Comments on: Standard Fare

Question: Standard Fare

Pennyblack — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:41:03 -0800

Here in northeast USA, salt, pepper and ketsup are the standard middle of the table condiments in cheap restaurants. What are they in other parts of the country and the rest of the world?

By: afx237vi

afx237vi — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:48:32 -0800

United Kingdom: salt, pepper, malt vinegar, maybe olive oil, ketchup/mustard sachets in cheaper places.

By: mudpuppie

mudpuppie — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:48:49 -0800

In parts of Texas -- and this is extremely regional -- you're likely to find Tabasco, as well as Louisiana Sport Peppers. (Can't remember the name of the most popular brand.) Of course, it depends on the kind of restaurant, just like you probably wouldn't find ketchup in EVERY northeastern restaurant, depending on what they serve.

Also, a big jar of sugar + a little boat of Sweet-n-Lo, because iced tea in Texas is usually served unsweetened.

By: zamboni

zamboni — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:55:03 -0800

For a photographic survey of table condiments in the cafs of Greater London, consult Eggs, Bacon, Chips and Beans.

By: chasles

chasles — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:58:38 -0800

in china i saw lots of soy sauce and peppers soaking in white vinegar (salt and pepper to be sure).

in bahamas, it was salt. just salt.

in UK, there's almost always HP sauce (like vinegary A1)

in portugal they have this really nice mild pepper sauce (a la tabasco) called piri piri (pronounce piti, piti)

By: OuttaHere

OuttaHere — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:59:36 -0800

In Argentina they always had packets of Salsa Golf everywhere along with Ketchup and Mustard. That stuff was good, think mayonaise+ketchup+something else I can't quite put my finger on.

By: Beautiful Screaming Lady

Beautiful Screaming Lady — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:59:52 -0800

UK: HP Sauce

There are two coloured squeezy plastic containers in the centre of every table - one red, for tomato ketchup, the other brown, for HP sauce. You know you're in the right place when both containers are tomato shaped

Pepper in UK cafés is almost always white ground pepper, rarely black.

By: LionIndex

LionIndex — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:02:22 -0800

In San Diego: Hot sauce, in the form of one or more of the following: Tapatio, Tabasco (green and red varieties), Cholula, Siriacha, or some other brand.

By: holgate

holgate — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:02:40 -0800

afx237vi forgot brown sauce for the standard "caff". (Olive oil? Rare at best.)

By: DefendBrooklyn

DefendBrooklyn — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:02:52 -0800

In Paris it's salt, pepper, and dijon mustard. Nothing more, nothing less.

By: Wilder

Wilder — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:03:35 -0800

in Spain it's salt, pepper, Oil and vinegar, cos salad is a basic foodstuff with most meals.

In Ireland you're lucky if you get the salt & pepper (and don't expect a free Guinness with every meal!)

By: scody

scody — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:04:41 -0800

Malt vinegar is common on cafe tables in Britain as well. (mmm.... egg & chips with liberal sloshings of vinegar.)

By: Wilder

Wilder — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:04:46 -0800

In Mexico, it was salt, pepper & more or less homemade salsa.

By: Bunglegirl

Bunglegirl — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:07:29 -0800

I'm a big mustard fan so I've paid attention to this. In the Chicago area in the 80s and 90s it used to be salt/pepper/ketchup/yellow mustard. Some diner-type places would have creamer cups, various forms of sugars (white, raw, Nutrisweet), and jam. I noticed about 10 years ago that the yellow mustard was being replaced with brown or more spicy mustard and then it disappeared entirely, replaced with H1, hot sauce or something similar.

I had lunch in a Mexican restaurant in Chicago this weekend and the condiments were bowls of red salsa, green chili, and a bowl of green peppers and carrot slices.

By: le morte de bea arthur

le morte de bea arthur — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:08:43 -0800

In Italy, olive oil + balsamic vinegar seems to be common (along with salt and black pepper)

By: Beautiful Screaming Lady

Beautiful Screaming Lady — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:11:29 -0800

Small sachets available in pubs, in order of availability:
Tomato Ketchup
Salad cream
Brown sauce
Mayonnaise
English mustard
French mustard
Tartare sauce
Mint sauce

By: SNWidget

SNWidget — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:16:21 -0800

In South Texas, one often sees Cholula and Tabasco on the table.

