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A drive down the Atlantic sea coast from Maine to Florida will take you along a delicious path of seafood delicacies spiced with the culture of those who settled the region. In Maine, the seafood is stick-to-your-ribs no-nonsense. There's nothing simpler - or more satisfying - than a pot full of Maine steamers. Littlenecks, cherrystones or mussels, steamed in beer and dipped in pure creamery butter is a treat fit for gods who understand that serving a food au natural allows the flavor to stand on its own. New England is famous for its 'plain cooking' - clam chowder, baked beans, New England boiled dinner and Yankee Pot Roast are all dishes that simply aren't the same anywhere else in the country.

There's more to it than just seafood, though. Everyone knows that the only place to get a cheese steak is Philly, a bagel and lox is NYC and Chicago does the best ribs in the world. You can't leave New England without trying the salt water taffy or Vermont without a keg of maple syrup. No trip to Georgia would be complete without a slice of pecan pie, and if you think you're going to find real chili anywhere outside of Texas, well - Texans will tell you different.

For some, the regional cuisine is a matter of culture. In New Mexico, the blending of Native American and Spanish foods gives us blue corn tortillas with salsa, the mingling of piquant flavors sparked with native herbs and spices. Many Pennsylvania favorites have grown from Pennsylvania Dutch roots - shoofly pie and apple pandowdy graced many a hausfrau's table in the old days. In Louisiana the influence of the Caribbean and African shines through in dishes like gumbo and blackened swordfish, both mouth-searingly delicious.

Even within regions there are smaller pockets that are bastions of regional cooking. On opposite sides of the country, both San Francisco and New York City are famous for Chinese food thanks in large part to their large immigrant populations. Boston's North End is a feast for any lover of Italian food, but is renowned throughout the United States for its Italian pastries.

Like its people, the cuisine of the United States is a melange drawn from other nations and other cultures. From coast to coast, and border to border, each region has its specialties and delicacies. There is no one 'U.S. cuisine'. Instead, each region, each state, each city, each neighborhood has its own unique style and flavor, drawn from the people who settled there and made it home.

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