Question On Manners Here and There

I think here in American our "tea" time is "happy hour".

I eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner. (well, I actually eat about six times a day but I haven't named all six meals...lol)

A mid breakfast/lunch time meal would be called brunch.

Supper, to me, is dinner. Dinner is around 5-7 PM

I'm a boring Canadian. lol

I actually eat all day long. If I do go out with someone though I call it either breakfast, lunch or dinner depending on if it is before 11:00 AM (breakfast) between noon and 3:00 (lunch) and anytime after (dinner) unless it is after midnight, then back to (breakfast again).

The "happy hour" in UK is nothing to do with tea, and everyithing with alcohol - "happy hour" is that time when they sell drinks at much lower price in pubs, in order to attract more customers, early in the eveing, before the usual charging of prices starts again.

And BTW in some parts of UK people still call their lunch, "dinner" even today, not in the distant past.

Senna

Over here in CA we have breakfast, lunch and dinner. My grandma was from Kansas so dinner was supper and was NEVER on time! Although I think that was just a Grandma hates cooking thing.

Invites are at 6 with the understanding that food will actually be served about 45 minutes after that. So we can socialize, have a drink, and I can sit down for a few minutes with guests before I put the final touches on the meal. For those of my family and friends who are chronically late, I tell them 30 min before that!

I love the idea of tea. I need my mid-afternoon snack as we rarely eat before 7:30 anymore. An early dinner is 6 and that rarely happens.

theresae wrote:

pen wrote:Well in England dinner is always in the evening, except (and I mean nothing derogatory) in the very working classes years ago when dinner could be at lunch time.

Penny take that silver spoon out of your mouth!! LOL

Oh dear is it showing?? One tries to be humble....

Actually my mum working class snob (miners daughter) from Newcastle
Dad East End bakers son....

So meals called all sorts between them....

For me, if you say dinner at 6 pm, it is understood that you arrive at 6pm and eat around 6:30pm.

It is always looked on as a plus if you bring wine (except that I don't drink) or desert or a salad. If a salad, it should be more than just lettuce.

One should always leave by 9pm unless it is obvious that everyone is having a great time, then by 10pm.

If it is a large group, then the host should plan on a very late night, but one should never stay past the bewitching hour.

Hal

Senna wrote:Quite right Therese, the above description sounds as if someone is not only rather insecure but also poorly informed, since such wording is often related more to regional, rather then to specific class distinctions in UK.
And BTW, pointing to any class differences is most definitely, bad manners.
Senna

Here we go again. Senna I cant decide if you deliberately misunderstand me or not.
"It sounds as though someone" You know exactly who the someone is, dont prevaricate.

First I am not insecure and what on earth in my post suggested that.
IT WAS AN HISTORIC OBSERVATION. Not a personal one!!!

Second I am far from poorly informed, it is nothing to do with region and forgive me, but having been here all my life and lived the very working class life I spoke of, I think I might just be better able to discuss this than yourself.

Third. It is not bad manners to discuss class distinction in the UK. It is acceptable and a part of our chequered history.
It has provided us with some very fine literature and television and films enjoyed worldwide.

Lastly, having PM'd me and suggested you wanted to be nicer, you have not go off to a good start at all.
I would politely request you try harder for the sake of everyone else on this forum.
We dont need another week like last week, but I will not tolerate your critical bullying tone any more.

On and lastly, I think you will find Theresa was joking.

LizzieB wrote:T
I did gulp at your comment Pen
Liz

You are joking arent you...

I am working class. Few years earlier I would have been down the pit.
My post was illustrative, I did say that.....

perhaps it would be better to clarify what one means by one's meal.
This is what Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Supper means to me.


Breakfast:

it is light, (usually morning meal)
~ consisting of milk and cereal or eggs, bacon etc

Lunch

~ it is medium heavy meal, (usually from afternoon to 3 pm), consisting of soup, salad, burger other usually fast food type food.

Dinner

~ a main, major part of daytime meal

for some people it's happening during lunchtime- around 2pm- and later,
and for some in the evening 5pm- 8pm
consisting of heaviest, solid meal of the day - meat, potatoes or pasta, or rice, veggies, sometimes followed with dessert, sometimes preceded with soup.

Supper
~ again a light meal, taking place at evening usually past 7 pm. Some people skip this part altogether.
Supper can be a piece of bread with slice of ham, tomatoes, lettuce, or re-heated dinner leftovers, or whatever
but it always less than dinner.

And Brunch happens when one overslept for breakfast and combined breakfast hours and food with lunch
- hence the word: breakfast + lunch = brunch.


houwgh.

Risa

hmmm, interesting post! i'm getting hungry.

with the people i know, you can drop in un-announced. one phrase recently said to me....."it's better to be seen than viewed."

i don't have breakfast (i know, i know)...i guess it's more like brunch.

10:50am (consists of usually soup, tons of medication, and an hour of bsing with my dad).

dinner is a bit later.

4:50pm (can be a repeat of lunch, or a massive feast).

before dad retired, we ate at 6:30-7pm when dad came home. mom and i would steadfast wait until he arrived. i hold onto this to still--i don't eat until he sits down, and i get yelled at for waiting, LOL.

the only custom my dad has is when he makes something, he makes huge portions. he doesn't care if it ends in the trash (of course we save for leftovers). he never, ever wants anyone to leave the table without having enough to eat.

oh yeah, and 10:00pm usually it's time for a snack.

