Something I've always found odd about the US is that we seem to change every food we come in contact with that isn't from our mainland. Pizza in Italy is not what we eat here, the "Americano" supposedly came from US soldiers watering down their coffees in Italy, we have Tex-Mex restaurants like Taco Bell, Chinese places that apparently serve mostly things no one in China even eats in that preparation, and let's not talk about Olive Garden. What led to these changes? Who tended the be the one who changed them? With that, is this why I can buy croutons, cheeses, and breads that are supposedly styled as "Italian" or "Mexican"? What is the basis for these terms? If not, what was the reason?

EDIT: A followup from /u/Boneyabba, does this happen in other countries as well? If you get a pizza in Holland, is it "Hollandized?"