• 114 questions

Food Would You Rather Questions With the Story Behind the Dish

Press an answer to vote, then find the true origin of the dish in the list below.

Food Would You Rather Questions With the Story Behind the Dish

Would you rather…

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All 114 questions

Give one up forever 17

  • Would you rather cook without salt for life or bake without sugar for life?
  • Would you rather eat only hot food for life or eat only cold food for life?
  • Would you rather give up bread forever or give up rice forever?
  • Would you rather give up breakfast cereal forever or give up pancakes and waffles forever?
  • Would you rather give up butter forever or give up eggs forever?
  • Would you rather give up cheese forever or give up chocolate forever?
  • Would you rather give up every fruit but apples or give up every vegetable but carrots?
  • Would you rather give up garlic forever or give up onions forever?
  • Would you rather give up ice cream forever or give up cake forever?
  • Would you rather give up ketchup forever or give up every other sauce forever?
  • Would you rather give up morning coffee for good or give up sweets after 6 p.m. for good?
  • Would you rather give up pasta forever or give up potatoes in every form?
  • Would you rather give up peanut butter forever or give up jelly and jam forever?
  • Would you rather give up pizza forever or give up tacos forever?
  • Would you rather give up restaurants forever or give up home cooking forever?
  • Would you rather never eat a sandwich again or never eat a bowl of soup again?
  • Would you rather never eat french fries again or never eat potato chips again?

Odd combinations people really eat 13

  • Would you rather dip fries in mayonnaise or bury fries in gravy and cheese curds? Belgium serves its fries with mayonnaise, and fries under gravy and cheese curds are poutine, from Quebec.
  • Would you rather drink coffee with egg whipped in or drink tea with butter and salt? Egg coffee is a Vietnamese drink from Hanoi, and butter tea, made with yak butter and salt, is a Tibetan drink.
  • Would you rather drop cheese into hot coffee or top iced tea with whipped cream cheese? Kaffeost, coffee cheese, is bread cheese with hot coffee poured over it, and cheese tea started in Taiwan.
  • Would you rather eat a french fry sandwich or eat a potato chip sandwich? Britain has a name for each: the chip butty and the crisp sandwich.
  • Would you rather eat a fried ham sandwich dusted with sugar or eat fruitcake with cheese? A Monte Cristo is a ham and cheese sandwich dipped in egg and pan-fried, and sweeter versions come covered in powdered sugar. Yorkshire serves its fruitcake with cheese.
  • Would you rather eat apple pie with cheddar on top or eat fried chicken on a waffle? Both are real. Cheddar on apple pie goes back to 17th century England, and chicken and waffles is an American dish.
  • Would you rather eat bacon dipped in chocolate or eat potato chips dipped in chocolate? Both are sold as snacks in North America: chocolate-covered bacon and chocolate-covered potato chips.
  • Would you rather eat deep-fried ice cream or eat salty black licorice? Fried ice cream is a scoop frozen hard, coated and quickly deep-fried, and salty licorice is a Northern European candy flavored with salmiak salt.
  • Would you rather eat fried noodles in a hot dog bun or eat melon wrapped in ham? Yakisoba-pan, fried noodles in a bun, is sold in Japanese convenience stores, and melon with ham is a summer dish in Spain, Italy and France.
  • Would you rather eat sprinkles on buttered bread or eat baked beans on toast? Fairy bread is a children's party food in Australia and New Zealand, and beans on toast is a British standby.
  • Would you rather order a scoop of cheese ice cream or order mango on sweet sticky rice? Queso ice cream is a Filipino flavor made with cheese, and mango sticky rice is a Southeast Asian dessert.
  • Would you rather order an avocado milkshake or order spaghetti in banana ketchup? Avocado milkshakes are common in Indonesia, Vietnam and Brazil, and Filipino spaghetti gets its sweet sauce from banana ketchup.
  • Would you rather put pineapple on every pizza or put no toppings on any pizza?

