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British Food

Have you tried British food? What did you think of it? The truth is that British food doesn't have the best reputation in the world. Why is this? And is it fair?

Yuk!

If you ask most foreigners what they think of British food, they'll use words like "bland", "revolting", "tasteless" and "boring". They go back to their countries with stories of truly horrendous dishes such as boiled cabbage and tripe.

And they are often amazed at some of the unusual British eating habits and customs. After all, Britain is the only country in the world that has fruit juice as a starter, where the people throw salt onto everything, and where a chip sandwich (otherwise known as a chip butty) is a national delicacy.

Traditions

Eating in Britain has traditionally been a functional necessity rather than a pleasurable experience. Potatoes are eaten with everything (the average person gets through 100 kilos of them every year), and the definition of a good restaurant is one that serves "hot food". Britain is also home to the famous English salad, which consists of half a tomato and a piece of lettuce, with earth and worms in­cluded for free; and it's the only country in the world where the phrase, "I'm full" is the way you show you are satisfied with your food. In France, people often wish their friends or guests "bon appetit" before a meal, and most other countries in the world have a similar phrase… except in Britain, where there is no equivalent ex­pression.

The Problem

Perhaps the best examples of bad food can be found in self-service restaurants on the motorway. In many other countries, most nota­bly France, they take care to ensure that even this cheap, ready-made food is of the highest quality. But in England, this is where you can find some of the worst food, with dry meat, cold chips and soggy vegetables... and everything covered in gravy to hide the taste. A waiter in France has to know about food and have an understanding about service; and you'll find this excellent quality in even cheap motorway cafes. However, in Britain, you pay a fortune for service and quality like that. But is all British food like that? No, of course not. And things seem to be changing.

Times Change

For a start, British desserts and cakes are some of the best in the world. In fact, they're so good that British school children are often punished with "no puddings" if they don't behave.

And apart from the desserts there are lots of fantastic traditional British dishes, including the famous full-English breakfast, mouth­watering sandwiches, delicious soups, the wonderful Sunday roast, amazing vegetarian restaurants and all the international food you could possibly imagine including Italian pasta restaurants, Spanish tapas bars, Indian curry houses and Japanese sushi bars.

Times Change

These days, British food is even being recognized on an international level. In a recent survey of the top chefs and critics, Britain had about 10 of the top 50 restaurants in the world. British chef Heston Blumenstal is probably the hottest chef in the world now; and an­other British chef, Marco Pierre White (from Leeds) is the youngest ever winner of a 3^rd Michelin star.

And that's not all. Bray, a tiny village in Berkshire, England has just 5,000 inhabitants, but two 3-star restaurants; and Ludlow, another small village in England, has three Michelin-starred restaurants. So, you see, there is good food in Britain. You just need to know where to find it.