100 Foods to Eat Before You Die

This list of 100 foods to eat before you die comes from a Facebook app, where the creators claim that most people have only tried about 20 of these foods. Challenge accepted!

#35. Fresh spring rolls
(at Pho Colonial in downtown Dallas, TX)

The list seemed random at first, but it covers a lot of cultures' speciality foods. One nice thing about living in Texas is that 14 of our most popular regional foods made the list, so Texans should be off to a good start. I noted these foods as "(Texas!)"

#18. Chicken & Waffles
(at Dream Cafe in uptown Dallas, TX)

I had a lot of fun looking up the foods I didn't know in Wikipedia. I was surprised to realize that I've tasted some of them without knowing what they were originally called. You might also notice a trend for yourself to avoid certain cuisines; for example, I haven't had many specialty Asian and Indian foods. I'm also not very interested in trying some of these foods, like crickets. I grew up being a picky eater—and some people would say I still am—but I think having tried 65 out of 100 foods to eat before you die is pretty good. Although that doesn't mean I like them all!

For more fun, I made up this totally unscientific ranking chart:

What Type of Eater Are You?

1–10 Picky Eater
11–25 Average American
26–50 Traveler Who Tries Local Foods
51–70 Foodie
71–90 Executive Chef
91–100 Professional Food Critic

Give the list a try and see where you rank. You can print the blank list at the end of this page, check off (X) the ones you've tried, and star (*) the ones that you'd like to try. Let me know what your number is in the comments section. It'd also be fun to hear what is everyone's favorite and most disgusting food they've tried from this list.

#49. Head Cheese
I didn't realize I had tried this until I was looking for
photos and read my own caption!
(at Salt & Time in Austin, TX)

My 100 List, with Commentary

___ 1. Abalone
X__ 2. Absinthe
X__ 3. Alligator
X__ 4. Baba Ghanoush
___ 5. Bagel & Lox
X__ 6. Baklava
X__ 7. BBQ Ribs (Texas!)
X__ 8. Bellini
*__ 9. Birds Nest Soup
X__ 10. Biscuits & Gravy (Texas!)
___ 11. Black Pudding
X__ 12. Black Truffle
___ 13. Borscht
X__ 14. Calamari
___ 15. Carp
X__ 16. Caviar
X__ 17. Cheese Fondue
X__ 18. Chicken & Waffles (Texas!)
X__ 19. Chicken Tikka Masala
X__ 20. Chile Relleno (Texas!)
___ 21. Chitlins
X__ 22. Churros
X__ 23. Clam Chowder
X__ 24. Cognac
X__ 25. Crab Cakes
___ 26. Crickets
___ 27. Currywurst
*__ 28. Dandelion Wine
X__ 29. Dulce De Leche
___ 30. Durian (fun to learn it smells so bad it is banned in some Asian hotels)
X__ 31. Eel
X__ 32. Eggs Benedict
X__ 33. Fish Tacos (Texas!)
X__ 34. Foie Gras
X__ 35. Fresh Spring Rolls
X__ 36. Fried Catfish (Texas!)
X__ 37. Fried Green Tomatoes (Texas!)
X__ 38. Fried Plantain
X__ 39. Frito Pie (Texas!)
___ 40. Frogs' Legs
___ 41. Fugu
X__ 42. Funnel Cake (Texas!)
X__ 43. Gazpacho
___ 44. Goat
___ 45. Goat's Milk
X__ 46. Goulash
X__ 47. Gumbo
___ 48. Haggis
X__ 49. Head Cheese
X__ 50. Heirloom Tomatoes (Texas!)
X__ 51. Honeycomb
X__ 52. Hostess Fruit Pie
X__ 53. Huevos Rancheros (Texas!)
X__ 54. Jerk Chicken
X__ 55. Kangaroo
X__ 56. Key Lime Pie
X__ 57. Kobe Beef
___ 58. Lassi
X__ 59. Lobster
X__ 60. Mimosa (Texas!)
X__ 61. Moon Pie (Texas!)
X__ 62. Morel Mushrooms (I don't like mushrooms, except for this species and chanterelles)
*__ 63. Nettle Tea
___ 64. Octopus
*__ 65. Oxtail Soup (does braised count?!)
X__ 66. Paella
*__ 67. Paneer (I think I have, but can't be sure)
X__ 68. Pastrami on Rye
*__ 69. Pavlova (most want to try)
___ 70. Phaal
X__ 71. Philly Cheese Steak
X__ 72. Pho
___ 73. Pineapple & Cottage Cheese
___ 74. Pistachio Ice Cream (no nuts for me)
X__ 75. Po' Boy
*__ 76. Pocky
X__ 77. Polenta
X__ 78. Prickly Pear (Texas!)
*__ 79. Rabbit Stew
X__ 80. Raw Oysters
X__ 81. Root Beer Float
X__ 82. S'mores
X__ 83. Sauerkraut
___ 84. Sea Urchin
___ 85. Shark
X__ 86. Snail
___ 87. Snake
X__ 88. Soft Shell Crab
___ 89. Som Tam
X__ 90. Spaetzle
X__ 91. Spam
___ 92. Squirrel
X__ 93. Steak Tartare
X__ 94. Sweet Potato Fries
X__ 95. Sweetbreads
X__ 96. Tom Yum
___ 97. Umeboshi
X__ 98. Venison
___ 99. Wasabi Peas (too spicy for me)
*___ 100. Zucchini Flowers

