Episode 1

The first helping of this epic adventure runs from Chicago to St Louis and provides a wholesome bite into the story of America, a country built on migration.

Chicago historically drew migrant workers into its supersize meatpacking industry, and with them came a lineup of dishes as diverse as the city’s population. Dave and Si discover hickory smoked BBQ meat and a rather soggy Italian beef sub roll, which sees them adopt a very particular stance to avoid wet boots.

In small town America, the duo enjoy some retro roadside spectacles that provide entertainment and intrigue, including the huge fibreglass figures known as ’muffler men’. Dave and Si enjoy a championship-winning apple pie and learn how Route 66 entered American folklore by connecting small town America from east to west and enabling it to prosper.

The pair are privileged to receive an invitation from the Amish community, where they cook together and learn more about this very different way of life.

Crossing the Mississippi into Missouri, Dave and Si visit the city of St Louis. Fuel comes in the form of Route 66 institution, Ted Drewes’s ‘concrete custard’ – a treat so rich and thick it’s served upside down. The bikers encounter a story of modern migration with the city’s Bosnian community, as they sample their wonderful food.