Writing
| Pub Lunches |
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A lot of my favourite places are associated with food, this is not just because I like eating (which I obviously do) but because food is a great way to see other people and have nice, stress free chats. A mountain of pasta and something involving chocolate can make even the most painful of conversations more pleasant. I'm particularly fond of lunches, which come without the pressures of needing to get home to sleep. Of the many and varied types of eating establishments out there my favourite by far, are pubs. Pubs are to restaurants as Starbucks are to cafes. You can sit in a pub for as long as you like and if you have a partially full glass in front of you, no one will bat an eyelid. Unlike restaurants you can dally over the menu as long as you like and if you really haven't been able to decide what to have for lunch, just stay for dinner as well. Chain pubs may be looked down on by many for their lack of character, but they do have their uses. I can go into any Wetherspoons in the land and know I can get a decent meal for a pretty good price (their breakfasts are particularly good). A Slug and Lettuce on the other hand will get you a really good meal for a not so cheap price. They generally even take orders at the table, unlike most pubs where you have to move. My brother and I have been known to bicker extensively over who has to trek to the bar, even trading paying for both meals in favour of not having to move. Individual pubs can be slightly more risky. Like independent restaurants you just have to take a chance on them, sometimes it pays out, but other times you can end up with disappointment. My pub of choice at the moment is The Duke of Kent out Ealing way, a beautiful pub with a nice patio area, wonderful food, charming service and the mixed blessing of being fairly inaccessible by public transport. One of the things I love about pub food is that you don't have to decide what you want to eat until you are actually sitting at the table. With other restaurants you've pretty much had to decide what you want before you've left your house, or even days in advance if you've had to book a table. If you're at an Italian you're having pasta or pizza, curry at an Indian etc. But at most pubs the menu will present you with pasta, burgers, sandwiches, curry, stuff with chips, stuff with potato and a spattering of nibbles as well. Of course with great diversity comes great dilemma and I have been known to flap extensively about meal choices. The best pub food come with words like "hearty" and "substantial" attached to it, I will put up with pretentious twiddliness on the menu but only as long as it results in a large plate heaped with food. There are two standard dishes that can be used to evaluate pub cuisine – bangers and mash and the burgers. Bangers should not be budget or burnt, mash should have met a potato at some point, gravy should be plentiful and some form of vegetable gets bonus points. For burgers they should be moist without making the bread soggy, some kind of sauce is good, chips are a necessity, the burgers should be customisable and if you're charging a quid extra for cheese, make it a chunky slice. If these staple dishes pass muster then it's a good indicator for the other items on the menu. Of course with any meal the real decider is the desert. Here's where pubs can really show their stuff. Unlike restaurants you can take a nice break between your main course and your desert, so you don't have to turn it down with excuses of being full, or leave yourself completely stuffed. The Duke of Kent does a particularly fine line of deserts, with a rotation of specials, more fancy tarts and cakes supplementing the solid classics like apple crumble or brownies. A sizable dollop of ice cream or puddle of good custard is a definite requirement, and the option to chose your topping is another easy source for brownie points (pardon the pun). In good weather there really is nothing quite as lovely as sitting in a beer garden spending the entire afternoon eating, gossiping and laughing with friends. Roll on the sunshine! |