By: St. Alia of the Bunnies

St. Alia of the Bunnies — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:19:52 -0800

In Thailand I think it's fish sauce.

By: Brennus

Brennus — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:24:59 -0800

In Costa Rica there is usually salt, pepper and Lizano traditional sauce.

By: krautland

krautland — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:28:32 -0800

you get ketchup and mayonnaise in germany at cheap places, which almost always means fries and curry sausage or burgers (the 24h diner isn't really a well-known gastronomic concept in germany but there are plenty of late night doner kebab* places). fries with ketchup and mayo is generally referred to as "pommes rot-weiss" (red-white).

*you'd usually find tsatsiki sauce here but they handle that behind the counter.

By: foodmapper

foodmapper — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:28:40 -0800

When I was traveling in Morocco, there'd always be two little dishes on the table: one of salt and one of cumin. Delicious!

By: TungstenChef

TungstenChef — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:31:40 -0800

In AZ, lots of cheap burrito joints have a salsa bar with some combination of the following:
tomato-based red salsa
tomatillo-based green salsa
chipotle or roasted tomato-based smokey salsa
radish slices
lime wedges
pickled vegetable mix, which includes some combination of carrots, jalapenos, and/or cauliflower.

The tables usually have Tapatio or Cholula sauce.

Greasy spoons that serve breakfast usually have ketchup, salt, pepper, and a hot sauce which can be Tabasco, Tapatio, or Cholula.

By: Brandon Blatcher

Brandon Blatcher — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:33:17 -0800

Here in Savannah, Texas Pete hot sauce is often found on the table if restaurant has more than few items of barbecue. The stuff is GOOD.

By: TungstenChef

TungstenChef — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:33:47 -0800

In Yucatan I remember most taco joints had salt, bottled hot sauce, and some sort of homemade tomato, cilantro, and habanero salsa which you ate at your own risk...often it would be left out for days until it became self-carbonated. Mmm, chips and fizzy salsa!

By: Ghidorah

Ghidorah — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:43:12 -0800

In Japan, at an izakaya, soy sauce, red chili pepper, and pepper. At a family restaurant, soy sauce, sweet brown sauce for things like tonkatsu, and maybe vinegar. Also probably salt and pepper.

In Bali, sambal. Maybe two or three different kinds of it, a tomato onion relish chunky style, and a red fire paste style. Sometimes a dark minced chili topped in oil.

By: bonobothegreat

bonobothegreat — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:47:07 -0800

Ontario has salt and pepper (maybe white vinegar) and in Toronto you usually have to ask the waitress for the ketchup.

By: DLWM

DLWM — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:48:47 -0800

Prague: salt, (black) pepper and Maggi sauce, which is brown and thin and salty like soy sauce, but also totally different and weird.

By: elendil71

elendil71 — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:51:24 -0800

Nepal/India - there's always some kind of bottled hot sauce (typically green), usually with a very uninviting rusting metal cap. Rarely ever seen salt or pepper. Further south into India, there typically some kind of "chutney" on the table - usually pretty spicy and sweet.

By: peanut_mcgillicuty

peanut_mcgillicuty — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:57:51 -0800

At lower-end Indian restaurants in NYC, you get a trio of chutneys with the papadum as well as a lentil-based butter-type sauce (for dipping naan in?) and some boiled buttered cabbage which I CRAVE.

By: obliquicity

obliquicity — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:57:57 -0800

I was surprised when I moved to Michigan to discover that there is always hot sauce (and not always ketchup) on restaurant tables. Not necessarily brand-specific -- although Frank's and Tabasco are probably the most common here in the Lansing area, I've also seen Tapatio and sriracha fairly frequently.

By: Dee Xtrovert

Dee Xtrovert — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:58:48 -0800

In Hungary and parts of Romania, I often see paprika. In some parts of Romania, I've seen usturoi (garlic) sauce.

By: peachfuzz

peachfuzz — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:00:34 -0800

Korea - soy sauce, white vinegar, sometimes red pepper paste.

Not sure if it holds in Vietnam or not, but every pho counter in the US has the same little tray with hoisin sauce and sriracha or other garlicky hot sauce on every table.

By: changeling

changeling — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:05:00 -0800

In Costa Rica, there's always Chilera! I had a friend drink half a jar of it on a dare -- I wouldn't have wanted to join him in the bathroom.

