Traditional British Food and Drink
Great Britain is jam-packed with produce and traditional recipes. From fish and chips to sticky toffee pudding, we've listed traditional UK foods (and a few drinks) to give you a real taste of Britain.
Sunday roast
A Sunday roast is a warm, comforting, hearty meal. You'll find most pubs have a roast on offer each Sunday and it's particularly popular in the winter months. A roast consists of roasted meat (sometimes more than one) such as chicken, pork, lamb or beef alongside roasted potatoes, vegetables and a whole host of trimmings. Yorkshire puddings, stuffing, cauliflower cheese, mashed potato and braised red cabbage are just a few of the side dishes that make a Sunday roast so good.
Cromer crab
Cromer Crab is famed for being the best in the UK thanks to the pure, nutrient-rich water along the Norfolk coast. The brown crab meat has a unique, delicate flavour and goes perfectly in a sandwich. Cromer beach is just 10 minutes away from our West Runton Club Site, and you'll find plenty of restaurants and cafes serving the popular seafood. Crabbing (catching crabs) is a popular pastime for those holidaying along the coast.
Fish and chips
This is probably the most classic British food on our list. There are around 10,500 fish and chip shops in the UK, giving an indication of how popular the dish is. If you've never visited a chippy before, you should order a classic cod and chips with either mushy peas or curry sauce. Other items on the menu often include battered sausage, pies, fish cakes and even pickled eggs.
Cheddar cheese
For cheese lovers, a visit to Somerset isn’t complete without sampling some of the region's finest Cheddar. From our Cheddar Club Site, it’s about a 10-minute drive to The Cheddar Gorge Cheese Company, the only cheddar producer left in the village. The working dairy and shop allow you to look at the production process and purchase award-winning cheeses.
Clotted cream
Dairy farmers in Devon and Cornwall can be thanked for this thick, indulgent cream that goes perfectly with jam on a scone. Remember that it's jam or treacle first in Cornwall, but in Devon, it's cream.
Cornish pasty
Traditionally filled with a mixture of beef, potato, swede and onion these golden shortcrust shells are regarded as the national dish of Cornwall. Nowadays there are endless filling variations available, be sure to take a Cornish pasty pit stop on your travels.
English tea
Approximately one million cups of tea are drunk each day in Britain. The Tregothnan Estate in Cornwall were the first ever tea company to grow on British Soil. The tea gardens at Tregothnan were established in 1999, and in 2005, the estate contributed to the first sale of truly “English Tea” in the UK. Many varieties of Tregothnan tea are available to buy online including Manuka, Red Berry and English Breakfast Tea.
Full English breakfast
Most breakfast menus in the UK, from greasy spoons to high end restaurants will have an iteration of the traditional full English, also known as a "fry up". The dish usually includes a selection of bacon, sausages, eggs, black pudding, baked beans, tomatoes, mushrooms and fried bread. Its a hearty dish, designed to keep you full.
London Dry Gin
Gin held a significant place in London’s history books, with The Gin Craze in the 18th century. Today, the popularity lives on, with many distillers and gin lounges going strong in London. London Dry Gin is enjoyed globally, flavoured using only natural plant materials. Here are some great distillery tours in the UK.
Bakewell pudding
Those visiting Bakewell should head to The Old Original Bakewell Pudding Shop to purchase the popular treat. On offer, you’ll find Bakewell pudding, made with puff pastry as well as the traditional Bakewell tart. The shop is just under 15 minutes away from our Bakewell Club Site by car.
Chelsea Buns
According to the history books, 50,000 people queued up to buy one of these buns on the day they went on sale by the Old Chelsea Bun House in the 18th century. Cinnamon, currants, lemon peel, brown sugar and butter are combined with enriched-egg dough to form a gloriously sticky baked treat. Visit Borough Market in London to pick up a freshly baked bun.
Eton mess
Strawberries, broken meringue and whipped double cream are combined to form the traditional English dessert, thought to originate from Eton College.
Garlic
Garlic is of course, grown all over the UK, but in the Isle of Wight The Garlic Farm is a real celebration of the pungent plant. You can find everything from garlic-flavoured beer to chutney and pesto at The Garlic Farm in Newchurch. The shop and restaurant are open seven days a week!
Oysters
Cider
Beer
British honey
Littleover Apiaries in Derbyshire is just one of the UK’s leading honey suppliers. We recommend checking whether there's a local beekeeper near you or your campsite.
Melton Mowbray pork pie
A pork pie shop so popular it has its own signpost, Ye Old Pork Pie Shoppe has been up and running since 1851. Hot water crust pastry is hand raised to create the famous pie which is filled with pork and jelly before being cooked without a mould, resulting in its distinctive shape.
Cadbury chocolate
Around a 20-minute drive away from our Clent Hills Club Site, you can learn all about the history of Cadbury and sample a few sweet treats along the way at Cadbury World. Milk Chocolate, Milk Tray and Bourneville Chocolate (named after the location of the factory), are just a few treats invented at the factory in Birmingham. Why not discover more things to do in Birmingham while you're there?
The balti
Birmingham is the original home of the balti, a curry defined by the small steel bowl it's cooked in. In the 90's and early 2000's the Balti Triangle in Birmingham was at it's peak. Visit one of the remaining balti houses for an authentic meal in the area it originated from.
Asparagus
Evesham, in Worcestershire, is home to the annual British Asparagus Festival. The festival spans two months and features charity asparagus auctions, family fun runs, asparagus tours and much more.
