There are literally tens of thousands of delicious foods in the world and if you’re like me, you want to eat all of them! But not everything we try turns out to be so tasty. The Quora community shared their stories of the things they immediately regretted eating.
Comments have been edited for clarity. The source can be found the end of the article.
I know you’re probably thinking, “Who in their right mind eats garlic by itself?” but hear me out.
Once upon a time, my mom and uncle (her brother) took me, my siblings and cousins on a road trip from Vancouver to visit their sister in Seattle. My youngest cousin, Zed, and I were stuffed into the very back of the van, along with many groceries and home-made food-stuffs made by my grandmother for my aunt.
Unfortunately, what should have been a few hours drive turned into an entire day’s trip as we waited and waited (and waited some more) at the very busy Canadian-American border. Our lunches long behind us, Zed and I were whinging about being hungry. My mom told us we’d be at our aunt’s house “soon.” Well, to a little kid, “soon” is not soon enough.
So Zed and I, remembering we were sitting amongst a veritable treasure trove of food, quietly dug into the bags and boxes closest to us to find something that could stave off our hunger until we got to our aunt’s house.
We opened a container packed by my gran and squinted inside, seeing what looked like small, light golden flakes.
“Rice crispies!” Zed hissed.
“Cornflakes!” I countered, poking at it and hearing a familiar crunch-crunch. (I vaguely wondered why we were bringing my aunt cornflakes.)
Rice crispies, cornflakes, it didn’t matter. We shoved handfuls into our mouths like starving squirrels and settled down to contentedly munch away on our treat.
Then, mid-crunch, the taste hit us. OH. Oh noooooooooooooooooo. This wasn’t rice crispies, or cornflakes. It was –
“Bleurgh!!! Garlic!?!?!” We spat it out very quickly, and for a very long time after that, I remained extremely suspicious of cornflakes.
Sophia Noor
Natt. Its a popular Japanese food made from fermented soybeans.
The first and only time I had it was in a Japanese restaurant serving various type of Japanese food in buffet style. So, with me being adventurous, wanting to try as many variety of food as possible, I took 2 pieces of natt sushi without knowing what it is, or what its supposed to taste like.
As I put the first piece of natt sushi into my mouth and took a bite, the strong and weird smell kicked in, with the sticky and slimy texture which you usually find in food getting bad. It was at this instant that I regretted trying the sushi. However, I was eating at a proper restaurant together with my friends, so trying to look polite, I forced myself to chew the sushi as much as I could, and swallow it, and drank some green tea to get rid of the natt smell.
If you still remember what I wrote earlier on, I actually took 2 natt sushi, so after having the hard time to finish off the first sushi, I had to go through all the trouble again to get rid of the second sushi.
Ive actually tried some different food with strong taste before, like blue cheese, stinky tofu (the deep fried one, not the watery type), durian, and I actually loved them (probably a little unfair for the case of durian since I grew up in Malaysia, but oh well). Yes, I actually enjoyed eating deep fried stinky tofu, in Malaysia theres this weekly night market which sells it, you can smell it from far away, and it gets stronger and stronger as youre closer to the stall selling it. When you finally get to take a bite out of it, the smell lingers in your mouth, perfection. But for natt, no, never again Ill touch it.
David Chung
Sea urchin. I was at a sushi restaurant with one of my sweeties. She suggested I try it, over some considerable skepticism on my part. It turned out to be everything I expected it to be, by which I mean just as horrifying as I feared.
Franklin Veaux
A bite of a Peruvian tree pepper.
This is a very interesting pepper because it is effectively a perennial in mild climate zones, and I do like spicy peppers, so I thought it would be fun to grow.
So after my first ones came in, picked it and took a bite figuring it would be something like a jalapeo. I had seen receipts calling for ample amounts of this pepper, stuffing it even.
No. Heck no. North of 100,000 Scoville units, on par with Scotch Bonnet.
Immediately after that first bite the wave of heat intensity left me with tunnel vision, literally taking my breath away. I almost couldnt stand. The world was spinning. It was a sensation so far beyond eating something hot, more like being enchanted some evil psychedelic shaman.
Eventually the pain faded enough that I was able to stumble to the fridge, grab a carton of milk, and chug. Sweet relief! But as soon as I swallowed the pain roared back. Now, just pain though.
Manageable enough I could handle the internet. It took a while … too long … before I stumbled on the suggestion to eat sugar. Sucking on spoonfuls of sugar … worked like a charm. Eventually.
Of course that bite had to work its way through the system too, but pretty much just standard issue ring of fire at that point.
Carl Lenox
To preface, Im allergic to avocado. On with the story.
My Spanish I teacher decided to throw a small fiesta after finals last year, and it was pretty good for the most part.
Tacos, quesadillas, nachos… and the dreaded guac.
I approached my teacher, That has avocados, yeah?