By: nitsuj

nitsuj — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:05:10 -0800

Pizza Huts in India have catsup bottles. It's surprisingly good on pizza!

By: fantastico

fantastico — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:12:36 -0800

In GA, mostly standard fare of salt, pepper, ketchup, sugar/Sweet 'n' Low; and depending on the restaurant, mustard, Tabasco, that sauce that has the green chilies in the bottle, barbecue sauce, A1 steak sauce and malt vinegar.

In Japan, at places that serve donburi (popular with salarymen and those looking for a quick, cheap meal), soy sauce, low-sodium soy sauce, shōga (pickled ginger), and sanshō (sichuan pepper).

By: zhivota

zhivota — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:17:02 -0800

When I lived in Idaho, there was one condiment to rule all condiments: Fry Sauce. A high-desert phenomenon of Idaho, Eastern Oregon and Washington, Western Montana, and Northern Utah, it's even often served in McDonald's and their ilk.

By: Flipping_Hades_Terwilliger

Flipping_Hades_Terwilliger — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:23:29 -0800

zhivota: I logged in specifically to add Fry Sauce to the pile, and you beat me to it. Now my thunder is stolen and I'm craving fry sauce in a fry-sauce-less land.

By: zippy

zippy — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:28:11 -0800

Germany: schmaltz.

By: peacheater

peacheater — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:29:22 -0800

Chinese restaurants in India: Three condiments -- soy sauce, hot green chiles in vinegar and spicy grean sauce/spicy red sauce.

By: chez shoes

chez shoes — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:31:36 -0800

Southern California: in addition to the S&P & ketchup, a bottle of hot sauce is pretty common, often Tapatio brand.

By: charlesv

charlesv — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:34:19 -0800

In the Netherlands there seemed to be a lot of the Maggi sauce, especially in the cafeteria at Electrabel.

By: charlesv

charlesv — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:36:37 -0800

In a deli, particular Jewish or Kosher delis, you are likely to get some brown deli mustard. This seems to be the case wherever you are in the US.

I would be interested to know what the norm would have been in a Jewish deli in Berlin in the 20s.

By: procrastinator

procrastinator — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:40:52 -0800

In Turkey, salt and black pepper are always there, but the rest depends on the type of the restaurant. If it is a fast-food, it's ketchup and mayonaise, if it's a more traditional restaurant you'll find red pepper, olive oil, lemon juice and balsamic vinegar or better, pomegranate vinegar (which goes great with salads).

By: msbrauer

msbrauer — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:52:56 -0800

In Russia a couple years ago, in small, cheap, nondescript restaurants, there's usually a bowl of salt (use your fingers to grab a pinch and sprinkle it around) and, if you're lucky, a couple of triangles of newsprint or napkins that have been separated to their thinnest state and cut into smaller pieces.

In Jiangsu province in China there's usually (what I would call) a tea kettle full of brown vinegar and sometimes there's soy sauce, too. In noodle shops and muslim restaurants, there's usually a bowl of finely, finely chopped hot red peppers with a spoon. It's usually pretty crusty. Muslim restaurants also often have individual unpeeled cloves of garlic laying around on the table, but I don't what they're for. Somebody told me they're used as a disinfectant.

By: Nick Verstayne

Nick Verstayne — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:54:10 -0800

Further to Wilder'scomment about Ireland, I'd add that while Salt and Pepper are only sometimes to be found, when they are they will often be accompanied by ketchup. If the ketchup is in a serving bowl - beware. It will be cut with malt vinegar to make it last longer. Absolutely horrible. I've seen this in many a greasy spoon up and down the west cast of Ireland (and I confess, done it myself under instruction when I worked in chippers).

YR sauce (similar enough to HP or A1) is common for places that are serving shepherds pie. Also a little bowl with cubes of sugar - for the tea, like.

By: googly

googly — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:07:55 -0800

Bali: in addition to sambal, you often see delicious kecap manis.

By: gimonca

gimonca — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:14:19 -0800

Middle Eastern shawirma/gyros/falafel restaurants around here often have a bottle of off-brand "Louisiana hot sauce" on the table with the salt and pepper, but never a name brand like Tabasco or Crystal.

