Living in Iowa for the past two years after growing up in Illinois has caused me to start missing some things from when I grew up, specifically grocery items and restaurants. When I lived in Illinois, I barely thought about these things and in fact rarely utilized them, but now that I cannot have access to these things on a daily basis I have been made aware of their absence. Now, every time I visit my family, these things are a Must. I miss these Illinois things:
I am drooling over the thought of a Steak n Shake burger and a plate of fries. I like to smother them in ketchup and eat them with a fork because that is how you eat Steak n Shake fries (also dipped in a chocolate shake, mmmm). I really need to take a trip home soon because: Caramel Apple Shake.
*Strictly speaking, I know that Steak n Shake is not just an Illinois thing, but I see them most in Illinois. I make Rob stop whenever we see one, and he is Okay with this because he had a really stellar first time Steak n Shake experience (in Missouri, not Illinois) which I briefly mentioned in my last post, but will continue not to elaborate on.*
Rob and I get the Rippled kind instead of these, but omg so delicious. They have a website where you can buy packs of 4-8 bags, or even a “Gift Box” with one of each of their products included. They also sell pork rinds in Original, BBQ and Spicy. Ugh. I will stick with the Rippled potato chips.
This is the only other kind of chips that I will eat anymore:
But those are a UK thing, not an Illinois thing.
Speaking of the U.K. When I went to the U.K. for three months in 2007, there were foods that I missed from the U.S. which I didn’t even eat before I left, but eat all the time now. These are those:
I know everyone likes ranch dressing, but I really didn’t until I got to the U.K. and the only available ranch that I could find was on Subway sandwiches.
I had not had a Milky Way in years before my mom brought me a big stack when she came to visit me. I am all about fun size Milky Ways.
I hated peanut butter all my life until I went to the U.K. and couldn’t really find it. I found a jar at a grocery store and started eating it out of the jar with a spoon for the rest of the trip. I still do this because Rob is not a peanut butter fan.
Am I the only one who does this? If you grew up in one place and later lived somewhere else, what restaurants and grocery items do you miss?