I think I go by a meal name.
If I have a steak and potatoes and coleslaw, it's dinner no matter what hour it is

Risa

pen wrote:

Oh dear is it showing?? One tries to be humble....

..

that made me laugh, pen,

and of course i was joking!

Pen,

In the US it has become so sickeningly politcally correct that one can not even talk about the "black" race unless you are "black". History is history, whether recent or past, be it good or bad. Not talking about it doesn't change it.

All,

By the way, I am 25% Polish. If I tell a Polish joke or make comments on how dumb Polocks are (historical prejudice), do I get flamed? I of all people should be able to comment on Polish history, make jokes or comments about my heritage. Even the term "Polock" in some circles has a derogatory connotation, but none intended here. I think that some of us are much too sensitive, need to read more accurately and keep their short-fused flaming comments to themselves. I read Pen's comments and understood them without any difficulty.

No one needs to comment on this post. Doing so would be counter productive. We just need to READ it and think about our own unnecessary public comments.

The sign read: "I am sure that what you think I said is what you heard, but I am not so sure that what you heard is what I said."

Hal

The sign read: "I am sure that what you think I said is what you heard, but I am not so sure that what you heard is what I said."

not commenting Hal just this is one of my favourite quotes

I may be showing my age and Southern roots ... but does anyone else do Sunday Dinner? A large meal at midday with a light supper at night? It is like a reverse of lunch and dinner on the weekdays. Just curious.

Risa,
Your description is pretty much the same as in our house...
Good idea to clarify what we eat as well as when we partake.

P

Richard wrote:I may be showing my age and Southern roots ... but does anyone else do Sunday Dinner? A large meal at midday with a light supper at night? It is like a reverse of lunch and dinner on the weekdays. Just curious.

Sunday dinner was huge when I was a kid. My mother wouldn't leave the house, it had to be the whole thing, usually roast meat, potatoes, 2 or 3 veg. Then dessert, anything from rice pudding to fruit cocktail and evaporated milk....(now who is showing their age??)

It would be 2pm ish and was a ritual not to be broken. I imagine it was the same in almost every house in England at that time.
And it was called Sunday Dinner. It would be supplemented around 6pm or so with "tea" (sometimes high tea). This would be a little salad, or just sandwiches. Maybe some cake afterwards. Depending on appetite. Of course it was all according to taste and financial means.

When I was about 12 we used to go to The Tower of London every Sunday for Church and would stay out for lunch.
If I didnt go I would have to stay in to do the dinner, it couldnt be missed. If I declined my father couldn't budge my mother.
I think her upbringing was such (very working class) that dinner was important and a family time. The woman saw this as love as well as duty and nourishment toward her family.

When I got married in the 70s, we made a pact to not be a slave to Sunday dinner and we eat whatever whenever.
Except on "occasions" like family dinners ,these are at abt 3pm.

Now with so much convenience food and shops open 24/7 things can be quite different.

Pennie

Pen (and Richard) - exactly the way it was when I was growing up. Sunday "dinner" was mid-day like around 2:00. Always had someone like my Grandma there. It was a big dinner like roast and potatoes with all the trimmings and dessert was served later in the day when "dinner" is usually served during the week. We would pop popcorn while watching TV later for a snack.

After I left home, I protested like Pen and decided meals weren't going to run my life. My husband's grandparents lived on a lake where we spent our weekends. If we were to eat by their rules we would never would have had any fun. After breakfast we would hop on the boat and purposely not come home until late in the day or else we would have been stuck with lunch and snacks and no sooner get done and dinner would be ready.

I refused this schedule on my kids also. We eat when we are hungry. Since we had such busy schedules, I kept fresh fruit, nuts, etc. always on hand to grab while in a rush (never junk food). Then we would all sit down late around 8:00 for a regular meal.

We do that on Holidays. A big feast at about 3ish followed by a light snack an hour or two later. Although that snack was usually a large desert. A piece of this pie, a piece of that pie, some cookies, tea or coffee. And then you roll off to watch a movie.

My Mom and I always end up making so much food that you have to two meals to get it all tasted.

Such fun.

I always enjoyed "Sunday Dinner" around 2pm. My Grandmother would prepare the meal and it would always be roast chicken, stuffing, veggies of various kinds and home made pie. All of the aunts and uncles would be there. Now I never see these people (some are long dead) and I miss the family. My kids never seemed to pick up on this idea and I hardly see them either. ( the ungrateful rats) Maybe the grandkids will feel sorry for their Grandfather some day and I'll be off fishing in Alaska.

Hal

We don't do it in our home unless it's a holiday, Richard. My parents have always, and still do have a big Sunday dinner every week. They don't change they name for it through, because the old timers in that area call it dinner at noonish, and supper at 5ish. Among the younger people most call the noon meal lunch. Times have just changed as we went along I guess.

I always use the term lunch, but interchangeably call the evening meal dinner or supper. That's alright because I also use the terms soda and pop for soft drinks. I grew up calling it pop, but when I moved here people laughed at me so much I started calling it soda. Still slip back into the old ways sometimes. You can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl.

Brenda- it is "pop" for me also.

Brenda,

I call it all "Coke". I also call my truck my car for some reason. Habit I guess.

Hal

What if you want a Mountain Dew Hal?