RickAns
Dedicated Member
I have some questions on tea time and eating schedules. Have heard of high tea, low tea and elevenses in various shows and not thought much about it until the other day when I tried to learn more about them. Found a few web pages with some bits of semi helpful info that I have cobbled together. I realize things are different current day than when these traditions started. Here is what I have so far.
Elevenses = 11 am late morning work break.
Afternoon tea = around 3-4 pm also called low tea, kinda posh with finger foods and nibbles.
High tea = about 5- 7 pm working class evening meal or supper with meat pies.
Dinner = 7 - 8 pm posh folks meal.
There was no mention of breakfast or lunch in either article. Would elevenses be considered as lunch or just before? Why separate the two - have a tea break then turn around and have another break for lunch?
I can be completely wrong on this and if so I apologize. My knowledge is shaped from TV shows (scary, I know). Not trying to stir anything up between posh and working class just don't know how else to describe the two examples. In this context when I think of posh I think of Downton Abbey type folks who are wealthy enough to eat whatever they like and whenever they would want. Working class folks in factories, working the fields, servants, those earning their pay through labor. Who may not always be able to buy as much food as they would like or must eat according to their scheduled work breaks.
Afternoon tea was described as being invented by a posh lady (who I cannot remember her name) when she did not want to wait so long between meals until dinner time. Since no 'lunch' was mentioned I am left thinking why would they wait from breakfast or their first meal of the day until 7-8 pm dinner time to eat? If they had lunch then I can understand a midday snack. If no lunch at all then not eating at all till 7 pm or finger food only until then does not make sense to me. She was posh why was she not eating whenever she liked?
It has been years since I watched Downton Abbey and I cannot remember if the servants downstairs ate before or after the posh family upstairs. If the servants ate before then that would explain why high tea supper is earlier than dinner for the upstairs folk. I would think the posh would not want to wait until after their servants had eaten for themselves to eat. Wouldn't the servants eating sooner mean interrupting their own meal to prepare the upstairs meal? Just trying to understand how things worked.
Elevenses = 11 am late morning work break.
Afternoon tea = around 3-4 pm also called low tea, kinda posh with finger foods and nibbles.
High tea = about 5- 7 pm working class evening meal or supper with meat pies.
Dinner = 7 - 8 pm posh folks meal.
There was no mention of breakfast or lunch in either article. Would elevenses be considered as lunch or just before? Why separate the two - have a tea break then turn around and have another break for lunch?
I can be completely wrong on this and if so I apologize. My knowledge is shaped from TV shows (scary, I know). Not trying to stir anything up between posh and working class just don't know how else to describe the two examples. In this context when I think of posh I think of Downton Abbey type folks who are wealthy enough to eat whatever they like and whenever they would want. Working class folks in factories, working the fields, servants, those earning their pay through labor. Who may not always be able to buy as much food as they would like or must eat according to their scheduled work breaks.
Afternoon tea was described as being invented by a posh lady (who I cannot remember her name) when she did not want to wait so long between meals until dinner time. Since no 'lunch' was mentioned I am left thinking why would they wait from breakfast or their first meal of the day until 7-8 pm dinner time to eat? If they had lunch then I can understand a midday snack. If no lunch at all then not eating at all till 7 pm or finger food only until then does not make sense to me. She was posh why was she not eating whenever she liked?
It has been years since I watched Downton Abbey and I cannot remember if the servants downstairs ate before or after the posh family upstairs. If the servants ate before then that would explain why high tea supper is earlier than dinner for the upstairs folk. I would think the posh would not want to wait until after their servants had eaten for themselves to eat. Wouldn't the servants eating sooner mean interrupting their own meal to prepare the upstairs meal? Just trying to understand how things worked.
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