One cuisine only 15

  • Would you rather eat fish and chips every Friday or eat feijoada every Saturday? Fish and chips is a British dish that began in England, and feijoada is a pork and bean stew from Portugal, cooked across the Portuguese-speaking world.
  • Would you rather eat Grandma's cooking every night or eat a new country's food each night?
  • Would you rather eat gyros and moussaka all week or eat schnitzel and bratwurst all week? Gyros are Greek and moussaka is eaten across the Balkans and the eastern Mediterranean. Wiener schnitzel is Viennese and bratwurst is German.
  • Would you rather eat jollof rice every day or eat injera with every meal? Jollof rice is a West African rice dish, and injera is the fermented flatbread of Ethiopia and Eritrea.
  • Would you rather eat noodles from every country or eat dumplings from every country?
  • Would you rather eat only dim sum for brunch or eat only tapas for dinner? Dim sum is a spread of small dishes tied to Cantonese cooking and eaten at brunch, and tapas are Spanish snacks and appetizers.
  • Would you rather eat only Italian food for a year or eat only Mexican food for a year?
  • Would you rather eat only street food forever or eat only fine dining forever?
  • Would you rather eat pierogi and borscht all winter or eat paella and churros all winter? Pierogi are Polish dumplings and borscht is a sour soup from Ukraine. Paella comes from Valencia, Spain, and churros from the Iberian Peninsula.
  • Would you rather eat samosas and biryani all week or eat satay and lumpia all week? Samosas and biryani are South Asian favorites. Satay comes from Maritime Southeast Asia, and lumpia are the spring rolls of Indonesia and the Philippines.
  • Would you rather eat sushi and ramen for a month or eat tacos and tamales for a month? Sushi and ramen are Japanese, though ramen grew from Chinese noodles. Tacos are Mexican, and tamales go back to Mesoamerica.
  • Would you rather have naan with every meal or have tortillas with every meal? Naan is a leavened flatbread of South and West Asia, and the tortilla goes back to Mesoamerica.
  • Would you rather live on gumbo and jambalaya or live on arepas and empanadas? Gumbo and jambalaya are from Louisiana. Arepas are the corn flatbread of Colombia and Venezuela, and empanadas trace to Galicia in Spain.
  • Would you rather live on hummus, falafel and pita or live on kimchi, bibimbap and rice? Hummus and falafel are Middle Eastern. Kimchi and bibimbap are Korean.
  • Would you rather live on pad thai and green curry or live on pho and banh mi? Pad thai and green curry are Thai. Pho is a Vietnamese noodle soup and banh mi is a Vietnamese sandwich.

Names that fool you 12

  • Would you rather buy a Danish pastry in Denmark or buy a Swiss roll in Switzerland? Danes call the Danish wienerbrød, Viennese bread, and the Swiss roll is believed to come from elsewhere in Central Europe.
  • Would you rather eat a Boston cream pie or eat a whoopie pie? Neither is clearly a pie. Boston cream pie is a custard-filled cake, and the whoopie pie gets called a cookie, a pie or a cake.
  • Would you rather eat Hawaiian pizza in Hawaii or eat German chocolate cake in Germany? Neither is local. Hawaiian pizza was created in Ontario, Canada, in 1962, and German chocolate cake comes from Dallas, Texas, named for chocolate maker Samuel German.
  • Would you rather explain why a peanut is not a nut or explain why rhubarb is not a fruit? A peanut is a legume whose seeds ripen in underground pods, and rhubarb is a vegetable that gets cooked like a fruit.
  • Would you rather find the buffalo in Buffalo wings or find the duck in Bombay duck? Buffalo wings are named after Buffalo, New York, and Bombay duck is a fish, a species of lizardfish.
  • Would you rather get a Cuban sandwich in Tampa or get a California roll in Vancouver? The Cuban sandwich likely began in cafes for Cuban workers in Tampa or Key West, and a Vancouver chef is among those who claim the California roll.
  • Would you rather look for the rabbit in Welsh rarebit or look for the egg in an egg cream? Welsh rarebit, first called Welsh rabbit, is hot cheese sauce on toast, and an egg cream contains neither eggs nor cream.
  • Would you rather open a fortune cookie in China or eat Mongolian barbecue in Mongolia? Fortune cookies are not Chinese in origin: they most likely began with Japanese immigrants to the United States. Mongolian barbecue was developed in Taiwan.
  • Would you rather order french fries in Paris or order a Caesar salad in Rome? France and Belgium both claim the fry, and the Caesar salad was created in Tijuana, Mexico, in 1924.
  • Would you rather prove a banana is a berry or prove a strawberry is not one? Botanically a banana is a berry, and a strawberry is not: it is an aggregate accessory fruit.
  • Would you rather thank Austria for the croissant or thank Portugal for tempura? The croissant was inspired by the Austrian kipferl, and Portuguese Jesuits brought batter frying to Japan in the 16th century.
  • Would you rather try tikka masala in Glasgow or try spaghetti and meatballs in New York? Chicken tikka masala may have been created in Glasgow, and spaghetti and meatballs was developed by Italian immigrants in New York City.

