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Writer's pictureMarie Roettger

Is it tea time yet?

Everyone of us heard about the famous tradition of afternoon tea in the wonderful country of England. But, who had the first afternoon tea and started this tradition?


The history of the Afternoon tea ceremony in England goes back to the year 1800. The Duchess of Bedford seemed to be very hungry between lunch and dinner (which was usually held around 9 pm. She, therefore, decided to break up the time with a little tea and a little piece of bread and butter. As she shared her tea and bread with her royal friends, other high society ladies picked up on the idea and started hosting small afternoon gatherings with tea and bread and butter. Voila, a tradition was born.


"What would the world do without tea? How did it exist?"


Did you hear that quote before? You can find it in Sydney Smith's "Recipe for Salad." What does salad have to do with tea? That's a great question. You may need to go to the source of the musing. The full quote was "Thank God for tea! What would the world do without tea? How did it exist? I am glad I was not born before tea."


Smith lived 1771-1845 and it's said that the rhymed recipe is 'an amusing and sensuous guide to making a dressing that ‘would tempt the dying anchorite.’


It’s not tea time yet? English pubs are a great place to get lunch, meet locals and learn a lot about the history of the bustling city. London offers several centuries-old public houses, where the walls could tell you stories from the Great Fire of London and the Second World War.


Some of those pubs were even around before Shakespeare, while others are Victorian additions.


We talked enough about beverages, what about the traditional English breakfast? Do they eat beans every day?


A 'Full English' aka an English Breakfast, typically includes bacon, fried egg, sausage, mushrooms, baked beans, toast, grilled tomatoes, and accompanied by tea or coffee. Did you know that a full English comes in different regional variants and is referred to by different names depending on the area? It is so popular in Britain and Ireland that many cafes and pubs offer the meal at any time of day as an "all-day breakfast."


Did we make you hungry now? Why don’t you make your own ‘Full English’ right now? As we just learned, you can have it at any time of the day!


Click on the link below and see how you can make your own English breakfast! Enjoy!




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