Americans Try European School Lunches! (Italy, Norway, Germany)

We gave Americans a selection of school lunches from around Europe to see what they think of what some of other countries eat for lunch at school!
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Content featured:
England

Ukraine

Italy

@blatantreviews

I Tried Italian School Lunch. #foodie #cooking #foodreview #howto #foodtok #review

♬ original sound – Blatant Reviews

Norway

@norwaywithpal

What is a Norwegian Matpakke? It’s a packed lunch that many kids and adults in Norway bring to school and work. #matpakke #packedlunch #norwegianfood #visitnorway #norway #norwaywithpal

♬ original sound – Norway with Pål

Spain

@mamainmadrid

#stitch with @Noelle Cheney and here in Spain people complain that school lunches arent great 😵‍💫 #livingabroad #momabroad #kidsabroad #culturaldifferences #spainvsusa

♬ original sound – Emily | American Mom in Spain

Germany

Featuring:
Noah
https://www.instagram.com/noahgrossman214/

Jair
https://www.instagram.com/debonairgirljair/

Juliana
https://www.instagram.com/imjulianastpeter/

Angel
https://www.instagram.com/trbangel/

Brandel
https://www.instagram.com/brandel_butler/

Dani
https://www.instagram.com/dani_tachiki/

If you live in Los Angeles and want to Audition to be on React, fill out the form below!
https://airtable.com/appqriwWX9SCxKl5Y/shrltJoQXJFs7Cz4z

Producers
Nicole
https://www.instagram.com/nicolemiizuka/

Ash
https://www.instagram.com/ashguenin/

Michael
https://www.instagram.com/michaelwalkerrr/

Ember
https://www.instagram.com/emburgler/

VP of Content – Nicole Iizuka
Executive Producer – Nicole Iizuka
VP of Production – Kevin Lee
Line Producer – Anthony Mugnolo
Producer, PVF – Ashley Guenin
Producer, PVF – Kimmy Veryzer
Culinary Producer, PVF Michael Walker
Associate Producer, PVF – Ember Knight

Episode Produced by Ashley Guenin
Technical Director – Stephen Miller
Talent Producer – Annie Knudsen
Production Manager – Brendon Holl
Production Coordinator – Jake Kelley
Production Coordinator – Alesha Braden
Casting Coordinator – Alexandra Sheffield
Casting Coordinator – Zach Holmstrom
Studio Technician – Micah Fusco
Studio Technician- Julian Steinberg

Camera Operator – Kurran Brown
Culinary AP – Kevin Duffin
Culinary Coordinator – Lexi McCoy-Caso
Production Assistant – Ciprian Robielos
Production Assistant – Steven Girón
Production Assistant – Monroe McDonnell

Set Medic – Mark Kirkendall

Editor – Kristen O’Hare
Post Production Supervisor – Doug Brady
Thumbnail Graphics – Tyson Goudie
Supervising Editor – Ryan Johnson
Assistant Editor – Jay Acuna

Filmed on 1/26/2024

#food #eating #europe

Americans Try European School Lunches! (Italy, Norway, Germany)

0:00 Intro
0:15 England
2:11 Ukraine
4:22 Italy
6:34 Norway
9:28 Spain
12:08 Germany
14:49 Winner!
15:51 Outro

– (PvF) What are your opinions on school lunches? – Even worse than my opinions on school. – (PvF) Well, pack your bags, because today we’re going to be trying European school lunches. – Oh, that, I can get on board with. – Steer me away from London. – Is it like bread and beans?

‘Cause I heard that’s something that the British people do. – (narrator) A kid in the UK might be served baked cod fingers with a hot jacket potato, a heaping side of beans. – With baked beans! – What, woah. Why were the cookies not on the plate? – Compared to America?

– Abso… For lunch? That looks like something I would eat at dinner. – Oh wait. (gasps) – Why are the beans so orange? What’s up with these beans? – (PvF) Our first meal is a lunch hailing from England, which consists of baked cod fingers, beans, a baked potato, and three digestive biscuits. – What do you mean by cod fingers? Are they just fish sticks? – I can taste the tomato. – Yeah? – Mm-hmm.