Breakfast 13

  • Would you rather eat dry toast every morning or eat plain yogurt every morning?
  • Would you rather eat pancakes every morning or eat waffles every morning?
  • Would you rather eat soup for breakfast all week or eat oatmeal for dinner all week?
  • Would you rather eat your eggs scrambled for life or eat your eggs sunny side up for life?
  • Would you rather get a fresh croissant every morning or get a warm bagel every morning? The bagel is a bread roll that began in the Jewish communities of Poland. It is boiled before it is baked.
  • Would you rather grab a breakfast burrito on the go or sit down to biscuits and gravy? The breakfast burrito is tied to New Mexico, and biscuits and gravy is a breakfast dish of the American South.
  • Would you rather have bacon that is always crispy or have toast that never burns?
  • Would you rather have brunch at noon every Sunday or have breakfast in bed every Saturday?
  • Would you rather pour the milk before the cereal or eat the cereal with no milk at all?
  • Would you rather put syrup on everything at breakfast or never taste maple syrup again?
  • Would you rather skip breakfast every weekday or skip lunch every weekday?
  • Would you rather try congee for breakfast or try shakshuka for breakfast? Congee is a savory rice porridge eaten across Asia. Shakshuka, also spelled shakshouka, is a Maghrebi dish of eggs poached in a tomato sauce.
  • Would you rather wake up to a full English breakfast or wake up to rice and miso soup? A full breakfast is the big cooked breakfast of Great Britain and Ireland. In Japan it is common to eat miso soup and rice porridge in the morning.

Desserts and sweets 15

  • Would you rather bake a perfect pie crust every time or frost a perfect cake every time?
  • Would you rather crack the top of a crème brûlée or dunk a churro in thick hot chocolate? France, Catalonia and England all claim crème brûlée. Churros, fried dough from the Iberian Peninsula, are often served with a cup of chocolate.
  • Would you rather drink shakes too thick for a straw or get slushies without brain freeze?
  • Would you rather eat a doughnut with no hole or eat only the doughnut holes?
  • Would you rather eat a French macaron or eat a coconut macaroon? One letter apart. A macaron is a French meringue-based sweet, and a macaroon is a cookie made with almonds or coconut.
  • Would you rather eat cake with no frosting or eat frosting with no cake?
  • Would you rather eat dessert before every dinner or eat dessert only on Sundays?
  • Would you rather eat one perfect dessert a year or eat an okay dessert every day?
  • Would you rather eat only chocolate candy or eat only fruity candy?
  • Would you rather eat pavlova in New Zealand or eat key lime pie in Key West? Australia and New Zealand both claim pavlova, a meringue dessert. Key lime pie comes from Key West, Florida.
  • Would you rather get the corner brownie every time or get the middle brownie every time?
  • Would you rather have ice cream that never drips or have cookies that are always warm?
  • Would you rather learn to make tiramisu or learn to make baklava? Tiramisu is an Italian dessert of coffee-soaked ladyfingers, and baklava is layered filo pastry with nuts and syrup.
  • Would you rather put sprinkles on every dessert or put whipped cream on every dessert?
  • Would you rather try every flavor of gelato or try every flavor of mochi? Gelato is Italian-style ice cream, and mochi is a Japanese rice cake.