Score: 65 foods eaten
Eater Type: "Foodie"

Favorite Food Tried from the List: Pho

Most Disgusting Food Tried from the List: Foie Gras

#72. Pho
My favorite food tried from the list
(at Pho Colonial in downtown Dallas, TX)

-----------------------------------------------------------
Blank List to Print:

100 Foods to Eat Before You Die

___ 1. Abalone

___ 2. Absinthe

___ 3. Alligator

___ 4. Baba Ghanoush

___ 5. Bagel & Lox

___ 6. Baklava

___ 7. BBQ Ribs

___ 8. Bellini

___ 9. Birds Nest Soup

___ 10. Biscuits & Gravy

___ 11. Black Pudding

___ 12. Black Truffle

___ 13. Borscht

___ 14. Calamari

___ 15. Carp

___ 16. Caviar

___ 17. Cheese Fondue

___ 18. Chicken & Waffles

___ 19. Chicken Tikka Masala

___ 20. Chile Relleno

___ 21. Chitlins

___ 22. Churros

___ 23. Clam Chowder

___ 24. Cognac

___ 25. Crab Cakes

___ 26. Crickets

___ 27. Currywurst

___ 28. Dandelion Wine

___ 29. Dulce De Leche

___ 30. Durian

___ 31. Eel

___ 32. Eggs Benedict

___ 33. Fish Tacos

___ 34. Foie Gras

___ 35. Fresh Spring Rolls

___ 36. Fried Catfish

___ 37. Fried Green Tomatoes

___ 38. Fried Plantain

___ 39. Frito Pie

___ 40. Frogs' Legs

___ 41. Fugu

___ 42. Funnel Cake

___ 43. Gazpacho

___ 44. Goat

___ 45. Goat's Milk

___ 46. Goulash

___ 47. Gumbo

___ 48. Haggis

___ 49. Head Cheese

___ 50. Heirloom Tomatoes

___ 51. Honeycomb

___ 52. Hostess Fruit Pie

___ 53. Huevos Rancheros

___ 54. Jerk Chicken

___ 55. Kangaroo

___ 56. Key Lime Pie

___ 57. Kobe Beef

___ 58. Lassi

___ 59. Lobster

___ 60. Mimosa

___ 61. Moon Pie

___ 62. Morel Mushrooms

___ 63. Nettle Tea

___ 64. Octopus

___ 65. Oxtail Soup

___ 66. Paella

___ 67. Paneer

___ 68. Pastrami on Rye

___ 69. Pavlova

___ 70. Phaal

___ 71. Philly Cheese Steak

___ 72. Pho

___ 73. Pineapple & Cottage Cheese

___ 74. Pistachio Ice Cream

___ 75. Po' Boy

___ 76. Pocky

___ 77. Polenta

___ 78. Prickly Pear

___ 79. Rabbit Stew

___ 80. Raw Oysters

___ 81. Root Beer Float

___ 82. S'mores

___ 83. Sauerkraut

___ 84. Sea Urchin

___ 85. Shark

___ 86. Snail

___ 87. Snake

___ 88. Soft Shell Crab

___ 89. Som Tam

___ 90. Spaetzle

___ 91. Spam

___ 92. Squirrel

___ 93. Steak Tartare

___ 94. Sweet Potato Fries

___ 95. Sweetbreads

___ 96. Tom Yum

___ 97. Umeboshi

___ 98. Venison

___ 99. Wasabi Peas

___ 100. Zucchini Flowers

Score: _____

Eater Type: __________

Favorite Food Tried from the List: ________________________

Most Disgusting Food Tried from the List: _____________________