Bob

Can I expect Pastries and Coffee or Boiled Tomatoes and Tripe included with my nights stay ?

sgorces

You can expect about 2000 calories and 40 grams of fat! It consists generally of a couple of eggs cooked usually poached or up, some very hard bread fried in fat, the world's worst excuse for bacon, normally some juice and tea, and sometimes some coffee of varying quality. I strongly recommend you avoid the fried bread, ask for it toasted instead. Just don't bother eating the bacon, it is flavorless and hard like shoe leather (sorry Brits. it's true). In London, look up Seattle Coffee Company (various locations). I thought I was in a coffee wasteland until I found them! Advise you try East Indian and Thai over there. Terrific country, splendid people, terrible food. Have fun!

Linda

It sounds like the previous poster had some terrible luck! A "full English Breakfast" does indeed include eggs of some variety--I've always been asked how I wanted them cooked. On the last trip I always was offered both sausage and bacon, some of which I liked and some of which I didn't. The bacon there tastes more like what we call Canadian bacon here. There is usually the offer of cereal, with some places offering a choice (cornflakes are the default). I was offered the choice of tea or coffee--decent coffee--everywhere I went on my last trip. And I've never been offered fried bread. My only quibble with the toast is those funny little toast racks that are supposed to make sure the toast stays crisp--but they make sure it cools off to room temperature before you can eat it! By the end of a week we were happy to get back to a lighter morning fare, but there was little to complain about the quality of the breakfast food. In my experience the English are much maligned as cooks--there is good and bad cooking in every country.

Richard

Don't know where sgorces had breakfast in the UK, but we have never had a similar experience. We have had breakfast in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland and they were GRRRREAT.
Eggs to order, bacon far superior to anything we can find here (Dallas) and tomatoes done in some way I can't duplicate at home. So the toast is a little cold, the marmalade more than makes up for that! Thing is, you have to run about 10 miles to work it off, but it's worth it.

cindy

My experience with the Full English Breakfast has been similar except they always included baked beans! Typically, there was some type of cereal, juice or fruit to start, then we were given the option of the whole breakfast or parts. The choices were eggs however you wanted them cooked, bacon (I agree, it is like what we in the midwest call canadian bacon), sausage, fried tomatoes and/or beans. I'm not a coffee or tea drinker so I can't vouch for those! We did find that if we ate most of the breakfast, we got by with a light lunch - which saved us some money. And yes, we did walk all day to work some of it off! This was in B&Bs. Generally, the owners appreciate it if you do not order more than you are going to eat. In hotels, there was usually some type of buffet and you could choose what you wanted. I also have stayed in some of the newer motels on the major roads - similar to our Super 8 motels. They offer a continental breakfast which is closer to what we typically eat here. Have a great trip!

Karen

Our full English breakfast have been pretty close to the others mentioned, and, generally, very good. Started with oj(orange water), fried and up eggs, bacon(we thought outstanding) and sausage that looked like hot dogs, we just wished they had been hot dogs, and always, cold toast...occasionally, baked beans, black pudding(congealed blood with drops of white fat throughout...really yucky!). They asked whether you want the tea or coffee black or white. That means, cream or black. They also will bring extra hot water for the tea and hot milk for your coffee, so it won't cool down the coffee. British don't like sweets for breakfast, so eat pancakes, waffles and french toast at tea time...I have seen pancakes and waffles for sale in bakeries. My in-laws always put ketchup on their french toast at breakfast, so for all these years I have sat across from my husband who puts ketchup on his french toast...really awful. Oh, we also had a funny incident at The Lamb Inn in Great Rissington in the Cotswolds...on the menu they had fried eggs with bacon and poached eggs with sausage and you absolutely could not have fried eggs with the sausage or poached eggs with the bacon...they said they fried didn't go with sausage and poached didn't go with bacon.

Sue

I disagree wholeheartedly with your first respondant. As with anyplace, including the states, you get what you pay for. Afull English breakfast at the Ritz is different from a lower priced hotel. The food is absolutely wonderful in England and Ireland, you just have to do a little homework. The one thing I will agree with isd it is a heart attack on a plate! The eggs are cooked to order and I think the bacon and sausages are very good, just different from what you're used to, but if you want what you have back home - why travel? You usually get a wonderful warm tomato and sometimes you get mushrooms. I think the toast caddies are cute. Coffee is very strong - much more than we have here, so I usually do a cafe au lait thing. If you want decaf, you usually get a tin foil pouch of Sanka. Have a great time and enjoy!

Fiona

I disagree with the last poster, generally the breakfast is best in small hotels and bed and breakfasts which are usually cheaper. It is cooked to order there and doesn't sit around keeping warm for ages like in many bigger places.

Hyro

Is that what you English call " A Full Monty"?