Another cultural question...

[PigletsPal2]

When I lived in England (1987-1989, not too long ago), high tea was a more substantial meal - sliced meats, cheese, bread, pickles, etc. and afternoon tea was little cucumber sandwiches, cress sandwiches, along with buttery rich tea cakes and scones. Am I wrong in this? I get my knickers in a twist when I see "real High Tea served" at pseudo-English restaurants/tea rooms, when they're serving tea cakes and scones. (well, not really, but it annoys me!) If someone who really knows tells me I'm wrong, I'll untwist my knickers and shut up. Off my soapbox now, and thank you.

Queen Colleen

 

[orlandothebeagle]

All I know is that there better be cakes or my knickers will be in a twist!!

 

[Dimplenose]

Yes, High Tea is a substantial meal in the early evening. Afternoon tea is a cup of tea and a slice of cake in the middle of the afternoon but I think the distinction has got lost over time.

Also the naming of meals varies from area to area and family to family.
We have lunch in the middle of the day but call our evening meal tea or dinner if it's more formal. Other people call the mid-day meal dinner (in school we have a "dinner lady" who serves the midday meal) and the evening meal is called tea (or supper if it's served really late).

 

[UKDEB]

Our working day (and, thus, eating pattern) is very similar to yours and for most of my 47 years, lunch for most people has been a sandwich or salad with our main meal taken in the evening. Afternoon tea is served in cafes and some hotels, mainly in tourist areas, but I don't know anyone who has "High Tea". When eaten at home our evening meal is interchangeably labelled tea, dinner or supper.

 

[CustardTart]

Gosh, I haven't seen the phrase "high tea" in years! Brings back some lovely memories... My Grandfather grew up on a farm and when I lived with my grandparents as a child, we had high tea every day at around 5pm which was just as you describe (plus there was always pie) - hearty food designed for speed and sustenance so the workers could continue labouring through the afternoon and evening.. Seems those pseudo-English restaurants/tea rooms have got their teas mixed up...

 

[PoppyAnna]

I think what the OP is talking about something that has been continued as what was the perception of upper class living in previous centuries. When I think of high tea, I think of the Ritz or Savoy. Where tea is served with bitsize sandwiches and scones/jam.

Yes, High Tea is a substantial meal in the early evening. Afternoon tea is a cup of tea and a slice of cake in the middle of the afternoon but I think the distinction has got lost over time.

Also the naming of meals varies from area to area and family to family.
We have lunch in the middle of the day but call our evening meal tea or dinner if it's more formal. Other people call the mid-day meal dinner (in school we have a "dinner lady" who serves the midday meal) and the evening meal is called tea (or supper if it's served really late).

I agree, in hour house we have breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Since DD started school a year ago she is often invited home to another child house for "tea" I think this is because they have "school dinner". She is often asking me why we have dinner and everybody else has tea and whats the difference she sees tea as a drink.

Gosh, I haven't seen the phrase "high tea" in years! Brings back some lovely memories... My Grandfather grew up on a farm and when I lived with my grandparents as a child, we had high tea every day at around 5pm which was just as you describe (plus there was always pie) - hearty food designed for speed and sustenance so the workers could continue labouring through the afternoon and evening.. Seems those pseudo-English restaurants/tea rooms have got their teas mixed up...

I'm part Irish and spent a lot of my school holidays in Dublin my Grandfathers family would have tea but this was breads, jams, cooked meats or bacon and always cake (bread, soda and otherwise is a big part of the Irish diet) A pot of tea was on the table constantly but this meal was mainly eaten around 4pm, as Karen says think it was to sustain the working man to get through to a later dinner than we have.

 

[wicket2005]

Our working day (and, thus, eating pattern) is very similar to yours and for most of my 47 years, lunch for most people has been a sandwich or salad with our main meal taken in the evening. Afternoon tea is served in cafes and some hotels, mainly in tourist areas, but I don't know anyone who has "High Tea". When eaten at home our evening meal is interchangeably labelled tea, dinner or supper.

