Eating out is one of the things which has changed hugely over my lifetime. My parents used to go out for dinner occasionally. I was taken to restaurants for lunch, often on Bank Holidays, as an encouragement for good table manners. Eating out for most people was a very definite treat, if it happened at all. Indeed one of my friends remembers eating out as an ordeal because everyone was so tense on the rare occasions it happened.
Looking at my diary this month (OK a special month for me) I've been out for coffee and a "schmackerel" three times, afternoon tea at a tea-room with a couple of cousins, breakfast twice, brunch once and I have two lunches out still to go. And then there was an afternoon tea to celebrate a 95th birthday, two harvest suppers, and lunch at a cousin's home.
I suspect I eat out more frequently than most people because I live alone and most of my friends live at least ten miles away, but the proliferation of tea rooms, restaurants and dining areas in pubs suggests I am not alone.
I love the word "companion" which has at its root the idea of people with whom one eats bread. Not only do I love the word, I love my companions too.
I have always loved that word too, and the concept of "breaking bread together"
ReplyDeleteIt's a word I use often when preaching.
DeleteEnjoy your lunch, it's great to get out and chat.
ReplyDelete