Can I tell you the horror stories of my initiation into British food back in 1981? I have to laugh now about how naïve I really was! I honestly thought of England as, basically, another USA only with cooler accents. And a Royal family. Little did I know upon my first day in the UK that my dream was about to come to a screeching halt.
When asked if I wanted a sandwich for lunch at my B&B on that first day, I answered yes to a ham and cheese. As it turns out, that would be ham and cheese with no mayo… just a little sliver of butter. No juicy lettuce or tomato either. Just ham. And cheese.
Things didn’t get better when I was served baked beans on toast for breakfast. Oh, and they extolled the merits of Marmite, but don’t you believe them! Marmite is actually axle grease in a jar (ok, maybe it’s a yeast extract, but it looks and smells like axle grease!).
My apple pie didn’t come with ice cream, but had heavy cream poured over it. And when they talk about a delicacy called black pudding, don’t you touch it! It’s congealed blood!
Hamburgers and sausages were mixed with so much filler that you couldn’t taste the meat. And sandwiches didn’t have pickles – they had sliced cucumbers. English pickle is a nasty concoction sort of like a very vinegary chutney.
Thankfully, things have changed since those days. Now, there are gourmet English chefs like Jaimie Oliver, Nigella Lawson, and Heston Blumenthal. These folks appreciate good quality food and have done a lot to advance English cookery.
Another big advance (if you want to call it that) is the advent of more American franchises in the UK. You can hardly walk around a corner without seeing a Burger King, McDonalds, or Kentucky Fried Chicken. British tastes are changing and obesity rates are rising. (Apparently waistlines are proportionate to the amount of American food in your diet.)
However, if you get a Burger King burger, it actually *tastes* like a burger. That’s the tradeoff. Another trade-off is the loss of a cultural feel to England. You used to *know* what English food was. Now it’s just American food in England. The British are losing their culinary heredity. Like I said, good and bad.
For some of the very BEST things I’ve eaten in England, I have to say that the Battersea Pie Company makes an amazing Sticky Toffee Pudding.
The English also make some excellent fish n chips (if you don’t mind eating fried foods).
Another thing I loved about England were the afternoon teas. I’m very up with tiny sandwiches and desserts.
My suggestion to travelers to the UK is to research a bit for the type of food you want to eat. If you want to try a good fish n chips shop, ask the locals on Trip Advisor forums to recommend one close to you. If you want a traditional Sunday Roast lunch, see what others are reviewing highly and put that on your list. And, for afternoon tea, you have your pick of so many wonderful tea rooms, it will be a hard choice. So, have your reservation in hand and your belt loosened! Culinary adventures abound in England – do your best make sure they are good ones. Bon appétit!