No, I made it with broccoli.
I made the stupid decision to believe her, grabbing a chip and dipping it in the green dip.
I looked at it suspiciously, before consuming the chip.
3 minutes later Im reeling in nausea. I confronted my teacher, You lied to me.
Whats the harm in a little white lie?
I was now not only ill, but angry too. I couldnt do anything but run to the bathroom and empty my stomach of its contents.
I was sent home for the day and the teacher got a severe tongue-lashing from the principal and my mother.
Taylor Braun
Three years ago, after one of my friends visited Warner Bros Studios of Harry Potter in London, she brought back a pack of Bertie Botts Every Flavored Beans. I caught a group of my friends cherry-picking the edible ones from the pack, thing that they were just over-reacting on the distate of the certain beans. Never have I been so wrong. I never imagined that the gift shop would go as far as perfectly replicating the taste of Earwax and Vomit in their beans.
Therefore, when my friend challenged me to eat a Vomit bean I took the ill-witted piece and threw it in my mouth with all my cockiness and (not-so) blissful ignorance.
With a single bite, the strong taste of vomit started circulating in my mouth. You would be surprised at how accurate the taste was to actual vomit. It was as if I, myself, threw up only to drink it again. It was only a matter of seconds when I found a trash bin nearby and spat it all out. It took minutes of mouth washing, at one point with soap (I kid you not), until the persistent aroma let go of my nostrils and my taste buds. It was horrible.
I should have known better when this single bean deterred Dumbledore, his mightiness himself, from eating these beans. Never again.
Onur Talu
I was in a summer exchange program right after I finished high-school. I decided to go and experience the American Dream but not through the eyes of a tourist but those of a local. So I went on this cultural exchange program to work in a restaurant for the summer. Half of the kitchen staff was latino. I was working as waiting staff.
One day I come to work early in the morning at 6:30 to set up the terrace, clean the tables and have everything prepared for breakfast. This restaurant was a 4 diamond venue awarded with multiple Zagat awards under it’s belt. The restaurant was right above the water, with a harbor next to it. People could actually come down from the boats right in the middle of the patio. It was pretty fancy and as waiting staff you needed to have a certain etiquette and be presentable.
So while doing my usual work I go through the kitchen area and there I see all my compadres gathered around the counter. On it there was a plate of the most tender chicken crisps ever. Big, fat and juicy. It was not something that we served so I guess my co-workers made it home. I didn’t have a chance to grab breakfast because it was too early when I woke up but at that moment the hunger just hit me.
“Right on time”, I told myself
I was so distracted that I didn’t even notice that the other guys were in a mixture of laughing and crying at the same time. Also that they were overly enthusiastic for me to take some chicken and dip it in the amazing golden sauce next to it.
Being European I wasn’t really familiar back then with the 1,000’s of dips and sauces that you could have with your food. I thought it was going to be something nice, maybe with an Italian touch to it.
The sauce in question was made from Bhut Jolokia or more commonly known as “ghost pepper.”
I took a piece of chicken, drenched it fully in the sauce and took it to my mouth. I bit out of it more with my lips rather than my teeth because the meat was very tender it just fell apart, melting in my mouth. The sauce was both in my mouth and on my lips.
Not even 2 seconds pass, and I feel this burning pain hitting my brain faster than I could realize where it was coming from, at first I thought I rested my hand on the burning stove or something. Then everyone looks at me laughing and asks me if I’m Ok. When I wanted to reply I felt that my lips were melting and someone was trying to nail them back to my face with 1000 hammer hits per second.
Instant sweat started gushing from my forehead and armpits. My perfect ironed shirt and tie were just a dear memory now. Also my underwear maybe, who remembers anymore? I could not open my mouth, I could not talk, I could not scream, I was just moaning with my mouth shut tight. Add the sweat, the blood red eyes, the veins on my forehead ready to pop and the desperate look of wishing to be put out of my misery like a deadbeat horse.
Andrei Cimbru
Durian. I’ve left it off my lists of strange foods I’ve eaten, because I can’t really say I’ve eaten it. Twice now I’ve put it in my mouth and had to spit it out. It tastes like I think your kitchen rubbish would taste if you left it outside on a hot day – sweet fruit, but completely rotten tasting. I’ve learned, I won’t try it a 3rd time (and as I’ve mentioned before, I’ve eaten rat. I’d eat rat again, but not durian).
Sarah Rose-Jensen
Now, for those of you who don’t know what Grizzly is, this is chew/tobacco. Its put in the inside lower lip and then usually spit out onto the ground when all used and soggy in your lip. If you dont have a ground near you to spit onto, then a cup will suffice.
See where this is going?
