“Culture, when it comes to food, is, of course, a fancy word for your mom.” – Michael Pollan
Food and culture are such an important part of each other. Our relationships and our memories are flavored by the food we share. It could be Thanksgiving dinner in our home in Morocco (photo above), or Thanksgiving on my Mom’s buffet in Georgia (photos below).
When you think of holidays, certain favorite foods always come to mind. At my mom-in-law’s table at Christmas, it’s brunch together.
MomMom is well-known for her strawberry salad which only sounds healthy but it’s so yummy.
Our family had the great blessing of living in North Africa for our children’s growing-up years. With the living, came the friends, food, and memories of those wonderful places. The British are well known for their afternoon tea, and rightly so. Less may be known about a Moroccan tea, but that’s the one I know best.
I have learned hospitality from some of the best women in the world, in the US, and across North Africa. The Egyptian table, although very different from that of my childhood, felt very Southern to me. 
Now, that your tastebuds are all geared up and your mouth is watering, if you love food of all kinds, here is the hilarious deliciousness of cross-cultural dining.
This morning, a South African friend posted a Buzzfeed video skit portraying Americans trying South African snacks. I laughed out loud. Then, as happens with the internet, other videos followed. It was so much fun finding the videos below.
Enjoy…and I would love to hear some of your favorite cross-cultural food experiences through the comments section below. Here, in Richmond, Virginia, we don’t have a Chinatown or Arab Quarter or anything like that. However, we do have wonderful little restaurants that serve up authentic Moroccan, Armenian, Ethiopian, Bosnian, Pakistani, Japanese, Thai, Indian, Cuban, Greek and Korean food. What else, fellow Richmonders?
YouTube Video – Americans Try Southern Food for the First Time
The Way Folks Were Meant to Eat – by Ray Blount, Jr , from book Long Time Leaving: Dispatches from Up South – Essay & AudioFile – Do NOT Miss This. So much fun, whether you’re from the South or not.
YouTube Video – Irish People Try Irish Stereotypical Food
YouTube Video – Chinese People Try Panda Express for the First Time
YouTube Video – Americans Try Persian Food with Their Driver
The Most Famous and Greatest Food Quotes of All Time – not sure this is necessarily so, but fun list nonetheless. My own children have made pretty hilarious comments on food over the years. Put people around a table, and you get a lot of good from it.
Oualidia, Morocco – Restaurant L’Ostrea
Our first sea urchins – let the adventures roll on!