Greek-American cuisine

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Greek American gyros, with meat, onions, olive oil, tomato, French fries, and tzatziki sauce rolled into a pita Pita giros.JPG
Greek American gyros, with meat, onions, olive oil, tomato, French fries, and tzatziki sauce rolled into a pita

Greek-American cuisine is the cuisine of Greek Americans and their descendants, who have modified Greek cuisine under the influence of American culture and immigration patterns of Greeks to the United States. As immigrants from various Greek areas settled in different regions of the United States and became "Greek Americans," they carried with them different traditions of foods and recipes that were particularly identified with their regional origins in Greece and yet infused with the characteristics of their new home locale in America. Many of these foods and recipes developed into new favorites for town peoples and then later for Americans nationwide. Greek-American cuisine is especially prominent in areas of concentrated Greek communities, such as Astoria, Queens and Tarpon Springs, Florida.

Contents

Greek-American taverna

Saganaki, lit on fire, served in Chicago

The taverna and estiatorio are widespread in the major US cities, serving Greek-American cooking. [1] [2] A typical menu for a taverna would usually include many if not all of the following items:

Areas with high concentration of Greek-American restaurants

Restaurants at Greektown, Chicago Popular Greektown.jpg
Restaurants at Greektown, Chicago

Various areas of the United States have hosted Greek-American cuisine with the most prominent examples being Astoria, Queens, in New York City, Greektown, Chicago, Greektown Historic District in Detroit, Tarpon Springs, Florida and Greektown, Baltimore. Greek-American cuisine spread to the western US with immigrants who tended to work mining, smelting, and railroading towns in the region. In Salt Lake City Greek-American cuisine is a common part of the menu at fast-food restaurants such as Crown Burgers. [3]

Contributions

Greek Americans have contributed a lot to American cuisine and many of its recipes. For example, Greek immigrants invented the Coney Island hot dog. The first and most notable Coney Island hot dog restaurant, the American Coney Island, was founded in 1917 by Greek immigrant Constantine "Gust" Keros. Gust brought his brother over from Greece and helped him open the Lafayette Coney Island restaurant next door. [4] Additionally, in 1949, Greek immigrant, Nicholas Lambrinides, started Skyline Chili, which popularized Cincinnati chili, a culinary descendant of the Greek dish pastitsio . [5]

See also

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References

  1. "History of Greek Cuisine". Archived from the original on 29 January 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
  2. "Top things to do in Boca Raton, USA". Lonelyplanet.com.
  3. Edge, John T. (29 July 2009). "Pastrami Meets the Patty in Utah". The New York Times.
  4. Walsh, Robb (29 September 2015). The Chili Cookbook: A History of the One-Pot Classic, with Cook-off Worthy Recipes from Three-Bean to Four-Alarm and Con Carne to Vegetarian. Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed. p. 274. ISBN   978-1-60774-796-3.
  5. Niesen, Julie (17 October 2018). "Cincinnati Chili: A History". WVXU . Retrieved 27 June 2022.