I was around 6 years old and my dad had taken me and my brother and sister to McDonalds. Growing up poor, this was the usual. My little self ate all my nuggets and gulped down all my Dr. Pepper and I was still thirsty. So, my eyes locked onto my father’s medium paper cup. I knew he was the only other one who loved Dr. Pepper just as much as me, so I reached my little hand over the center console of the car and snagged his cup.
He didnt see this, of course. I started sucking on the straw, but nothing would come. I thought that there was ice in the way so I repositioned the straw and sucked again.
Bad choice.
Instead of the refreshing, carbonated drink that is Dr. Pepper, I was met with something much more sinister. My mouth was infiltrated with a vile taste. It tasted of ash and chemicals. Poor little me started waving my hands around with tears in my eyes and thats when my dad finally noticed me. He took one look at the cup in my hands, the tears and pain on my face, and burst into laughter. Through fits of laughter he finally explained that I had just drank his chew.
To say I was horrified is an understatement.
Mateo Sorensen
My Japanese-American buddy brought these into work one day, kanikko. They are itty bitty crabs. Hard shell, guts, eyes, and all, marinated in… I have no idea. Then baked, or something.
Of course, an adventurous eater, I had to try.
Next time you go to a saltwater beach, find the stinkiest, rank pile of seaweed, fish parts, and unidentifiable tidbits of sea stuff. Hopefully it has been sitting in the summer sun festering for a few days. Next, crush up some old egg shells that should have gone out with compost. Glue it all together with a little bit of plaster of Paris. Now, eat it.
David Allen
I was in New York many years ago with my girlfriend (at the time), she is Korean, and she wanted to take me to an authentic Korean restaurant she found. It was middle of the day and very few people were in the restaurant. We sat down, I looked at the menu, which was all written in Korean, since I couldn’t read it I went with the pictures and pointed to what I wanted. I pointed at a image with vegetables and beef. I ordered the Kimchi Beef. I know some of you reading this and know why I regretted this moments later. For those of you who don’t Kimchi is pickled cabbage –Kimchi. It is usually very spicy, the style I had that day was nothing like I ever had before, to this day.
I am Hispanic and I have had my share of spicy food and I enjoy spicy cajun cooking but this was something different. My girlfriend was surprised that I thought it was hot and she didn’t warn me because I was Hispanic and thought I could handle it. Needless to say, I drank my glass of water quickly. But here is the kick in the nuts, I thought the beef was the spicy part, so I started eating the cabbage, boy was I wrong. It only got worse! Before I knew it the waitress came by to filled my glass and I drank it quickly. When she returned she noticed that this wasn’t the last time I was going to ask for water, so she left the pitcher at the table. The waitress left and went to the kitchen. A few minutes later my girlfriend told me to turn around and I could see that the cooks where having a good laugh, OK more like a giggle.
Since that day my friends and I have come up with a code for spicy food
Anglo hot
Mexican hot
Korean hot
Richard Barrios
I Love Japanese foods. Living in a town with a lot of Japanese expatriates, I eat them almost on daily basis (yes, I looove sashimi). Until Natto
It was included as a side dish on my lunch set. I thought I knew about it, I read a lot of manga describing it. But, oh boy…. natto.
Veronee Angela
As of 2017, I believe Samyangs 2x spicy buldak instant noodles are the spiciest instant noodles in the world.
I bought a 5-pack bag and tried it with one of my friends, as we had liked the normal buldak myun before.
We were excited to try them! We love spicy foods, and had never gone too far from jalapeo level. So, we each fixed ourselves a packet and dug in. Boy do I just love to writhe in spicy noodle pain. Needless to say, our tastebuds died and our lips stung like crazy whenever they so much as touched something: a chopstick, napkin, or even the other lip. No water or milk could contain the spice.
Yoan Deng
Extra crispy chicken covered with Colonel Sander’s secret 11 herbs and spices breading with just the right amount of crispness. Inside, the chicken is moist and slightly spicy. It is finger lickin’ good!
Just thinking about it makes my mouth water.
Until I have my first bite.
I am then reminded of the thick layer of fat under the crispy skin. And the oily breading. And the greasy aftertaste. Followed by regret of buying 6 pieces of chicken just because it is a great deal.
Unfortunately I have short term memory. Every six months or so I will be craving it again. And regret it again. Oh well.
Evie Jen
As a child, this used to give me life. Everyone in the house knew to never EVER betray me enough to touch one of my 19 servings of precious powder. I was a greedy child.
After a long day of craving the delicious strawberry goodness, I decided to go a little overboard. I grabbed a glass, filled it up halfway with the strawberry powder, and filled the other half with milk. You can imagine how difficult it was to mix.
My mom had a small gap between her bed and the wall. I, for some reason, loved to sit and drink my milk there. I chugged the glass of milk and considered going for another glass until…
Blrrp. Oh no.
