Il tradizionale cibo britannico. | eatparade

Although Britain has a bad reputation for food, there are some dishes that are really good: meat pies, roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, Cornish pasties and a wide variety of cheeses.

British meals: Traditionally English people have three meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Breakfast is served in the morning: it used to be a large meal with cereal, eggs and bacon, sausages, mushrooms and grilled tomatoes, toast and marmalade and coffee or tea. Now people do not have the time to eat so much and they usually just have a bowl of cereal (cornflakes or muesli), a piece of toast with butter and marmalade and a cup of coffee or tea. Schoolchildren are encouraged to have breakfast before going to school because it helps them to study better.

Lunch (sometimes called dinner) has also become a light meal, often just a snack, since today everyone is too busy to stop and have a large meal. At school, children have a two course meal consisting of meat and vegetables followed by a pudding or fruit. Working people usually have a  sandwich and a glass of fruit juice or a beer. In summer a lot of Londoners like to have their lunch outside in one of the many parks.

The main meal of the day is dinner (sometimes called tea or supper) and the British usually have it between 6 and 7pm.

Traditional afternoon tea has become rare, too, although the British are ready for a cup of tea (a “cuppa”) at any time of the day. At weekends, when they have visitors, tea is served at about 5pm, with sandwiches, scones, cakes and, of course, tea served with sugar and either milk or lemon.