10 Classic Foods You Need To Try At Least Once

If you are a foodie (or even if you're not), you have probably seen "must-try" food lists showing up on your favorite news sites and in your inbox on the daily. However, just because ramen burgers and California burritos are taking over the foodie market (if you've never had a California burrito, get yourself down to Southern California, stat) doesn't mean that there aren't some classic foods that you need to try on the double. Listed below are 10 basic foods you need to eat before you die. Period.

Sometimes the crazy, curated dishes can take over a bucket list, but before you get to all that good stuff, you have to take it back to the basics. These classic dishes aren't the craziest things you've ever heard of, but they certainly are things you need to try at least once during your lifetime. From escargot to a Kalua roasted pig, there's a reason these foods are famous.

It's time to get out a pen and paper, and start planning your next meal. Or, if you're not the cooking type (especially during these hot summer days), then get on your phone and start Yelping. These basic foods await you, and trust me, there is bound to be at least one that strikes a home run with your taste buds.

1. Poutine

Poutine is one of the best dishes that Canada got right. If you think chili cheese fries are amazing (which they absolutely are), then you're going to think these fries topped with cheese curds and gravy are even more so. Promise.

2. Ceviche

Ah, ceviche. Made up of fresh raw fish that is mixed with citrus juices, onion, and cilantro, this beloved appetizer has quite a kick to it. If you've never tried it, you're big time missing out.

3. Steak Tartare

If you can eat sushi, you can eat beef tartare. I'm not saying to do it on a weekly basis, and I'm not saying to give up your filet mignons for it... all I'm saying is you have to try it at least once.

4. Raw Oysters

The only way I know how to describe raw oysters is that eating one is like taking a swig of the ocean — not in the salt water sense, but in the overall sense. Add it to the bucket list.

5. Escargot

Don't let the snail factor trip you up — you eat grosser animals all the time. (Um, pigs don't have sweat glands, and they actually roll in the mud on a daily basis... you can handle a snail.) Besides, this French delicacy is so rich with garlic butter, you won't even taste the snail part. It's a texture thing, you guys.

6. Caviar

Let's just get it out in the open — if you don't know what caviar actually is, it's fish eggs. Ultra salty and weird in texture, everybody knows this stuff is for the rich. That being said, live like a king, at least for a bite. You'll either hate it or love it.

7. Swiss Cheese Fondue

Chocolate fondue is a joke when it comes to an authentic Swiss cheese fondue. (I'm calling chocolate a joke, so you better be taking this recommendation seriously.) Dip some bread cubes, veggies, and even cooked meats into what my family likes to call "stinky foot cheese." I sold you on it, didn't I?

8. Kalua Pig

Ham, bacon, and pork roast is not the same as a Kalua pig. It's just not. This traditional Hawaiian style of cooking roasts the pig over a pit for hours. Let me just say that the time put into it pays off... big time.

9. Canned Herring

I know, this is a tough one — but you can do it. And you will like it! Canned herring is a Swedish favorite. Fermented for a minimum of six months, this stuff is kind of like the alcohol of fish.

10. Maine Lobster

Stuffed, steamed, or in a stew... you have not lived until you have sucked the legs of a Maine lobster dry. OK, you don't have to go that far, but at least let yourself indulge in the claws and tail. Maine lobster is its own breed, so don't think you've had anything like it until you've actually had it.

Looking for more great food ideas? Check out Bustle on YouTube.

Images: Thomas Hawk, Matt Saunders, James, Jen Leung, Patrick, Trent Strohm, Aleksandar Cocek, Bill Holmes, Kent Buckingham, elisabet.s, Sandra Forbes/Flickr