Traditional British food

Britain has some excellent traditional food: lamb from Wales, shellfish and fresh salmon from Northern Ireland, fresh or smoked fish from Scotland, cheeses from Scotland and Wales.

Unfortunately, good British food is difficult to find. Only 2 per cent of restaurants in London serve British food. There are many more Italian, Chinese and Indian restaurants.

Restaurants serving “British” food tend to be either very expensive and found in luxury hotels, or cheep and nasty serving mainly fried food. You can eat a good “British” meal without spending a lot of money by going to a pub. Most pubs now serve good value hot and cold meals. They often have family areas where people under 16 can sit and eat.

Most British people, if they go out for a meal or buy a takeaway, go to their local Indian or Chinese restaurant. There are 8000 Indian restaurants in Great Britain and most towns, however small, have one.

Indian restaurants serve food from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. North-Indian food is the most common: spicy curries with meat cooked in oil and served with rice or different types of bread. South Indian food is often vegetarian since most southern Indians are Hindu and eat little or no meat. Indian dishes are spicy and can be either mild or hot.

Most Chinese restaurants serve lunch-time snacks called “dim sum”: steamed or deep-fried dumplings, with either savory or sweet fillings.

People in Britain are more likely to eat fast food then go out to eat in a posh restaurant.The most successful fast-food restaurant in Britain is the American chain, McDonald`s. A hamburger and French fries is the most popular fast food meal in Britain, but not all fast food is American. Kebab houses are often run by Greek ore Turkish Cypriots, are also very popular.

People spend less time cooking now. An increasing number of people eat convenience food in the evenings. Convenience meals are already cooked – all you have to do is heat them up in the microwave.

About 10 per cent of British people are vegetarian. If you are vegetarian, eating out is quite easy in Britain because there are quite a few vegetarian restaurants. Unfortunately, there are very few good chefs who specialize in vegetarian cuisine, which means that most vegetarian food is rather boring.

II. Answer the following questions:

1. What traditional British food do you know?

2. Is it easy to find a restaurant serving traditional British food? Why?

3. How often do you eat at the table with your parents?

4. Do you think convenience food is fast food?

5. Which of the dishes mentioned in the text can you find in your country?

6. Do you think British eating habits are healthy?

7. Do you think eating habits in your country are healthy?

III. The following are the things you might do when you go out to eat at a restaurant. In your opinion in what order would the events take place? Write numbers from 2-13. The first one have been done for you.

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