Snap, except I am not 47 till June.

 

[orlandothebeagle]

Yes, High Tea is a substantial meal in the early evening. Afternoon tea is a cup of tea and a slice of cake in the middle of the afternoon but I think the distinction has got lost over time.

Also the naming of meals varies from area to area and family to family.
We have lunch in the middle of the day but call our evening meal tea or dinner if it's more formal. Other people call the mid-day meal dinner (in school we have a "dinner lady" who serves the midday meal) and the evening meal is called tea (or supper if it's served really late).

That is so true, my hubby calls lunch dinner, it bugs me, I am always moaning, weve been married 17 years, so I dont think I will change him!

We still go for high teas, we get tea and toast a main course and then cakes, mmmmmm

We had high tea on the disney magic and it was naff, just incase any of yuo think about doing it.

 

[wifey]

Calling lunch "dinner" is something we've got used to doing at school when we were small, the women who took care of school meals and the kids were always known as "dinner ladies" not "lunch ladies" and even now our son comes home and says "so-n-so got told off by the dinner nannies for not ...." you get the idea. It's something you pick up in childhood which stubbornly refuses to budge as you grow older even when you know it's wrong it still slips out Hope this helps you.

 

[mikki.young]

My uncle and aunt who live on a farm also used to refer to high tea. It was more substantial and less delicate than afternoon tea and the uncle used to go back to work afterwards. There used to be a dinner later in the evening after the children had gone to bed but this wasn't as substantial as what I would consider dinner to be now (but then I don't have high tea!)

 

[madmumof2]

Also the naming of meals varies from area to area and family to family.
We have lunch in the middle of the day but call our evening meal tea or dinner if it's more formal. Other people call the mid-day meal dinner (in school we have a "dinner lady" who serves the midday meal) and the evening meal is called tea (or supper if it's served really late).

I agree, in hour house we have breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Since DD started school a year ago she is often invited home to another child house for "tea" I think this is because they have "school dinner". She is often asking me why we have dinner and everybody else has tea and whats the difference she sees tea as a drink.

That's the same here. I grew up in Leicester where it was breakfast, lunch (sandwiches) and dinner (hot meal). I still think of this as the 'right' way but since my son started school I've realised here (Rutland) it's breakfast, dinner and tea, with the hot meal being in the middle of the day and tea as sandwiches, cake etc.

I've still not got used to this so Cameron has two 'dinners' every day, one at school and one at home, seeing as me and Alyssa have only eaten sandwiches since breakfast lol.

 

[wideeyes]

I have never heard of high tea. We have had afternoon tea when staying at hotels which was tea, and some cakes and really tiny sandwhich.

 

[Bolanette87]

That is so true, my hubby calls lunch dinner, it bugs me, I am always moaning, weve been married 17 years, so I dont think I will change him!

Robert calls lunch dinner too and it really annoys me!

I have to say, High Tea really isn't a common practise anymore.... I've certainly never had high tea..... My friends and me once had a high tea picnic for novelty value in the summer, but not a proper high tea.... It's the sort of thing you do seem to have to go out of your way to do.

I simply have breakfast (rarely), lunch (Usually a Sandwich or Wrap, but sometimes Pasta or something like that) then a large meal in the evening.....

Bob xoxoxoxox

 

[CustardTart]

My uncle and aunt who live on a farm also used to refer to high tea. It was more substantial and less delicate than afternoon tea and the uncle used to go back to work afterwards. There used to be a dinner later in the evening after the children had gone to bed but this wasn't as substantial as what I would consider dinner to be now (but then I don't have high tea!)

When living with my grandparents, we had supper as the final meal of the day and that was usually a snack-type thing - I remember toasting crumpets on the fire... Dinner was a lunch-time thing - a hot meal served on the dot of midday as I recall...

So the order of the day was breakfast, dinner, high tea and supper... When I returned to live with my parents it reverted to the brekkie, lunch and dinner format I follow (sort of) today...

Afternoon tea is terribly civilised - looking forward to trying it at the Grand Floridian with my DD in September...