English Meals

An Englishman's day begins when he sits down to breakfast with his morning paper. There is nothing he likes better than his favourite breakfast of cornflakes with milk and sugar, bacon and eggs, toast and marmalade, tea or coffee. It is really a big meal. Round about 11 in the morning some Englishmen, who work have their tea or coffee break. Then at midday, say from 1 till 2, the city pavements are full of people on their way to cafes. This is lunch time in Great Britain. At lunch people seldom eat soup. Those who have lunch at home may eat chicken or clear soup but not always. They usually have a meat course and a sweet dish. Englishmen like steaks, chops, roast-beef, Yorkshire pudding or fish and chips. A meat course is served with plenty of vegetables: peas, beans or cauliflower. They call green cabbage leaves or lettuces "salad" and eat it with the so called "salad-dressing", a mixture of oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and mayonnaise. A sweet dish is perhaps fruit and pudding or a pie with tea to follow.

Afternoon tea can hardly be called a meal. Tea drinking is quite a tradition with the English. 5 o'clock tea is not usually served at the table though Englishmen don't find it convenient. Each person has a cup and a saucer and a spoon in his hands. Strong tea is mostly drunk with sugar and cream or milk. Such tea is known as English tea. Tea with lemon is called Russian tea in England.

The evening meal, when all the family gathers round the table, after their working day, goes under various names: tea, high tea, dinner or supper. It is usually a meat course followed by tinned fruitor cake and tea.

When outing, that is on a picnic, the English load their luncheon baskets with all sorts of hamburgers or sandwiches made of slices of bread and butter with ham, cheese, raw tomatoes, cabbage leaves in between.

On the whole, English cuisine is not the best in theworld. Englishmen prefer just "good plain food".