Hey there Open Threaders, it's Em here, filling in for Keith on this week's Open Thread because I've got a food and drink topic for ya.
Earlier this week, my colleague Jay stopped by Ali Baba's King of Gyros in West St. Paul to try the latest inductee in our Best Budget Bites Hall of Fame. At just $8.99, the massive pita stuffed with freshly shaved meat really does look like a winner, though I'll admit to being somewhat influenced by Ali Baba's smirking, vested genie mascot.
But it was this comment from D&J Glove Repair that got my gears turnin': "A hill I'm willing to die on is that you don't include lettuce on a gyro."
Honestly, I have never put much thought about whether lettuce should or should not go on a gyro. If anything, I think every gyro I've ever ordered has included it? But that's what's fun about food opinions—they're your weird little hills to die on, and no one can tell you any different.
So on this week's Open Thread, I wanna know: What are your strongly held food and drink opinions, either local or universal?
Maybe you're a mayo hater, or, rarer still, a ketchup hater. Perhaps you have strong feelings about where pickles do and don't belong, what should go on pizza, the proper way to assemble a sandwich. Maybe there's something you think the Twin Cities food scene needs more or less or none of.
Myself, I have many strong food opinions. The tinned fish fad was always annoying. The hardest, crustiest bread you can find isn't the proper vessel for most sandwiches and we need to stop acting like it is. Frozen pizzas aren't done until they're a little burnt. Cheese curds are great but I kind of wish more places served mozzarella sticks. Croutons can be a snack. We can never have enough delis.
But this isn't my open thread, it's yours! Let's hear your hottest food and drink takes. Or, as always, feel free to ignore this prompt and talk about whatever you want. This is your Open Thread, after all.