One of the stereotypes about England that I heard repeatedly, especially when I mentioned my upcoming trip, was that the food is awful. I am here to dispel that rumor, as a majority of my meals during my vacation were wonderful. In fact, the first restaurant of the trip made the best ham sandwich that I have ever eaten. EVER!
I spent an afternoon touring the town of Newbury with Dan's mom and she took me to the cutest cafe for lunch called the Teashop by the Canal. I ordered a ham sandwich on granary bread. The key to making this sandwich so superior was the liberal spread of heavenly onion chutney. The onion chutney was so delicious, that if allowed, I would have grabbed a spoon and eaten it straight out of the jar. Speaking of chutney, if any stereotype might be true about English food, it could be that they have an abundance of chutney/jams/jellies. It works for me.
Later the same night, I had dinner at a restaurant called The Newbury, located right in the Newbury town center. I would best describe The Newbury as a Gastropub, great food with an upscale, yet warm vibe. The location has undergone many incarnations, including a nightclub with purple walls. It was packed on a Saturday night, especially the bar area. On the recommendation of Dan's sister, I ordered the Fish n' Chips, which ended up being a wise choice.
Monday was the coldest day of our trip. Freezing. We took Dan's kids to the park, but didn't last more than twenty minutes before needing to warm up inside. We took a warm-up break at the Cafe Rouge that is located in Newbury's new outdoor mall. It snowed as we had coffee and cakes.
I ate too much to limit it to one blog post. Stay tuned for more England food reviews.