From back in the day, I have fond childhood memories of the "syrup caddy" that pancake restaurants would keep around, with all the different flavors of syrup in it: strawberry, blueberry, peach, maple, etc. They were probably all artificially-flavored corn syrups, but at age seven it was pretty cool. They still have smaller versions of this at Denny's or Perkins-style chain restaurants that they'll carry out to the table for you if you order something syrup-related, but I haven't seen a fiver or more in years. (Disclaimer: I don't live close to an IHOP, no Waffle Houses in these parts.)

By: zadcat

zadcat — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:30:17 -0800

Montreal:
Schwartz's Deli
Cristal No. 1 Vietnamese cafe
Decarie Hot Dog

By: blackunicorn

blackunicorn — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:31:33 -0800

In Northern California (Humboldt Nation, not Bay Area) local places all seem to do salt, pepper, hot sauce. "Chain" places do the standard salt, pepper, ketchup, mustard.

Oh, and a sweetener basket. Sugar (plus Raw Sugar if the place is fancy), Sweet'n Low, Equal, Splenda. Everybody does that.

By: peacheater

peacheater — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:40:00 -0800

Restaurants serving Indian food in India: pickled onions, lime pickle and green chiles.

By: litlnemo

litlnemo — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:05:20 -0800

Pacific Northwest places used to have packets of tartar sauce (which is the True Seattle way to eat french fries) but this is not very common any more.

By: Zambrano

Zambrano — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:07:18 -0800

Italy- salt, pepper and a thing of grated parmesan cheese.

By: dithmer

dithmer — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:17:39 -0800

In Ecuador they have a little bowl of aji sauce on almost every restaurant table and a jar in every home - it's a delicious spicy sauce made from aji peppers that you put on just about everything.

By: isogloss

isogloss — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:25:06 -0800

When I was a kid, there was a wonderful barbecue restaurant in Miami that would place a big bowl of hamburger-dill pickle slices on the table when you sat down, alongside all their different barbecue sauces in plastic squeeze bottles. Needless to say, this was my favorite restaurant. It was indoors but all the seating was at picnic tables. It was awesome.

Also, I went to college in Gainesville, FL, where there was a 24-hour breakfast place, Skeeters, that was famous for its "big biscuits." On the tables there they had more sweet syrups than you could ever imagine existed, for biscuits and pancakes and the like. The flavors were mostly things like blueberry and other fruity stuff, but I can't remember any specifics about what they were supposed to be except that you'd have to open each one and pass it around the table for everyone to sniff. 99% of them were unbelievably disgusting.

On an unrelated noted, Skeeter's also had a Chinese menu (!), with items like "pork balls" for college kids to snicker over, and I think live music at odd hours. I don't know anyone who ever tried any of the Chinese cuisine there.

By: padraigin

padraigin — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:35:52 -0800

When I did a Tiger Cruise with my sister a few years ago, the tables in the mess hall had metal baskets with ketchup, mustard, two or three types of hot sauce (original Tabasco, green Tabasco, maybe Frank's Red Hot or Cholula or something), Worcestershire sauce, A-1 Sauce, salt and pepper.

Given the variety of backgrounds on any given Naval ship, I think they nailed it pretty well. Also, the food kind of needed it.

By: wanderingmind

wanderingmind — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:36:52 -0800

In New Mexican restaurants, honey is a table condiment (along with the usual salt, pepper, and hot sauce). You're supposed to drizzle it inside your sopaipillas.

By: HotToddy

HotToddy — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 19:01:48 -0800

@Zhivota

When I lived in Idaho, there was one condiment to rule all condiments: Fry Sauce. A high-desert phenomenon of Idaho, Eastern Oregon and Washington, Western Montana, and Northern Utah, it's even often served in McDonald's and their ilk.

What? I have lived in north Idaho, bordering Eastern Washington, for 18 years and I have never even heard of this. What is it?

By: Pennyblack

Pennyblack — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 19:13:47 -0800

What a wonderful bunch of answers! Thanks everybody. Malt vinegar, Maggi (yeast and soy?), tartar packets for french fries, white powder pepper--mmmmm.

By: nzydarkxj

nzydarkxj — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 19:21:24 -0800

In Chile: oil, vinegar, salt, lemon juice are usually sitting out.
after ordering, likely the ketchup, mustard, chili sauce, pebre (onion/tomato/chili/coriander/parsley sauce) for bread, and perhaps mayonnaise will show up, unless you order something that wouldn't ever need them or just get drinks etc.