– What do they taste like? – What’s so special about beans? – Is it just bean? – It’s just bean! It’s just bean! – (PvF) Just bean, Dani! – There’s nothing special about bean. – These are the most crispy fish sticks I’ve ever ate. Like, why are they… – These are so good.

– (PvF) Are they good? – Do they dip them in the beans? – (PvF) Sure, why not? – I feel like this is better food for a kid than what was offered at my school, but I would not want this. I feel like I’m at British prison.

– (PvF) Would you guys be excited to have this for lunch? – What? – I would get lunch every day. – I would get lunch early. – Ain’t nothing special about this. This is just like so boring. – (PvF) Do you know why it’s called a digestive biscuit?

– Does it make you poop? (both laugh) – (PvF) It’s actually derived from the belief that they had antacid properties when they were first introduced due to the use of baking soda which is used to neutralize acid. Now it is considered the best cookie to dunk into tea in England.

– Wow. – Actually, Noah, it’s pretty fire. I’m not even gonna lie. – Yeah? – It grows on me. – (PvF) Alright, on a scale of 1 to 10, how would you guys rate this meal? – Mm-hmm, mmm, mm, mm. – 7.5. – (PvF) 7.5, 8.5? Is that what you said?

– I’m 7.5. – Yeah, I give it a five point. I give it five and a half. – I mean, honestly, it tastes like real food, so I’d give it a seven. ‘Cause like if I’m comparing it to like American lunches, those are like five. – My American scale, a seven. – Yeah?

– Yeah. – Wow! I might even go as far as an eight. As far as like school lunches, like, if my kid was eating this, I’d be happy, yeah. – I’m not mad at it. – (Anhelina) Today, I want to show you what lunch is in Ukraine. – Ukraine? – Ooh! – Okay.

– Mmm! – (Anhelina) Salad, kasha, bread and butter. – Okay. – I’m scared about the kasha! – It sounds like a bomb lunch. – Okay! – (PvF) Next up, on the eastern side of Europe, we’ve got a lunch of salad, kasha, bread and butter, and borscht,

Often enjoyed in the country of Ukraine. – This color is scaring me, I’m not gonna lie. – I don’t, honestly, I’m uncomfortable with the… – (Jair) Consistency? – With the things in it, you know? – (PvF) Also, disclaimer, this meal has influences from, and is often eaten in, all countries over eastern Europe,

Not just the Ukraine. – What is borscht again? – (PvF) Borscht. I’m so glad you asked Brandel. – What is that? – (PvF) Borscht is a sour soup made with stock and beets, and can be served either hot or cold. – Mmm, okay. I like it.

– Ooh, that borscht is good. – That borscht is good! – It kinda tastes like you’re eating pickle juice almost. I kinda love that. – I want to not like it more than I not like it. – I think it’s a very healthy school lunch. – Mm-hmm.

I think it’s really good for the kids. – Yeah, very healthy. – The beet is well balanced out. – Mm-hmm! – So it’s light. It feels healthy. – The salad’s very citrusy. – That’s very good. I would give this, I’d give this like an eight.

– I would come home and have this as like a snack. – Mmm. That’s really good. – It kinda tastes like my grandma’s chicken noodle soup base is in it. It’s like there’s this familiar flavor. – That what it is, the familiar flavor.

– No, I’m gonna give it a six, ’cause I think it’s a little less. – You think so? You don’t like it as much? – Still better than American food though, like… – Mmm! That was light and refreshing. – Yeah, I would give this an eight, again. These feel like great meals, honestly.

– I’d give it a good… – Five. – (PvF) Five? – I was gonna say a six and a half. – I like what they’re doing with the health part. – There isn’t a dessert. So for me, I think it’s gonna be a six. – Mmm.

– Like, I’d eat that. For real, for real. – (narrator) We tried school lunch around the world, and today we get the country of Italy. – (both) Ooh! – Ooh! – (narrator) And they completely forbid deep-fried food. – What!? – (narrator) Like France, they also have multiple courses,

Starting with a starchy first dish. – Ugh! – (narrator) And yes, they eat a ton of pasta. – Ugh! – (narrator) Seasonal fruits and veggies, and then the main course… – What!? – Oh, I love pasta! I’ve been craving pasta for so long! – Ooh! Look at that.

