In France, a sandwich is called “un sandwich.” In Spain, it’s “un sándwich.” Things get weird in Portugal where it’s called “sanduiche”. Even in Greece, the word is “σάντουιτς.” And it turns out that sounds a whole lot like “sandwich.”

But just because inserting meat between two slices of bread is a near-universal concept, that doesn’t mean it’s free from the machinations of the New York Department of Taxation and Finance.

In order to help businesses determine what they should and shouldn’t put a sales tax on, in 2011 the state posted a “bulletin” recently uncovered on Reddit that gets technical in its definition of what our friends in Japan call a “サンドイッチ” (again, sounds just like sandwich).

Here’s what should be included in New York’s so-called “sandwich tax,” according to the state:

“Sandwiches include cold and hot sandwiches of every kind that are prepared and ready to be eaten, whether made on bread, on bagels, on rolls, in pitas, in wraps, or otherwise, and regardless of the filling or number of layers. A sandwich can be as simple as a buttered bagel or roll, or as elaborate as a six-foot, toasted submarine sandwich.”

The bulletin goes on to list examples of what exactly a sandwich is. In case you didn’t know, the items below are all sandwiches:

This BLT sandwich is what the New York Department of Taxation and Finance refers to as a “common sandwich,” since, well, it’s a sandwich.

People not familiar with what a sandwich is might call this a burrito. It’s a sandwich.

Mmmm, check out this delicious open face butter sandwich served with roll bread.

Headed to the ball game? Be sure to indulge in a classic American past time with one of these hot dog sandwiches.

By defining these “bread-based snacks,” the New York Department of Taxation and Finance defends it’s just trying to help.

“It’s trying to stress the point that all sandwiches are generally subject to sales tax, that’s the message you want to get across,” Cary Ziter, a spokesperson for the Department of Tax and Finance, told Gothamist in response to the new attention the bulletin’s received.

In summation: If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it’s probably a sandwich.

Correction: A previous version of this article implied that the bulletin was posted by the city of New York. The New York Department of Taxation and Finance operates on behalf of the entire state.

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Summer is one of our favorite seasons by far, not only because it’s hot and sunny and we get to go to the beach, but because we get to so much ice cream. You see, we take the arrival of summer as an unlimited license to eat all the ice cream we want, and we take our pursuit of ice cream very seriously.

Since every summer brings new flavors — or at least previously undiscovered ones — we see it as our duty to go out and try all the newbies. Last summer, flavors like Steve’s Bklyn Blackout and Jeni’s Juniper & Lemon Curd were pulling our heart strings. This summer, from a pool of over 50 contenders, we rounded up more ice cream from Steve’s and Jeni’s, as well as flavors from Graeter’s, Ben & Jerry’s, Ample Hills, Snoqualmie, McConnell’s and Van Leeuwen. It was tough work, but somebody had to do it.

The ice creams that stood out to us the most were unique in some way — either the base flavor, the texture or the pieces in the ice cream (because we’re seeing a lot of that these days), were original. Our favorites just spoke to us, for their individuality and their fresh, authentic flavors. One ice cream’s consistency was unlike anything we’ve ever had — it was like a cross between ice cream and marshmallow fluff. One ice cream contained pieces of cake that were the moistest, most delicious morsels we’ve ever tasted. Another was so light and fresh we felt like we had been transported to a backyard picnic. It’s hard to go wrong with ice cream, but these ice creams are seriously right.

Here are 13 ice cream flavors we’re super excited about this summer.

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