LinkedIn Pinpoint #778Answer & Analysis

Quick read: A word association puzzle connecting five clues through a shared theme.

Fast strategy: Start broad, narrow after clue two. If the first two clues seem unrelated, test whether a hidden word connects them as compound phrases.

The answer is Foods named for cities. Use the table below to check each clue, then skim the compact FAQ for the quickest path to the connection.

Today's puzzle felt straightforward… until it wasn't.

When the first clue appeared, I thought I had it. Easy. Or so I believed.

The opening word was Gouda.

My brain immediately went to two places:

It's a famous cheese.

It's also a city in the Netherlands.

With just one clue, that second thought felt like overthinking. So I played it safe and guessed "Cheese."

Okay. That stung a little. But it also told me something important: this wasn't just about food types.

Then came Frankfurters.

That's when the shift happened.

Frankfurters are sausages… but more importantly, they're named after Frankfurt, Germany. Now I had two foods that double as city names: Gouda and Frankfurt.

That couldn't be random.

I paused and reframed everything.

Not dairy. Not meat. Not European cuisine.

More specifically—foods that borrow their names from cities.

That felt clean. Elegant. And it fit both clues perfectly.

So I submitted "Foods named after cities."

And suddenly, the remaining clues felt like a victory lap.

Peking Duck? Named after Beijing (formerly Peking). Brussels sprouts? Brussels, Belgium. New York Cheesecake? No explanation needed.

Once the pattern clicked, it was airtight. Five foods. Five cities. Zero doubt.

What I loved about this one is how tempting the first clue was. "Cheese" is such an obvious category for Gouda that it almost dares you to guess it.

But the second clue pulled me out of that tunnel vision—and that pivot made all the difference.

Foods named for cities