– What? Thank you! – Thank you! – Ooh, fruit! I love fruit! – Oh! – Ooh, this looks so good! – (PvF) Heading down to the Mediterranean, next, we’ve got a meal of pasta, fresh fruit, salad, grilled fish, and a bread roll from the beautiful country of Italy.

– Wow, the Italians are living! (Jair laughs) – Don’t mind if I do. – Low key, I would love this as lunch. This is so good. – I’m going in. – This is a little elevated for a school lunch. – Mm-hmm. – I mean, this is like a dinner. (laughs)

– This is a, private school kids were eating this. – (laughs) This is what private kids was eating! – (PvF) I went to private school, and I can assure you, that is not what we were eating. – No? – No? – (PvF) (laughs) Yeah. – Grilled fish.

– You have no idea how long I’ve been craving pasta. – Grilled fish!? I’ve never tried grilled fish. – Mmm, mmm! – I would rather some of this on my school lunches when I was a kid. – (PvF) You’d be excited to see this for lunch?

– Yeah, honestly. – Yeah, I’d be alright with this. – Like actual protein? – Again, I don’t know how big Italian high schools are, but like, my high school had almost 3,000 kids. Can you imagine making 3,000 salmon fillets? – (PvF) So Italian law has relatively strict guidelines

Regarding unhealthy food on school menus, and prohibits cafeterias from serving deep-fried foods, such as chips and fried chicken. – Like by law, they have to be the healthiest children ever. – (PvF) What do you guys think of this as a school lunch? – Yeah, yeah. – 10 out of 10, absolutely.

– Pasta and fruit are like my two favorite-est things. – Favorite-est, I don’t know. – (PvF) So is this a 10 for you? – Oh. – (PvF) Ooh. – Mm-hmm. – I like it, I like the pasta. – It’s pretty good. – I give this like an eight.

– This is about a seven. – (PvF) What would you rate this? – Oh, easy eight, nine. – Yeah. – I should actually go higher. – I don’t like salmon, but this is a 9/10, ’cause I imagine they get a glass of wine at school, right?

(Jair laughs) That’s what they do out there? – A little Martinelli’s, a little sparkling cider? – Yeah, yeah, uh-huh! – (reviewer) This is a Norwegian matpakke. (Jair gasps) – Ooh! – (whispers) Norwegian! – Ugh. – Oh, that’s so cute! – Oh! – Oh, no bologna, no bologna. – Woah wait! – No bologna!

– That’s really nice, ’cause then it doesn’t get soggy. – Yay! – Is it like four different sandwiches? – Open face sandwiches. – Ooh. – Wait, is this three sandwiches in one? I’m very confused! – So, I think throughout the day, you might want a couple snacks. – (gasps) I got the smiley face! – Oh. (laughs) My smile fell off. – (PvF) Now trekking all the way up to Norway, we’ve got a dish called matpakke, which is a stacked, open face sandwich that most kids actually bring from home for lunch. – I love a good sandwich. – Yeah?

– (PvF) There you go. – Like this? – (PvF) Mm-hmm. – Which one does… – Actually, I’ll squish it. – Does the smiley face go on? Does it go on the cheese? – ‘Cause it’s bread! – (PvF) On the cheese. – On the cheese. – (PvF) Oh my gosh. (laughs)

– That’s oddly really good. – What the hell is this!? (laughs) – Is this slices of peanut butter? – Oh wow. – Good cheese. – That’s oddly really good. – (PvF) All together like that? – Yeah. – Honestly, it’s not bad, it’s just a lot of bread. – Okay, this one’s interesting.

It’s a lot saltier than I expected. It kinda has like, the consistency of tuna, almost like the taste of tuna, but like not. – Overall the flavor is kind of similar to, like a turkey and salami sandwich. I don’t… – I don’t know what’s happening to me right now, but…

– What’s happening? You’re into it. – (laughs) I’m really liking it. – Yeah! – (Brandel) What is that? – I’m so confused! – What is that? – Oh my God, wait, that’s so good! (laughs) Wait! – That is a good bite. – I’m just curious.

– (PvF) That is a Norwegian brown cheese called brunost. – That’s sweet. – This tastes like the inside of a Ritz cracker. – Yes! – (PvF) Woah. – But that’s peanut butter, isn’t it? – No, like the inside of the cheese. – The cheese Ritz crackers, yes!

