Cuisine

Meals
Daily breakfasts, three lunches, and four dinners are included in the journey price. Your journey staff will provide excellent dining recommendations for meals on your own.

Dietary Requirements
If you have any special dietary requirements, please include them in the dietary restrictions section of your online form. Special dietary needs may be accommodated with advance notice.

If you feel there may be a need to supplement your diet as a result, you may wish to consider bringing a few protein bars and other snack foods.

Alcoholic Beverages
During all lunches, non-alcoholic drinks are included. During all dinners, non-alcoholic drinks and one glass of wine or beer is included.

Food and Water Safety
When in England and France, you should follow the same dietary precautions as you would in the United States.

English Cuisine
English cuisine has been described as “unfussy dishes made with quality local ingredients, matched with simple sauces to accentuate flavor, rather than disguise it. While in London, try one of England’s most traditional meals: Sunday roast. Sunday roast typically consists of roasted meat (typically beef), roasted potatoes, vegetables and Yorkshire pudding– a popover made of baked unsweetened egg batter. The meal is often comparable to a less grand version of a traditional Christmas dinner.

Additionally, you might want to plan for a traditional afternoon tea, a uniquely British way to spend a few hours. Afternoon tea typically includes assorted scones with jam and clotted cream, finger sandwiches and pastries as well as your choice of tea. The descriptions below may be useful in familiarizing yourself with a traditional afternoon tea.

• Finger Sandwiches– Small prepared sandwiches which are easy to handle and capable of being eaten in two or three bites. Popular fillings include cucumber, egg mayonnaise with cress, smoked salmon with cream cheese, and ham and mustard.
• Scones– A single-serving quick bread/cake.
• Clotted cream– A thick cream, with a rich, sweet flavor, typically eaten with scones.
• Fine English Teas– Some common tea flavors include Earl Grey, English Breakfast Tea, Assam and Darjeeling.

These additional food descriptions may also be useful when dining out:

• Bangers and Mash is sausages and mashed potatoes.
• Biscuit typically means cookie, but can also refer to crackers.
• Black Pudding is sausage made of blood and suet (beef fat), and sometimes includes flour or oatmeal.
• Cockles are a type of clam.
• Courgette is the French word for “little gourd.” In Britain it is the word used for what Americans call zucchini.
• Chips= Fries (American).
• Crisps= Chips (American).
• Gammon typically refers to ham that is cured or smoked like bacon.
• Marrow (vegetable) can be one of several types of summer and winter squash. It is most commonly referencing a squash that resembles zucchini.
• Pudding is any kind of dessert.
• Pudding Wine is dessert wine.
• Rocket is arugula.
• Scotched Egg is a hard-boiled egg encased in sausage meat, rolled in breadcrumbs and fried. It is usually served cold.
• Shepherd’s Pie is typically made of ground meat topped with mashed potatoes, then baked.
• Soldiers are thin pieces of toast lined up or stacked.
• Squash typically means a soft drink, such as lemon or orange squash.
• Toad in the hole refers to sausages baked in batter.
• Welsh Rarebit is toast topped with seasoned melted cheese. (It evolved from “Welsh Rabbit” as a tease to Welsh who could not afford rabbit).

Since the 18th century, the consumption of gin has increased rapidly in London. The oldest and most well-known gin distillery is Beefeater Distillery, located in Kennington. Today, there has been an explosion of artisan-produced gins in the U.K., leading to dozens of new distilleries opening. In addition, many bars and restaurants also offer gin tastings that feature botanical flavoring.

Brits are known for enjoying time at the pub. One piece of advice is to remember it is customary to indicate the size of the beer being ordered; pint or a half (half pint). Get a jump start on knowing the typical drinks you’ll find on the menu as well as a couple tricky vocabulary differences in bar-speak in the U.S. vs. England.

• Bitter is what the British call beer; specifically, the very popular darks ales, brownish-red in color and with a slightly bitter taste.
• Black & Tan is typically Guinness poured on top of pale ale.
• Cider is often found on tap and in some places is more popular than beer. It is made from the juice of apples that has been given ample time to ferment, thus it generally becomes more alcoholic than typical beers.
• Lager refers to what Americans call “beer” and is enjoyed in a pint glass rather than from a bottle.
• Shandy refers to beer mixed with carbonated lemonade, ginger beer, ginger ale, apple juice or orange juice.