When Scotland Wins...

Foods that are better in Scotland...
-Almost all dairy products. The whipping cream, yogurt and butter here are shamelessly rich and thick. The cheddar is kick-in-the-pants strong when it says "sharp" cheddar. An important culinary (and budget friendly discovery) that Matt and I made recently is that super sharp, white cheddar is the perfect replacement for a parmesan in a pinch. Why do I say "almost" and not "all" dairy products? Not sure about the cream cheese here. It's texture is a bit troublesome for cream cheese frosting on say...well a carrot cake. That is unforgivable in my world so I have to qualify dairy products as not entirely being superior.
-Eggs. They are all free range which does result in occassionally having to pull off wispy feather attached to the egg or bitty beaks floating in the yolk. This is unnerving at first but then you realize that it is so much more normal to have a slightly imperfect, organic experience with a brown egg than a completely sterile experience with a white egg. Plus it encourages me to be true to the recommended method of cracking an egg in a bowl before adding it to wet baking ingredients, etc.
-Bacon. This is a very touchy subject to some Americans and Scots as the bacon here is distinctly different from what you would buy in the states. Many Americans say that it isn't "crunchy" enough and that bacon needs to have a certain texture to be true to itself. Indeed the bacon here isn't the striped fat, crunchy bacon but let me tell you something. It is so so...well...bacony. The flavor beats the hell out of American bacon. So smokey. It is like the dark chocolate of bacon. I can understand you wanting to have something familiar and comforting at times like a bar of cheap milk chocolate. All cravings have their place but I submit that when all is said and done, bacon here is more sophisticatedly tasty. In the meantime, there is always the argument that bacon here has more food for what you pay - less fat content in the price you pay. So touche all you crunchy bacon advocates.
-Candy. No doubt this is to be expected with chocolate. Americans always get a bad reputation for waxy chocolate and rightly so. That said, these Brits really are our superiors on all things confectionary. For one: gummies. I give you Rowntree's Randoms or Haribo's Tangfastic or Sour Strawberry Pencils as exhibit A, B, and C. These are so so good in such different ways. Randoms are utterly gummy-y in a way you never thought possible. Now some smart-a might challenge that "Oh Haribo is a German brand of candy. Not British." To that I would respond it is more accessible here in the UK and it is much much cheaper. Ha! That's right. And might I add that only those who have read even a few Roald Dahl books would know not to trifle with the Brits and their confectionary. Can I also throw out there that the Skittles here have blackcurrent instead of grape in their original flavor packs? And also candy bars include delightfully romantic and creative renditions of mint and chocolate (Aero Bars) as well as fake honeycomb (Crunchie Bars). Heaven! This just scratches the surface but you get the idea.
-Digestive Biscuits. Most especially those blessed HobNobs. How do Americans compare? They don't. There is no subsitute for a Hob Nob. Enough said.
-Hummus. This has always been a staple but it is taking on a new level of importance for us while we have been here. It is better in all ways here. It's cheaper. There are more choices. The texture is always spot-on better and all the flavors have been so so perfect.
-Curry. There are so many good curry and falafal places here in Edinburgh. It is cheap and spicey good. Britains own Tikka Masala, Chicken Vindaloo (for all you Red Dwarf fans) and much much more. It is some tasty spice that is great for heating you up in cold weather.

Foods that are better in America...
-I expected this but the variety of choices (most especially in the way of produce - how I miss a good avocado!) in an average grocery store in the States is really superior. Then again, that is the American way - have more choices! Have a bigger selection! Even a head of cauliflower or a kilo of brussel sprouts are bigger in America. How could this be? They last longer and somehow they fit in your ginormous fridge (ours is the same size as the average local which makes it just bigger than something you would have in a hotel room).
-Mexican food. I knew this would be my main culinary trial here and so I prepped for it. It was so much harder to deal with after having lived in a TexMex capital of sorts but I am coping. Somehow eating more curry helps curb my cravings.
-Bread. I don't think that Americans really have the best idea on bread. I think that would have to go to the French and their baguette wonder food or maybe the Italians with their Ciabatta bread. Still, there is no place to get a thick slice of some Great Harvest whole wheat or Dakota-style bread in these parts. It is a bit fluffy for my taste. The best substitute I can find is Polish bread. It is chewy-delicious.

*Thanks to Andreas Gursky for his photograph "99 Cent". Truly a document of American culture.

Other things that are better in Scotland...
-Healthcare. Let the debates begin but seriously guys, it is such an accessible and intuitive system to use here. Need I mention that it is free?! It is free to me because I have a job that I work 3 days a week at and free to Matt because he is at Uni. We have been trying it out by force as Matt's ol' gallbladder is giving him trouble these days. Is the quality good? They have the same procedures and tests that they gave Matt in Texas when he was having problems with it. So far, the conversations and advice have been comparable. Is it taking forever? In the last 3 weeks, Matt has registered for a General Practioner (where all NHS users must start), attended an initial appt/check-up, gotten a chest x-ray, had a follow-up appt about his x-ray, attended an appt for blood work. Pretty impressive. I have this sort of ridiculous idea that hey, if either Matt and I are going to get sick, need a gallbladder out, etc we best do it this year as we won't be able to afford to do much about it come next fall!
-Mystery tele programmes. No one matches the Brits on their ability to churn out series after series, programme after programme of compelling, quality mystery shows on television. It is remarkable. Matt and my favourite programme right now is New Tricks. We stumbled on it one night when we first moved into our flat. With a boiler that didn't work, no friends, no job and a kitchen that was hard to use, it was more than a luxury to find as it reminded us of some of the great things that we loved about this culture.
-Accents. Let's face it. Scottish people have such a great way of expressing themselves. Their terminology holds it's own but their way of speaking is really something great too. I would acknowledge that Texans, Bostonians and New Yorkers are up in the running but I think they still may be beat. Which brings me to a point, why is it that DreamWorks had all their supposedly Norwegian Vikings talking like Scottish people in How to Train a Dragon?