Welcome to America!

I grew up in south Louisiana, home of the best food in the world. I don't think I'm biased. It really is the best food in the world.

But really, every place I've lived has had fairly decent food. The greasy cheesiness of TexMex is hard to compete with, and Tennessee barbeque is about as comforting of a food as you can find.

I can do Mediterranean and the plethora of spices from South Asia, but I still firmly believe that we Americans live in the Land of  Culinary Abundance and Taste (as evidenced by our waistlines).

However, the States have long been behind in one crucial area - Magnum Bars.

For overseas American travelers, these ice cream bars have had cult status for years. On every overseas trip I've been ever on, the goal has been one Magnum Bar per day per person. At least. On the way home, most of our suitcases include at least one leftover wooden stick with the word "Magnum" to bring home for our scrapbooks. They're in every store, on almost every street, in every city - Jerusalem, Cairo, London, Istanbul, Moscow - but somehow have never made it to the US.

Until now.

I was walking down the aisle in Wal-Mart, of all cultured places, looking for the elusive meatballs, and I saw in golden all-caps letters - MAGNUM. I think I stood staring for a full 45 seconds. And then I bought some. They're expensive and there's a whopping 3 bars per box, but it's hard not to support an event that's been 24 years in the making.