[HPFGU-OTChatter] Re: Need British Menu Suggestions

[Catherine Keegan]

At 08:09 PM 10/14/01 +0000, Catherine Coe wrote:
>--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at y..., Amanda Lewanski <editor at t...> wrote:
> > Neil Ward wrote:>  British cuisine is confusing; that's it's appeal!>
> > Ah, *that* explains it. We knew it couldn't be the taste.
> > --Amanda
>
>OK, now I'm getting wound up.  First Catherine Keegan, now you.  I
>can't remember ever going into a restaurant in England and being
>asked if I wanted chips with something (unless I was in a fish and
>chip shop).  There are a lot of very bad restaurants out there, but,
>funnily enough, most of them are variations of American chains, and
>not "English" at all.

Hey!  We got asked that question all the time.  Now, I must admit that when 
I travel, I don't go to expensive restaurants.  I prefer to think of myself 
as "thrifty" but it's probably closer to "cheap" when it comes to a lot of 
dining excursions.  Curry shops (not the nice Indian restaurants that the 
UK is blessed with. ), pizza parlors, any place we stopped at in the small 
towns, they all asked if we'd like chips with our order.  I'm not much of a 
potato person to start with even though my Swedish mother and my Irish 
father worshipped the spud in all its forms so the offer of chips with 
every lunch and dinner caught my attention.  (Now, what is it with the 
frightening potato scones at breakfast?  The traditional English breakfast 
that they serve in the B&Bs was a tad off-putting.  We quickly learned to 
ask for porridge or just eat the cereals and the *sigh* cold toast.)

>There is a difference between the rubbishy restaurants found in most
>touristy areas, and English cuisine.  The former is pre-prepared,
>microwaved cardboard/plastic shit, I grant you, but the latter, when
>done well, is absolutely wonderful.

I will grant you that the Welsh do lamb wonderfully.  So, the next time we 
visit England, what key phrases should we look for to find the better 
versions of English cuisine?  I'm perfectly willing to be convinced that 
there are much better dishes than the deep-fried or boiled travesties that 
we found.  The pottage was usually very good but there are only so many 
days in a row that it appeals.

>Why is it that a conversation on traditional English food always ends
>up in a "Lets all slag off English food" contest, with most British
>people on the list being the most vociferous?

Would it make you feel better if you knew that the Americans slam (is that 
what slag equals in slang?) each others regional cuisine all the time?  I 
just finished my "the Southern Californians can't make a decent cup of 
coffee" tirade.  Each regional area has its own food identities that it 
gets kidded about.  Grits, for example.  Okra.  Hmmm.   I'm showing my 
Western regionalism here.

>Catherine, aggrieved, but still loving Amanda dearly.

The other Catherine in far too sunny Albion.  Where the heck is my fog?