My taste buds were satisfied but my stomach was screaming for help. Annnd soon after the blrrping of my stomach, I proceed to projectile vomit all over the wall. Being that I was between the gap, I was super close to the wall. The aesthetic pink vomit was everywhere. It traumatized me enough to never drink another glass of that again. Even now when I see those in stores I shudder.
Thats exactly what I get for not sharing.
Jaylin Odadjian
In 2015, I went to Vietnam to visit family. One of my favorite things to do every time I visited Vietnam was to eat all the delicious food and tropical fruits that you cant find here in the U.S. This past trip, we rented a large bus in order to fit about 30 of our family members inside. We drove throughout Vietnam, going from one tourist destination to another.
At one of our rest stops, we stopped at a market. I bought a packet of dried squid. It was one of my favorite childhood snacks to eat and I still eat it now when I get the chance to buy it.
The only difference, and a major difference, between the photo above and the one I ate was that the packet above is vacuum sealed and sanitary. The one I ate was in a plastic container and was slightly open. I remember thinking that it might not be good to eat since it wasnt sealed properly and kept trying to push the lid down like it would magically reinject it with freshness. In the states, Id never eat something from the store that wasnt properly sealed.
So please explain to me why I lost all my senses and ate the entire container!!!
Anyway, we were back on the road. The stops were far and few in between, the roads were long and bumpy, and even my legs began to ache horribly from sitting straight up in cramped seats. Oh, and now my stomach was bubbling.
Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle. Grumble, grumble, grumble.
Yup—I was instantly regretting my decision to eat the stupid squid snack. For the next few DAYS, I was constantly in the bathroom. The bus of 30+ people had to stop so that I can rush to find a bathroom. Most times while driving through the country of Vietnam, there were no bathrooms. When I found one, it was horribly smelly and you have to squat over a hole. If you were lucky, you might find toilet paper. It felt never ending. I will spare you the rest of the details.
Oh, you think I learned my lesson? Nah. We visited some other place and I bought and ate something else sketchy and spent another 35 days on the toilet. Fuuuuun.
Ly Nguyen
Several years back, just after I dropped out of university, I was living with a bunch of my drop-out friends in a crumbling house in Brixton. There were holes in the floorboards, the boiler broke every winter, and the kitchen was the kind of place that the CDCA would not only condemn but probably order purged with napalm.
Because we were all unemployed bums at this point, we were sitting around at three in the morning asking Jeeves stupid questions, back when you could actually ask questions and get answers. We asked a lot of stupid questions, and discovered some fascinating things, until one fateful moment when I absentmindedly asked:
What is the worst cocktail in the world?
Opinion was divided on the subject. There were plenty of contenders, including familiar classics like the Cement Mixer, and some esoteric entries like a cocktail bar in New York that supposedly sold a cocktail with a human toe in it (you can drink it fast, you can drink it slow, but your lips have got to touch the toe.)
But wed all done Cement Mixers before, and we didnt have a spare toe going, so we settled on something a little more doable: The Bullshot.
We didnt have any beef consomm, and we didnt have any sherry. So we decided to improvise, and make our own version:
A 50/50 mix of vodka and beef dripping, served piping hot.
I will preface this by saying that I do not recommend this drink. I vomited both immediately and copiously, with an explosive force that coated my sinuses in hot beef dripping, and for nearly a year the smell of any beef product would cause me to gag. Even today, the thought of that drink triggers a stomach-churning sense memory that makes me shudder in recollection.
And the worst part of it is, with only two ingredients it doesnt even qualify as a cocktail.
Peter Gribble
I was in Nogales with a school trip down from Phoenix – a teenager looking for new experiences. I bought a taco from a pushcart vendor. Proudly taking a bite, I chewed but found it thoroughly tasteless, with a hint of urine or ammonia, and a gristly texture; the meat was really bad.
I asked the vendor what this was, and with a wicked gleam in his eye he replied, “El gato, gringo!” (“The cat, white boy!”) I decided he was hoping for a rise out of me, so I took one more defiant bite in front of him, and turned and walked away, not throwing the taco away until I was out of his sight.
Eliyahu Skoczylas
One fine evening, me and my wife were looking for a good restaurant to eat dinner. We looked into the list of restaurants near by and headed towards a restaurant with really good rating. Little did we know that we would be disappointed as the restaurant was crowded and we were hungry and did not have the patience to wait.
Then we found a Mediterranean restaurant near by. I have tried this cuisine and I liked some of their items such as falafel, hummus. I wanted to try something different and we ended up ordering dolmades.
We got the dish and it looked really different. We werent expecting one like this. Not sure how to eat it, my wife took a bite along with the wrapped grape leaves. Man! her reaction speaks everything about this food.
Despite her warning, I ate another bite and I gulped it with water. Next, we stood up, paid the bill and left the restaurant with hungry stomach.
It was so horrible that we didnt want to eat the other items we ordered.
Lesson learned. Research before ordering new dish.
Vivek Ramamoorth