100 Foods to Try...

In exploring some food blogs, I came across the "Ominvore's 100 Foods to Try" list. It's an odd list and I think it was established by a British blogger. Whenever I see these sorts of things (100 Things to Do Before You Die, 100 Places to See Before You Die, etc), I'm never quite sure of my reaction. On the one hand, I'm intrigued -- how do I stack up? On the other hand, these seem somewhat arbritary. Shouldn't I be creating my own list? Or rather, why have a list at all, shouldn't you just be open to new experiences? This time, the self-assessment curiosity factor won. Items that I've actually tried are in orange. However, I'm keeping my options open. After all, who's keeping score?

The Omnivore's Hundred (from Very Good Taste)

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile (assuming alligator counts, biology aside)
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich (PB&Fluff is superior)
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper (although I did bite into a Haberno once)
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl (the bowl is overrated)
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala (I'm having this for dinner tomorrow)
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut (meh.)
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini (sorry, only the vodka kind!)
58. Beer above 8% ABV (maybe?)
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake (how can fried dough not be on this list?)
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho (I prefer my soup hot, thanks!)
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake