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"I Don’t Need It To Be 'Elevated,' Thank You Very Much": People Are Sharing Foods That Have Become A Little Too Trendy (And Are All The Worse For It)

"Restaurants go so overboard with the extras now that it's almost impossible to find the normal version."

There's a downside to becoming very popular, especially when it comes to food. So redditor u/burgher89 asked, "What food in your opinion didn't need a 'bougied up' version, but food trends have caused it to happen anyway?" Here's what people said.

1. "Tacos. A simple street taco for $1.50 with well-seasoned meat, cilantro, onions, and a squeeze of lime juice is utter perfection. Yet, there are half a billion places around the country packed to the gills every night making needlessly complicated tacos with ridiculous ingredients for $7–$11 a pop. The best tacos I've had all year were from a tiny shop attached to a gas station in Dallas, Texas."

Street tacos on a plate.

2. "Cupcakes. They were once a nice excuse to eat cream cheese frosting, but now they're like a full-blown art scene."

Various donuts in a box

3. "Arancini. I first discovered these deep-fried rice balls at a dumpy fast-food-ish spot in a train station in Italy. I spent 2 euros for a giant one. Imagine my surprise when arancini became trendy in the US, where a place will charge $20 for three tiny rice balls covered in tomato sauce. I'll take the cheap, less fancy version every time."

A fried rice ball in a hand

4. "This may be controversial, but french fries. You're going to charge me an extra $5 for 'truffle' that I can't even taste over the Parmesan? I certainly like to spice things up, but I hate the exorbitant charge for what is essentially just a little basic seasoning."

Garlic Parmesan French fries.

5. "I've been seeing this a lot with sushi. There's a new omakase spot opening pretty much every day in New York City at this point, and many places are trying to get fancy by putting things like truffles, caviar, gold flakes, and foie gras on top of nigiri. In my opinion, these additions are more for show than flavor, and they actually subtract from the taste of a really delicious, high-quality piece of raw fish."

Sushi topped with caviar and gold flakes

6. "Burgers. I don't know who decided that grinding up wagyu beef, squishing it into a burger, and selling it for $60 was a great idea. It still isn't better than a burger out of a good food truck. Just leave me with a basic and delicious burger."

burger and fries

7. "Brownies. Maybe it’s just me, but I just like a simple and plain fudgy brownie that is crispy on top and gooey in the center. I don't want my brownies with layers of Oreo’s and peanut butter and Biscoff and so many other ingredients."

Stack of homemade brownies with a swirl of peanut butter

8. "Hot dogs. Like tacos, I prefer cheap hot dogs so I can have a few instead of a single $10 dog I can't even eat with my hands."

A hand holding a hot dog

9. "Milkshakes. I just want drinkable ice cream. Stop putting so much stuff in it or on top of it."

Chocolate donut milkshake with lots of toppings

10. "Street corn. I don’t need it to be 'elevated.' Just give me a simple elote or cup of esquites with everything on it, please."

Four Mexican-style street corn on the cobs

11. "Donuts. I don’t need a lavender-frosted donut dusted with cocoa and Fruit Loops. Just give me a maple bar and leave me alone."

A bacon fruity rainbow cereal donut

12. "Pho. Fast, hot, and cheap pho is part of what makes it so satisfying. When it’s elevated to like $25 a bowl or something, it loses its allure a bit for me. Not that a $25 bowl can’t taste great or be innovative, but I want something that tastes reliable and won’t break my wallet."

A bowl of beef pho.

13. "Grilled cheese. There’s a local place by me that sells different grilled cheese variations, but they don't consistently have basic grilled cheese. They have every other iteration of it...and no tomato soup. What is that about!?"

A fancy grilled cheese with apple and bacon

14. "Chicken wings. Cheap wings used to be a trick to get you to go to a bar and spend money on overpriced drinks. Now 'cheap' drinks are a trick to get you to go to a bar and spend money on overpriced wings."

Plate of buffalo chicken wings with ranch dressing

15. "Crêpes. I did a semester abroad in Paris, and crêpes were a food you could buy on every street corner for 2 euros. Now that I'm back in North America, it's frustrating that I can only get fancy crêpes at nice restaurants for several times the price."

A buckwheat savory crêpe

16. "Avocado and bread (aka avocado toast). It was the poor man's breakfast until restaurants started charging $15 a pop."

Avocado toast on a plate

17. "Mac 'n' cheese. Restaurants go so overboard with the truffle oil, lobster, and other add-ins; it's almost impossible to find just solid, normal mac."

A bowl of Lobster Mac 'n' Cheese

18. "Poutine. The world does not need poutine with lobster or truffles."

A plate of poutine

19. "Guacamole. Leave my guac alone. It doesn't need any freaking pomegranate seeds in it."

Pea guacamole

20. "Poké. Simple marinated shoyu ahi tuna over rice that should cost about $10. I don't need the fancy Chipotle-style fish with bougie add-ons that make it cost $30."

Two poke bowls on a wooden table

21. "Pizza. I understand how this food easily lends itself to experimentation, but I always return to a nice simple pie with good sauce and cheese over all the fancy toppings."

A close-up Neapolitan pizza

22. "Banh mi. It's supposed to be a banged-up baguette from a mom and pop store with maybe five basic ingredients, costing $3–$5. Now people are adding meatballs and Sriracha mayo and tomatoes and all this other crap that somehow makes it cost upward of $10."

A hand holding a banh mi sandwich

23. "Bloody Marys. What is this completely ridiculous hipster nonsense with the preposterous toppings like an entire cheeseburger slider? Seriously?"

Shrimp Bloody Mary with olives and pickled peppers

24. "Hummus. The original version is so good on its own, but now we have all sorts of flavors that are sold at silly prices. Beet hummus?! Give me a break."

Different flavors of hummus in bowls

What's a ~trendy~ food that tends to get dressed up and elevated, but you still prefer the OG version of? Tell us in the comments.

Note: Responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.