If there was any activity that brought on more memories of home and building memories with friends and family, it’s bingo. The game cuts through all barriers, and getting your hands on a dauber and some cards can automatically open a flood of history to come back to mind.
If anything, bingo was built for a community, for the home, and for fun. It has never been an activity that demanded much from the players and it is perhaps this down-to-earth and familiar charm that has managed to make it so universally known and accepted. From its beginning as a small lottery game in Italy to its current spread throughout the world, no other game brings memories of home to mind than bingo.
So in line with this, here’s a list of different comfort foods from different countries where the game is regularly played, both in bingo halls and online.
USA – Mac and Cheese
Unless you happen to be lactose intolerant, nothing brings a more familiar sensation of home and nostalgia than the simple Mac & Cheese. While some might be more familiar with the day-glo coloured instant version that Kraft markets, the real baked version with melted cheddar and parmesan might just be enough to transport anyone back to their days of Sunday church bingo.
Canada – Poutine
Long considered as Canada’s most embarrassing yet incredibly delicious junk food secret, Poutine has suddenly found itself as being an icon of the country, even being featured as part of Canada Day in the UK. French fries covered in hot gravy and topped with cheese curds is simple, unpretentious, and something that Canada no longer has to feel embarrassed about. Vive la poutine!
The UK – The Full English Breakfast
With more meat than you can shake a stick at, a full English breakfast changes the entire landscape of the first meal of the day into something practically legendary. Sausage, bacon, pudding, eggs, mushrooms, baked beans, hash browns, and toast: a list that might make arteries and stomachs cry out for completely different reasons. While Brian Blessed might be a vegetarian, we can imagine his Bingogodz counterpart, Zantos, starting his day with nothing less spectacular than this.
No matter where we find ourselves and no matter where the game might arrive, we’ll always be able to find a little bit of our history through comfort food.