By: eritain

eritain — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 19:51:14 -0800

In Ukrainian cafe/bars: Salt, pepper, and white vinegar (for boiled dumplings).

HotToddy, fry sauce is mayonnaise and ketchup, one or two parts mayonnaise to one part ketchup, plus maybe some other ingredients. The original Arctic Circle fry sauce included pickle juice. I like to include a few drops of garlic vinegar and a few of Tabasco. You'd see it more if you lived in south Idaho, where there are/were Arctic Circles.

By: WCityMike

WCityMike — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 20:39:18 -0800

In almost any diner I've been to, in addition to the accoutrements you list, I've also seen syrup.

By: destrius

destrius — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 20:53:03 -0800

In Singapore, it depends on the kind of food you're eating. Just about every kind of food will come with some kind of chilli-based sauce though.

"Western" food (chops, fish and chips, etc.) usually comes with ketchup, chilli sauce (sweet/spicy sauce made from cayenne peppers), salt and ground white pepper. I don't know why most places don't give black pepper, which is really more suitable for the kind of food.

Chicken rice always comes with a thick dark soy sauce, a slight sourish chilli sauce and minced ginger.

Nasi lemak is served with a sweet sambal that is generally regarded as a crucial component of the dish.

Come to think of it, except for the aforementioned western food, most cheap fare has its own particular kind of condiment, so its hard to actually name one particular sauce that's always present. The chilli sauces all differ substantially from each other depending on the dish. The only other thing I can think of that is quite universal is that most Chinese places will provide light soy sauce with sliced red chillies (usually chilli padi, bird's eye chilli pepper), green chillies in a brine solution, and sometimes black vinegar.

By: urbanwhaleshark

urbanwhaleshark — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 23:05:03 -0800

In the greatest of roadside cafes in the UK the ketchup will be in one of these.

By: Foam Pants

Foam Pants — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 01:25:38 -0800

In Juneau, AK, it isn't unusual to have Sriracha. I think this is due partially to the longevity and popularity of pel meni (dumplings ONLY) and the large Philipino population. At Pel Meni, you can have meat or potato dumplings. They put in a piece of white bread then the dumplings. Madras Curry Powder, Sriracha, butter, and cilantro go over. Hand over takeout container, head back to the bar.

By: drea

drea — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 02:03:47 -0800

@Foam Pants -- it's Filipino, not Philippino

Speaking of the Philippines, we have fish sauce as well (we call it patis). Also, due to economic constraints many Filipino households will have ketchup -- not the one made out of tomatoes, but bananas. After that, it's soy sauce and vinegar.

In many high-end restaurants you usually have to request for the fish sauce, and/or banana ketchup. Soy sauce and vinegar are also more readily available in those ubiquitous roadside eateries that specialize in grilling meat.

By: Tom-B

Tom-B — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 04:29:44 -0800

São Paulo, Brazil: In simple restaurants called PF (Prato Feito, meaning "ready dish" — the meal comes already assembled on a plate) you'll find:

Salt
Oil (usually soy oil)
Vinegar
sometimes pepper sauce à la Tabasco
Toothpicks (not a condiment, but always there next to them)

Ask the waiter for (cheap, crappy, not always available) mustard and ketchup

By: thejrae

thejrae — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 09:12:01 -0800

In Maryland they often have Old Bay (a crab seasoning). It's GREAT on fries! Even my high school cafeteria had it. Oh man seeing that yellow tin takes me back!

I don't know about Spain having salt and pepper. When I was an exchange student there in high school, I vividly remember a meal with my host family comprised entirely of meat. When I asked for salt and pepper, the host mom looked at me like I was crazy. She gave me a container of salt in its original packaging (like, the Morton's salt container- not a salt shaker or cellar or anything), and then we had a language barrier over the pepper. She had no idea what I was talking about. She brought out several different containers of spices before figuring out I meant black pepper.

For some reason I think if salt and pepper were common in Spanish restaurants my host mom would've known what I was talking about (and had salt and pepper shakers).

By: elizardbits

elizardbits — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 09:14:32 -0800

In the Yunnan and Sichuan provinces of China, you usually see salt, a variety of ground dry peppers (white, black, etc.), and, intriguingly, MSG, each in their own little pots.