I get tired of tacos pretty quickly.
Up here in Ontario, tacos are common, and enchiladas/ chiles rellenos / tamales are hard to find.
When I order at Mexican restaurants in Canada, I often get 1 taco, 1 quesadilla and 1 tostada. Sometimes, I only eat the middle 
I usually share a combo plate, or bring some home in a doggie bag.
I see. Chile Rellenos are not hard to find in my neighborhood, and tamales arenāt either, but the tamales are not always in the taqurias that are everywhere. I buy them in the markets. I donāt remember a lot of enchiladas either, but I suppose they have them, at least at āMexicanā restaurants (some places are more regional). I mostly go to taqurias.
Looks like Molina has it all!
Iām curious about the fillings you find where you are, but thatās for another thread.
Where are you planning to visit on your next trip to the US?
Your food target list seems to be pretty geographically diverse (though so can any trip, I guess).
Theyāre delicious!
I want to go to Detroit and try detroit style pizza. A food youtuber I follow went to Buddyās and then replicated at home. Detroit style pizza is having a moment around here with multiple restaurants opening.
I also want to go to the MN state fair for fair food - little healthy about it.
If you go to Columbus OH for any reason, go here: https://www.eatchapmans.com/ Charming, delicious, and innovative little place in German Village. I want to quit my IT job and go work there.
I like Waffle House. Not the food so much (me: hash brown bowl, extra crispy with grilled mushrooms, onions, tomato and a fried egg) but for the characters that tend to patronize the places. Local flavor.
These lists always seem to be written by an intern who has never left her desk in Manhattan.
State lines are artificial boundaries that donāt usually match up to the cultural boundaries that actually rule our daily lives.
Since you mention NYC to DC, you could make a quick stop at Reading Terminal Marketāa soft pretzel app, a cheesesteak or roast pork (with sharp provolone and rabe) sandwich and some Bassetts ice cream for dessert. Then you can wander through the various merchants and pick up some local chocolates, baked goods, honey, jams, etc for the rest of your trip. You can sample a lot of what Philly and SE PA have to offer with only one stop.
Or, if you are inclined to stop in Philly for a dinner, Solomonovās restaurants offer things that may not be available (or may be?) in Canada. I also really enjoy Estia, but I think you may have enough Greek readily available.
In Ontario, the taco fillings are all over the map. We have a lot of new taquerias run by people who have immigrated from Mexico recently, so if you go to a Mexican run taqueria, you can order birrea, lengua, Al pastor. Then there are the Canadian taco places serving their version of fish tacos, or pricey newfangled tacos with fried chicken and peanut sauce. In my neighborhood in Toronto, thereās a French taco place- kind of gimmicky looking, and i havenāt tried it yet. Also, Korean tacos are available.
There arenāt many places serving Mexicali- Californian Mexican stuff. There had been 1 or 2, and they have closed as far as I know. So- I crave the dishes you can find easily in Northern CA.
The enchiladas sold here are too dry. Very sad. I have to make my own.
The chile rellenos available in restaurants in London, ON are often stuffed pepper filled with meat, and topped with a cream sauce, rather than the battered cheese filled type found in old school Mexican restaurants in northern CA and other parts of the States.
I did go through a decade of trying every fish taco I could, from around 2004-2014, then i had a tacos al pastor phase, so, maybe I tacoed myself out. Or maybe a new taco phase is coming?
Lately, Iāve been ordering a birrea quesadilla when I get a craving! 
I agree re: Waffle House.
Itās been a long time since I visited Columbus!
I always try specific Greek dishes at Greek restaurants and
bakeries (dolmades, spanakopita, melamakarona, iced Frappe coffee, some less common dishes) when Iām travelling. Iām also tempted to visit any time a Greek restaurant is named Zorbaās, Nickās or Dianaās.
I also really like burek, bourekas, brik, empanadas, salteƱas, etc, so I sometimes make my visit about seeking out specific types of foods, that fit a theme.
Greek food varies so much.
?? My reccs were definitely meant for Philadelphia.
Oops, hold on. That Columbus part was meant to be a reply to tcamp.
I will definitely keep your recs for Philadelphia. I had a friend living in Philadelphia in the late 90s, and stayed with her a few times, and then I
I visited once since then. I am due to revisit.
This is a wishlist.
I am hoping to visit Ohio and upstate New York before November.
Each visit will likely be one week or less.
It will take years to check off all these dishes.
Dry enchiladas? That makes no sense.
Wouldnāt that be taquitos?
Goals are important to us food lovers.
Best if you can go with a group of 3-4 so you can join different lines, everyone gets a bite of each dish and you can move on to the next ones. Solo youād likely only get to try 5-6 items (at most) even if you start early ā long lines and share-able portion sizes. Research and planning your walking routes is required if youāre going to focus on food there!
I think Iāve kvetched about them before. I will find an old photo. Stingy with the sauce.
Bento box and ziplocs for the leftovers.
Tenderloins in Iowa are like barbecue in Texas; everyone has their favorite and some people argue their choices with near religious fervor. The Iowa Pork Producers put out yearly rankings.
https://www.iowapork.org/community/contests/breaded-tenderloin-contest
As an Iowan I shouldnāt say this, but Indiana also claims the tenderloin as theirs. I can only guess that they serve a pale imitation.
Iām impressed with your list of visited US states. Iāve lived here all my life (almost 68 years) except for the two years I lived in Spain as a graduate student. There are 10 US states Iāve never spent one minute in (including Florida and Arizona as well as Hawaii and Alaska), and quite a few others that I never stayed overnight in.
I drove across country between California and the East coast several times, and thatās when I spent at least some time in many of them. I, too, love to try regional dishes wherever I go. Iām not sure I regret not having tried Iowa loose meat the two nights I was in Burlington, Iowa.