– It tastes like the cheese Ritz crackers. – Yes! – Like the inside of it. – Give this a seven. – Nine. (laughs) – (PvF) Nine!? – A nine, damn! You did open up saying I like a good sandwich. This has been officially approved. – This is oddly like a nine for me. – (PvF) Really? – Yeah. – (PvF) A nine? – This is really… It’s really tangy, like all together, that’s what I’m trying to tell you. (Jair laughs) – Like, I swear,

You look at all the layers and I was disgusted, and then I took a bite, and I was like this tastes like a normal sandwich. – I’m gonna give this another seven. – I was gonna give this one an eight. I honestly like this one. – This is good though.

I think it’s fun, it gives you a lot of different, like, flavors that you kinda want, and then you’ll be filled because it’s all bread. – Woah. It’s surprisingly really good. Like… – (PvF) (laughs) Even with all the bread? – Even, hey, the more bread, the merrier! – (parent) For their first course today, my kids will have a… – Spain! – Zucchini puree? – (parent) That’s followed by the main course, which is a beef in a carrot sauce. – Sauteed vegetables. This sounds so fancy. – (parent) And for dessert, they have fresh fruits. – They’re fancy! – Ugh. – Wow! – Ooh! – Look-wise, this one is the most like pleasantly looking. – Yes. – It’s so colorful. Like, it’s colorful, and it looks like it’d be good for you. – Thanks! – Imagine going from a place

That gives you really good school lunch, and moving to America. – (PvF) Next up from Spain, we’ve got a healthy lunch of zucchini puree, beef in a carrot sauce, sauteed veggies, and some fresh fruit. – Let’s try this. Let’s start my first course. – Ash, you spoil me, Ash.

– (PvF) That’s what I do! – Mmm. – That’s really good! – Is that bussin’ down? – That’s so good! – Incredible, oh my God, send that to me in a box. Holy crap. – (laughs) Woah! Really? – That’s good. – Woah, it’s that tender? – What!? What!?

Bro, if I had lunches like this… – This is really good. – I wouldn’t have never left school. – Gas! – (PvF) Yeah? – Yeah, this is good. – Gas! This is my school lunch? – Really good. – In Spain? – I think this actually might be a 10 out of 10.

I’m not gonna lie. – I think it is. – (PvF) Yeah? Both 10s out of 10s? – Kids in Spain are lucky. – It is really good. – Like, this feels like my last meal. You know what I mean? – Bruh. (laughs)

– I’m like looking around. – Not that kind of episode. (laughs) – (PvF) Before you get, you know… (clicks tongue) – Yeah! – (PvF) Is that what you mean? – Yeah, like why did they bring me this today? – (PvF) What do you guys think about the amount

Of like fresh veggies, fresh fruit that you’ve been experiencing so far? – The emphasis on fresh is what I would say, because I feel like you are provided the vegetables in our F’d up lunch systems. – Mmm. – But they always look like old or overcooked, or like slimy. – Mm-hmm.

– They force us to take something. They’re like you have to take a fruit or a vegetable. – Yeah. – That’s all they have. – And then all the kids throw it away. – Is the slimy carrots and the whole apple. Why not have a bowl of fruit?

– Mmm. – That someone will actually like? – How do you feed people like this? – Well, it depends on what you prioritize, you know? So that’s why it’s showing that health is a big thing for them. – You’re right.

– Because in the same sentence that you say you don’t have mixed fruit, you have a football field. – You’re right. – (PvF) How would you guys rate this? – This is a 10. This is a 10 on my scale. – Yeah, I was gonna give it a 10. – (PvF) 10!

– This is like a really good chunk of meat, you got the veggies. – This is a real good meal, forget at school lunch. – Yeah, no, honestly, I would pull this up for dinner. – (PvF) Alright, on a scale of 1 to 10, what would guys give it?

– 10. – (PvF) 10? – 10, 11. – Oh my God! – (PvF) Alright easy. – If I could give it more! – (PvF) Sorry I asked. – Yeah. (laughs) – (PvF) I’m sorry. – (student) For more people at our school, this is a typical lunch they would eat. One pretzel please. – Hot dog and pretzel action.

