Childhood Foods

For some reason, it seemed taller when I was little.

A friend of mine asked this question: “Those of you who moved away from your home regions, what was a food item you really miss from back home?”

Faux Mexican—In the late 70s and early 80s, the Mexican restaurants in Utah generally had to bland down the food for the residents. Ketchup is often considered a bit too spicy for Utahns.  I’m still shocked that my two oldest boys would rather pour salsa on their food than Heinz 57.

Casa Melinda was my favorite restaurant as they served "enchiladas": cheese in a flour tortilla covered with a mild red sauce. Apparently, the restaurant was run not by an Armenian 

For years, I thought that's what enchiladas actually were, until I went to school in New Mexico. I “moved away” from Utah in 1992 after graduating from Bountiful High School.  I’d lived in Nevada for three years, from 1988 to 1991, but I was and will always remain a Utahn.  I didn't even know corn tortillas were a thing, and I still don’t like them that much.

But at least now I know what real enchiladas are. My wife makes some killer green chili chicken enchiladas.

Still, to this day, I prefer a wet burrito to pretty much anything else on the menu.

What’s your favorite home-region food?  Tell me in the comments below!