Wensleydale cheese
If you’re camping in Yorkshire a visit to Wensleydale Creamery (the only place to produce true Wensleydale cheese) is a must. View cheese making demonstrations, visit the child-friendly museum and browse the gift shop where you can choose from over 20 varieties of handcrafted cheese.
Yorkshire puddings
Originally called “dripping pudding”, these savoury boats of baked batter are the perfect accompaniment to a Sunday roast. In Yorkshire, you’ll often find pub menus include a giant Yorkshire pudding filled with sausages, mash, peas, and lashings of onion gravy.
Sticky toffee pudding
The home of sticky toffee pudding, Cartmel Village Shop is around 25 minutes away from our Windermere Club Site. Still handmade, no matter the demand, you won’t find a better sticky toffee pudding anywhere else.
Beer
There are thousands of breweries across the UK. With multiple locations, including those in the city of York, Brew York offers insightful tastings and is within easy reach of our Sheriff Hutton Club Site.
Chips and gravy
Yorkshire puddings aren’t the only food enjoyed with gravy throughout Northern England. Chip shops in the North offer gravy as a popular sauce. Don’t knock it till you try it.
Kendal Mint Cake
Discovered after a batch of glacier mint sweets went wrong, Kendal Mint Cake is popular amongst walkers and climbers. The energy boosting snack is still produced and sold today, providing a sweet treat on long walks from your campsite.
Cumberland sausage
Traditionally up to 21 inches in length, a Cumberland sausage is made with pork, a variety of seasonings and herbs. Made with chopped, not minced pork, Cumberland sausage has a chunky texture.
Lancashire hotpot
Topped with sliced potatoes, this is a deliciously warming, traditional slow-cooked stew. Traditionally a hotpot is made with lamb or mutton, but there are many regional variations.
Haggis
Traditionally served with vegetables, tatties and neeps (mashed turnips) the crumbly sausage-like meat mix is an integral part of any Burns Night supper. Haggis is made of oatmeal, suet and seasoned sheep offal. Not for the faint of heart, but well worth a try for an authentic flavour of Scotland.
Cranachan
Seasonal berries, oats, whisky and crowdie (a type of cream cheese, sometimes substituted with double cream) make up this delightful Scottish dessert. There are variations and debates over which ingredients make a true Cranachan, but any combination of the above sounds good to us.
Whisky
Whisky is Scotland’s national drink. Taxes were imposed on Whisky in 1644, and by 1780, there were only around eight legal distilleries. Today there are just over 100 distilleries in Scotland producing their variations of Scotch Whisky. There are three types of whisky to look out for:
- Malt whisky: made using malted barley, water and yeast, which is distilled and then matured in whisky barrels for a minimum of 3 years.
- Grain whisky: mixes malted and unmalted barley with cereals. That mixture is combined with water and yeast, and the resulting mixture distilled.
- Blended whisky is a mixture of the two. The Famous Grouse, Bells and Johnnie Walker are all examples of blended whiskys.
Find a distillery tour near you.
Apple crumble
One of the most quintessentially British puddings, apple crumble consists of a sweet apple filling with a crisp, buttery topping. This is a classic pudding to enjoy after a Sunday roast.
Welsh cakes
Made from flour, sugar, milk and butter, Welsh cakes can be best described as a mix between a scone and a biscuit. Currants, nutmeg and cinnamon, are popular variations. Welsh cakes are cooked on a griddle, not baked and eaten cold, usually on their own.
Welsh rarebit
For this Welsh classic, cheese sauce is poured over slices of toasted bread. Mustard, Worcestershire sauce and paprika are often added to the mix for added flavour. A delicious variation on the usual cheese on toast.
Irish stew
A variety of stewed vegetables and meat, native to Ireland this warming stew is great after a day of exploring the Emerald Isle. Potatoes, carrots, onions and lamb are common ingredients. Some may even include mutton.
White pudding
Also known as oatmeal pudding, this favourite is similar to black pudding but doesn’t use blood as an ingredient. Usually, suet is combined with oatmeal, breadcrumbs and pork in a sausage casing. Just like with black pudding, white pudding can either be cooked whole or sliced and grilled.
Soda bread
Historically, soda bread was the product of a bare cupboard, but the same simple recipe is as popular today as it was hundreds of years ago. Flour, baking soda, soured milk and salt are combined and baked in a variety of shapes.
Guinness
Guinness is probably one of the most well-known products from Ireland; Arthur Guinness started brewing Ales at the St James’s Gate Brewery in Dublin in 1759. Today, you can go and stand in front of that brewery and take a tour of the factory next door, giving you the opportunity to try Guinness within a few metres of where it’s been brewed.
Scotch eggs
Despite their name, Scotch eggs are believed to have originated in Whitby. Often served at a picnic or buffet, a Scotch egg is simply a boiled egg wrapped in sausage meat, covered in breadcrumbs and deep-fried.
Bangers and mash
Bangers (sausages), mashed potatoes, and gravy are a classic pub menu item and a common dish to make at home too.
Christmas pudding
Served once a year in most households, Christmas pudding is a steamed, fruit and nut filled dessert. The dense pudding is traditionally drenched in warm brandy, set on fire and then served with cream.
Ploughman's lunch
Traditionally, this farm workers lunch consists of cheese, bread and an apple. Today you'll find a Ploughman's on pub menus in the UK with a great selection of meats, cheeses, and pickles.
There are endless eateries and shops you can visit to sample the items listed above. Did you know that if you join the Club you can benefit from up to 30% off Club Site fees whilst exploring the UK?