Hi there!
I am currently studying abroad in London under LC’s England: Fine Arts program, and I’m so excited to be able to share with all of you the wonderful adventures that I get up to while abroad. Check out some of my other blogs to learn more about the program, the logistics of going abroad, and life as a study abroad student!
I’m going to talk a little about British food. More specifically, English food, even though the food throughout Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland can’t be much different. It gets a pretty bad rap– the joke is often that England invaded half the world for spices and then decided that they didn’t really like any of them. And… sometimes this is true.
The biggest thing about England is that they have much stricter regulations around what you can and cannot put into food– fewer preservatives, fewer chemicals, fewer dyes. It makes junk food a lot more boring, but… I suppose, it’s healthier for you overall. Everything is less sweet here, too– they don’t pump food full of high fructose corn syrup like we do in America. So, in general, things are blander.
But! There is some English food that is better than you might think.
First, and most obvious is the tea. The British have adopted tea into their culture, and they love it. Coffee is available here, and good coffee too, but the tea is simply phenomenal. Good tea available wherever you go, nice loose-leaf stuff, for a pretty reasonable price. But the thing that makes tea absolutely wonderful? Biscuits. Say what you will about British food and English food, they know how to make a good cookie.
Along the tea route, scones are absolutely delicious. They’re more like a traditional American biscuit than what we think of as a scone, but they are so good when warm and fresh. I’m still not sure what exactly clotted cream is, but slather that on a scone with some jam and give me a cuppa.
Crumpets are like a chewier English muffin. They’re okay.
Fish and chips is closer to American food than anything else I’ve had in England (other than actual American style food). Deep-fried, served with french fries, yes. Delicious. But the problem is they’re served with peas. The peas aren’t necessarily bad peas even, but they feel a little out of place with the rest of the dish.
Also, chips here are almost always larger steak-fry stile fries, and as an avid fan of crispy fries, this is very painful for me.
Meat pies! Excellent. Will you be able to find a sweet pie in this country? Probably not. But, fill one with potatoes, carrots, and steak, stewed in a lovely ale sauce, and it is sure to taste good.
Bangers and Mash is another traditional English food, and it is pretty underwhelming. It’s a very simple dish, sausages set over mashed potatoes and served with yet more peas. Not exciting, not very tasty.
There are countless other odd dishes, especially those served in pubs, like sausage rolls and scotch eggs, and toad in a hole. It would take me a long time to list all of the odd things the English have eaten for centuries, and even longer to try them. Traditional English food can be excellent, it rests on good local ingredients and an element of simplicity that I appreciate. However, as far as it being bland and boring? It kind of deserves its reputation.
One of my teachers has attempted to convince me that Chicken Tikka Masala can now be considered a traditional English food, since “curry” is offered so much across the country, but I’m not too sure about that one.
While English food isn’t really the best or most creative, the London food scene is quite excellent. A bustling urban area, there are lots of restaurants and food markets, and it’s easy to find some great food for pretty cheap prices. My favorite thing to do is go into Chinatown for some dim sum on my days off!
Anyway, there are some great things about English food, especially that it tends to be fresher and have fewer preservatives, but I do find myself missing American food quite a bit especially the food that I just can't find here, so if you’re reading this go eat some Cheetos for me!