10 California Food Habits That Confuse Tourists Every Time
When you visit the Golden State, you’re bound to encounter some quirky food habits that might leave you scratching your head.
As a California native, I’ve watched countless tourists look bewildered at our food customs and preferences.
From our obsession with certain ingredients to our unique dining terminology, these California eating habits often feel like a secret language to visitors.
1. Avocado Avalanche
Yesterday I watched a tourist’s jaw drop when I ordered avocado on my burger, pancakes, AND ice cream in the same day. Here in California, we don’t just like avocados – we worship them with cult-like devotion.
The green fruit appears on virtually everything: toast (obviously), omelets, sandwiches, sushi, and even desserts. Many visitors find it jarring to see avocado as a non-negotiable add-on rather than an occasional treat.
What outsiders don’t understand is that for Californians, an avocado shortage is practically grounds for declaring a state emergency. We’ll happily pay that extra $2.50 for guacamole without blinking, while tourists gasp at the upcharge. It’s not just food – it’s our state’s unofficial mascot!
2. Secret Menu Mysteries At In-N-Out
My cousin from Chicago nearly had a meltdown when I ordered my burger “animal style” without even looking at a menu. In-N-Out’s secret menu isn’t actually secret to locals – it’s practically required knowledge for California citizenship.
Tourists stand bewildered in line as Californians confidently order items nowhere to be found on the official menu board. “Protein style,” “3×3,” and “animal style fries” flow from our lips while visitors clutch their standard menu choices in confusion.
The puzzled looks on tourists’ faces when they see a burger wrapped in lettuce instead of a bun is priceless. Even more confusing? Our passionate debates about whether In-N-Out or Shake Shack reigns supreme – a conversation that can end friendships faster than discussing politics.
3. The “Healthy” Burrito Delusion
Burritos the size of newborn babies somehow qualify as “health food” in California logic. I once had a New York friend spit out her drink when I called my carne asada burrito “basically a salad” because it had guacamole.
We’ve mastered the art of nutritional self-deception by focusing on the few vegetables tucked inside that tortilla fortress. Somehow, the presence of fresh ingredients transforms a 1,000+ calorie monster into something we convince ourselves is practically medicinal.
Tourists watch in amazement as locals debate which burrito spot offers the most “balanced” option, completely ignoring the mountain of cheese, sour cream, and rice. The confusion deepens when we explain our system of burrito rankings based on the perfect rice-to-bean ratio – a science we’ve developed with laboratory precision.
4. Kombucha Craze
Offering my Alabama relatives kombucha last summer resulted in facial expressions I’ll never forget – a mixture of horror and pity as they watched me happily swig fermented tea. Californians treat kombucha like other states treat coffee or water: an essential daily beverage.
We casually discuss kombucha flavors, brewing techniques, and SCOBY health at dinner parties while visitors wonder if we’ve lost our minds. The refrigerated section of our grocery stores dedicates more space to kombucha varieties than many states allocate to beer.
The real kicker comes when tourists discover we pay upwards of $5 for what essentially tastes like vinegar with attitude. Even more baffling is our insistence that this fizzy, funky drink is solving health problems doctors haven’t even discovered yet. “It’s good for your gut flora!” we proclaim to unconvinced visitors.
5. Fish Tacos For Breakfast
Morning cravings hit differently on the West Coast. While most tourists expect pancakes or eggs, I’ve shocked many visitors by suggesting fish tacos at 8 AM – a perfectly normal California breakfast option.
Our disregard for traditional breakfast boundaries leaves tourists thoroughly confused. The concept of seafood before noon seems to violate some unwritten rule for many out-of-staters, yet beach communities throughout California serve fish tacos alongside coffee without a second thought.
What really throws visitors off is our casual attitude about it. “Grilled mahi-mahi with mango salsa before my morning meeting? Sure!” The bewildered expressions as we happily munch on cabbage-topped fish while the morning fog still lingers is a dead giveaway of tourist status. Meanwhile, we’re just wondering why everyone else limits themselves to boring breakfast foods.
