Question: In Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club, a pair of Chinese women are employed at an American factory making these. The ladies are amused by the unfamiliar concept (as it is unknown in their native land) and after making attempts at translation, they conclude that these contain not wisdom but bad instruction. What are we talking about?
Answer: Fortune cookies

Question: If 'single malt' describes a whisky made at one distillery, what is the word for a wine that is made from a single grape type?
Answer: Varietal

Question: The name of what distinctive Nordic dish translates as 'buried salmon'?
Answer: Gravlax

Question: Dr. Arthur Agatston, a native of Germany who came up with the South Beach Diet advocated no-alcohol in his program with the exception of small amounts during what period of celebration?
Answer: Oktoberfest!

Question: The name of what meal might have originated from the belief that it was the kind eaten on mainland Europe as opposed to the kind eaten in Britain?
Answer: Continental breakfast

Question: Pule cheese, said to be the world's most expensive was in the news in Dec 2012 when Novak Djokovic bought the world's supply for his restaurant chain. It is made from the milk of what animal?
Answer: Donkey

Question: What fried street food popular with vegetarians is claimed by the Copts of Egypt as their invention to be a replacement for meat during Lent?
Answer: Falafel

Question: What meat dish got its name when a chef got an order for raw meat and remembered a Venetian painter whose work was dominated by reds and yellows?
Answer: Carpaccio

Question: The name of what renowned institution comes from what a group of French knights, known for their lavish feasts, hung their awarded crosses from?
Answer: Le Cordon Bleu ('The Blue Ribbon')

Question: Edmond Albius, a 19th century slave working on the island of Réunion is known for inventing the pollination technique for the cultivation of what flavoring delight?
Answer: Vanilla

Question: Which pioneer of the American food industry created the 'Dairyman's Ten Commandments' that specified farmers must wash cow udders before milking and had to keep their barns clean?
Answer: Gail Borden, one of the inventors of condensed milk

Question: Yamadanishiki, Gohyakumangoku, Miyamanishiki and Omachi are the popular varieties of rice used for making what?
Answer: Sake

Question: In a 2010 issue of New Scientist magazine, what habit of a famous character was explained as follows? When the books featuring the character were written, most vodka was produced from potatoes and potato vodka had an oily aftertaste. But if it is mixed with ice in a particular way, it tastes less oily.
Answer: James Bond ordering a martini shaken, not stirred

Question: If you savor Dragon Well, Spring Snail, Iron Goddess and Fur Peak, what are you a connoisseur of?
Answer: Teas, or more specifically Chinese Famous Teas

Question: Ideally they should contain at least 14 percent water so that under heat, the water would expand to steam. If the internal moisture falls below 12 percent, they open only partially or not at all and such ones were once cursed as 'old maids.' What are these without which snacking won't be the same?
Answer: Corn kernels (popcorn)

Question: What type of meal is an Iftar during which no sunlight is present?
Answer: Evening meal when Muslims break their fast during Ramadan

Question: What salad made from mozzarella cheese, tomatoes and basil is also the name of the town in Tuscany where Michelangelo was born?
Answer: Caprese

Question: What alcoholic cocktail that is made by mixing stout and lager is also the name of a notorious British paramilitary group known for suppressing the Irish Revolution of the 1920s?
Answer: Black and Tans

Question: Claret is the name used in England for red wine from what region of France that is also the capital of Aquitaine?
Answer: Bordeaux

Question: During WWI when patriotic Americans participated in voluntary food rationing, if Mondays were Meatless, what were Wednesdays?
Answer: Wheat-less

Question: The four main types of what luxury delicacy are Beluga, Sterlet, Ossetra, and Sevruga?
Answer: Caviar

Question: In 1913 after being treated to sumptuous meals, to which legendary French chef did Kaiser Wilhelm II say "I am the Emperor of Germany, but you are the Emperor of Chefs"?
Answer: Auguste Escoffier (1846-1935)

Question: According to the book The History of Science and Technology, the origin of what snack can be traced to the shape of folded arms of children in prayer?
Answer: Pretzels

Question: The French Paradox is the observation that the French suffer a relatively low incidence of heart disease, despite having a diet rich in saturated fats. After a description of it aired on 60 Minutes in 1991, there was a significant spurt in the sale of what item?
Answer: Red wine

Question: In 1981, in a move that met with considerable controversy, the Agriculture Department in the US proposed classifying pickle relish and what other condiment as vegetables in order to save money on school lunch programs?
Answer: Ketchup

Question: What Chinese dipping sauce that is common in Cantonese cuisine derives its name from a word meaning 'seafood' (though it contains none)?
Answer: Hoisin

Question: Because they spoil at high temperatures, what were once assumed to be safe for eating only in the months with the letter 'r' in their English/French names?
Answer: Oysters

Question: The 'Lumper' which was affected by a blight in the mid-19th century causing great hardship in a particular country was a variety of what staple?
Answer: Potato (the Irish Famine)

Question: What is the better known 'national' name of the confection called lokum that is a gel of starch and sugar with nuts usually mixed in?
Answer: Turkish delight

Question: The Gomantong and Niah caves in Borneo were the main source of what famous culinary ingredient till the 90s until escalating demand supplanted them with custom-made structures to attract birds?
Answer: Saliva nests, used for bird's nest soup

Question: According to The Wall Street Journal, in March 2011 which drink overtook Pepsi to become the No. 2 carbonated soft drink in the US, perhaps reflecting weight consciousness?
Answer: Diet Coke

Question: What term used by California wineries denotes red and white Bordeaux-style wines and is intended to not infringe on the 'heritage' of Bordeaux's legally protected designation of origin?
Answer: Meritage

Question: Frequently seen in restaurants that serve wine, what is a 'cruvinet'?
Answer: Dispensing system that prevents oxidation of wine in opened bottles

Question: 'Umami' is a Japanese word that translates as 'good flavor' and is used as a fifth category of what by those who think that the existing four basic categories are insufficient?
Answer: Taste

Question: Which potent potable acquired the nickname 'Nelson's Blood' as Lord Nelson's body was purportedly placed in it for preservation after the Battle of Trafalgar (1805)?
Answer: Rum

Question: What is the distinguishing factor of the drink pousse-café which is more a delight for the eye than the palate?
Answer: It is a layered drink that looks colorful

Question: Two Belgian Malinois dogs called Hurricane and Jordan were in the news in 2014 for tackling an intruder at what location?
Answer: White House

Question: Once Neil deGrasse Tyson was talking to someone and pointed that in the key scenes of his movie, which was otherwise noted for its high attention to detail, the star alignment in the sky was completely wrong. That person sarcastically replied that his film grossed over a billion and he couldn't imagine how much more it would have made had he gotten the night sky correct. Who?
Answer: James Cameron (Titanic)

Question: In early 2014, Prof. Maryam Mirzakhani achieved a unique and highly meritorious distinction. What subject does she teach at Stanford University?
Answer: Mathematics