If You Know What Lox Is, Then You're Smarter Than This Wheel Of Fortune Contestant

Epically failed attempts to solve the puzzles on "Wheel of Fortune" are oft-discussed, especially by fans of the long-running game show. For example, rapper Snoop Dogg once guessed "baking onions" when the correct puzzle answer was "baking brownies." Then there was the "Wheel of Fortune" contestant who incorrectly guessed "Surf clay where we go," even though the word "come" was already on the board as the last word. The correct answer? "Surf City here we come."

On the March 1, 2023 episode, a contestant named Angie Gautney had a buzzworthy show moment when she attempted to guess a Food & Drink puzzle. When she rang in to give her answer, the audience likely thought Gautney was confident about her response, especially since only three letters remained from the eight-word puzzle. Unfortunately, Gautney answered incorrectly but now knows a little more about American Jewish cuisine as a result. While her response might have seemed laughable to some, it's possible someone's knowledge of the missing ingredient could depend on their geographic location. 

Lox moved from Scandinavia to American Jewish cuisine

The aforementioned "Wheel of Fortune" puzzle featured letters that read, "WARM TOASTED _A_ELS WITH LO_ AND CREAM CHEESE." Angie Gautney guessed, "Warm toasted bagels with low and cream cheese." The correct word was lox, not low. While the answer was obvious to some, it clearly wasn't to her. In case you've also never heard of lox, it's a strip of brined salmon that originated in Scandinavia and is now part of American Jewish cuisine. When combined with cream cheese on a bagel, it's referred to as lox and schmear.

The responses to Gautney's blunder were mixed. Some people empathized with the contestant, claiming they didn't know what lox was, either. One Twitter user claimed they, "Learned what lox is today!" They also added a hashtag to indicate their Midwest location, which seems to be the reason for not knowing. One of their followers seemed skeptical of this claim and replied, "Come on. Lox is pretty darn common everywhere." Even if Gautney didn't know what lox was, the answer couldn't have been "low" since there was already a W on the board.

On Facebook, one viewer commented that lox is a staple in New Jersey and New York. Another commenter said the puzzle should have said "schmear" instead of "cream cheese," since that's what it's called at Einstein's Bagels. Regardless of where lox is popular, one place this bagel topping will always be remembered is in Gautney's memory.