– (student) In total, this hot dog and this pretzel cost three Euros. – This is what I want. (Noah laughs) Auntie Anne’s, Wetzel Pretzel. (whispers) Get at me! – I believe it. – That’s like America. That’s like America. – Soup with sausage! – (students) Kids up to the sixth grade

Don’t have to pay for their lunches here in Berlin, but we’re older, so we have to pay. – Oh my goodness! – Oh, hell yeah! Oh my God! My heart! – I love pretzels. – It looks so good! – (PvF) And last up on the menu,

We’ve got a hearty bratwurst with mustard, a pretzel, and soup with more sausage from Germany. – It’s probably got that bounce when you break it. – (Noah) Ooh. – What’d I tell you? What’d I… – That’s perfect. – Period. (Noah laughs) – I love that. – That’s a good soup.

– That’s good right there. – That’s a good soup. – That’s a good soup right there. – I’m sold right there. – This is really good. – That puree was fantastic. – That puree was fantastic, but… – But it’s a little savory, it’s less salty. – Mm-hmm. – Yeah, but this is…

– There’s more flavors in this one, I feel like. – These places have cared about the kids. – Mm-hmm, yeah. These places have thought about their kids. – Thought about what they’re serving them. – They got special soup. They got hot dogs, but healthy hot dogs. They get pretzels.

– (PvF) So in case you couldn’t tell, Germans love their bread. According to the bread register of the German Institute of Bread, there are 3,200 officially recognized types of bread in the country. – Damn! – Recognized. We didn’t even talk about the illegal breads. – Wow. Did they invent bread?

– I like this though, it kinda gives me like, like I’m at a fun little fair. – (sighs) I’m in Heaven right now. – (PvF) What would you guys give this one? – 15. – I’d give it, as a school lunch… – I’d give it like…

– 7.5. – Five and a half to six. – Mm, mm, mmm. – I would give this one, I’d give it a 9 out of 10, ’cause obviously, this is like great food. But on the real, I would feel so, like can you imagine going to fifth period after this?

– (PvF) Going to gym after? – Yeah, like I’m supposed to think and run? Like, no. – I honestly give this one an eight. I think the soup is really good. I just don’t think it quite stands up to like being right below. – This is carrying.

– This is the one meal that has no fruit or vegetables, aside from what’s in the stew. – Yeah, it’s in the stew, yeah. – And then it’s still… – But you know, it is something. – It’s still cooked down. – Yeah. – So that takes some of that vitamins and stuff.

– Yeah. – Nutrients away. – (PvF) So what’s your new rating? – I’m gonna go probably eight, nine. – I give it 8.3. – (PvF) Rounding down, we’ll give it an eight. – Yeah, okay. – (PvF) Alright. – I wish I went to school anywhere else. That’s what I’ve learned! – Facts, facts! – (PvF) Spain was your guys’ favorite lunch of the day. – (both) Yeah. – Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. – Spain, Spain… – Spain held it down. – Fish sticks? – Oh my gosh, what about fish sticks? – Like, there was no competition. It’s almost like sad.

– They brought us some tender beef. They brought us this beautiful zucchini puree. I’ve never even heard of zucchini puree. – Oh yeah. – (whispers) Oh, that’s right. – Without a doubt, dude, the braised beef, a whole zucchini puree, the vegetables, the fruit, I mean. – Damn. – That was insane.

– That was Heavenly. – Oh, good yeah. – So I feel like everything had like one thing on the plate, where I was like, it’s gas. – Where yeah. I was like I could eat this. – Right. – And I would feel good about myself.

– I think it’s really cool that kids around the world are like eating healthy, cool, interesting foods. I will say, if they brought that food to my school, none of us would’ve appreciated it. We need to update food in our school system. – We need to update a lot! – Yeah. (laughs)

– Food is like right here. – Yeah. – Above me not knowing where states are. – Yeah! – (PvF) Thank you guys so much for watching this episode of People Vs Food, obviously, there’s a lot of different countries that we didn’t cover or get to,

So let us know what else we should do in our comments down below. I’ve never had borscht before, so I’m just gonna go for it. God, it has such a good flavor. I’d be so happy to have this in my lunch, and you know what? You can’t beat bread and butter. Mmm, bye!