Omnivore's Hundred

The Omnivore's Hundred is an eclectic and subjective list of 100 items that Andrew Wheeler, co-author of the British food blog Very Good Taste, thinks every omnivore should try at least once in his life. I found the list on Don’t Call Me Gringa, a blog I’ve been frequenting in anticipation of a trip to Santiago in a few weeks. Here are the instructions:

1. Copy this list into your blog, including these instructions.

2. Bold all the items you’ve eaten.

3. Cross out any items that you would never consider eating (I didn’t have any items that I wouldn’t at least try).


1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. Peanut butter and jelly sandwich
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
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a big fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly
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 (A must!)46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin – The only item on the list not really a food or beverage, it’s a “clay-like mineral”
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost or brunost
75. Roadkill – Not that I know of
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong - A smoked tea that should be easy to try.
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant – Not yet, I’ve done several two-stars
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse – I had it for the first time in a stew in a quaint restaurant in Bruege, Belgium, didn’t know until later what I had eaten. It was too good to apologize for.
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 – Rattlesnake, I’m not sure what other kinds of snakes are available for consumption in the US. I know in several countries, most notably China, snakes are added to liquor “to make men STRONG”.

If my math was right I've had 79 out of 100 of these gastronomic experiences. Not too bad, though looking at the list of things I haven’t yet had I need to spend some time in Asia. How does your list look?