Growing up on Long Island, I never saw or ate anything even faux-Mexican until the late 70s. And that was a Jack In the Box burrito!

By turn-about, it's almost impossible to find really good bagels outside of the NYC area and a few neighborhoods here and there. (Like Squirrel Hill in Pittsburgh.) There are somewhat OK attempts, like from the Noah's Bagels chain, but in most parts of the country a bagel is a "roll with a hole." (And people get freaked out when you go 'round putting fish, onions, capers and cream cheese on a bagel.)