in the bun!

Buffalo wings: We got these wings in.....Buffalo, NY. Went to a local institution called Duff's. A no-frills joint. There was a good crowd the night we went. Families, friends, and the Siena softball team, all enjoying wings, fries and beer. The wings were good. I like my wings slightly on the over-fried side, and not too plump. The "medium-hot" sauce was just hot enough. I did not try the "Death" sauce.

Sandwich: I'm not sure what they call this monstrosity, but it's a staple in Pittsburgh, PA. It's meat, cheese, coleslaw, and fries all stuffed between two slices of white bread. I went to Primanti Bros., a local chain, and got the capicola and cheese. The sandwich was really filling, I had to yank out some of the fries. The coleslaw was good.

Besides the food, a couple other thoughts after briefly visiting each of these cities, plus Cleveland, OH and Lexington, KY. (No food pics from these two cities because, well, we didn't know what food they are famous for.)

• Except for Lexington, they all showed their history as gritty, industrial manufacturing towns. Smokestacks, warehouses and factories dot the town.
• The roadways are terrible. Tons of potholes. I may have lost a couple fillings whilst bouncing down the street. Also, there are all these toll roads where you pay some amount depending on the distance you travel. We paid $0.15 to go about 2 miles near Buffalo.
• Despite this, each of these cities is actually quite green. Lots of woodland and foliage in and around town. The Pittsburgh area is especially nice, with woodland around a bunch of river valleys (or that's what it seems like to me).
• Except for Louisville, people all seem very down-to-earth, with a lack of pretension. I can't say that everyone was friendly like it was in Louisiana and the Delta, but they at least seem genuine. Just being themselves and living life. As Wooderson would say, 'You just gotta keep livin' man, L-I-V-I-N.' It's a nice way to be.
• As for Louisville, my opinion may have been distorted by the obscene levels of douchebaggery and blowhardation at the Derby. (See 'Derby Day' post)