Eating Out in England

Author: 
Kayla Honeysett, Plus3 United Kingdom Summer 2022

During my short two weeks studying abroad in England, we went to many brilliant restaurants as a class as well as having the opportunity to explore on our own. I have always been someone who loves to bond over a good meal which is why I loved to try new things on this trip. We mostly ate out every meal because we were staying in a hotel room without a refrigerator and were traveling to different cities some days.

One of my goals for this trip was to try the classic English dish of
fish and chips. Since many of my classmates shared this desire with me, we got some on our very first day in Birmingham! I have had fish and chips in the states before, but none were as good as here. I noticed that in England, their chips tend to be thicker whereas in the states, they tend to be crispier. The only thing I did not like about this dish were the mushy peas. By the way, here are some British English to American English translations: chips=french fries and crisps=chips.
The meal I was looking forward to the most was English tea! I did not know what to expect going into it other than there will be tea. I was pleasantly surprised by the various scones and small sandwiches that were available. My favorite way to eat the scone was by spreading cream cheese and strawberry jam on top. Then, my favorite sandwich was filled with salmon and cream cheese. The tea I decided to order was peppermint, but my friends and I all shared so we could try new ones!
My favorite excursion of the trip was when we went to Stratford Upon Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare! During our tour of the cute town, we visited a number of places honoring Shakespeare such as the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and his birthplace. That night, the group went to a restaurant called Edward Moon. I ate the best gnocchi I have ever had followed by a heavenly marbled white and dark chocolate brownie. That brownie was the best dessert of the entire trip.
Another absolutely brilliant meal that I had was at at a french restaurant with a gorgeous view of the canal called Bistrot Pierre. I ordered their signature dish boeuf bourguignon which is marinated diced beef slowly braised with red wine, shallots, mushrooms, bacon, pomme purée and honey-roasted carrots. The food just melted in my mouth as the flavors came together in a beautiful way. This entree was the best of the trip.

I have to say that although I have tasted a myriad of English dishes, the best meal experience I had was in a pub called Figure of Eight in Birmingham. A few of the friends I had made along the trip decided that we wanted to go to the pub one last time before heading home. We also invited Jessica, a nursing student from Brimingham City University that we had met earlier that week, to join us. We all shared various food and drinks all while laughing and reminiscing on the past two weeks of our trip. It was the perfect way end to our time together.

 

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