Cooking and kitchen jobs 15

  • Would you rather always know when pasta is done or always know when an avocado is ripe?
  • Would you rather be the family's taste tester or be the family's pizza topper?
  • Would you rather chop onions without ever crying or peel garlic without sticky fingers?
  • Would you rather cook for a picky eater nightly or cook for a food critic once a month?
  • Would you rather cook with five ingredients for life or cook with one pan for life?
  • Would you rather flip pancakes like a pro or spin pizza dough like a pro?
  • Would you rather get to lick the spoon or get to scrape the bowl?
  • Would you rather grow all your own tomatoes or bake all your own bread?
  • Would you rather have bananas that never turn brown or have bread that never goes stale?
  • Would you rather judge thirty chilis at a cook-off or judge thirty pies at a county fair?
  • Would you rather never follow a recipe again or never cook without a recipe again?
  • Would you rather own a pan nothing sticks to or own a fridge that never smells?
  • Would you rather run a food truck with one great dish or run a diner with a 12-page menu?
  • Would you rather win a baking contest with a pie or win a chili cook-off with your recipe?
  • Would you rather work as a pastry chef at 4 a.m. or work as a line cook until midnight?

At the table 14

  • Would you rather always get the first slice or always get the last slice?
  • Would you rather always get your order first or always get the biggest portion?
  • Would you rather choose dinner for the whole family or choose dessert for everyone?
  • Would you rather eat alone at a great restaurant or eat with friends at a bad one?
  • Would you rather eat dinner at 4:30 p.m. forever or eat dinner at 10 p.m. forever?
  • Would you rather eat every meal at a picnic or eat every meal at a campfire?
  • Would you rather eat noodles with a teaspoon or eat peas with a toothpick?
  • Would you rather eat only food you can hold or eat only food that needs a spoon?
  • Would you rather get ten minutes at a buffet or sit through a four-hour tasting menu?
  • Would you rather give away your first bite or give away your last bite?
  • Would you rather have leftovers that improve daily or have takeout that arrives hot?
  • Would you rather let the table order for you or choose what everyone else eats?
  • Would you rather order the same dish every time or never order the same dish twice?
  • Would you rather read a menu in any language or pronounce every dish perfectly?

How it works

These 114 food would you rather questions include Eat Hawaiian pizza in Hawaii or eat German chocolate cake in Germany. Forty-four cards name real dishes, and the list below says where each comes from. Hawaiian pizza is from Ontario.

Read the full guide

Vote on the plate, then read the origin

After the vote, read the origin from the list under the deck. Names that fool you makes a quiz of it: fortune cookies are not Chinese in origin, and Mongolian barbecue was developed in Taiwan.

Eight topics, from giving up pizza to judging pies

Give one up forever holds 17 plain trades, such as Give up bread forever or give up rice forever. Odd combinations people really eat holds 13 cards, 12 of them real pairings: sprinkles on buttered bread is fairy bread, a children's party food in Australia and New Zealand. Simple picks marks 32 quick cards about foods most people know. Dinner party marks 35 slower ones about cuisines, restaurants and cooking.

  • For a fast round, press Simple picks and then Easy for 31 cards.
  • At a dinner party, press Dinner party and then Hard for 18 slower cards.
  • No phones at the table? On the end card, press Print for slips to cut apart, all 114 or the topic you picked.

Questions and answers

What are some would you rather questions about food?

Try Give up garlic forever or give up onions forever, or Get to lick the spoon or get to scrape the bowl. For a food edition with a story, press Names that fool you: the Caesar salad was created in Tijuana, Mexico, in 1924.

How were the food facts checked?

Every origin line was checked against the dish's English Wikipedia article in September 2026, 100 articles. Where an origin is disputed, the line says so: France and Belgium both claim the fry, and Australia and New Zealand both claim pavlova.

Are there any eating dares?

No. Every card is a choice to talk about. The odd combinations are foods people really serve, such as melon wrapped in ham. No card names a restaurant or a packaged brand, and none mentions alcohol. The kids deck has 40 Food cards.

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