6. Oat Milk Latte Loyalty Oath
Baristas across California have witnessed the same scene: a tourist’s confused squint at being asked “almond, oat, soy, hemp, or cow?” when ordering coffee. I personally pledged allegiance to oat milk two years ago and haven’t looked back – much to the bewilderment of my Midwest relatives.
Our coffee shops often carry more plant milks than dairy options, treating regular milk as the alternative choice. The passionate debates about which non-dairy milk creates the perfect microfoam texture would sound like a foreign language to most visitors.
Perhaps most perplexing to tourists is our willingness to pay an extra dollar for oat milk while simultaneously complaining about housing prices. The blank stares when Californians explain the environmental impact of their milk choice or debate the merits of barista blend versus regular oat milk reveals the cultural divide. For us, it’s not just coffee – it’s a lifestyle statement.
7. Vegan Fast Food Phenomenon
Last month I took my cousin to a drive-thru where everything – from burgers to milkshakes – was 100% plant-based. Her mind was blown, especially when the car behind us was a massive pickup truck with hunting decals.
California’s embrace of vegan fast food creates a bizarre parallel universe where the quintessential American meal exists in a meatless dimension. Tourists often do double-takes when they realize that the “chicken” sandwich they’re enjoying never clucked a day in its life.
What really throws visitors for a loop is how mainstream these options have become. It’s not just dedicated vegan restaurants – even traditional fast food joints here offer plant-based options that actually taste good. The casual way Californians order an Impossible Burger with vegan cheese while wearing leather shoes highlights a flexible approach to plant-based eating that confounds the all-or-nothing mindset many tourists bring from home.
8. Poke Bowl Lunch Loyalty
My coworker from Boston nearly fainted at the price when I casually dropped $18 on a poke bowl for Tuesday’s lunch. For Californians, these colorful raw fish creations aren’t special occasion meals – they’re everyday fuel as common as sandwiches are elsewhere.
Office workers form lines around the block for these Hawaiian-inspired bowls, customizing their rice, fish, and toppings with the seriousness of NASA engineers. Tourists watch in amazement as locals debate the merits of various poke establishments based on factors like “fish-to-rice ratio” and “sauce distribution technique.”
The real confusion sets in when visitors realize we eat raw fish for lunch multiple times a week without considering it special. Even more baffling is our willingness to spend nearly $20 on what amounts to deconstructed sushi in a compostable bowl. Yet to us, it’s just Tuesday’s lunch – a quick, healthy option we’d never think twice about.
9. Juice Cleanse Confessions
“I’m just doing a quick three-day reset,” I explained to my visiting aunt as she watched me struggle through day two of surviving on nothing but $12 bottles of liquefied kale. Her expression was priceless – a mixture of concern and suspicion that I’d joined a cult.
Californians casually mention their juice cleanses in everyday conversation, treating temporary starvation as a normal social activity. We discuss our favorite cleanse programs and debate the merits of activated charcoal additions while tourists wonder if we’re experiencing a collective eating disorder.
What really confuses visitors is the timing – announcing a juice cleanse right before a major food holiday or vacation seems counterintuitive. Yet we proudly carry our colorful bottles everywhere, explaining our improved “clarity” while visibly fantasizing about solid food. The willingness to pay hundreds of dollars to be hungry for days is perhaps the most baffling California food habit of all.
10. Lemon Pizza Peculiarity
The horror on my Chicago friend’s face when I squeezed fresh lemon over my pizza slice was as if I’d committed a cardinal sin. “You’re ruining perfectly good pizza!” he gasped, while I continued this California ritual without shame.
Across the Golden State, we’ve normalized adding citrus to our pizza – particularly on thin-crust artisanal pies with arugula or prosciutto. This bright acidity cuts through the richness of cheese and adds a fresh dimension that many Californians consider essential rather than optional.
Visitors from pizza strongholds like New York or Chicago watch in horror as we doctor our slices with lemon wedges provided by restaurants that clearly endorse this behavior. The confusion deepens when they realize our pizzas often feature ingredients like figs, pears, or truffle honey – further evidence of our willful departure from tradition. To us, it’s culinary evolution; to tourists, it’s pizza blasphemy.